2.1 Senior Process Engineer – Hydrometallurgist
About The Position
Phoenix Tailings is looking for a Senior Process Engineer- Hydrometallurgist to lead hands-on process development, optimization, and scale-up of hydrometallurgical systems for critical and rare earth metals production. This role is ideal for someone with deep technical experience in wet chemistry, aqueous processing, leaching, precipitation, separation, purification, and pilot-scale development who wants to build real-world industrial processes, not just model them. This position will play a key role in translating laboratory results into scalable process designs that support Phoenix Tailings’ transition from R&D to commercial deployment. You will work closely with R&D, engineering, and pilot operations teams to design experiments, troubleshoot complex process challenges, develop operating parameters, and guide junior engineers and scientists.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in Chemical Engineering, Metallurgical Engineering, Materials Science, Chemistry, or a related technical discipline
- 5+ years of experience in hydrometallurgy, wet chemistry, chemical process development, mineral processing, metals refining, or related chemically intensive systems
- Strong hands-on experience with hydrometallurgical unit operations, including leaching, precipitation, filtration, solid-liquid separation, solvent extraction, purification, and crystallization
- Demonstrated experience translating laboratory or bench-scale data into pilot-scale or commercial process development decisions
- Strong understanding of aqueous chemistry, solution speciation, acid-base chemistry, impurity control, reagent behavior, and process optimization
- Experience developing mass balances, process flow diagrams, experimental plans, technical reports, and operating procedures
- Experience mentoring junior technical team members or leading technical workstreams in a laboratory, pilot, or industrial environment
Responsibilities
- Lead the design, execution, and analysis of hydrometallurgical experiments involving leaching, purification, precipitation, precipitation, solid-liquid separation, solvent extraction, and related critical metals processes
- Develop and optimize process conditions for laboratory, bench-scale, and pilot-scale hydrometallurgical systems
- Translate experimental results into process flow diagrams, mass balances, operating windows, equipment specifications, and scale-up recommendations
- Provide technical leadership for wet chemistry work, including solution chemistry, acid-base chemistry, pH control, filtration, precipitation, reagent selection, and process troubleshooting
- Support equipment sizing and selection for reactors, filtration systems, thickeners, mixer-settlers, tanks, pumps, and other hydrometallurgical process equipment
- Lead root-cause analysis and troubleshooting for process performance issues, including recovery losses, impurity behavior, phase separation challenges, and process instability
- Collaborate with engineering, R&D, and operations teams to develop pilot-scale test plans, operating procedures, and process control strategies
- Mentor junior engineers, scientists, and technicians in experimental design, lab execution, safety practices, data interpretation, and technical documentation
- Maintain clear technical records and prepare reports, presentations, and recommendations for internal design reviews and leadership discussions
- Support the scale-up of Phoenix Tailings’ critical metals production processes from R&D through commercial deployment
Benefits
- 100% Medical, dental, and vision coverage for employee.
- Ownership in a fast-growing venture-backed company.
- Unlimited PTO.
- Learning and development opportunities to grow your skills and career.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
