Post-Doctoral Fellow, BioChar

Engineering a world of possibilities

Colorado School of Mines (Mines), Civil and Environmental Engineering department, is seeking a postdoctoral fellow to support our research on chemically modified biochar for use in cementitious composites.

This is a one-year position with the possibility of extension for a second year, pending funding and performance. The anticipated start date is August 2026. The postdoctoral fellow will lead laboratory investigations aimed at improving the performance of biochar as a functional additive and supplementary cementitious material in concrete through targeted chemical modification. The researcher will design and execute surface treatment and functionalization strategies (e.g., oxidative treatments, chemical grafting, mineral coatings, or impregnation approaches) to tune biochar surface chemistry, wettability, and reactivity, and will systematically characterize the resulting materials.

These modified biochars will be evaluated in cement paste, mortar, and concrete systems for their effects on hydration, workability, mechanical performance, and durability. The postdoctoral fellow will work closely with graduate students, other postdoctoral fellows, and industry collaborators to translate promising modification routes toward scalable processes. Additional responsibilities include lab management, preparing project reports, scholarly publications, and research proposals.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES Design and conduct chemical modification and functionalization of biochar to improve its performance in cementitious systems

Characterize the physical and chemical properties of raw and modified biochars and evaluate their performance in cement paste, mortar, and concrete

Prepare research manuscripts and technical reports

Assist with mentoring of graduate and undergraduate students and training of research collaborators

Assist with preparing research proposals resulting from the conducted research

Assist with managing equipment, supplies, and cleanliness of laboratory spaces

Minimum Qualifications

Education and Experience:

PhD in a related field (chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science and engineering, civil engineering, or other related fields)
Demonstrated hands-on experience with chemical synthesis and/or surface modification of materials

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

Strong publication record in high-quality peer-reviewed journals

Excellent communication skills, both oral and written

Preferred:

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

Prior experience with carbon-based materials (biochar, activated carbon, carbon black, graphene oxide, or similar)

Experience with surface chemistry characterization techniques such as FTIR, XPS, Raman spectroscopy, zeta potential, BET surface area analysis, TGA, or contact angle/wettability measurements

Familiarity with cementitious materials or willingness to learn independently

Experience with materials characterization equipment such as SEM-EDS, XRD, XRF, ICP-AES, or Micro-CTInterest in working at the interface of academic research and industry translation

About Mines & Golden, COWhen the world looks for answers, the world looks to Mines.

Colorado School of Mines is a top-ranked public university solving the grand challenges facing our society, particularly those related to the Earth, energy and the environment. Founded in 1874 with specialties in mining and metallurgy, Mines’ scope and mission have continually expanded to meet the needs of industry and society. Today, we are the No. 36 public university in the nation, recognized for our innovation and undergraduate teaching in science, technology engineering and math (U.S. News and World Report, 2025).Mines

graduates are change makers, boundary breakers and problem solvers. Since our earliest days, a Mines education has been and continues to be a transformational opportunity, with one of the strongest returns on investment out there for talented STEM students of all backgrounds.

At the same time, Mines faculty members are pushing their fields in new directions, whether that’s manufacturing, space resources, quantum engineering, carbon capture or more. Mines was recently classified as a R1 “Very…