Research And Development Engineer

Thiozen Inc.; Pasadena (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Benefits

Travel allowance

Job summary

Thiozen Inc. seeks a Chem/Process Engineer to connect lab work with field-scale tests in Pasadena and the West Texas pilot campaigns.

You will run bench experiments, own analytical methods, and ensure data integrity between lab and unit results. You will travel to pilot sites, support process modeling, and help translate observations into operating recommendations while maintaining lab safety and rigorous documentation.

Qualifications

• BS in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry or related field with 1–3 years of experience.
• Strong wet chemistry skills including titrations, sample prep, analytical instruments, and well-documented experiments.
• Familiarity with process simulation; Aspen or equivalent preferred.

Responsibilities

• Design and run wet chemistry experiments in the Pasadena lab.
• Support the Aspen process model used to size units.
• Develop, validate and document analytical methods for lab and units.
• Travel to the pilot unit for campaigns; collect and analyze samples.
• Translate field observations into lab experiments and operating recommendations.
• Maintain process data and sample records for lab-field comparability.
• Keep the Pasadena lab safe: chemical handling, gas safety, waste procedures.

Skills

Wet chemistry

Experiment design

Notebook documentation

Self-direction

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering or Chemistry

Tools

Aspen (process simulator)

Job description

Thiozen is an MIT spinout building secure, affordable, and clean energy. Our patented process turns

hydrogen sulfide into value, and we have two products built on the same novel chemistry.

Our first product, Zen, is a modular liquid redox unit that oxidizes H2S to saleable elemental sulfur. It

shuts down flares, turns sour gas into fuel for behind the meter power, and lets operators produce gas they cannot produce today. Our first commercial Zen units will treat the full gas stream of producing batteries in Alberta and the Permian Basin.

Our second product, ZenH2, takes the same chemistry one step further: hydrogen sulfide reforming that produces clean hydrogen and fertilizer at fossil fuel prices, with up to 95 percent fewer emissions than reforming natural gas. Our first ZenH2 deployment is in Alberta.

We ran our pilot unit on sour gas an hour west of Lubbock, Texas, taking H2S from percent levels to pipeline specification and producing high purity hydrogen and sulfur. We are backed by Eni Next and several hard tech venture capital firms, and supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and Emissions Reduction Alberta.

About the role

You will be the engineer who connects our lab to our units. In Pasadena you will run the bench and small scale experiments that answer the questions the field raises. You will own the analytical methods that both the lab and the field rely on, so the numbers from Pasadena and the numbers from the unit mean the same thing. In West Texas you will join campaigns on the pilot unit, run the test program alongside our field engineers, and see for yourself whether the plant behaves the way the bench said it would. You will report to the CEO.

What you will do

• Design and run wet chemistry and small scale process experiments in our Pasadena lab
• Support the process model (Aspen or equivalent) that sizes our units
• Develop, validate and document the analytical methods used in the lab and at the units
• Travel to the pilot unit for test campaigns: plan the campaign, run it with the field team, collect and analyze samples, and write up what was learned.
• Turn field observations into lab experiments and lab results into operating recommendations and design changes.
• Build and maintain the process data and sample records so that lab and field results can be compared and trusted.
• Keep the Pasadena lab safe and in order: chemical handling and storage, gas safety, waste, and the procedures that go with them.
• Contribute technical content to grants, reports and customer discussions as needed.

What we are looking for

• BS in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry or a related field, with one to three years of experience.
• Strong wet chemistry skills: titrations, sample preparation, analytical instruments, and a notebook someone else can follow. You have designed experiments, not only run them.
• Familiarity with process simulation. Experience with Aspen or an equivalent simulator is preferred.
• Practical experience with a pilot unit, lab scale process rig or field setting. You are comfortable with pumps, valves, gas cylinders and instruments, and you would rather fix a setup than wait for someone else to.
• Comfortable working around sour gas and reactive chemicals. Willing to complete H2S and OSHA safety training before your first field campaign.
• Able to travel to West Texas for campaigns of a week or more, and occasionally to Alberta.
• Self directed, and able to carry a question from a plant back to a bench and return with an answer.

Nice to have

• Experience with iodine, sulfur or halogen chemistry, liquid redox systems, or gas treating.
• Experience building small scale continuous rigs.
• Prior work with a technology developer, pilot program or scale up effort.

Compensation

$100k to $130k base depending on experience, plus equity, benefits, and travel allowance.

Thiozen is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to a safe and respectful workplace.