Location: Nevada / Full-time / On-site / Travel: Up to 25%
About the role
Our client is an early-stage company developing hydrometallurgical technologies to recover critical metals from mineral resources, including leaching technology for sustainable, scalable copper extraction. It’s hiring a Hydrometallurgist/Chemist to support the development, optimization, and scale-up of the chemical processes behind mineral extraction, purification, and refining.
You’ll design laboratory test programs to answer priority chemistry questions, using aqueous chemistry and thermodynamic modeling tools such as OLI and HSC. From there, you’ll define the chemistry requirements, operating windows, and process inputs needed for extraction, separation, and purification. Copper hydrometallurgy of this kind typically centers on leaching followed by solvent extraction and electrowinning (SX-EW). Development work commonly involves bench-scale and column leach tests, and managing pregnant leach solution (PLS) and raffinate chemistry.
As the technology moves beyond the lab, you’ll support the transition to pilot and commercial scale, troubleshooting chemical processing issues and providing technical support along the way. You’ll apply analytical techniques including XRD, XRF, ICP-OES, ICP-MS, and SEM, making sure sample handling, analytical methods, and QA/QC are sound.
R&D is a core part of the role. You’ll develop novel reagents and processing methods, analyze results, and write clear, traceable technical reports with practical recommendations. The role involves travel of up to 25%, both within the United States and potentially internationally.
Main responsibilities
- Develop hypotheses and laboratory test programs to solve priority chemistry questions, using aqueous chemistry and thermodynamic tools such as OLI and HSC
- Define chemistry requirements, operating windows, and process inputs for mineral extraction, separation, purification, and optimization
- Support the transition from laboratory to pilot and commercial scale
- Troubleshoot chemical processing issues and provide technical support
- Apply XRD, XRF, ICP-OES, ICP-MS, SEM, and other analytical techniques, with appropriate QA/QC, sample handling, and analytical methods
- Develop novel reagents and processing methods
- Analyze results and produce clear, traceable technical reports with practical recommendations
Requirements
- 3+ years of experience in analytical chemistry, aqueous chemistry, hydrometallurgy, experimental design, or related chemical process development
- M.S. or PhD in metallurgical engineering, chemical engineering, or a related field
- Deep understanding of solvent extraction, ion exchange, electrowinning, electrorefining, transition metal chemistry, and/or materials characterization for copper applications
- Willing and able to travel up to 25% of the time, including domestic travel within the United States and potential international travel
The offer
- Full-time, on-site role in Nevada
- Travel of up to 25%, domestic and potentially international
- The chance to help take critical mineral processing technology from development through to commercial production