Senior Materials Scientist

Utility Global; Englewood (CO); On-site; USD 130,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Utility Global is seeking a Senior Materials Scientist to develop ceramic materials and fabrication processes for electrochemical cells. This hands-on R&D role focuses on how composition, microstructure, and processing affect performance, integrity, and manufacturability.

You will lead materials investigations, refine processing methods, and troubleshoot fabrication and testing challenges, collaborating with manufacturing to ensure scalable, repeatable cell production.

Qualifications

• MS or PhD in Materials Science and Engineering, Ceramic Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Metallurgical Engineering, or related field.
• 5–10 years of hands-on experience developing, processing, or characterizing ceramic materials in industrial or research environments.
• Understanding of ceramic processing and how forming, drying, thermal treatment, and sintering affect microstructure and final properties.
• Experience with ceramic fabrication methods and producing defect-free components.
• Ability to independently design experiments, analyze results, and use data to make technical decisions.

Responsibilities

• Evaluate and develop ceramic materials for electrochemical cells, including electrode/electrolyte composition, porosity, microstructure, and properties.
• Develop and optimize ceramic processing methods (powder prep, slurry, forming, coating, drying, debinding, sintering, joining).
• Plan structured experiments to evaluate materials and improve manufacturability of cells.
• Perform root-cause analysis for cracking, warping, porosity, and coating/joining issues.
• Apply statistical analysis and data processing to guide process optimization.
• Collaborate with manufacturing to define targets, windows, and tolerances for scale-up.

Skills

Ceramic materials development

Experiment design

Data analysis

Troubleshooting

Education

MS or PhD in Materials Science/Engineering or related

Tools

SEM/EDS

XRD

Dilatometry

TGA/DSC

Porosimetry

Mechanical testing

Job description

Join Utility Global

At Utility, we’re reimagining what's possible.

Our breakthrough H2Gen® technology transforms undesirable industrial by-products into clean energy and sustainable fuels and feedstocks, helping hard-to-abate industries decarbonize without compromise. We’re building systems and solutions that will power a zero-carbon future by turning what the world doesn’t want into clean energy it needs most.

But technology alone doesn’t change the world.

People do.

We’re building a team as bold as our mission. Engineers and scientists, designers and operators, storytellers and strategists all united by a shared belief: that the undesirable can become invaluable, and that industrial decarbonization can be both practical and economical.

At Utility, we see possibilities where others see limits. We believe progress happens when diverse minds collaborate toward a cleaner, smarter, more resilient world.

If you’re ready to do the most meaningful work of your career, join us and help build what’s next.

The Company

Utility Global is redefining how the world makes and uses energy. Through its breakthrough H2Gen® technology, Utility transforms industrial off-gases and biogases into clean energy and sustainable fuels and feedstocks, helping industries decarbonize without compromise. The company’s proprietary technology delivers a scalable, economic pathway to a zero-carbon future, positioning Utility as a leader in the industrial decarbonization revolution.

About The Role

Utility Global is seeking a Senior Materials Scientist to develop ceramic materials and fabrication processes for its electrochemical cells. This is a hands-on R&D role focused on understanding how ceramic composition, microstructure, and processing affect cell performance, mechanical integrity, and manufacturability.

Reporting to the Director of Cell Technology, you will lead materials investigations, develop and refine ceramic processing methods, and troubleshoot problems that arise during fabrication and testing. You will work directly with ceramic powders, formed components, coatings, and sintered materials, using experimental data and materials characterization to guide development decisions.

The ideal candidate has substantial practical experience with ceramics, can independently plan and execute experiments, evaluate complex datasets and interrelated processes, and is comfortable working through unfamiliar technical problems in a fast-moving development environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Ceramic Materials Development: Evaluate and develop ceramic materials for electrochemical cells, including assessing electrode and electrolyte composition, porosity, microstructure, mechanical strength, and thermal properties.
• Processing and Fabrication: Develop and optimize ceramic processing methods, including powder preparation, slurry formulation, greenforming, coating, drying, debinding, sintering, and joining. Identify process parameters that affect part quality and establish conditions for repeatable fabrication.
• Experimental Development: Plan and execute structured experimental plans to evaluate materials, identify key process parameters, and improve quality and manufacturability of electrochemical cells.
• Troubleshooting and Failure Analysis: Carry out root-cause-analysis to address issues such as cracking, warping, inconsistent porosity, weak components, coating defects, and joining failures.
• Data Analysis and Modeling: Apply statistical analysis and data-processing methods to evaluate experimental results, quantify relationships between variables, and guide process optimization.
• Support Scale-Up Efforts: Act as supporting liaison with manufacturing to ensure cell fabrication processes are scalable and reproducible. Define process targets, windows, and tolerances that are required for part manufacturing.
• Technical Collaboration: Work closely with cell fabrication and testing personnel to resolve materials issues and prioritize development work. Provide technical guidance to laboratory staff and help build reliable experimental and fabrication practices.

Candidate Profile

Required Qualifications

• MS or PhD in Materials Science and Engineering, Ceramic Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Metallurgical Engineering, or a related field.
• 5-10 years of hands-on experience developing, processing, or characterizing ceramic materials in an industrial or research environment.
• Strong understanding of ceramic processing, including how forming, drying, thermal treatment, and sintering affect microstructure and final properties.
• Experience with ceramic fabrication methods and the practical challenges of producing consistent, defect-free components.
• Ability to independently design experiments, analyze results, and use data to make technical decisions.
• Experience with materials characterization and the interpretation of microstructural, thermal, mechanical, or compositional data.
• Demonstrated ability to troubleshoot materials and processing problems and identify root causes.
• Strong technical writing skills and the ability to communicate experimental results clearly.
• Ability to manage multiple experiments and priorities while adapting to changing development needs.

Preferred Experience

• Experience with functional ceramics, porous ceramics, or ceramic components for electrochemical devices.
• Hands-on experience with forming and coating processes such as isostatic pressing, extrusion, tape casting, screen printing, or spray coating.
• Experience with sintering, debinding, thermal processing, or ceramic-to-metal joining.
• Familiarity with ceramic porosity, pore structure, density, mechanical strength, and dimensional stability.
• Experience using characterization techniques such as SEM/EDS, XRD, dilatometry, TGA/DSC, porosimetry, and mechanical testing.
• Experience developing processing parameters and process windows for repeatable ceramic fabrication.
• Experience with high-temperature materials or ceramics exposed to chemically reactive environments.

$130,000 - $150,000 a year

Utility Global was created to bring forth sustainable business solutions, enabling an affordable energy transition to a low-carbon world. This is our passion, our drive and the reason we exist. Our team of experts combines the best of world-renowned technical proficiency and respected leadership with many decades of industry experience.

Our proprietary eXEROTM technology platform, extensive patent portfolio and successful track record of taking technology to engineering to market has produced an unparalleled competitive edge for us—and most importantly for our customers, investors and partners.