Principal Process Engineer

Company: 8 Rivers
Location: Durham
Posted on: February 18, 2026

Job Description:

Job Description Job Description Salary: DOE Company 8 Rivers is a Durham, NC firm focused on the invention, development, and commercialization of sustainable, infrastructure-scale solutions to global problems through impactful technologies. The company maintains the agility, creativity, and fast-paced environment of a start-up, while partnering with large, industry-leading companies to develop and deploy those technologies. Our process enables us to innovate in industrial fields that are lacking in creative disruption. 8 Rivers has demonstrated expertise in generating and commercializing large-scale, meaningful solutions to some of the most challenging problems facing the world today and across a variety of industries in the clean energy, carbon capture, and clean fuels sectors. The company innovates widely in adjacent markets in the clean tech space. Some of our marquee technologies include the Allam-Fetvedt Cycle - a zero-emission power production system that enables low-cost power production with inherent carbon capture, 8RH2 - our innovative clean hydrogen technology utilizing CO2 convective reforming to achieve 99% carbon capture. Opportunity Were seeking a Principal Process Engineer to design, implement, and optimize industrial processes. This person will play a critical role in ensuring that the process technology from concept through detailed design and production operations meets the intended objectives in a safe, efficient, and a cost-effective manner. Responsibilities Process Design and Development: Develop, modify or review process flow diagrams (PFDs), heat and material balances (H&MBs) Technical Analysis and Evaluation: Conduct technical analysis, simulations, calculations to evaluate process performance, efficiency, and safety. Use engineering software tools to model and optimize process systems. Equipment Selection and Specification: Select and specify process requirements for equipment, such as reactors, heat exchangers, pumps, compressors, and separators, ensuring compatibility with process requirements, codes, and standards. Review detailed equipment specifications during 3rd party conducted engineering studies. Process Optimization and Troubleshooting: Identify opportunities for process optimization to simplify, derisk, create flexibility, improve efficiency/reduce costs, and/or enhance performance in another manner. Analyze process-related design issues and offer creative solutions to resolve problems. Technical Leadership and Guidance: Providing technical leadership and expertise to the internal and external stakeholders involved with a given technology or project. This involves mentoring junior engineers, sharing best practices, and contributing to the development of process engineering standards and procedures. Project Coordination and Collaboration: Collaborate with multidisciplinary project teams, including engineers, designers, and project managers, to ensure that process engineering requirements are integrated into overall project objectives and deliverables. Administrative tasks as required to self-organize workstreams. Documentation and Reporting: Review process engineering documentation, including design specifications, technical reports, calculations, and drawings. Ensure documentation is accurate, thorough, and compliant with project requirements and standards. Research and Development Support: Collaborating with R&D departments to support the development of adaptation of existing technology or develop new features/next generation of existing technologies. This may involve designing and conducting experiments or R&D efforts, analyzing data, and integrating new technologies into existing processes. This also involves technical support of intellectual property management. Technical Decision Making: Review information and analysis prepared by external engineering firms or internal engineers and determine best path forward to meet project and/or development objectives within existing set of constraints. Qualifications Requires a bachelor's or master's degree in chemical engineering. 12 or more years of professional experience with a minimum of 10 years working in relevant industries such as syngas generation/processing/ cleanup, hydrogen, /ammonia, and/or oil & gas with exposure to hydrogen, syngas, gas processing, and reforming, and/or power production with exposure to point source capture, and/or clean energy technologies. Experience in process design development & review of PFDs, H&MBs, P&IDs, performing other engineering calculations & analysis, and participating in HAZOPs/PHA. Proven track record of sound technical decision making. Experience with technical support of capital projects at different development stages (i.e. feasibility study, FEED through construction & commissioning). Experience performing process modeling via simulation software like ASPEN Plus or HYSYS. Knowledge and experience with interpreting and applying international codes and standards for design and analysis of equipment such as API, ASME, NFPA, and ANSI. Strong written and verbal communication skills including ability to succinctly summarize complex technical information for a broad audience of key stakeholders across multiple departments and functions. Strong organizational skills including attention to detail. Preferred Skills and Abilities Knowledge or experience with Allam-Fedtvedt Cycle (AFC). Experience with technical support of capital projects greater than $50M. Experience as an onsite (resident) engineer supporting daily operations. Experience in chemical, industrial gases, power generation and/or clean energy industry & technologies. Willingness to mentor & coach team members.

Keywords: 8 Rivers, Rocky Mount , Principal Process Engineer, Energy / Utilities , Durham, North Carolina