Funder: NRC Research Associateship Programs
Due Dates: February 1, 2025 | May 1, 2025 | August 1, 2025
Funding Amounts: Stipend approximately $82,764 per year plus $3,000 travel allowance; typical appointment duration 2 years.
Summary: Supports postdoctoral research applying AI, NLP, and ML to automate extraction and analysis of thermophysical and thermodynamic property data from scientific literature for chemical engineering applications.
Key Information: Open to U.S. citizens with a Ph.D. earned within the last 5 years; no prior chemical engineering knowledge required; research conducted at NIST in Boulder, CO.
Description
This fellowship opportunity, offered through the NRC Research Associateship Programs at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), focuses on the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques—specifically Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Machine Learning (ML)—to automate the acquisition, extraction, and analysis of thermophysical and thermodynamic property data from scientific publications. Chemical engineers rely heavily on accurate property data for process design and optimization, but the rapidly growing volume of literature and lack of standardized machine-readable formats make manual data extraction labor-intensive and inefficient.
The project aims to develop a large-scale automated system capable of:
- Searching and classifying relevant scientific papers
- Recognizing and processing tables and extracting data from plots
- Extracting detailed metadata such as substances, sample descriptions, experimental methods, and uncertainties
- Assisting manuscript reviewers by providing automated content assessments
The Thermodynamics Research Center (TRC) at NIST maintains a comprehensive database with over 7 million data points covering more than 25,000 compounds and 80,000 mixtures, which serves as a valuable training resource for AI model development. Initial work on publication classification has already been conducted at TRC.
Applicants are expected to have a strong background in computer science, particularly in AI, NLP, and ML. No specific expertise in chemical engineering, thermodynamics, or thermophysics is required.
Due Dates
- February 1, 2025 (NIST participates in February review)
- May 1, 2025
- August 1, 2025 (NIST participates in August review)
Note: If a deadline falls on a weekend or federal holiday, it is moved to the next business day.
Funding Amount
- Base stipend: Approximately $82,764 per year
- Travel allowance: $3,000 annually
- Appointment duration: Typically 2 years
- No supplementation specified
Eligibility
- Citizenship: Open to U.S. citizens only
- Education: Applicants must have earned a Ph.D. (or equivalent research doctorate) before beginning tenure
- Career stage: Postdoctoral applicants who have held their doctorate for less than five years as of the application deadline
- Prior affiliation: Applicants with current or recent prior affiliation with NIST (e.g., employment or previous NRC fellowship) may be ineligible
- No prior knowledge of chemical engineering or thermodynamics required; strong AI, NLP, and ML background expected
Application Process
Steps to Apply
- Review eligibility criteria on the NRC RAP website.
- Identify this Research Opportunity (Opportunity Number: 50.64.72.C0461) at NIST.
- Contact the Research Adviser, Ala Bazyleva (ala.bazyleva@nist.gov), to discuss research interests and funding availability.
- Prepare application materials including:
- Research proposal (max 10 pages) detailing problem statement, background, methodology, expected results, and significance
- Curriculum vitae and education history with transcripts (postdocs only)
- Letters of recommendation (minimum 3, including dissertation adviser)
- Submit application via the NRC RAP online portal before the deadline.
Application Components
- Profile information (contact, education, employment, honors)
- Research proposal with clear objectives and methodology
- List of publications and presentations (last 5 years)
- Letters of recommendation uploaded by referees through the online system
- Compliance with formatting and submission guidelines (PDF format, page limits, etc.)
Review and Selection
- Applications are reviewed by expert panels in relevant scientific disciplines.
- Each application is scored on a 100-point scale; scores above 70 are recommended for award.
- Review criteria include academic record, research proposal quality, letters of recommendation, and alignment with NIST mission.
- Applicants receive reviewer feedback approximately one week after review finalization.
- Final award decisions depend on ranking and available funding.
Additional Information
- Research location: Material Measurement Laboratory, Applied Chemicals and Materials Division, Boulder, CO
- Health insurance is required and partially subsidized by the sponsoring agency.
- Relocation assistance is available for awardees moving more than 50 miles.
- Annual travel allowance supports conference attendance and related activities.
- Applicants with prior NRC Research Associateships must have a minimum two-year gap before reapplying.
- The program promotes diversity and equal opportunity without regard to race, gender, or other protected characteristics.
External Links
Contact Information