Senior Development Engineer — Process Modeling & Scale-Up

AIRCO; New Britain Township (Bucks County); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, and vision insurance

HSA/FSA accounts

401(k) with company match

Paid time off

Paid family leave

Short-Term Disability

Long-Term Disability

Life Insurance

Transit/Parking pre-tax

Weekly catered lunch

Wellness programs

Job summary

AIRCO is seeking an experienced chemical/ mechanical engineer to advance our SAF production technology. You will develop first-principles process simulations, conduct scale-up studies, and convert lab results into design information.

You will analyze large datasets to extract mechanistic insights and collaborate with cross-functional teams to move technology toward commercialization. The role emphasizes thermodynamics, reaction engineering, and separation fundamentals, with hands-on use of

Qualifications

• M.S. or Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a closely related discipline.
• Significant experience in process development, process modeling, simulation, and scale-up engineering within chemical process industries.
• Strong grounding in thermodynamics, reaction engineering, and separation fundamentals.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze large datasets and extract mechanistic insight.
• Advanced experience with numerical tools, simulation software, or data analysis platforms (e.g., Aspen, MATLAB, Python).
• Experience developing first-principles or hybrid process models for chemical reaction and separation systems.
• Experience applying modeling tools to technology scale-up and commercialization decisions.
• Experience in fuels, petrochemicals, refining, catalysis, or sustainable energy technologies.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain first-principles process simulations and mechanistic models for reaction, separation, and integrated SAF production systems.
• Apply modeling, simulation, and data analytics to predict performance, support scale-up decisions, optimize process design, and reduce commercialization risk.
• Convert laboratory and pilot-scale results into Engineering Design Information (EDI) and performance projections.
• Lead the development of experimental strategies and pilot campaigns required to validate models and strengthen scale-up confidence.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to advance technology from development through demonstration and commercial deployment.

Skills

Process modeling

Scale-up engineering

Thermodynamics

Reaction engineering

Data analysis

Python

MATLAB

Aspen Plus

First-principles models

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

M.S./Ph.D. in Chemical or Mechanical Engineering

Tools

Aspen Plus

MATLAB

Python

Job description

AIRCO is seeking an experienced chemical/ mechanical engineer to advance our SAF production technology. You will develop first-principles process simulations, conduct scale-up studies, and convert lab results into design information.

You will analyze large datasets to extract mechanistic insights and collaborate with cross-functional teams to move technology toward commercialization. The role emphasizes thermodynamics, reaction engineering, and separation fundamentals, with hands-on use of