Synthetic Chemist - Energetics Manufacturing

Approach Venture; Waltham (MA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Early-stage equity

Competitive benefits

Job summary

Approach Venture in Waltham, MA is seeking a Synthetic Chemist to lead hands-on chemistry development at the front end of the pipeline.

You will design and execute experiments, optimize routes, and investigate mechanisms to prepare safe, scalable processes for pilot‑scale production. Collaboration with process development and automation teams is essential, with opportunity for early-stage equity.

Qualifications

• Bachelors/Masters/PhD in Chemistry or related field required.
• 5+ years of synthetic chemistry or related R&D experience.
• Hands-on benchtop synthesis experience.
• Experience designing and optimizing reactions, not just following procedures.
• Strong understanding of reaction chemistry and lab practices.
• Experience with NMR, HPLC, GC-MS, or FTIR.
• Excellent troubleshooting and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to operate independently in a hands-on lab.
• Willingness to lift up to 50 pounds and work on-site.
• Eligible for U.S. export-control requirements and security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Design and execute laboratory experiments to develop and characterize chemical reactions.
• Develop, evaluate, and optimize synthetic routes and reaction conditions.
• Use DoE and parametric studies to understand key reaction variables.
• Investigate reaction mechanisms, impurities, and failure modes.
• Generate reliable data to inform reaction design and scale-up.
• Develop and apply analytical methods to evaluate performance and product characteristics.
• Use NMR, HPLC, GC-MS, FTIR to support chemistry development.
• Collaborate with process development teams as chemistry moves toward pilot-scale systems.
• Evaluate thermal behavior, stability, and process hazards during development.
• Troubleshoot reactions and laboratory equipment as needed.
• Identify opportunities to simplify chemistry and workflows.
• Document results clearly and communicate recommendations across teams.

Skills

Benchtop synthesis

Experimental design

DoE & parametric studies

Reaction development

Analytical methods

Problem solving

Independent work

On-site work

Education

Bachelor's/Master's/PhD in Chemistry or related field

Tools

NMR

HPLC

GC-MS

FTIR

Job description

Synthetic Chemist - Develop the chemistry behind next-generation energetics manufacturing

Waltham, Massachusetts | On-site

Opportunity Summary

Join an early-stage defense technology company developing advanced chemical manufacturing systems for critical energetic materials. The company is combining chemistry, automation, and continuous processing to increase domestic production capacity for materials used across defense applications. As a Synthetic Chemist, you will own hands-on chemistry development at the front end of the technical pipeline. You will design and execute experiments, develop and optimize synthetic routes, investigate reaction mechanisms, and build the technical understanding required before chemistry moves into pilot-scale production. This is a highly experimental role centered on synthesis, reaction development, and problem-solving at the bench. You will work closely with process development engineers and chemists to ensure laboratory discoveries can ultimately translate into safe, repeatable, and scalable manufacturing processes.

About Us

We are a venture-backed defense manufacturing startup developing modular, highly automated production systems for energetic materials. The team is building new approaches to chemical manufacturing that combine continuous processing, advanced chemistry, and automation to improve production speed, safety, consistency, and scalability.

Job Duties

• Design and execute laboratory experiments to develop and characterize chemical reactions
• Develop, evaluate, and optimize synthetic routes and reaction conditions
• Use structured experimental approaches, including DoE and parametric studies, to understand key reaction variables
• Investigate reaction mechanisms, impurities, failure modes, and competing chemical pathways
• Generate reliable experimental data that informs reaction design and future scale‑up
• Develop and apply analytical methods to evaluate reaction performance and product characteristics
• Use tools such as NMR, HPLC, GC-MS, FTIR, and related techniques to support chemistry development
• Work closely with process development teams as chemistry transitions from flask and small-reactor experiments toward pilot‑scale systems
• Evaluate thermal behavior, chemical stability, and process hazards throughout development
• Troubleshoot reactions, laboratory equipment, and experimental systems
• Identify opportunities to simplify chemistry, processing steps, and experimental workflows
• Clearly document results and communicate technical recommendations across chemistry and engineering teams

Qualifications

• Bachelor's, Master's, or PhD in Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Synthetic Chemistry, Catalysis, or a related field
• 5+ years of professional experience in synthetic chemistry, reaction development, or closely related experimental R&D
• Strong hands‑on experience with benchtop chemical synthesis
• Experience designing and optimizing reactions rather than primarily executing established procedures
• Strong understanding of reaction chemistry, experimental design, and laboratory practices
• Working knowledge of analytical techniques such as NMR, HPLC, GC-MS, or FTIR
• Strong experimental troubleshooting and problem‑solving skills
• Ability to operate independently in a hands‑on laboratory environment
• Ability to lift up to 50 pounds
• Ability to work on‑site and travel as needed
• Must meet applicable U.S. export‑control requirements and be eligible to obtain a U.S. security clearance

Preferred Experience

• Continuous‑flow chemistry or flow reactor development
• Reaction scale‑up from benchtop experiments into larger laboratory or pilot systems
• Process chemistry or chemical process development
• Nitration chemistry or other highly exothermic reactions
• Experience working with energetic, hazardous, reactive, or toxic materials
• Analytical method development using HPLC, IC, NMR, ICP‑OES/MS, DSC/TGA, or related techniques
• Experience within pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals, fine chemicals, energetics, propellants, explosives, or other chemistry‑intensive manufacturing environments
• Experience working closely with process development or chemical engineering teams to transition chemistry toward production

Why Join Us

• This role offers significant ownership over chemistry that is intended to move beyond laboratory research and into real‑world production.
• You will work at the point where fundamental chemistry decisions are made, with direct visibility into how your experimental work influences process development, pilot‑scale systems, and future manufacturing.
• The environment is hands‑on and highly technical, with close collaboration across chemistry, process engineering, automation, and hardware development.
• Early‑stage equity and competitive benefits.