Senior Chemist

ReSource Chemical; Oakland (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

ReSource Chemical in Oakland, CA is seeking a Senior Chemist to drive the development and scale-up of our FDCA-based processes. You will work with scientists and engineers to optimize key steps and deliver high-purity products to partners and customers.

This role requires a PhD with industry experience, strong documentation, and leadership, with a focus on process safety and cross-functional collaboration.

Qualifications

• PhD in Chemistry or related field with >2 years of industry experience.
• Strong documentation, analytical, and project management skills.
• Demonstrated mentoring, team collaboration, and leadership abilities.
• Prior chemical process scale-up experience preferred.

Responsibilities

• Scale-up and optimization of key chemical process steps
• Delivering products to partners and customers on schedule
• Validation of analytical methods to quantify product purity
• Coordinating activities with technical service providers
• Creating clear and concise technical documents and reports
• Contributing to process hazard assessments (PHAs) and mitigation

Skills

Scale-up processes

Process optimization

Documentation

Leadership

Project management

Team leadership

Education

PhD in Chemistry or related field

Job description

Plastics have become indispensable for nearly every major industry, but conventional plastics impose an unsustainable burden on the environment. Plastic production currently accounts for 8% of global oil and gas use and nearly 5% of GHG emissions. More than 250 million tons of plastic waste accumulates annually, the vast majority of which will persist for centuries. ReSource’s proprietary technology will produce the first bioplastic that is made from truly sustainable feedstocks and outperforms incumbent materials without the environmental burden or health risks. We are commercializing an industrially scalable process for producing FDCA, which is a naturally occurring chemical that serves as a replacement for the petrochemical monomer PTA used to make polyesters such as PET. Polyester represents a >$100B industry, with applications spanning packaging, bottles, and fibers. Polyesters made using FDCA have superior gas barrier, thermal, and mechanical properties compared to the petrochemical incumbents, which translates into better performance with less material, including increased shelf life for perishable goods. They are also 100% recyclable and degrade much faster than conventional polyester if released into the environment. Beyond polyesters, FDCA is a platform molecule that can be used to make a wide range of other polymer and specialty chemicals. Past efforts to commercialize such products have been hampered by the high complexity and cost of the manufacturing pathways chosen to make FDCA, all of which use edible sugars as raw materials. In contrast, ReSource produces FDCA from CO2 and inedible biomass and removes two thirds of the conventional process steps, resulting in dramatically reduced production cost that enable rapid scale-up and high-volume applications. Bioplastics made using ReSource FDCA have the potential to eliminate >250 Mton yr–1 GHG emissions.

The company is in Oakland, CA and was founded on technology developed at Stanford University. Backed by leading investors including Khosla Ventures, Fathom Fund, Chevron Technology Ventures, and Mitsubishi Gas Chemical, we are currently preparing to commence pilot and demo-scale production. To date, ReSource has raised >$25M, including nearly $9M in R&D grants from the Department of Energy and National Science Foundation.

Position Overview

We are seeking a highly skilled and motivated Senior Chemist to join the team of scientists and engineers. The ideal candidate is an innovative thinker with a passion for problem-solving and an ability to drive the development of robust chemical processes. The successful candidate will be responsible for:

• Scale-up and optimization of key chemical process steps
• Delivering products to partners and customers on schedule
• Validation of analytical methods to quantify product purity
• Coordinating activities with technical service providers
• Creating clear and concise technical documents and reports
• Contributing to process hazard assessments (PHAs) and mitigation

Qualifications And Skills

• PhD in Chemistry or related field with >2 years of industry experience
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines under pressure
• Strong documentation, analytical, and project management-skills
• Demonstrated mentoring, team collaboration, and leadership abilities
• Prior chemical process scale-up experience will be highly preferred