Pyrolysis Engineer (Biochar Engineering)

Job Title: Pyrolysis Engineer (Biochar Engineering)

Experience: 38 years of hands-on experience in designing, scaling, or operating high-temperature thermal or biomass conversion systems, including pyrolysis, gasification, kilns, or industrial furnaces.

About Alt Carbon:

Alt Carbon is a deeptech science and data company, building agri-infrastructure for climate action. We aim to make South Asia a hub for Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) through technology pathways like Enhanced Rock Weathering and Biochar. We work with farmers and scientists across the Global South to turn underutilized land into carbon sinks.

Our flagship initiative, the Darjeeling Revival Project (DRP), is a first-of-its-kind effort to unite climate action with cultural and ecological restoration - by reviving degraded soils, restoring livelihoods, and rebuilding ecosystems. This year, we also launched the Bengal Renaissance Project (BRP), a large-scale biochar program that is building a network of biomass banks, pyrolysis, and gasification plants across Eastern India, with a mission to weave hope back into the lands of India.

Rooted in science, powered by community, and driven by the belief that revivals require ambition and audacious bets, our mission is to remove 5 million metric tons of CO by 2030.

Role Summary

The Pyrolysis Engineer will own the core thermal conversion process that transforms biomass into high-quality biochar. The role sits within the Biochar Engineering function and focuses on process design, optimisation, troubleshooting, and systematic learning transfer across plants.

This is neither a plant-operator role nor a research-only role. It is a systems engineering position that bridges physics, operations, and scale.

Pyrolysis is central to biochar credibility. Errors at this stage impact yield, permanence, MRV defensibility, and long-term trust. This role ensures that what we scale is what we deeply understand.

Key Responsibilities:

Pyrolysis Process Ownership

• Own the end-to-end pyrolysis process envelope across all plants
• Define and maintain operating ranges for temperature, residence time, heating rates, and feedstock moisture
• Balance yield, permanence, throughput, and energy efficiency

Design & Scale-Up

• Translate laboratory and pilot learnings into commercial-scale designs
• Support reactor design, upgrades, and retrofits
• Review PFDs, P&IDs, and process documentation

Testing, Validation & Commissioning

• Analyse commissioning and startup data
• Define acceptance criteria for stable operations
• Identify and mitigate ramp-up risks and failure modes

Field Feedback & Failure Analysis

• Investigate process deviations, trips, and quality issues
• Perform cross-site root-cause analysis
• Identify systemic risks and recurring patterns
• Feed learnings back into design and operating practices

Knowledge Transfer & Scale Discipline

• Standardise best practices across plants
• Document operational learnings clearly and practically
• Support conceptual and process-level operator training
• Prevent process drift as the plant network scales

Required Background & Skills:

Education

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Chemical, Mechanical (Thermal/Process), or Energy Engineering

Technical Skills

• Strong fundamentals in heat transfer, thermodynamics, and reaction engineering
• Experience with thermal processes, high-temperature systems, and continuous or semi-continuous reactors
• Ability to interpret PFDs, P&IDs, and process data

Experience

• 38 years in pyrolysis, gasification, biomass processing, furnaces, kilns, cement, steel, or similar industries
• Experience scaling processes beyond pilot stage
• Exposure to plant commissioning, startup, or troubleshooting

Mindset & Attributes

• Comfortable working with incomplete or imperfect data
• Strong root-cause and systems-thinking mindset
• Calm and structured under operational pressure
• Willing to acknowledge uncertainty and learn from field experience
• Hands-on, practical, and improvement-oriented

Success Metrics (First 3 Months)

• Defined and stabilised pyrolysis operating envelope
• Reduced frequency of process-related failures
• Faster stabilisation of new plants
• Documented learnings reused across sites