Hiring: Lead Hydrometallurgist Company: Connecticut Innovations Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL Job Posted Time: 2026-09-15 12:31:27 Employment Type: Full-time / On-site About the job Experience: •5+ years of hands-on experience in hydrometallurgy, mineral processing, pyrometallurgy or metal recovery with base metals and rare earth elements (REE). Required Skills: •FAST Metals is seeking a Lead Hydrometallurgist to own the development, scale-up, and execution of our hydrometallurgical processes at our Fort Lauderdale facility. This is a hands-on, lab- and pilot-focused role responsible for translating bench-scale chemistry into robust, operable pilot systems. •Lead laboratory studies, commission and operate pilot-scale equipment, and generate the technical data required to advance FAST Metals’ technologies toward commercial deployment. •Lead laboratory-scale hydrometallurgical studies, including leaching, purification, and metal recovery, to optimize process performance and recoveries. •Design, commission, and operate pilot-scale hydrometallurgical systems at the Fort Lauderdale facility, owning day-to-day pilot operations and troubleshooting. •Develop and maintain detailed mass and energy balances using industry-standard tools such as METSIM and/or SYSCAD to support process design and scale-up. •Translating bench-scale results into pilot-ready flowsheets, mass balances, SOPs, and operating protocols. •Drive process scale-up decisions by evaluating technical risk, operability, and economic trade-offs. •Partner cross-functionally with internal teams and external partners to integrate hydrometallurgical unit operations into broader process flowsheets. Qualifications: •Bachelor’s degree in Metallurgy, Chemical Engineering, Mining Engineering, Materials Science, or a closely related field (advanced degree preferred). •Demonstrated experience developing, commissioning, and operating lab-scale and pilot-scale hydrometallurgical processes. •Strong working knowledge of leaching systems and downstream purification and recovery techniques. •Proven experience preparing mass and energy balances and process models, preferably using METSIM and/or SYSCAD. •Demonstrated capacity to scale processes from laboratory studies to pilot operation. •Willingness to work full-time on-site in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Compensation: •$160,000 - $180,000 / year •Competitive salary and equity compensation, commensurate with experience Interested candidates, please apply directly through the job posting on company's career page or try via AI auto apply on this platform. Don't miss this opportunity to join a forward-thinking team!