Researcher III – Computational Fluid Dynamics

National Laboratory of the Rockies•Golden, CO

10d•Onsite

About The Position

The Scalable Algorithms, Modeling, and Simulation group in the NLR Computational Science Center has an opening for a researcher to advance computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and multi-physics modeling for energy technologies. This position will support and further the capabilities of our advanced simulation tools to address critical challenges in synthetic aviation fuels, hydrogen combustion, and high-fidelity fluid dynamics. The successful candidate will play a key role in developing and applying cutting-edge computational methods, contributing to scientific publications, and fostering collaboration across multidisciplinary teams.

Requirements

Relevant PhD or relevant Master's Degree and 3 or more years of experience or relevant Bachelor's Degree and 5 or more years of experience.
Demonstrates complete understanding and wide application of scientific technical procedures, principles, theories and concepts in the field.
General knowledge of other related disciplines.
Demonstrates leadership in one or more areas of team, task or project lead responsibilities.
Demonstrated experience in management of projects.
Very good technical writing, interpersonal and communication skills.
Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.
A strong background in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and multi-physics modeling, demonstrated through significant project contributions and publications.
Proven experience with high-fidelity modeling platforms and incompressible solvers, ideally including experience with codes such as AMR-Wind or PeleLMeX.
Proficiency in scientific programming and code development, with a track record of maintaining and contributing to complex codebases and integrating new features effectively.
Excellent oral and written communication skills for presenting research findings at scientific meetings and authoring peer-reviewed publications.
Strong analytical skills and creative thinking abilities to solve complex problems in fluid dynamics, combustion, and energy systems.
Ability to develop and maintain positive relationships internally within NLR and externally with sponsors and research partners.

Nice To Haves

Experience maintaining highly active code bases using versioning software (e.g., Git).
Experience working on high-performance computing (HPC) systems and optimizing codes for various machine architectures.
Ability to lead and influence across organizational boundaries, facilitating collaborations across multiple disciplines.
Experience and interest in mentoring and contributing to talent development within the research group.
Interest in expanding research domains to new areas.

Responsibilities

Developing and applying high-fidelity simulation cases in tools like PeleLMeX for studying combustion in various burner geometries.
Learning, maintaining, and enhancing the Kynema suite of incompressible solvers, including contributing new capabilities for complex applications like estuary flows, underwater turbines, and power lines.
Implementing advanced numerical methods such as immersed boundary methods to model intricate geometries and bathymetry in flow simulations.
Developing and refining property prediction models within computational frameworks such as FuelLib, utilizing experimental data to enhance accuracy and predictive capabilities.
Maintaining and ensuring the functionality of critical codebases and managing shared repositories for knowledge transfer and collaborative development.
Collaborating effectively with internal and external partners, including industry and university stakeholders, to advance research objectives and integrate new functionalities.
Authoring and co-authoring high-impact scientific publications.