Senior Process Engineer- Refractory

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 strong refractory, ceramic, alumina, high-temperature materials, or related inorganic process-manufacturing experience. This role will support development of processes that convert industrial waste and secondary raw materials into high-value refractory and ceramic products for steel, refractory, and related industrial markets.

The engineer will work directly with our scientists and PhD process team to develop and mature the process flowsheet, understand laboratory and pilot results, identify the testing required for scale-up, and translate process-development data into practical engineering requirements. The initial focus will include our salt dross program and associated chemical, filtration, thermal-processing, and product-finishing steps.

This is not a traditional project-management role and is not primarily a refractory-lining selection role. We are looking for a technical doer and subject matter expert who understands how refractory and ceramic materials are produced and who can help move a developing process from laboratory work through pilot operation, engineering execution, commissioning, and commercial scale-up.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner directly with scientists and PhD process engineers to understand process chemistry, raw-material behavior, experimental results, product objectives, and technical gaps.
• Support development and maturation of integrated process flowsheets for converting waste or secondary feedstocks into commercially valuable refractory and ceramic materials.
• Work hands-on in laboratory and pilot environments to support test planning, campaigns, troubleshooting, data interpretation, and definition of the next experiments required to advance the process.
• Apply practical knowledge of chemical leaching, washing, filtration and solid-liquid separation, drying, calcination, kiln operation, sintering/firing, crushing, milling, screening/classification, blending, and solids handling as applicable to the process.
• Help establish mass balances, operating envelopes, process design criteria, equipment duties, residence times, temperature requirements, reagent requirements, material-handling requirements, and other scale-up inputs.
• Understand how process conditions, impurities, thermal history, mineralogy/phase development, and particle-size distribution influence final refractory or ceramic product quality and performance.
• Work backward from target product specifications and customer requirements to identify the process conditions and controls needed to consistently manufacture an acceptable product.
• Identify scale-up risks and define pilot testing, sampling, analytical work, or engineering studies needed to close technical gaps before commercial design.
• Translate laboratory and pilot data into process-engineering deliverables and packages suitable for external engineering partners.
• Develop and/or review process descriptions, design basis documents, process flow diagrams, mass balances, equipment lists, equipment specifications, technical datasheets, and P&IDs as projects mature.
• Support equipment sizing, selection, and technical evaluation for kilns, calciners, filtration systems, dryers, leach systems, tanks, pumps, solids-handling equipment, crushers, mills, screens, and other relevant unit operations.
• Work closely with OEMs, vendors, EPC/EPCM firms, and engineering partners; review and challenge technical deliverables to ensure designs reflect the actual process, product requirements, operability, and scale-up needs.
• Support equipment installation, commissioning, startup, process troubleshooting, and transition from development into repeatable pilot and commercial operation.
• Collaborate with project managers, technical program managers, Operations, Maintenance, Laboratory, and Quality personnel to ensure technical development is converted into executable engineering work.
• Capture operating lessons and process knowledge so that pilot learning is incorporated into future commercial facility design.

Initial Areas of Focus

• Salt dross and related industrial-waste processing routes.
• Development of value-added alumina, refractory, ceramic, and related inorganic material products.
• Chemical leaching, purification, washing, filtration, and solid-liquid separation.
• Kiln and calcination process development, including temperature profile, residence time, atmosphere, and throughput considerations.
• Drying, crushing, milling, screening/classification, blending, and final product preparation.
• Product chemistry, mineralogy/phase development, impurity control, particle-size distribution, and other quality attributes required for commercial refractory markets.
• Pilot-scale validation and translation of process-development data into commercial engineering requirements.

Required 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 a closely related field.
• Demonstrated ability to understand and develop multi-step industrial process flowsheets involving both chemical and thermal unit operations.
• Experience interpreting laboratory, pilot, or manufacturing data and translating technical findings into practical process and equipment requirements.
• Working knowledge of industrial process equipment and the 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.

Preferred Qualifications

• 10+ years of relevant industrial experience, with flexibility for exceptional candidates with highly relevant process and product expertise.
• Direct experience manufacturing refractory, ceramic, alumina, fused alumina, or other high-temperature inorganic materials.
• Experience with salt dross, aluminum-industry residues, industrial waste beneficiation, secondary raw materials, or circular-economy material-processing technologies.
• Experience with hydrometallurgical or chemical-processing steps such as leaching, reagent addition, washing, filtration, precipitation, purification, and solid-liquid separation.
• Strong experience with kilns, calciners, thermal treatment, calcination, sintering/firing, drying, or related high-temperature unit operations.
• Understanding of refractory/ceramic product specifications, product qualification, impurity limits, mineralogy/phase development, particle-size requirements, and the relationship between processing conditions and final material performance.
• Experience scaling processes from laboratory through pilot/demonstration and into commercial manufacturing.
• Experience developing or reviewing PFDs, P&IDs, mass balances, equipment specifications, technical datasheets, design criteria, and process engineering packages.
• Experience working with EPC/EPCM firms, OEMs, equipment vendors, and external engineering partners and technically challenging their deliverables.
• Experience supporting installation, commissioning, startup, and stabilization of new process equipment or manufacturing lines.

What Success Looks Like

• The PhD/process-development team has an experienced industrial partner who can help convert scientific learning into a coherent, scalable manufacturing flowsheet.
• Pilot campaigns are designed not only to prove chemistry, but also to generate the data required for equipment design, operating envelopes, product quality, and scale-up.
• The process consistently moves toward a defined product specification suitable for steel, refractory, and related commercial markets.
• Mass balances, design criteria, equipment duties, and process engineering packages mature sufficiently for external engineering firms and equipment vendors to execute effectively.
• Kiln, calcination, filtration, leaching, solids-handling, and finishing requirements are understood well enough to support pilot and commercial equipment decisions.
• Engineering deliverables are technically challenged and remain grounded in actual process-development data and product requirements.
• Lessons from pilot operation are translated into a safer, more reliable, maintainable, and commercially scalable manufacturing process.

Join Us

If you’re excited by the idea of advancing sustainable mineral science and want your analytical work to make a measurable impact, we’d love to hear from you.

ElementUSA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other legally protected status. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to these characteristics.