Senior Process Engineer – High-Temp Inorganic Materials

ElementUSA; Cedar Park (TX); On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

ElementUSA is seeking a hands-on Senior Process Engineer with deep experience in refractory, ceramic, alumina, and high-temperature materials. You will collaborate with PhD process teams to mature process flowsheets converting waste into high-value refractory products for steel and industrial markets.

You will translate laboratory and pilot results into practical engineering requirements, supporting kiln, leaching, filtration, drying, calcination, and product finishing steps for

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Ceramic Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science/Engineering, Metallurgical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a closely related discipline.
• Meaningful industrial experience in refractory or ceramic materials manufacturing, alumina or inorganic materials processing, high-temperature process manufacturing, mineral/material processing, or related field.
• Demonstrated ability to develop multi-step industrial process flowsheets involving chemical and thermal unit operations.
• Experience interpreting laboratory, pilot, or manufacturing data and translating findings into practical process/equipment requirements.
• Working knowledge of industrial process equipment and ability to support equipment specification, scale-up, troubleshooting, and process improvement.
• Strong technical judgment and willingness to work hands-on with scientists, technicians, pilot equipment, vendors, and engineering partners in an early-stage environment.
• Ability to communicate effectively across scientific, engineering, operations, maintenance, quality, commercial, and leadership teams.

Responsibilities

• Partner with scientists and PhD process engineers to understand process chemistry, raw-material behavior, results, objectives, and gaps.
• Support development and maturation of integrated process flowsheets for converting waste or secondary feedstocks into valuable refractory materials.
• Work hands-on in lab and pilot environments to plan tests, campaigns, troubleshoot, interpret data, and define next experiments.
• Apply knowledge of chemical leaching, washing, filtration, drying, calcination, kiln operation, sintering, crushing, milling, screening, blending, and solids handling.
• Establish mass balances, operating envelopes, design criteria, equipment duties, residence times, temperature and reagent requirements.
• Understand how impurities, mineralogy, and particle size affect product quality and performance.
• Translate lab and pilot data into process-engineering deliverables for external partners.
• Develop/process descriptions, flow diagrams, mass balances, equipment lists, specifications, datasheets, and P&ID as projects mature.
• Support equipment sizing, selection, and evaluation for kilns, calciners, filtration systems, dryers, leach systems, tanks, pumps, and other unit operations.
• Collaborate with OEMs, vendors, EPC/EPCM firms, review technical deliverables to ensure designs meet requirements.
• Support installation, commissioning, startup, troubleshooting, and transition to repeatable pilot and commercial operation.
• Work with project managers and Operations teams to convert technical development into executable engineering work.
• Capture operating lessons to inform future commercial facility design.

Skills

Hands-on engineering

Multidisciplinary collaboration

Data interpretation

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Ceramic Eng / Chemical Eng / Materials Science or related

Tools

PFDs & P&IDs

Lab & pilot equipment

Job description

ElementUSA is seeking a hands-on Senior Process Engineer with deep experience in refractory, ceramic, alumina, and high-temperature materials. You will collaborate with PhD process teams to mature process flowsheets converting waste into high-value refractory products for steel and industrial markets.

You will translate laboratory and pilot results into practical engineering requirements, supporting kiln, leaching, filtration, drying, calcination, and product finishing steps for