Polymer Scientist

**About Vitacore**:
Vitacore Industries has always had protection of our healthcare workers and the planet in mind when innovating the best of technology to everything we do. Founded in 2020 at the start of the pandemic, Vitacore’s team of scientists, engineers, and business leaders set out on a mission to help frontline healthcare workers stay safe. Taking care of our beautiful planet, and the environmental impacts of everything we create and is a guiding principle from inception to product launch. Vitacore has recently launched partnerships with several hospitals and businesses across Canada with its recycling program to reduce single-use plastic waste. As Vitacore rapidly expands into new product lines and markets, we are looking for talented individuals to join our team to help create a larger impact in healthcare, recycling and more.

**About the Role**:
**Responsibilities include**:

- Lead the troubleshooting and optimization of existing recycling processes, including mechanical shredding, material separation, and polymer extrusion.
- Help to develop and implement a new polymer separation system leveraging high-power IR optics to enhance recycling efficiency and material purity.
- Conduct comprehensive research to understand material properties and develop innovative solutions to improve recycling rates and output quality.
- Collaborate with the R&D team to integrate optics-based technologies into recycling operations, ensuring scalability and environmental compliance.
- Manage the setup and calibration of optical instruments and systems, ensuring they meet the specific requirements for polymer identification and separation.
- Provide technical expertise and support for the scaling up of recycling operations from pilot to full-scale production.
- Stay abreast of industry trends, technologies, and regulations related to polymer recycling and optics to inform strategic decisions and technology adoption.

**Skills and Qualifications**:

- Master's or PhD in Polymer Chemistry, Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Optics, or related field.
- Proven experience in polymer recycling processes, including shredding, separation, and extrusion.
- Strong background in optics, especially IR optics, with hands-on experience in the design and implementation of optics-based systems.
- Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with a creative approach to overcoming technical challenges.
- Strong project management and leadership abilities, with the capacity to lead multidisciplinary projects and teams.
- Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to convey complex technical information clearly and persuasively.
- A commitment to sustainability and innovation in materials recycling.

**Pre-Screen Questions**:

- We’re planning to develop a way to use narrow band IR energy to selectively soften/melt shredded mixed plastics in order to separate them into pure streams of different polymer types. Describe the first stages of how you would go about building a prototype to test this.
- We’re using GelMA as a 3D substrate to build vascularized hydrogels. How would you go about modifying the physical properties of the hydrogel, besides changing the molecular weight, concentration, and crosslinking density?

We look forward to hearing from you soon

**About Vitacore Industries**:
Vitacore Industries Inc. manufactures personal protective equipment for Canadian frontline workers, available on demand. Our facility houses state-of-the-art equipment to produce millions of respirators every month. Vitacore is committed to serving Canadians. All of our current and future PPE is made using a Canadian supply chain and quality Canadian materials. Our main customers are in the Health Care Industry supporting our long-term growth and sustainability.