Biodiesel Technology Development Manager

A typical week tends to involve bench work, pilot trials, and plant-side process implementation — running experimental batches in the pilot reactor, analyzing results, working with plant engineers on full-scale trials, documenting changes that move into the operating SOPs. Yield improvements achieved and process changes implemented at plant scale are how progress shows up.

The challenging part is often the gap between bench performance and plant reality — a chemistry that works in a 5-gallon reactor doesn't always scale to 50,000 gallons cleanly. Variance across employers is real: integrated refiners run biodiesel tech development within broader research organizations; pure-play producers run leaner teams with closer plant integration.

The work tends to fit folks who bring ChemE depth, plant-process instincts, and patience with the iteration cycle. PE, ChemE PhD or master's, and process-engineering credentials anchor advancement. The compromise is the slow visible payoff of technology-development work — meaningful yield improvements often take years from concept to plant implementation.