Heat Exchange Design Engineer
About The Position
Ampera Clean Energy is developing a modular power amplification system that uses nuclear heat input to drive supercritical CO₂ power conversion hardware. Our work sits at the intersection of high-temperature heat transfer, advanced thermal systems, power electronics, mechanical design, and rapid prototyping. We design, build, and test hardware to mature breakthrough energy technology from concept to deployment. Ampera is looking for a Heat Exchanger Design Engineer to design and develop large-scale heat exchangers for advanced supercritical CO₂ energy systems. The role will focus on MW-scale thermal hardware, including a primary heat exchanger operating with high-temperature sCO₂ streams, sCO₂ recuperators, and low-side water and air heat exchangers in the 8–20 MWth range. This position spans conceptual design, thermal-hydraulic analysis, mechanical design, vendor engagement, prototype fabrication, and test support.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Nuclear Engineering, or a related field
- Experience designing heat exchangers, thermal systems, pressure equipment, or high-performance fluid hardware
- Strong understanding of heat transfer, fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, pressure drop, and thermal-hydraulic design methods
- Proficiency with engineering analysis tools such as MATLAB, Python, Excel-based design tools, CFD, FEA, or similar software
- Experience with CAD tools such as SolidWorks, NX, Creo, or similar, and ability to create clear engineering drawings and specifications
- Working knowledge of pressure equipment design, high-temperature materials, mechanical integrity, and design-for-manufacturing principles
- Ability to support hardware builds, vendor reviews, testing, troubleshooting, and design iteration in a fast-moving development environment
Nice To Haves
- Hands-on experience with supercritical CO₂ heat exchangers, recuperators, primary heat exchangers, compact heat exchangers, or air-cooled heat exchangers
- Experience with high-temperature equipment, nickel alloys, stainless steels, diffusion bonding, brazing, welding, or advanced fabrication methods
- Experience with additive manufacturing for thermal-fluid hardware, including design-for-additive-manufacturing, complex internal flow passages, manifolds, lattice structures, or prototype heat exchanger components
- Knowledge of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, ASME pressure vessel and piping requirements, heat exchanger standards, code calculations, vendor data packages, and inspection requirements
- Experience developing or validating heat exchanger models against test data, including uncertainty, instrumentation, and off-design performance evaluation
- Previous work in nuclear, aerospace, power generation, high-temperature process equipment, concentrated solar power, or advanced energy systems
- Candidates should be prepared to discuss or share examples of relevant design work, subject to confidentiality obligations
Responsibilities
- Design MW-scale heat exchangers for supercritical CO₂ power systems, including primary heat exchangers, recuperators, water coolers, and air coolers
- Develop thermal-hydraulic designs, sizing calculations, pressure-drop estimates, performance maps, and off-design operating assessments
- Evaluate and develop heat exchanger architectures such as printed circuit heat exchangers, plate-fin units, shell-and-tube exchangers, finned-tube coils, and air-cooled heat exchangers
- Perform mechanical design and analysis for high-temperature, high-pressure equipment, including pressure boundaries, thermal stresses, fatigue considerations, manifolding, headers, supports, and nozzle loads
- Select materials, joining methods, and manufacturing approaches suitable for high-temperature and high-pressure sCO₂, water, and air service
- Create design specifications, procurement packages, models, drawings, interface control documents, and verification plans for heat exchanger hardware
- Work directly with suppliers and fabrication partners to review designs, resolve manufacturability issues, evaluate proposals, and support hardware release
- Support prototype testing, performance validation, troubleshooting, inspection, and design iteration based on measured data
Benefits
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Competitive salary
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Parental leave
- Savings bank
- Stock options plan
- Vision insurance
- Relocation assistance may be available based on role level and candidate location
Stand Out From the Crowd
Upload your resume and get instant feedback on how well it matches this job.
What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
