Job Description

Posting Title

Postdoctoral Researcher – Biofuel Catalysis and Chemical Engineering

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Location

CO - Golden

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Position Type

Postdoc (Fixed Term)

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Hours Per Week

40

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Working at NREL

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for research and development of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies.

From day one at NREL, you’ll connect with coworkers driven by the same mission to save the planet. By joining an organization that values a supportive, inclusive, and flexible work environment, you’ll have the opportunity to engage through our eight employee resource groups, numerous employee-driven clubs, and learning and professional development classes.

NREL supports inclusive, diverse, and unbiased hiring practices that promote creativity and innovation. By collaborating with organizations that focus on diverse talent pools, reaching out to underrepresented demographics, and providing an inclusive application and interview process, our Talent Acquisition team aims to hear all voices equally. JOB IS FROM: postdocjobs.oneVIEWWe strive to attract a highly diverse workforce and create a culture where every employee feels welcomed and respected and they can be their authentic selves.

Our planet needs us! Learn about NREL’s critical objectives, and see how NREL is focused on saving the planet.

Note: Research suggests that potential job seekers may self-select out of opportunities if they don't meet 100% of the job requirements. We encourage anyone who is interested in this opportunity to apply. We seek dedicated people who believe they have the skills and ambition to succeed at NREL to apply for this role.

Job Description

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for research and development of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologiesThe NREL mission is to develop renewable energy and energy efficient technologies and practices, advance related science and engineering, and transfer knowledge and innovation to address the nation’s energy and environmental goals. The US-DOE’s sustainable aviation fuel grand challenge specifically calls for technology demonstration that can deliver significant quantities of intermediates that can be upgraded in existing and novel refineries.  The extraction and upgrading biofuel-relevant components from microbial biomass is a tremendous opportunity that drives much of NREL’s Bioenergy research.

A postdoctoral researcher role is available in NREL’s Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center. The successful candidate will work on projects involving microbial biomass downstream processing, and catalytic upgrading of algal lipid into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).  The work will include bench scale and pre-pilot scale experiments. This position will collaborate with a large, multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional team.

The successful candidate will be able to:

• Work safely and independently in a laboratory setting
• Plan and execute research in collaboration with other researchers
• Perform microbial biomass downstream processing, lipid catalytic upgrading, and reaction bench- and scale up-engineering, coordinate and carry out advanced analytical chemistry
• Communicate scientific results effectively, both in written and oral formats
• Author multiple peer-reviewed publications per year
• Work effectively in a large, multidisciplinary, teams of engineers and chemists.

BEST Directorate

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Basic Qualifications

Must be a recent PhD graduate within the last three years.

* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

Additional Required Qualifications

• Troubleshooting and problem-solving skills, and attention to detail
• Ability to deliver high-quality results within aggressive timelines, meeting time-specific milestones
• Strong record of quality peer-reviewed publications
• Strong safety record and ability to follow complex standard operating procedures

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with separation techniques to fractionate biomass in a biorefinery setting, with eye for detailed mass balance accounting of product streams
• Experience with building, operating and maintaining pilot scale reactors.
• Strong oleo-chemistry background for lipid purification, modification and upgrading
• Experience in heterogeneous catalysis and reaction engineering
• Experience with flow reactor operation
• Experience in organic synthesis and catalyst selection and design
• Analytical chemistry experience using GC-MS, HPLC and/or NMR spectroscopy
• Experience with process modeling and scale up engineering

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Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)

Job Profile: Postdoctoral Researcher / Annual Salary Range: $71,300 - $117,600

NREL takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.

Benefits Summary

Benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; short-term disability insurance*; pension benefits*; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance; personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; and paid holidays. NREL employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement.

* Based on eligibility rules

Drug Free Workplace

NREL is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace in accordance with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act and complies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal drug.

If you are offered employment at NREL, you must pass a pre-employment drug test prior to commencing employment. Unless prohibited by state or local law, the pre-employment drug test will include marijuana. If you test positive on the pre-employment drug test, your offer of employment may be withdrawn.

Submission Guidelines

Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NREL you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.

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EEO Policy

NREL is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard basis of age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.

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