Thermochemical Intern

About this internship

• Role: Thermo-chemical Intern
• Reporting Manager: Operations Engineer / Maintenance Lead Position Type: Internship Compensation: As per industry standard
• Location: Chandpura (Tohana), Haryana, India

Duration:6 Months

We are seeking a curious and driven Thermo-chemical Intern to join Takachar's process development and operations team. You will work on the thermo-chemical conversion of crop and forest residues - torrefaction, pyrolysis and carbonization - into valuable bio-products such as biochar, bio-fertilizers and activated carbon. The role spans four connected areas: analytical lab testing, hands-on operation of our proprietary reactors, first-principles modelling of the process, and real-world validation at rural field sites. Expect significant time working in rural environments, bridging design concepts with practical thermal design, operation and manufacturing processes.

Thermo-chemical Process Development & Optimization

• Learn to operate our proprietary reactors and assist in R&D experimentation, trials and process optimization
• Support development of process parameters - temperature, residence time, heating rate, air/fuel ratio and feedstock composition - to maximize bio-product yield and quality
• Conduct lab- and pilot-scale experiments to evaluate and improve thermo-chemical reaction pathways
• Help develop process flow diagrams (PFDs) and standard operating procedures (SOPs) for new and existing processes
• Contribute to scaling up lab processes to pilot and field-scale systems

Lab Testing, Analysis & Characterization

• Conduct quality assessments, moisture analysis and proximate analysis on biomass feedstocks and bio-product outputs
• Perform characterization tests covering ash content, volatile matter, fixed carbon, calorific value, pH and bulk density; support ultimate analysis where available
• Operate and maintain lab instruments such as muffle furnaces, moisture analyzers, bomb calorimeters, balances, titration setups and gas analyzers
• Analyze process and flue gas emissions (CO, CO2, VOCs) and support emissions compliance evaluation
• Maintain high standards of data integrity - every sample traceable, every reading verifiable

Modelling & Data-driven Simulation

• Build physics-driven, first-principles models of the process from operating conditions and experimental results
• Model heat and mass transfer, drying and devolatilization behavior, and reaction kinetics inside the reactor
• Close energy and mass balances across the system and flag where measured data and model predictions diverge
• Validate and iteratively refine models against experimental and field data, and use them to propose the next set of operating conditions to test

Field Work & Real-world Validation

• Willingness to work in field environments including rural biomass collection sites and industrial processing locations
• Support installation, commissioning and monitoring of thermo-chemical processing units at field sites
• Collect field samples and performance data for lab analysis and process benchmarking
• Collaborate with local operators and customers to understand feedstock variability and processing requirements
• Adapt process recommendations to field constraints such as feedstock availability, ambient conditions and equipment limitations

Documentation & Reporting

• Maintain rigorous, time-bound logs of daily operations, research observations and experimental results
• Keep detailed lab notebooks and experimental records that another engineer can reproduce from
• Compile and interpret analytical data into test reports and performance summaries
• Document field observations and contribute to improvement reports for process and product quality

Education & Experience

• Currently pursuing or recently completed a B.Tech / M.Tech in Mechanical, Thermal, Energy, Environmental, Rural Technology,…