This is not a conventional chemical engineering production role. The primary focus is materials science: understanding how different materials interact, combining them into composites, and developing new material functions from their physical and chemical properties.

The work will involve materials such as wood, lignin, cellulose, agricultural residues, polymers, resins, fillers and other industrial materials. You will investigate how composition, particle size, morphology, moisture, interfaces, processing conditions and chemical modification affect the resulting material.

You may work on questions such as: How can a waste material become a functional component of a composite? How does changing an interface alter strength or adhesion? How can a material be made hydrophobic, conductive, insulating, porous or mechanically stronger? How do processing conditions change the structure of a material? How can materials be combined to obtain a property that neither material has on its own?

The role involves both hands-on experimentation and scientific reasoning. You will prepare samples, modify formulations, operate laboratory and processing equipment, measure properties, document experiments and interpret results. You will be expected to move between molecular-scale chemistry, material structure and macroscopic properties rather than treating these as separate subjects.

A degree in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Chemistry, Polymer Science, Nanotechnology, Physics or a related field would be relevant. A candidate with a strong understanding of chemistry and materials may be considered even if their degree is not an exact match.

We are particularly interested in someone who understands concepts such as polymer chemistry, surface chemistry, intermolecular interactions, composite materials, phase behaviour, rheology, adsorption, diffusion, mechanical properties and structure–property relationships. Knowledge of physics, especially mechanics, thermodynamics, electromagnetism or transport phenomena, would be useful.

You do not need to know all of these areas already. What matters is that you are comfortable learning from first principles and applying what you learn to physical materials.

The ideal candidate is someone who enjoys asking why a material behaves the way it does, rather than simply following an established formulation. You should be comfortable working with incomplete information, designing experiments, changing one variable at a time when appropriate, and learning from results that do not behave as expected.

The position will involve working closely with the existing manufacturing operation, so you will also gain exposure to industrial processing, quality control, resins, laminates, wood-based materials, machinery and scale-up.

What you will do

Develop and test composite material formulations.

Study relationships between material composition, structure, interfaces, processing and properties.

Experiment with natural materials, polymers, resins, fillers and industrial waste streams.

Investigate methods for modifying surfaces and interfaces to obtain specific functions.

Design and conduct small-scale experiments and translate useful results toward manufacturing.

Characterize materials using available physical and chemical testing methods.

Maintain experimental records and analyse results.

Identify useful materials and technologies from scientific literature, patents and industrial sources.

Work with production personnel to understand how laboratory observations translate to industrial processing.

What we are looking for

A background in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Chemistry, Polymer Science, Nanotechnology, Physics or a related field.

Strong interest in materials and physical experimentation.

Ability to understand chemistry at the molecular level and connect it to material behaviour.

Comfort with basic laboratory work and handling physical materials.

Ability to reason quantitatively and interpret experimental results.

Curiosity about composites, polymers, interfaces, natural materials and emerging material technologies.

Most importantly, the ability to learn independently, formulate hypotheses and turn an observation into an experiment.

This role may suit you if

You have built or experimented with materials outside your formal coursework.

You find yourself asking why two materials bond, separate, swell, conduct, absorb water or change their mechanical behaviour when combined.

You enjoy moving between chemistry, physics and engineering rather than staying within one discipline.

You would rather investigate a material in the laboratory than spend the day preparing reports.

You are interested in developing materials and functions that do not yet have an established formulation.

The position is intended as a training role, but the objective is for the candidate to develop into a materials R&D engineer capable of independently taking a material concept from hypothesis → formulation → experiment → characterization → prototype → process development.

Pay: ₹32,948.80 - ₹65,338.72 per month

Benefits:

Flexible schedule
Provident Fund

Application Question(s):

Suppose you wanted to design a composite material that could take up ambient humidity from air (rh 70 percent) from one side and release it from another side, while still having enough mechanical strength to be used as a structural material. How would you approach designing such a material?

What physical or chemical problems would you expect, what variables would you investigate, and how would you determine what is actually happening?

Work Location: In person