Sr. Development Engineer

Sr. Development Engineer

New Britain, Pennsylvania, United States

AIRCO is a world leader in carbon conversion technology, paving the way to global energy security by transforming CO₂ into a valuable resource. Its proprietary AIRMADE™ Technology is an adaptable platform that allows any industry to efficiently produce high-demand, fully-formulated synthetic fuels from waste CO₂ and hydrogen.

The company has commercial partnerships with airlines including Jet Blue and Virgin Atlantic, amongst others, and has been awarded multiple government contracts, including with NASA and the United States Department of Defense's Defense Innovation Unit. The company has received industry recognition through awards such as Time Best Inventions, Inc. Best in Business, Fast Company World Changing Ideas, and the XPrize for Carbon Removal.

AIRCO's many accolades include winning the prestigious Green Chemistry Challenge Award from the Environmental Protection Agency in October 2023, an award given to organizations that reinvent processes to reduce the generation of hazardous substances and byproducts. AIRCO was also declared a winner for the World Economic Forum UpLink Sustainable Aviation Challenge, which accelerates the development of promising technology pathways that enable widespread uptake of SAF.

• Develop and maintain first-principles process simulations and mechanistic models for reaction, separation, and integrated SAF production systems.
• Apply modeling, simulation, and data analytics to predict performance, support scale-up decisions, optimize process design, and reduce commercialization risk.
• Convert laboratory and pilot-scale results into Engineering Design Information (EDI), process design inputs, and technology performance projections.
• Lead the development of experimental strategies and pilot campaigns required to validate models, resolve technical uncertainties, and strengthen scale-up confidence.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to advance technology from development through demonstration and commercial deployment, while identifying opportunities for innovation and process improvement.

• M.S. or Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a closely related discipline
• Significant experience in process development, process modeling, simulation, and scale-up engineering within chemical process industries.
• Strong grounding in thermodynamics, reaction engineering, and separation fundamentals
• Demonstrated ability to analyze large datasets and extract mechanistic insight, not just empirical fits
• Advanced experience with numerical tools, simulation software, or data analysis platforms (e.g., Aspen, MATLAB, Python, similar)
• Demonstrated experience developing first-principles, mechanistic, or hybrid process models for chemical reaction and separation systems.
• Experience applying simulation and modeling tools to technology scale-up, process design, and commercialization decisions.
• Ability to bridge experimental observations and engineering models to generate predictive process understanding.
• Proven ability to use engineering fundamentals, experimental data, and simulation tools to diagnose process behavior and resolve technical challenges.
• Experience in fuels, petrochemicals, refining, catalysis, or sustainable energy technologies
• Familiarity with scale-up challenges, process modeling, and commercialization workflows
• Experience supporting or delivering EDI / FEL engineering packages

• A team of engineers, scientists, operators, builders, and innovators working on hard problems with tangible impact.
• A company building and deploying real systems for fuel and chemical production in real-world conditions.
• A hands-on environment where ownership is clear, decisions stay close to the work, and teams move with trust, discipline, and speed.
• Driven by work that matters, with a culture grounded in safety, teamwork, transparency, purpose, agility, ambition, and creativity.

Comprehensive Health Benefits

• Full coverage for employee base premiums on health, dental, and vision insurance.
• 70% coverage for spouse and dependent base premiums.
• Choose between base plans or…