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Chemical Kinetics: Career Opportunities for 2026

Chemical Kinetics is a premier research and development firm specializing in reaction engineering, catalyst design, and advanced process modeling for the pharmaceutical, sustainable energy, and specialty chemicals sectors. Our laboratories in Boston and Houston are hubs of innovation, where we translate fundamental kinetic principles into scalable industrial solutions that enhance efficiency, reduce environmental impact, and create novel materials. As we look toward 2026, our strategic growth plan is centered on expanding our computational chemistry division and launching a new initiative focused on decarbonization technologies, directly creating a significant number of specialized job opportunities for talented scientists and engineers.

Our 2026 hiring strategy is designed to build interdisciplinary teams capable of tackling complex challenges in reaction optimization and mechanistic analysis. We anticipate robust hiring across all experience levels, from recent PhD graduates to seasoned principal investigators. The planned expansion will see us increase our technical staff by approximately 20%, with a particular emphasis on roles integrating machine learning with kinetic modeling and experimental data analysis. These Chemical Kinetics careers represent a chance to work on proprietary projects with tangible real-world applications, supported by state-of-the-art instrumentation and a collaborative, publication-friendly culture.

Anticipated Job Openings in 2026

We are actively planning for several key vacancies and new positions to be opened throughout the 2026 fiscal year. These roles are critical to our core research pipelines and strategic initiatives. Prospective candidates should be prepared for a rigorous technical interview process that includes a review of their practical experience with kinetic data fitting software like Kintecus or COPASI, as well as their conceptual understanding of reaction mechanisms. Our hiring managers seek individuals who can not only perform detailed analyses but also communicate findings effectively to cross-functional project teams and clients.

The first major area for new employment will be in our Computational Reaction Engineering group. We will be seeking two Senior Reaction Modelers to develop microkinetic and reactor simulation models for novel catalytic cycles. These positions require deep expertise in software such as CHEMKIN or Cantera and a proven track record of linking simulation results to experimental validation. Successful applicants will work directly with our catalyst synthesis team to iteratively improve designs, significantly accelerating our development timeline for client projects in hydrogen production and carbon capture.

Concurrently, our Experimental Kinetics division will be hiring for three roles: a Process Safety Kinetics Specialist, a High-Throughput Experimentation (HTE) Technician, and a Principal Investigator for Pharmaceutical Reaction Profiling. The Safety Specialist role is unique, focusing on the kinetic analysis of exothermic reactions and thermal runaway scenarios for our chemical manufacturing partners. This position is vital for ensuring the scalable safety of new processes. The HTE Technician will operate our automated reactor platforms to generate large kinetic datasets, a foundational step for our machine learning projects. The Principal Investigator will lead a team dedicated to elucidating complex reaction pathways for drug intermediate synthesis, requiring extensive knowledge of organic mechanistic chemistry and analytical techniques like HPLC and NMR kinetics.

Furthermore, we are establishing a new career path with the role of Kinetic Data Scientist. This hybrid position, slated for a Q3 2026 start, is at the intersection of data science and physical chemistry. The individual will develop algorithms to mine historical kinetic data, identify patterns in catalyst deactivation, and build predictive models for reaction yield under variable conditions. This job opportunity is ideal for someone with a dual background in chemical engineering and computer science, aiming to pioneer new analytical methodologies within our industry.