About this role
The Polymer Engineer supports the JETS II contract in Houston, Texas. This role provides nonmetallic and fibrous materials expertise for NASA programs, focusing on soft goods like semi-rigid plastics, thin films, textiles, and finishing treatments exposed to atmospheres, high vacuum, and extreme temperatures.
Provide technical leadership on material selection for Government Furnished Equipment development across NASA initiatives. Act as primary reviewer and approver for NASA Material Usage Agreements, ensuring compliance for thermal vacuum chamber testing. Support R&D activities under Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs.
Collaborate with NASA Materials and Processes engineers for material evaluation and selection. Review reports, requirement documents, proposals, conference papers, and journal articles on nonmetallic and fibrous materials. Contribute to research on films, textiles, and nonwovens for crew clothing, space suit fabrics, and spacecraft interiors.
Perform testing and characterization of nonmetallic materials as needed. Support development for hygiene and sanitation in lunar and Martian environments, including inflatable structures. Engage in various NASA programs requiring polymer expertise.
Requirements
- US Citizenship or Permanent Resident status due to sensitivity of customer information
- Bachelor's degree in engineering
- 2+ years of recent experience in the field or related area
- Extensive knowledge of polymer structure-properties relationship
- Familiar with high-performance polymers in film, foam, or fiber form such as PTFE, PVDF, Aramids, Polyimide, PEEK, PBI
- Experience in polymer characterization methods such as FTIR, DSC, TGA, SEM/EDS
- Familiar with polymer testing standards
- Understanding or experience in textiles
Responsibilities
- Support NASA programs with nonmetallic and fibrous materials expertise for soft goods selection in diverse environments
- Provide technical leadership on nonmetallic and fibrous materials for Government Furnished Equipment development
- Act as primary reviewer and approver for NASA Material Usage Agreements for thermal vacuum chamber testing
- Provide technical support for R&D under SBIR and STTR NASA programs
- Review NASA reports, requirement documents, proposals, conference papers, and journal articles on nonmetallic materials
- Support NASA Materials and Processes engineers for evaluation and selection of nonmetallic and fibrous materials
- Support research and development of nonmetallic materials for crew clothing, space suits, spacecraft interiors, and inflatable structures
Benefits
- 9/80 schedule with every other Friday off
- Some travel may be required
Similar roles
Technical Development Chemist Intern
1d1 day agoWACKER
Allentown, US · Internship · $45,000 – $55,000
Material Specialist - Polymer Chemistry
1d1 day agoGN Group
Ballerup, DK · Full-time · DKK 550,000 – DKK 750,000
Senior Scientist - Analytical Chemistry
20h20 hours agoMSD
Rahway, US · Full-time · $117,000 – $184,200
Polymer Engineer
20h20 hours agoShellworks
London, GB · Full-time · £30,000 – £40,000