Process Engineer - Graphite

ETCH, Inc; Baltimore (MD); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

ETCH, Inc. is seeking a Process Engineer to bridge R&D and execution across engineering, procurement, and construction as a novel graphite-from-gas process advances toward commercial production.

You will own PFDs, mass and energy balances, equipment sizing, safety reviews, and scale-up, collaborating with R&D, safety, operations, and vendors to ensure design intent is realized in the field. This hands-on role requires lab/pilot work, P&ID reviews, and on-site support during construction and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering or closely related field; Master’s degree will be considered.
• 5+ years of process engineering experience across development and capital project execution.
• Experience developing PFDs, P&IDs, mass and energy balances, and basis of design.
• Knowledge of equipment sizing fundamentals and process safety methodologies (HAZOP/HAZID/LOPA).
• Ability to translate lab-scale findings into engineering-ready data and report clearly.

Responsibilities

• Phase 1: collaborate with R&D to design experiments and analyze data for scale-up.
• Phase 2: own the integrated PFD and mass/energy balance across the process.
• Phase 3: support front-end and detailed engineering; review vendor data and assist procurement.
• Lead or participate in HAZOP/HAZID style reviews; coordinate with utilities and site teams.
• Provide on-site support during construction, pre-commissioning, and commissioning.
• Maintain document control and ensure single source of truth for flowsheet changes.

Skills

Process engineering

R&D collaboration

Scale-up and design

Safety and operability

Documentation and reporting

Cross-functional communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering

Master’s degree considered

Tools

Visio

Aspen Plus

HYSYS

Job description

The Process Engineer will serve as the critical technical bridge between R&D and the execution organization (engineering, procurement, and construction) as a novel process moves from bench/pilot scale toward a commercial, integrated production system for the production of graphite from natural gas. This individual will work closely with the R&D team during process development, applying process engineering discipline — mass and energy balances, equipment sizing logic, safety and operability considerations, and scale-up principles — to guide experimental work toward a design that is not just scientifically sound but industrially executable.

As the process matures, this person will own the conversion of R&D findings into a fully integrated Process Flow Diagram (PFD) and mass/energy balance covering all inputs, outputs, utilities, and waste streams. They will then carry that technical ownership forward through detailed engineering, equipment procurement, and construction/commissioning, ensuring design intent is preserved and that field realities are fed back into the process design as needed.

This is a hands‑on, cross‑functional role suited to an engineer who is equally comfortable in a lab/pilot environment, at a P&ID review table, and on a construction site.

Key Responsibilities

Phase 1 — R&D Partnership & Process Development

• Work side-by-side with R&D scientists/engineers to understand the chemistry, reaction kinetics, and unit operations underlying the novel process including designing and running experiments and analyzing data.
• Bring process engineering rigor to experimental design: identify what data (rates, conversions, yields, residence times, temperatures, pressures, phase behavior) will be needed to support later scale-up and equipment sizing.
• Develop preliminary mass and energy balances from lab/pilot data, identifying gaps, inconsistencies, or unrealistic assumptions early.
• Flag scale-up risks proactively (e.g., heat/mass transfer limitations, fouling, corrosion, off‑gas handling, solids handling, reaction runaway potential) before they become costly late‑stage discoveries.
• Support pilot‑scale trials: help define and execute test plans, instrumentation needs, and success criteria that generate data usable for commercial design.
• Translate R&D's process understanding into a common technical language usable by engineering, safety, and operations stakeholders.

Phase 2 — Flowsheet Development & Basis of Design

• Own development of the integrated Process Flow Diagram (PFD), capturing all major process steps, equipment, and streams.
• Build and maintain a full mass and energy balance across the process, including all raw material inputs, utility demands (electricity, cooling, inert/process gases, water), products, byproducts, and waste/emission streams.
• Develop the Basis of Design document, including design capacities, operating envelopes, turndown requirements, and key assumptions.
• Identify and specify major equipment duties (reactors, furnaces, heat exchangers, separation equipment, gas handling systems, etc.) in coordination with equipment vendors and R&D.
• Lead or contribute to HAZID/HAZOP‑style reviews at the flowsheet stage to identify safety, environmental, and operability risks early.
• Coordinate with utilities, EHS, and site engineering to ensure the flowsheet reflects real site constraints (utility availability, permitting limits, footprint, etc.).

Phase 3 — Detailed Engineering, Procurement & Construction Support

• Serve as the process engineering point of contact on the project team through front‑end engineering design and detailed engineering, ensuring P&IDs, equipment datasheets, and control philosophy remain consistent with the approved process design basis.
• Review and approve vendor equipment proposals and datasheets for technical compliance with process requirements.
• Support procurement by providing technical input during RFQ development, bid evaluation, and vendor technical clarifications.
• Participate in design reviews (P&ID reviews and 3D model reviews) representing the process perspective.
• Support commissioning and start‑up planning, including development of startup/operating procedures, control setpoints, and troubleshooting guides derived from the process design intent.
• Be available for site support during construction, pre‑commissioning, and commissioning to resolve field issues that touch the process design, and to capture as‑built learnings that should feed back into future scale‑up or replication of the process.
• Maintain document control and revision history for the flowsheet and mass/energy balance as the design evolves, ensuring a single source of truth throughout the project lifecycle.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering (or closely related field); well-qualified candidates with a Master’s degree will also be considered.
• 5+ years of process engineering experience, including exposure to both process development/R&D support and capital project execution (FEED/detailed engineering through construction).
• Demonstrated experience developing PFDs, P&IDs, mass and energy balances, and basis of design, and control narrative documents from early‑stage or incomplete data.
• Working knowledge of equipment sizing fundamentals (reactors, heat exchangers, furnaces/thermal processing equipment, gas/solids handling systems).
• Familiarity with process safety methodologies (HAZOP, HAZID, LOPA) and how they apply at both the flowsheet and detailed design stage.
• Experience collaborating directly with R&D/technical development teams, translating lab‑scale findings into engineering‑ready data.
• Strong understanding of thermodynamics and reaction kinetics principles as they apply to solid/gas interactions and carbon materials in particular
• Strong technical documentation and communication skills — able to speak credibly and produce written reports and presentations to scientists, engineers, and construction/field personnel alike.
• Willingness to travel, to be hands‑on in the lab, and to work at a desk depending on the needs of the day.
• Maintain safe laboratory practices and enforce safety protocols, particularly when working with flammable gases and reactive materials.
• Software proficiency such as: Visio, Aspen Plus, HYSIS, etc.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with high‑temperature thermal processing (furnaces, kilns, rotary reactors) and/or specialty gas atmospheres (e.g., inert, reactive, or corrosive gas systems).
• Experience scaling a process from lab/bench through pilot to first commercial unit ("first-of-a-kind" plant experience).
• Experience with setting up and running design of experiments (DOE) or multi‑variate testing (MVT).
• Familiarity with solids testing such as oil absorption number (OAN) and surface area (BET) as well as graphite application testing for batteries to measure capacity, purity, and structure.
• Familiarity with CAD software such as Solidworks.
• Exposure to materials of construction selection for corrosive or high‑temperature service.
• PE license or working toward one.

Core Competencies

• Technical curiosity and rigor — comfortable operating in ambiguity during early R&D stages while still applying engineering discipline.
• Cross‑functional fluency — equally effective communicating with scientists, design engineers, procurement,
• Ownership mindset — treats the flowsheet and mass/energy balance as a living, controlled document they are personally accountable for.
• Practical judgment — able to balance ideal process design against real‑world constraints of schedule, cost, and constructability.
• Proactive risk identification — surfaces scale‑up and safety risks early rather than letting them surface during commissioning.