Senior Thermal Mechanical Engineer

Antora Energy is electrifying heavy industry with zero-carbon heat and power. We make it possible and profitable to fully rely on renewable energy for industrial processes.

Antora Energy's thermal energy storage soaks up excess solar and wind electricity and uses it to heat blocks of carbon so they glow like inside a toaster (but very bright!). This thermal energy is then delivered to customers as electricity or industrial process heat up to 1500°C, on demand. In short, Antora Energy turns sunshine and wind into 24/7 heat and power, cheaper than fossil fuels.

Our future hinges on heavy industry. Antora Energy’s technology eliminates the need to burn fossil fuels for industrial heat and power, the biggest source of greenhouse gasses on earth.

We are growing our company with people who put team and mission first, value connection through laughter and joy, and build with humility and openness. We are a high-growth start-up backed by industry-leading investors in our category. People join our team to do the most fulfilling and impactful work of their lives on climate change.

Position Summary

Lead the design of a system to extract useful process heat (e.g., thermal oil, steam, etc.) from an ultra-high temperature (>1500℃) thermal storage system in an efficient, reliable, safe, and cost-effective manner.

Roles & Responsibilities

• Drive internal and external cross-functional teams on the definition, design, prototyping, validation, and hand-off to mass production of the process heat extraction subsystem.
• Coordinate with the internal & external engineering teams on how the process heat is extracted from the system in a manner that can be efficiently transported across the site for the customer’s end use.
• Define & execute experimental and numerical investigations to inform process heat extraction designs and their integration into the broader system.

Key Qualifications

• Bachelors or equivalent in an engineering or technical field (e.g., mechanical, thermal, chemical, aerospace, etc).
• 8+ years of experience in activities such as designing, costing, prototyping, and working with large-scale process heat engineering projects that span multiple engineering disciplines.
• Strong understanding of heat transfer and mechanics of materials.
• Ability to develop and run computational models of device and component performance, including steady-state and transient heat transfer and thermal-mechanical stress analysis.
• Familiarity with industry agencies for performance and safety. Eg: ASME, UL, ETL, CSA etc. and other local jurisdiction regulations.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Empathy, sensitivity, and ability to effectively interact with a broad and diverse range of colleagues.

Additional Qualifications Desired

• Experience in the power/energy sector working with high temperatures, such as molten salt thermal energy storage (TES), concentrating solar power (CSP), thermal power plant design, boiler/superheater/heat exchanger design, advanced nuclear, pyrolysis, high-temperature metals/ceramics production, heat treatment, first-of-a-kind plants, etc.
• Hands-on experience designing high-temperature/high-pressure  thermal fluid systems (e.g. piping systems for steam, thermal oil, molten salt, air, etc.), ensuring safe serviceability and maintenance of systems and components.
• Hands-on experience commissioning steam and compressor systems.
• Demonstrated knowledge of computational multi-physics  software, such as ANSYS Fluent, COMSOL, STAR-CCM+, or SolidWorks Flow Simulation.

We encourage you to apply even if your experiences and qualifications deviate somewhat from this list.

Location and hours: Antora’s operations are currently highly distributed, especially so given the current situation with COVID-19. While our core team is concentrated in the San Francisco Bay Area, many team members are currently working from home depending on their job functions, and we partner with contractors and suppliers across the US. Our headquarters is located in Sunnyvale, CA. For this role, on-site work a few days a week will be required and flexibility in schedule can be accommodated. This is a full-time position.

Benefits

• A competitive salary
• Stock options
• A premium benefits package, including:
• 100% employer premium coverage for Anthem PPO Gold health plan
• Option for Anthem PPO Platinum health plan, with employer premium coverage up to Gold level
• Vision and dental coverage
• Life insurance
• 50% health insurance premium coverage for dependents
• Flexible spending account for health care and dependent care
• 401(K) plan
• Industry-leading paid time off policy, including flexible and inclusive holiday observance
• Additional volunteer time off
• Dedicated benefits manager to help employees navigate insurance and our broader benefits
• A flexible schedule and a work culture that is supportive of the differing constraints we all have on our time 
• A team of kind, energetic, and passionate people that values and supports people from all different backgrounds
• Company-supported career development opportunities
• The opportunity to be a leader in a rapidly-growing organization
• A supportive, respectful, and creative environment
• The opportunity to work in an environment in which your everyday actions have the potential for enormous impact in clean energy and climate

About Antora Energy

Antora Energy is a rapidly-growing startup on a mission to decarbonize our energy system by commercializing a new class of ultra-low-cost energy storage. Antora's modular thermal battery technology is charged by electricity, and can discharge both electricity and process heat up to 1500°C. With costs 20x lower than existing storage products, Antora's thermal battery solution reduces customer energy costs while increasing resiliency and slashing total heat and electricity emissions. This breakthrough solution is uniquely positioned to provide zero-carbon heat and electricity at prices below fossil fuels, and ultimately enable deep decarbonization across both the industrial sector and the electric power sector.

Our team consists of leading technology experts and entrepreneurs with deep experience building and scaling new technologies for decarbonization. We are backed by the world’s leading venture capital firms, as well as the US Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, and California Energy Commission. Antora Energy was founded in 2018 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. Our people are our most valuable asset, and we are committed to continue building a diverse, passionate, and creative team dedicated to providing clean, reliable, and affordable energy to everyone on earth.