Postdoctoral Fellow (PREP0004763)

Johns Hopkins University; Gaithersburg (MD); On-site; USD 85,400 - 85,800; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

Retirement packages

Job summary

The Chronicle Of Higher Education, Inc. is seeking a PREP Research Associate at Johns Hopkins to conduct research on rechargeable battery fires. This role involves experimenting and analyzing data related to thermal runaway in rechargeable batteries.

Ideal candidates will possess a doctoral degree in a relevant engineering field, have demonstrated expertise in heat transfer, and be familiar with data acquisition systems and scripting languages. Strong communication skills are also essential.

Qualifications

• Doctoral degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or Fire Protection Engineering.
• Expert experience in convective and radiative heat transfer.
• Familiarity with computational fluid dynamics models.
• Knowledge of data acquisition systems using National Instruments equipment.
• Common scripting languages like Python or Matlab.
• Strong oral and written communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Conduct experiments to assess thermal runaway in rechargeable batteries.
• Determine methods to collect and analyze data from various measurement tools.
• Assess uncertainty of measurements collected from experiments.
• Use modeling tools to simulate heat transfer of batteries.
• Present results at internal and external meetings.
• Archive results, protocols, and documentation.

Job description

Johns Hopkins, founded in 1876, is America's first research university and home to nine world‑class academic divisions working together as one university.

Salary: $85,400 - $85,800

PREP Research Associate

Description

This position is part of the National Institute of Standards (NIST) Professional Research Experience (PREP) program. NIST recognizes that its research staff may wish to collaborate with researchers at academic institutions on specific projects of mutual interest, thus requiring that such institutions must be the recipient of a PREP award. The PREP program requires staff from a wide range of backgrounds to work on scientific research in many areas. Employees in this position will perform technical work that underpins the scientific research of the collaboration.

Research Title: Characterization for rechargeable battery fires

U.S. Citizen Preferred

This work will involve conducting research at different scales to characterise the generation of fires from rechargeable batteries. The researcher will conduct large‑ and bench‑scale fire experiments using characterization technologies, including heat flux gauges, radiometers, thermal imaging cameras, and thermocouples. The goal of these experiments is to determine appropriate methods to characterise the ignition, heat transfer, and heat release rate of rechargeable batteries. In doing so, this work will advance the metrology needed to assess the hazard presented by rechargeable battery fires.

Key Responsibilities

• Conducting experiments to assess the evolution of thermal runaway in a rechargeable battery and the resulting fire
• Determining methods to collect, process, and analyse data generated from heat flux gauges, radiometers, thermal imaging cameras, and thermocouples
• Assessing the uncertainty of measurements collected from experiments
• Using modeling tools to simulate the heat transfer of a rechargeable battery as it transitions to thermal runaway
• Presenting results at internal meetings and meetings with external stakeholders
• Ensuring that results, protocols, software, and documentation have been archived and disseminated in archival journals

Qualifications

• A doctoral degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or Fire Protection Engineering, or a closely related field. The candidate must have a doctoral degree by the start of the appointment, or have a degree confirmation letter stating they have completed all requirements to receive the degree.
• Expert experience in convective and radiative heat transfer, heat release rate measurements using a cone calorimeter, and dynamics of fires generated from battery energy storage systems or electric vehicles.
• Familiarity with the use of computational fluid dynamics models (Fire Dynamics Simulator or FireFOAM).
• Demonstrated knowledge of data acquisition systems using National Instruments equipment.
• Common scripting languages (Python, Matlab).
• Ability to develop research plans and document research results in journals.
• Strong oral and written communication skills.

Total Rewards

Johns Hopkins offers a total rewards package that supports employees' health, life, career, and retirement.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The Johns Hopkins University is committed to equal opportunity for its faculty, staff, and students. The university does not discriminate on the basis of sex, gender, marital status, pregnancy, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other legally protected characteristic.