Membrane Engineer

Do you want to make a material impact in the fight against climate change? Are you excited by the potential of large-scale carbon removal? If so, Captura is seeking a Membrane Engineer to join our XPRIZE Milestone Award winning team.

Developed and proven in Caltech’s laboratories, Captura uses established electrochemical concepts to enable gigatonne-scalable solutions for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere via direct ocean capture. We capture carbon dioxide using only renewable electricity and ocean water, producing no by-products. Captura’s mission is globally scalable carbon removal to support a sustainable future for the world’s climate.

High performing hollow fiber membranes are one of the critical elements in Captura’s gas-liquid contactor unit, the Membrane Engineer will bring the technical expertise in development of novel hollow fiber membranes, improvement, implement and integration of hollow fiber membranes specifically tailored for oceanic CO2 capture applications.  The Membrane Engineer will initially lead Department of Energy (DOE) funded projects to develop next generation CO2 degassing unit using ultra-low-cost hollow fiber membranes, traditionally used in water filtration applications, as a structural support, and modify their outer layers with a highly CO2 permeable layers to selectively strip CO2 from ocean water.

This position is based at Pasadena, CA.

ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Design and develop new and improved hollow fiber membranes in the R&D setting
• Evaluate membrane performance in CO2 stripping unit and provide support for process development and field tests
• Troubleshoot hollow fiber membrane manufacturing and implement improvements as needed
• Assist in safety, best practices in materials synthesis, process development and related activities.
• Assist membrane manufacturing process and develop manufacturing procedure
• Foster effective teamwork among engineering staff in a dynamic, fast-paced technical environment.

PRIOR EXPERIENCE & PROFESSIONAL QUALITIES

• MS in Polymer Chemistry, Chemical Engineering or related field of study, with specialization in hollow fiber membranes and water filtration membranes (PhD preferred but not required).
• Hands-on capability to comprehensively synthesize, evaluate and predict hollow fiber membrane performance in gas separations and related applications.
• Ability to work independently and in small teams, in a way that enhances team dynamics, and ability to lead and manage small to medium projects.
• A strong technical understanding of hollow fiber membranes employed in the industrial scale for gas separations and other relevant fields.
• Stay abreast with technical reports and published literature; alert technical team of new developments, willingness to test out new concepts to improve performance, yield, etc.
• Highly motivated to work in the emerging CO2 capture industry in an early-stage commercial environment.