Research Scientist, Cementitious Materials & Corrosion

Johns Hopkins University; Baltimore (MD); On-site; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Johns Hopkins University seeks a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join the PREP program at NIST, Gaithersburg, MD. The role focuses on accelerated corrosion studies in reinforced concrete and developing metrology standards for cementitious materials, combining wet-lab measurements with computational modeling.

The ideal candidate will design and execute electrochemical tests, analyze pore solutions, and help translate results into durable service-life predictions and building-code inputs.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in a relevant field with focus on chemistry and material science of cementitious materials or corrosion.
• Experience conducting quantitative laboratory measurements on cementitious materials (XRD, TGA, calorimetry, SEM).
• Experience with corrosion mechanisms of metallic systems and advanced electrochemical testing.

Responsibilities

• Advance Measurement Science: develop/validate novel test methods linking microstructure to transport properties.
• Pore Solution Characterization: standardize XRF for concrete pore solutions and establish protocols.
• Durability Modeling: apply thermodynamic modeling to predict phase changes in cements under climate scenarios.
• Corrosion Science: perform EIS, polarization, OCP, LPR to quantify corrosion metrics; develop PDM parameters.
• Microstructural Characterization: use SEM-EDS to study steel-concrete interface.
• Model Integration: translate bench data into inputs for numerical/structural models.
• Uncertainty Quantification: apply Bayesian methods and Monte Carlo simulations to predictions.
• Code & Standard Development: contribute to ASTM/ACI committee proposals.

Skills

Corrosion science

Cementitious materials science

Electrochemistry

Education

Ph.D. in Chemistry/Physics/Mechanical/Chemical/Civil/Materials Science

Tools

XRF

GEMS/PHREEQC

XRD

TGA

SEM-EDS

OCP

EIS

Job description

Johns Hopkins University seeks a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join the PREP program at NIST, Gaithersburg, MD. The role focuses on accelerated corrosion studies in reinforced concrete and developing metrology standards for cementitious materials, combining wet-lab measurements with computational modeling.

The ideal candidate will design and execute electrochemical tests, analyze pore solutions, and help translate results into durable service-life predictions and building-code inputs.