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Industrial and Fertilizer Minerals Specialists - Remote

  • Deerfield, IL
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Focus materials: Phosphate, potash, fluorspar, barite, boron and related industrial minerals
Work arrangement: Remote within the United States, with potential international travel
Engagement: Contingent, part-time/on-call specialist
Anticipated compensation: $150–$300 per hour, depending on qualifications and assignment, or a negotiated fixed price by work package. $300 per hour is the maximum anticipated rate.

Opportunity

Axyde Analytics is assembling a multidisciplinary expert team for anticipated U.S. government-funded project-scoping assignments involving critical minerals and international infrastructure.

We seek specialists capable of evaluating industrial- and fertilizer-mineral resources, mining, beneficiation, chemical conversion, bulk logistics, markets and associated infrastructure.

Potential assignments may involve phosphate rock and phosphoric acid, conventional or solution-mined potash, fluorspar and fluorine chemicals, barite, borates or other bulk and specialty industrial-mineral supply chains.

Axyde does not expect one candidate to cover every listed material or processing route. Applicants should identify the commodities, technologies and markets in which they possess direct, demonstrable expertise.

Specialist Tracks

We are recruiting experts in one or more of the following tracks:

  • Sedimentary and igneous phosphate resources

  • Phosphate mining, washing and beneficiation

  • Sulfuric-acid and phosphoric-acid production

  • Fertilizer conversion, granulation and product quality

  • Phosphogypsum, uranium, cadmium and byproduct management

  • Bedded and solution-mined potash

  • Potash flotation, crystallization, compaction and granulation

  • Evaporite geology, brines and dissolution geomechanics

  • Fluorspar geology, flotation and concentrate production

  • Hydrofluoric-acid and downstream fluorine chemistry

  • Barite geology, beneficiation and drilling-grade products

  • Borate geology, beneficiation and chemical conversion

  • Water, reagents, energy and emissions management

  • Bulk-material storage, rail, road, port and marine logistics

  • Industrial-mineral specifications and customer qualification

  • Fertilizer and industrial-mineral markets, pricing and offtake

  • Project finance and large-scale infrastructure integration

  • Independent technical and commercial review

Potential Responsibilities

Depending on the assignment and specialist track, selected experts may:

  • Evaluate resource quality, quantity, continuity, mineralogy and confidence.

  • Review mining methods, production schedules, dilution, recovery and feed blending.

  • Assess crushing, washing, screening, flotation, crystallization and other beneficiation alternatives.

  • Evaluate sulfuric-acid, phosphoric-acid, hydrofluoric-acid or other chemical-conversion systems.

  • Review reagent, energy, water, recycle and finished-product assumptions.

  • Assess product grade, impurities, moisture, sizing, granulation and customer specifications.

  • Evaluate phosphogypsum, brines, residues, emissions, hazardous chemicals and water-management requirements.

  • Review solution-mining, cavern stability, subsidence and brine-balance assumptions where applicable.

  • Assess technology maturity, testwork, operating references and scale-up evidence.

  • Identify decisive technical information gaps and define additional studies or diligence.

  • Evaluate roads, railways, ports, storage, loading, shipping and associated infrastructure.

  • Review bulk-logistics capacity, seasonal constraints and delivered-cost assumptions.

  • Contribute to capital-cost, operating-cost, schedule and implementation assumptions.

  • Assess regional demand, market balance, pricing, customer concentration and offtake.

  • Evaluate sponsor capacity, financing requirements and public or shared infrastructure dependencies.

  • Identify realistic opportunities for U.S. equipment, engineering, technology and services.

  • Develop or review feasibility-study or technical-assistance terms of reference, budgets and schedules.

  • Participate in sponsor, government, supplier, customer, transport-provider or financing-source discussions.

  • Support international meetings, site visits and field verification when required.

  • Prepare concise findings and recommendations for senior government decision-makers.

  • Serve as a discipline lead, contributor, same-discipline alternate or independent technical or commercial reviewer.

Required Qualifications

Candidates should possess:

  • At least 7–10 years of directly relevant industrial-mineral, fertilizer, mining, chemical-processing, logistics or commercial experience.

  • A degree in geology, mining engineering, mineral processing, chemical engineering, metallurgy, industrial engineering, agricultural economics or a closely related field.

  • Direct responsibility for identifiable phosphate, potash, fluorspar, barite, boron, fertilizer or related industrial-mineral projects.

  • Demonstrated ability to connect resource characteristics, processing, product specifications, bulk logistics, markets and economics.

  • Experience developing or independently reviewing test programs, mass balances, design criteria, operating data, logistics plans or market assumptions.

  • Strong written and verbal English-language communication skills.

  • Ability to prepare concise, decision-oriented technical or commercial work.

  • Ability to collaborate across resource, processing, infrastructure, environmental, market and financial disciplines.

  • Either U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent-resident status in the United States.

  • Legal authorization to work in the United States without current or future sponsorship.

  • Willingness and ability to travel internationally when an assignment requires it.

  • No known employment, confidentiality, intellectual-property, noncompete, trading or conflict-of-interest restriction that would prevent participation.

Operating, commissioning, bulk-logistics, customer-qualification and international fertilizer-market experience is particularly valuable.

Application Information Requested

Please submit a résumé and a brief response identifying:

  1. The industrial or fertilizer minerals with which you have direct experience.

  2. Your strongest specialties in geology, mining, beneficiation, chemical conversion, logistics or markets.

  3. Up to five representative mines, plants, projects, products or studies and your personal responsibilities on each.

  4. The development stages you have supported, including exploration, testwork, feasibility, design, construction, commissioning, operations or market development.

  5. Your experience with product specifications, bulk logistics, customer qualification, pricing or offtake.

  6. Countries and regions in which you have worked.

  7. Whether you can serve as a discipline lead, independent reviewer, or both.

  8. Your current U.S. location.

  9. Whether you are