Lead Research Engineer – Mass Transfer and Fluid Dynamics

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Posted 2021-03-04

 

Company Description

 

BC Research Inc. (www.bcri.ca) is a privately-held Vancouver company that specializes in developing innovative chemical processes from concept to commercialization. BCRI is part of the NORAM group of companies, which provide an established, vertically-integrated platform for brining innovative chemical process technologies to market from initial concept through process development, pilot plant testing, and finally full-scale industrial production. In addition to BC Research, the NORAM group of companies includes an engineering and technology firm (NORAM Engineering and Constructors Ltd. www.noram-eng.com), a fabrication facility on Annacis Island (Axton Inc. www.axton.ca) and a European engineering office based in Gothenburg, Sweden (NORAM International AB www.noram-intl.com).

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BC Research operates out of a custom designed laboratory and piloting facility on Mitchell Island, which is located on the Fraser River between Vancouver and Richmond, BC.  The company is engaged in a wide variety of technology development projects in clean energy, pulp and paper, chemicals, oil and gas, mining, electrochemistry, and waste water.  Projects are diverse in both size and nature and include both the development of proprietary NORAM technologies and work for external clients.  Recent projects include tower design and optimization, lignin production, carbon capture and conversion processes, conversion of biomass to biofuels, electrochemical salt splitting, and other novel chemical processes.

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Job Description

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BC Research is looking for a motivated, independent, and technically strong Lead Research Engineer – Mass Transfer and Fluid Dynamics to join our team of engineers, scientists, and technicians in our efforts to design, study, pilot, and commercialize new chemical engineering technologies.  We are looking for someone with a strong understanding of physical chemistry and process engineering operations who can apply their knowledge to solving industrial scale challenges.

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One of the initial assignments will be as the Technical Lead of a multi-faceted project to generate a “step change” improvement in the performance of a large-scale multi-phase stripping operation processing operation.  This challenging project will require you to apply your strong fundamental understanding of multiphase separation phenomena, mass transfer, chemical (equilibria, and fluid dynamics to an important real-world problem.  Working with a small team of engineers, scientists, and technicians, you will tackle the problem from a variety of angles including fundamental engineering design, process simulation, computer data analysis, bench-scale experiments in our well-equipped laboratory, and large-scale testing on our fully-instrumented pilot plant(s).  Your day will be divided between the office, where you will focus on detailed project planning and technical analysis, and the pilot hall where you will supervise the construction, commissioning, and operation of experiments and test with an eye on larger project objectives.

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As a key member of our engineering team, your responsibilities will include a lead role in several projects with a variety of goals.  In particular, you will be called upon to provide expertise in mass transfer and fluid dynamics.  Your role will also include identification and exploration of new research directions, academic collaborations, strategic relationships and business opportunities by drawing upon your creative vision and professional network.

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This is a full-time position reporting to the Vice President.  Your primary place of work will be BC Research’s facility on Mitchell Island, which is located under the Knight Street Bridge on the Fraser River between Vancouver and Richmond, British Columbia, with occasional meetings at the downtown Vancouver office.

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Responsibilities

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• Work with company leadership and collaborators to define the goals, plan the technical approach, and set the budget and resource requirements of new projects.

• Work both independently and in a team to plan and execute highly technical research projects with an applied process/chemical engineering focus ranging from lab- and pilot-scale experiments and computer modeling to achieve project goals.

• Client communications including preparation and review of reports, delivering presentations, and participating in calls and meetings.

• Leverage new and existing contacts and strategic relationships to develop, identify and secure third-party commercial R&D projects

• Identify new internal technical/commercial R&D ideas and opportunities

• Evaluate new ideas and technical opportunities by performing/assisting with literature reviews, economic / technical feasibility studies and market studies.

• Travel both nationally and internationally (occasionally, if required).

• Specify, select, and order equipment, materials, and services as required.

• Follow all procedures established by the Health and Safety Committee to maintain a safe workplace.

 

Qualifications

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• Graduate degree in Engineering with at least 5-10 years of experience applying the fundamentals of physical chemistry to engineering problems.

• Industrial experience, particularly in oil and gas, that includes large-scale mass transfer equipment.

• Strong understanding of the principles and applications of physical chemistry to process engineering, including mass transfer and fluid dynamics.

• Strong fundamental and practical understanding of process equipment, with a particular focus on mass transfer and phase separation operations (towers, mixers, settlers, etc.).

• Experience in the design and operation physical models of chemical systems, e.g. surrogate , cold models, scaled models.

• Working knowledge of PFDs and P&IDs.

• Excellent verbal and written English communication skills.

• Eligible to work in Canada.

• Experience in the design and validation of computer models for the purposes of data analysis and process simulation (e.g. MatLab, Python, CFD modelling) would be considered an asset.

 

How to apply

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Send a copy of your resume and cover letter to careers@bcri.ca and cite the posting title “Lead Research Engineer – Mass Transfer and Fluid Dynamics.”

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