Key Responsibilities
- Advise on turbine and expander design suitable for geothermal or low-enthalpy steam cycles.
- Review and refine thermodynamic cycle models and mechanical system assumptions.
- Support design trade-offs related to flow efficiency, blade geometry, and materials.
- Evaluate candidate configurations for manufacturability, maintenance, and system integration.
- Provide concise deliverables and progress updates within ~10 hours/month of consulting time.
- Collaborate with the technical and founding teams to align modeling work with prototype development and testing plans.
Qualifications
- Advanced degree (PhD or MS) or equivalent industry experience in mechanical engineering, thermal sciences, or a related discipline.
- Proven expertise in turbo machinery—preferably with steam turbines, expanders, or ORC systems.
- Familiarity with geothermal, waste-heat recovery, or related renewable applications.
- Strong understanding of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and rotating equipment design.
- Ability to work independently, delivering high-impact analysis within limited consulting hours.
- Ability to engage without conflict to other obligations, employment, or contracts.
What We Offer
- Flexible commitment (~10 hours/month), compatible with research or other professional work.
- Opportunity to shape the design of next-generation geothermal turbo machinery.
- Exposure to startup-driven energy innovation and commercialization.
- A chance to apply technical depth to a transformative clean-energy mission.
Top Skills
What We Do
Roadrunner Venture Studios is a company creation factory.
We co-found breakthrough deep-tech ventures with the nation’s most brilliant scientists, engineers, and innovators in Energy, Space, Clean Tech, Advanced Materials and Manufacturing, Quantum, and High Performance Computing.
Our team gets involved at the earliest possible moment — often when a company is just a whiteboard scribble, a concept modeled in wire-frame, or as founders are puzzling through how to design a pitch deck or process payroll — and rapidly accelerates product development, commercialization, and recruitment.
We are the ultimate company “starter-kit,” equipping our portfolio companies with everything they need to go from the kernel of an idea to a venture-backed growth engine. Our promise is clear: our founders leave our studio with a company, a check, a customer, and a team.
