Postdoctoral Associate / Senior Postdoctoral Associate

Postdoctoral Associate

Required Qualifications (as evidenced by an attached resume):

● Doctoral degree (or foreign equivalent) in Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical, or Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field in hand by the start of the appointment.

● Hands-on experimental research with engines or combustion systems, including gaseous emissions measurement.

● Experience with data acquisition and analysis.

● A valid U.S. Driver's License.

Preferred Qualifications:

● Peer-reviewed publications and strong technical writing.

● Experience with hydrogen or ammonia combustion in research engine applications.

● Experience with control and integration systems, load banks, or electrical power measurement.

● Skilled in machining, fabrication, and wiring.

Brief Description of Duties:

The Postdoctoral Associate will conduct experimental research in the Advanced Combustion & Energy Systems Laboratory (ACES Lab) under the direction of Dr. Dimitris Assanis in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The ACES Lab is an active engines laboratory operating highly instrumented single-cylinder research engines (Spark-Ignition CFR, Compression-Ignition Hydra, Fully Flexible Valvetrain Actuation Hydra, and Optical engine) on fuels including hydrogen, ammonia, and alcohols, with ignition systems ranging from laser ignition to pre-chambers, along with a 125 kW natural-gas engine genset.

The candidate will also lead the lab’s new mobile Performance & Emissions Validation Laboratory, the command center for independent validation of a 250 kW Mainspring Energy linear generator running on 100% hydrogen at National Grid’s Northport Power Plant. This NYSERDA-sponsored, multi-million-dollar, 12-month pilot with National Grid Ventures and the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) is the first of its kind in New York State. This unique, high-visibility position, spanning early-TRL optical work through a late-TRL power-plant demonstration, lets one researcher lead a utility-scale demonstration while enabling publication of fundamental engine research in the same appointment.

The successful candidate will be self-sufficient, meticulous, and reliable, take pride in their work, and exercise strong organizational and time-management skills with an exceptional attention to detail. Essential for this role is the adeptness to work independently as well as part of a team, including extended test days and occasional overnight runs during field campaigns.

Duties:

Research:

● Conduct experiments on single-cylinder research engines fueled with hydrogen, ammonia, and alcohols, including novel ignition systems (laser ignition, pre-chambers).

● Participate/assist in manuscript writing for publication in scientific journals and conference papers from laboratory pilot results and/or make presentations at ASME, SAE, and Combustion Institute meetings.

● Contribute to proposals that build the laboratory’s next funded projects; mentor graduate and undergraduate researchers.

Technical:

● Commission the mobile command center on the laboratory engines through heated sample lines before it deploys and whenever it is required to return to campus; support its deployment to the Northport pilot and its subsequent redeployment to the HyPower renewable-hydrogen R&D testbed and other sponsored projects.

● Operate, maintain, and troubleshoot the analyzer suite: FTIR, chemiluminescence NOx (including a low-range ppb analyzer), FID for hydrocarbons, NDIR CO/CO₂, paramagnetic O₂, and a hydrogen analyzer (HORIBA HyEVO) or equivalent. Run zero/span calibrations, purges, leak checks, and drift checks; manage calibration-gas inventory and certificates.

● Maintain the heated sample system (heated probes, filters, and lines; pumps; switching valves for pre- and post-catalyst sampling) and apply standardized emissions measurement protocols and practices, documenting quality assurance for every test.

● Operate the control and integration systems that commands the linear generator and load bank to run defined load profiles (step functions, transients, cold and hot starts); logging data such as electrical outputs, fuel flow, and ambient conditions to calculate efficiency and response time, among a suite of other key performance metrics.

● Operate and maintain the National Instruments CompactDAQ and LabVIEW system, including analyzer communications over Modbus TCP/IP, valve control, acoustic channels, and the weather station; maintain networks, time synchronization, data backup, and chain of custody for all data.

● Execute approximately 12 test events over the 12-month pilot, each with about 2–3 weeks of preparation, a 24-hour full-load run or about 5 days of part-load testing, and 1–2 weeks of post-test calibration and data reduction.

● Follow and help write technical documentation, such as hydrogen and compressed-gas safety procedures for the command center, laboratory, and host site; coordinate the students and plant staff who support each field campaign.

Administrative:

● Reduce and analyze campaign data (emission indices, efficiency, transient behavior, seasonal trends); write technical reports for National Grid and NYSERDA; lead SBU’s sections of the final independent validation report; present at sponsor meetings.

● Other duties as assigned.

Senior Postdoctoral Associate:

Required Qualifications (as evidenced by an attached resume):

● Doctoral degree (or foreign equivalent) in Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical, or Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field in hand by the start of the appointment.

● Three or more years of relevant research experience.

● Hands-on experimental research with engines or combustion systems, including gaseous emissions measurement.

● Experience with data acquisition and analysis.

● License to drive in the US.

Preferred Qualifications:

● Peer-reviewed publications and strong technical writing.

● Experience with hydrogen or ammonia combustion in research engine applications.

● Experience with control and integration systems, load banks, or electrical power measurement.

● Skilled in machining, fabrication, and wiring.

Brief Description of Duties:

The Senior Postdoctoral Associate will conduct experimental research in the Advanced Combustion & Energy Systems Laboratory (ACES Lab) under the direction of Dr. Dimitris Assanis in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The ACES Lab is an active engines laboratory operating highly instrumented single-cylinder research engines (Spark-Ignition CFR, Compression-Ignition Hydra, Fully Flexible Valvetrain Actuation Hydra, and Optical engine) on fuels including hydrogen, ammonia, and alcohols, with ignition systems ranging from laser ignition to pre-chambers, along with a 125 kW natural-gas engine genset.

The candidate will also lead the lab’s new mobile Performance & Emissions Validation Laboratory, the command center for independent validation of a 250 kW Mainspring Energy linear generator running on 100% hydrogen at National Grid’s Northport Power Plant. This NYSERDA-sponsored, multi-million-dollar, 12-month pilot with National Grid Ventures and the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) is the first of its kind in New York State. This unique, high-visibility position, spanning early-TRL optical work through a late-TRL power-plant demonstration, lets one researcher lead a utility-scale demonstration while enabling publication of fundamental engine research in the same appointment.

The successful candidate will be self-sufficient, meticulous, and reliable, take pride in their work, and exercise strong organizational and time-management skills with an exceptional attention to detail. Essential for this role is the adeptness to work independently as well as part of a team, including extended test days and occasional overnight runs during field campaigns.

Duties:

Research:

● Lead experiments on single-cylinder research engines fueled with hydrogen, ammonia, and alcohols, including novel ignition systems (laser ignition, pre-chambers).

● Publish first-author journal and conference papers from laboratory and pilot results; present at ASME, SAE, and Combustion Institute meetings, or equivalent.

● Contribute to proposals that build the laboratory’s next funded projects; mentor graduate and undergraduate researchers.

Technical:

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