Postdoctoral Fellow (PREP0005063)

Johns Hopkins University • Gaithersburg, MD

60d • Onsite

About The Position

This position is part of the National Institute of Standards (NIST) Professional Research Experience (PREP) program. NIST recognizes that its research staff may wish to collaborate with researchers at academic institutions on specific projects of mutual interest, thus requires that such institutions must be the recipient of a PREP award. The PREP program requires staff from a wide range of backgrounds to work on scientific research in many areas. Employees in this position will perform technical work that underpins the scientific research of the collaboration. The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML), part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), is seeking a Post-Doctoral Researcher to support critical minerals chemical composition research. Candidates must be US citizens and will report to the NIST Charleston, SC laboratory, which is co-located with the USDOC NOAA Hollings Marine Laboratory. The candidate will develop both solid and solution sampling calibration methods using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), laser ablation (LA) and other techniques to characterize the elemental composition of complex material streams such as battery black mass and electronic scrap. These streams contain critical minerals and materials that have economic value, but recovery pathways remain nascent. The driver for this research focuses on validating calibration methods that could potentially port to industry and bolster measurement capabilities across domestic critical materials supply chains.

Requirements

• PhD in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, or a related field.
• Proven experience with acid digestions, and trace element quantification is required.
• Fundamental knowledge about plasma source mass spectrometry and LA-ICP-MS is desirable (> 3yrs).
• Excellent written/oral communication; track record of meeting milestones in multidisciplinary teams; demonstrated first author publications.
• Must be comfortable working with caustic and corrosive chemicals and working in a laboratory that maintains strict clean sample preparation protocols ensuring low blanks and cross contamination.

Nice To Haves

• Familiarity with metal extraction and preservation chemistry, Li battery chemistry, rare earth and toxic metals analyses.

Responsibilities

• Develop LA and solution-based ICP-MS calibration methods for quantification of critical and toxic metals in complex industrial materials and feedstocks.
• Prepare sample pellets for LA calibration and analysis; perform microwave-assisted acid digestions of complex secondary materials (e.g., black mass, e-scrap) and associated reference materials.
• Design sound experiments; Optimize and run ICP-MS instrumentation and couplings; interpret complex datasets; develop and apply high accuracy calibration schemes.
• Prepare findings for peer-reviewed publications, technical reports, and oral presentations.
• Deliverables to include internal Reports of Analysis.
• Maintain strict adherence to institutional safety requirements, including hazardous chemical handling protocols; protect intellectual property of candidate research materials.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree