The Systems Assessment Center (SAC) of Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) has been conducting assessments of conventional/new transportation fuels and advanced vehicle technologies over the last 25 years. It has developed the GREET® (Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies) model for estimating energy use, air emissions, and water consumption on a life-cycle basis for conventional vehicle/fuel systems, as well as for emerging technologies for energy production, energy storage, and chemical production (see https://greet.es.anl.gov for details). The GREET model has more than 50,000 registered users worldwide, including academia, industry, and regulatory agencies. The SAC has been working closely with energy and auto industries, universities, and governmental agencies to evaluate energy, environmental, and cost impacts of conventional/new transportation fuels and chemicals, as well as advanced vehicle technologies.

The SAC continues to assess conventional and advanced fuels, chemicals and materials production technologies for their energy consumption, environmental impacts and production cost. Current research efforts include examination of: 1) electro-fuel production technology using waste CO2 sources and renewable electricity; 2) The energy consumption and environmental impact of hydrogen production from various technologies and energy sources. 3.) Regional renewable and nuclear electricity sources for green or low carbon H2 production and storage; 4) Regional analysis of waste CO2 sources, cost estimation for CO2 capture (from industrial sources and direct air capture [DAC]), compression, transport and sequestration. 5) A variety of new fuel/chemical production technologies from waste gas, biomass, plastic waste, municipal waste, etc. 6). Analyses of decarbonization for various industrial sectors and manufacture sector (e.g. steel, chemical).

SAC is working closely with the energy, auto, biofuel, chemical industry to examine next-generation fuels and chemicals derived from both conventional and alternative energy sources, for enhanced performance and reduced emissions.

One postdoc position is now open for candidates with expertise and experience in process modeling (preferably using Aspen Plus), technoeconomic analysis (TEA), or environmental life cycle analysis (LCA). The candidate will possess a good understanding of fuel/chemical production technologies and industrial processes, such as petroleum fuels production, chemical production and hydrogen production from various technologies, CO2 capture by commercial and emerging technologies, production technologies for electro- fuels (e-fuels or power-to-liquid), conventional and emerging iron/steelmaking technologies, or other advanced fuel and chemical production technologies (such as those converting biomass to liquid fuels, and waste to fuels/chemicals). The candidate will possess knowledge of relevant issues associated with these technologies (e.g., technical, economic, and/or environmental issues) and systems analysis including process modeling, technoeconomic analysis (TEA), environmental life cycle analysis (LCA), and regional analysis.

The candidate will model fuels and chemicals production process using Aspen Plus model following chemical engineering principles, considering both plant economics and emission reduction (relative to incumbent industrial process). The candidate will extract energy and emissions data associated with fuel and chemical production technologies from U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) database, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency database (e.g. GHGRP, NEI), field data, process simulations, industry reports, the technical literature, and from interactions with other national laboratories, academia, industry, and stakeholders. The candidate will work with researchers within the SAC to expand the GREET model with the new data to enhance and expand the model’s capability of assessing the life-cycle energy use and emissions associated with various transportation fuels and chemicals.

Position Requirements

• Doctor’s degree in chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, petroleum engineering, materials engineering, or related fields.

• Qualified individuals should have experience in process modeling (preferably using Aspen Plus) with a strong background in engineering principles.

• Knowledge in industrial processes and emerging technologies for petroleum fuels production, hydrogen production, petrochemical processes, electrochemical processes, carbon dioxide capture and storage, crude recovery, natural gas recovery and processing, material recovery and manufacture (such as iron and steelmaking), or some other manufacture processes, etc.

• Skilled oral and written communication skills at all levels of the organization.

• Ability to model Argonne’s core values of impact, safety, respect, integrity, and teamwork.

• Ability to make our laboratory a safe, welcoming, inclusive, and accessible environment where all can thrive.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in TEA and LCA (e.g., using GREET model).

• Skills in computer programming (e.g., Excel VBA, Python, or MATLAB).

Job Family

Postdoctoral Family

Job Profile

Postdoctoral Appointee

Worker Type

Long-Term (Fixed Term)

Time Type

Full time

As an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer, and in accordance with our core values of impact, safety, respect, integrity and teamwork, Argonne National Laboratory is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace that fosters collaborative scientific discovery and innovation. In support of this commitment, Argonne encourages minorities, women, veterans and individuals with disabilities to apply for employment. Argonne considers all qualified applicants for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship status, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.

Argonne employees, and certain guest researchers and contractors, are subject to particular restrictions related to participation in Foreign Government Sponsored or Affiliated Activities, as defined and detailed in United States Department of Energy Order 486.1A. You will be asked to disclose any such participation in the application phase for review by Argonne's Legal Department.

All Argonne offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes an assessment of criminal conviction history conducted on an individualized and case-by-case basis. Please be advised that Argonne positions require upon hire (or may require in the future) for the individual be to obtain a government access authorization that involves additional background check requirements. Failure to obtain or maintain such government access authorization could result in the withdrawal of a job offer or future termination of employment.