Postdoctoral Fellow; PREP

PREP Research Associate

This position is part of the National Institute of Standards (NIST) Professional Research Experience (PREP) program. NIST established the PREP program, comprising multiple academic institutions, to facilitate its research staff collaborating with researchers at academic institutions on specific projects of mutual interest. The PREP program engages staff from a wide range of backgrounds in scientific research across many area, enabling technical work that underpins the metrology needs of a broad range of industries.

Metrology for Steel Corrosion in Innovative Cement Materials

The Infrastructure Materials Group (IMG) at NIST serves as an important resource for developing science‑based tools and measurement standards to enhance the resilience and sustainability of the nation’s physical infrastructure. The degradation of reinforced concrete as a direct result of embedded steel corrosion remains a monumental challenge, with direct and indirect costs consuming approximately 6 % of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product.

The IMG "Assessing Steel Corrosion Risk in Innovative Cement Concretes" project aims to combine advanced electrochemical characterization with species transport modeling. We seek a highly motivated Postdoctoral Researcher with academic training and experience in corrosion science to develop new metrology standards specific to reinforced concrete structures, which are often in unsaturated conditions. The selected candidate will focus on measuring the precise rates of corrosion initiation and progression, ultimately providing the foundational data needed to build high‑fidelity service‑life and fragility models for reinforced concrete structures.

• Design fundamental laboratory studies, develop novel metrology, and advance predictive models.
• Electrochemical Metrology & Testing:
  Design and conduct advanced bench‑top electrochemical assessments of reinforcement steel to measure corrosion initiation and progression rates under varied solution properties and environmental conditions.
• Advanced Data Collection:
  Utilize Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS), potentiodynamic polarization, open‑circuit potential (OCP), and linear polarization resistance (LPR) to accurately quantify corrosion current density, corrosion potential, and charge transfer resistance. Develop measurement plans to obtain Point Defect Model (PDM) parameters for modeling rebar passivation and passive film breakdown.
• Microstructural Characterization:
  Perform high‑resolution materials characterization utilizing Scanning Electron Microscopy‑Energy Dispersive X‑Ray Spectroscopy (SEM‑EDS) to study the steel‑concrete interface and understand the morphology of localized degradation.
• Model Integration:
  Translate fundamental bench‑top corrosion data and transport property measurements into accurate inputs for numerical and structural models, connecting atomic‑level physicochemical mechanisms to building‑scale performance.

• Deep background in materials science, strictly focused on the fundamental corrosion of metals.
• Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering, Metallurgy, Chemistry, or a closely related physical science discipline, completed within the last five (5) years.
• Demonstrated expertise in investigating corrosion mechanisms of metallic systems under a range of environmental and solution conditions.
• Strong experience designing and executing laboratory experiments to study corrosion processes, including controlled electrochemical testing and environmental exposure studies.
• Hands‑on laboratory experience with Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) and Mott‑Schottky Analysis.
• Hands‑on experience executing standard electrochemical corrosion tests, specifically potentiodynamic polarization, galvanostatic polarization, potentiostatic polarization, corrosion potential, corrosion current density, and mass loss measurements.
• Proficiency in surface/sample preparation of metals for metallographic analysis and advanced microstructural characterization techniques, specifically SEM/EDS, Raman spectroscopy, X‑Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy…