Battery Engineer / Technician, Electrode Specialist

CarbonX; Delft; On-site; EUR 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

CarbonX in Delft, NL seeks an Electrode Specialist to own the electrode-making process in a lab setting. This bench-first role is 80% hands-on lab execution and 20% data analysis, reporting, and process improvement, forming the core of our validation pipeline.

You will diagnose dispersion, optimise slurry formulations, and ensure defect‑free electrode production, working under Agnieszka Chojnacka in a fast‑moving scale‑up environment.

Qualifications

• 1–2+ years of practical, applied laboratory or industrial scale-up experience in electrode manufacturing.
• Bachelor's degree in Materials Science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering or related field.
• Fluent English in spoken and written form.

Responsibilities

• Slurry Preparation & Electrode Manufacturing: Formulate, mix, coat, and calender slurries per protocols.
• Physical & Diagnostic Characterisation: Conduct rheology, viscosity profiling, moisture, SEM, and adhesion tests.
• Processability Optimisation: Identify bottlenecks and improve process repeatability during mixing and calendering.
• Operational Troubleshooting & QC: Enforce QC standards and troubleshoot deviations in real time.
• Lab Equipment Ownership: Maintain and calibrate mixers, coating/calendering lines, and diagnostics.
• EHS Rigor: Maintain a safe, organized lab environment with proper chemical handling.

Skills

Lab bench work

Quality control

English proficiency

Education

Bachelor's degree in Materials Science / Chemistry / Chemical Engineering

Tools

Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM)

Coating and calendering equipment

Job description

Who we are

At CarbonX, we are solving one of the clean energy transition's biggest bottlenecks: replacing imported graphite in EV batteries with a local, scalable, high-performance carbon material. Our technology enables 6-minute ultra-fast charging and lower production emissions, dropping directly into existing commercial manufacturing lines without requiring cell makers to retool.

Born out of TU Delft, we’ve crossed the initial R&D threshold. We are now transitioning from technology development to industrial manufacturing and global scale—expanding our footprint across the Netherlands, Texas, China, and South Korea to supply Tier-1 automotive and battery partners.

If you're motivated by high-velocity execution, true hands‑on ownership, and doing work that has a visible, measurable impact on global energy independence, this is where you can build something that scales.

The Role

As our Electrode Specialist, you will take direct responsibility for our electrode-making process in our Delft laboratory. This is a practical, bench-first role (80% practical lab execution & quality control, 20% data analysis, reporting & process improvement) that sits at the center of our commercial validation pipeline.

Because CarbonX materials physically behave differently from standard graphite during dispersion and calendering, you will play a crucial role in diagnosing processability, optimising slurry formulations, and ensuring defect‑free electrode production.

Key Responsibilities

• Slurry Preparation & Electrode Manufacturing: Formulate, mix, coat, and calender slurries containing active materials, binders, and conductive additives strictly in line with experimental and customer protocols.


• Physical & Diagnostic Characterisation: Perform hands‑on bench tests including rheology and viscosity profiling, slurry density, moisture, particle fineness analysis, adhesion and peel‑strength testing (90°/180°), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM).


• Processability Optimisation: Observe how novel carbon structures interact during mixing and calendering; identify physical bottlenecks to ensure process repeatability.


• Operational Troubleshooting & QC: Enforce strict quality control standards. Identify root causes of material or coating deviations and execute real‑time operational problem‑solving.


• Lab Equipment Ownership: Manage, calibrate, and maintain key equipment (different types of mixers, coating/calendering lines, diagnostic tools), manage routine calibration and preventative maintenance, and draft practical SOPs.


• EHS Rigor: Maintain a clean, organised, and safe laboratory environment, strictly following chemical handling and safety protocols.

Enough about us - what about you?

To really enjoy and excel in this role, we imagine you will have a background encompassing the following:

• Lab-First Mindset: You genuinely enjoy being hands‑on at the lab bench (80%+ of your time) over desk‑based research and take pride in precision execution.


• Practical Experience: 1–2+ years of practical, applied laboratory or industrial scale‑up experience in electrode manufacturing (slurry preparation, coating, calendering) or adjacent liquid‑coating/formulation industries.


• Educational Background: Bachelor's (BSc), HBO, or MBO in Materials Science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or a related practical scientific discipline.


• Scale‑Up & QC Mindset: Motivated by extreme accuracy, precision, and detail, but adaptable enough to troubleshoot operational lab issues calmly under customer deadlines.


• Fluent English: Professional working proficiency in spoken and written English.

Why Join Us?

• Real Industrial Impact: Your bench precision directly validates our novel carbon material, impacting customer sign‑offs and multi‑million‑euro supply contracts.


• Culture & Leadership: Join a collaborative, supportive lab team led by Agnes Chojnacka where open feedback and safety are prioritised.


• Deep Tech Scale‑Up Environment: Work directly with novel carbonic structures and high‑spec laboratory infrastructure in a fast‑moving, non-bureaucratic environment.

Ready to take proven deep-tech to industrial scale?

The technology is no longer just an idea—it has been produced at scale, integrated into commercial processes, tested in cells, and validated by major customers. Now we need exceptional people (scientists, engineers, operational specialists, and commercial leaders) to help solve the next—and arguably hardest—part: taking it global.

Don't worry about having a \"flawless\" CV.

If you don’t check every single box, don’t let impostor syndrome hold you back. We value high-velocity execution, true hands‑on ownership, and raw drive far more than a perfect paper history.