Battery Materials, Recycling and Product-Qualification Specialists

Work arrangement: Remote within the United States, with potential international travel
Engagement: Contingent, part-time/on-call specialist
Anticipated compensation: $150–$300 per hour, depending on qualifications and assignment, or a negotiated fixed price by work package. $300 per hour is the maximum anticipated rate.

Opportunity

Axyde Analytics is assembling a multidisciplinary expert team for anticipated U.S. government-funded project-scoping assignments involving critical minerals and international infrastructure.

We seek specialists capable of evaluating battery-material production, lithium-ion battery recycling, secondary-feed recovery and customer-qualification pathways.

Potential assignments may involve lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, graphite, copper, aluminum, black mass, active anode materials, cathode materials, precursor materials or other battery-supply-chain products.

Axyde does not expect one candidate to cover the entire battery lifecycle. Applicants should identify the materials, processes and commercial stages in which they possess direct, demonstrable expertise.

Specialist Tracks

We are recruiting experts in one or more of the following tracks:

• Battery-grade lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide

• Nickel, cobalt and manganese sulfate production

• Cathode-active-material and precursor production

• Natural and synthetic graphite anode materials

• Micronization, spheronization, coating and carbonization

• Cell chemistry and battery-material performance

• Manufacturing scrap and end-of-life battery collection

• Battery discharge, dismantling and preprocessing

• Shredding, mechanical separation and black-mass production

• Hydrometallurgical recycling and product recovery

• Pyrometallurgical and hybrid recycling routes

• Direct cathode or active-material recycling

• Fire, thermal-runaway and hazardous-material controls

• Product characterization and analytical quality control

• Sample programs, qualification and customer acceptance

• Feedstock contracts, offtake and closed-loop supply chains

• Recycling economics, working capital and metal-price exposure

• Pilot design, scale-up, commissioning and operations

Potential Responsibilities

Depending on the assignment and specialist track, selected experts may:

• Evaluate battery-material feedstocks, intermediates and finished-product specifications.

• Review process routes for battery-grade lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese or graphite products.

• Assess impurity control, particle characteristics, morphology, moisture and analytical requirements.

• Evaluate cathode-precursor, cathode-active-material and anode-material production.

• Review battery collection, transportation, discharge, dismantling and preprocessing systems.

• Assess mechanical separation, black-mass quality, recovery yield and feed variability.

• Evaluate hydrometallurgical, pyrometallurgical, hybrid or direct-recycling alternatives.

• Review integrated material, metal, solution, residue and product balances.

• Assess fire, thermal-runaway, combustible-dust, toxic-material and emergency-response risks.

• Review testwork, pilot results, operating references, equipment selection and scale-up evidence.

• Evaluate sample programs, cell testing, customer qualification and acceptance schedules.

• Reconcile claimed production capacity with feed availability, yield and saleable-product output.

• Identify fatal flaws, decisive information gaps and additional testing required before advancement.

• Evaluate power, water, reagents, utilities, logistics and waste-management requirements.

• Contribute to capital-cost, operating-cost, schedule and implementation assumptions.

• Assess feedstock contracts, customer concentration, offtake, pricing and project economics.

• Evaluate provenance, traceability and closed-loop supply-chain arrangements.

• Identify realistic opportunities for U.S. equipment, engineering, technology and services.

• Develop or review feasibility-study, technical-assistance or pilot-project terms of reference, budgets and schedules.

• Participate in sponsor, government, supplier, laboratory, automaker, battery-manufacturer or financing-source discussions.

• Support international meetings, site visits and field verification when required.

• Prepare concise findings and recommendations for senior government decision-makers.

• Serve as a discipline lead, contributor, same-discipline alternate or independent technical reviewer.

Required Qualifications

Candidates should possess:

• At least 7–10 years of directly relevant battery-material, recycling, chemical-processing, manufacturing or product-qualification experience.

• A degree in chemical engineering, metallurgy, materials science, electrochemistry, mineral processing, chemistry, mechanical engineering or a closely related field.

• Direct responsibility for identifiable battery-material plants, recycling facilities, pilot programs, qualification programs, feasibility studies or operating-improvement assignments.

• Demonstrated ability to connect feed characteristics, process recovery, product quality, customer qualification, safety and economics.

• Experience developing or independently reviewing testwork, mass balances, process criteria, operating data or qualification evidence.

• Strong written and verbal English-language communication skills.

• Ability to prepare concise, decision-oriented technical work.

• Ability to collaborate across processing, safety, environmental, commercial, automotive and financial disciplines.

• Either U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent-resident status in the United States.

• Legal authorization to work in the United States without current or future sponsorship.

• Willingness and ability to travel internationally when an assignment requires it.

• No known employment, confidentiality, intellectual-property, noncompete or conflict-of-interest restriction that would prevent participation.

Operating, commissioning, scale-up, product-development and customer-qualification experience is particularly valuable.

Application Information Requested

Please submit a résumé and a brief response identifying:

1. The battery materials, chemistries, recycling feeds and products with which you have direct experience.

2. Your strongest battery-material, recycling or product-qualification specialties.

3. Up to five representative plants, projects, pilots, qualification programs or studies and your personal responsibilities on each.

4. The development stages you have supported, including research, pilot, demonstration, feasibility, design, construction, commissioning, operations or customer qualification.

5. Your experience developing or reviewing material balances, test programs, process criteria or qualification evidence.

6. Countries and regions in which you have worked.

7. Whether you can serve as a discipline lead, independent reviewer, or both.

8. Your current U.S. location.

9. Whether you are a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.

10. Your availability during the next 30 days.

11. Your ability to travel internationally and any geographic restrictions.

12. Your anticipated hourly rate.

13. Any actual or potential conflicts involving governments, project sponsors, technology providers, battery companies, automakers, recyclers, engineering firms or current employers.

Engagement Conditions

This is a contingent opportunity supporting anticipated government-funded assignments. No employment, contract award, minimum workload or particular assignment is guaranteed.

Selection for an assignment will depend on contract award, material and project requirements, qualifications, availability, eligibility, conflicts, travel requirements, mutually acceptable compensation and execution of appropriate employment or consulting documentation.

Axyde may tailor and reformat selected résumés for proposal compliance without materially changing the candidate’s qualifications or experience.

Axyde Analytics
Strategic minerals • Supply-chain security • U.S. industrial base