Electrochemical Engineer (Senior)

Company Overview: Found Energy is building clean energy delivery platforms capable of replacing fossil fuels for heavy industries ranging from aluminum production (4% of global CO2 emissions) to fertilizer production (2% of global CO2 emissions) to maritime shipping (3% of global CO2 emissions). Building off technology developed at MIT that enables metallic aluminum to split water, our energy delivery systems safely generate hydrogen and industrial heat on-site at >5x the volumetric energy density of liquid hydrogen and >3x that of methanol and ammonia. By integrating storage, transport, and generation into a single package, our technology solves some of the biggest pain points in renewable energy transportation and storage.

At Found Energy, we believe in securing a livable and equitable future for our planet, and we are looking for partners who are motivated by this goal to join us. For more information, visit https://found.energy.

Benefits Overview:

Health, dental, vision, 20 days PTO, 11 holidays, unlimited sick days, 12 weeks parental leave, stock options, professional development budget, and more.

Job Overview:

Found Energy is looking for electrochemical engineers with 5+ years in industry to join our R&D team. Applicants should have a deep understanding of electrochemical fundamentals with significant prior experience designing and conducting electrochemical experiments. We are looking for prior experience with electrochemical systems involving high temperature (> 100 °C) and/or flow systems. Mechanical design and prototyping of these or similar systems is a plus.

Found Energy has demonstrated its core power generation technologies, including a system capable of powering a full-sized electric vehicle. We are now working to scale up the reactor system for both our minimum viable product (MVP) and commercial pilot demonstrations. The completion of the MVP and commercial pilots requires designing and testing numerous sub-processes and sub-systems at the targeted industrial scale, as well as at various intermediate scales along the way.

Electrochemical engineers in this role will be responsible for proposing, investigating, and validating chemical and electrochemical processes to enhance the performance and economics of Found Energy’s core technologies. In addition to the core technologies, you will investigate and develop next generation technologies that leverage the aluminum fuel ecosystem to further decarbonize heavy industries. This will involve designing, assembling, and maintaining test stands and prototypes, running experiments on those systems, analyzing data and presenting conclusions to a diverse technical team. Building on the results of these experiments, you will work in cross disciplinary teams to design subsystems to produce the value added products at increasing scales and work to integrate these subsystems into Found Energy’s core reactor technologies. You should be comfortable working in cross-disciplinary teams involving materials, mechanical, chemical, and electrical engineers as well as business and non-technical staff.

Good chemical hygiene and safety practices are paramount. You will be expected to participate, lead, and improve upon our chemical hygiene and safety protocols.

Responsibilities and Duties:

• Develop and refine novel electrochemical systems leveraging the aluminum fuel ecosystem
• Design and execute electrochemical and chemical experiments following laboratory best practices and Found Energy SOPs
• Design and construct test stands for electrochemical experiments
• Document observations in a detailed and careful manner
• Synthesize data to determine trends, correlations, and underlying mechanisms
• Develop and maintain SOP documentation for experimental procedures and prototype systems
• Participate in and improve upon chemical hygiene and safety protocols
• Invent new methods and electrochemical systems
• Interface with broader engineering team to scale identified solutions
• Anticipate and proactively address challenges in system performance
• Participate in building and growing company culture and values
• Mentor interns and co-op students on R&D-related projects

Preferred Qualifications:

• Deeply motivated by the climate crisis and its downstream impacts
• 5+ years of industrial work experience in electrochemical engineering, mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, or related fields.

• Note: Role designation will be commensurate with experience and candidates with additional experience will be considered for advanced roles.

Exceptional communication and documentation skills

Flexibility to deal with the rapidly changing needs of a startup

Experience in one or multiple of the following:

• Industrial electrochemical systems
• High temperature electrochemistry, including Hall-Heroult, molten salts, molten oxide electrolysis, etc.
• Electrochemical flow systems, chloralkali, redox flow batteries, electrodialysis, etc.
• Hands-on electrochemical stack assembly and troubleshooting experience
• Proficient in CAD software (e.g., Solidworks, AutoCAD) and version control
• Electrodeposition, electrowinning, electrorefining
• Potentiostats, galvanostats, battery cyclers
• Chemical separation and purification processes
• Prototyping and test stand design and assembly
• Experimental design

Research suggests that qualified people from historically marginalized groups may self-select out of opportunities if they don’t meet 100% of the job requirements. We encourage individuals who might not meet the exact requirements, but who believe they have the skills necessary to thrive to apply for this role.

Found Energy does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender expression, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. These activities include, but are not limited to, hiring and firing of staff, selection of vendors, and provision of services. We are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members of our staff, subcontractors, vendors, and clients.