Junior Research Chemist – Sustainable Superabsorbent Polymers

We are hiring an innovative Junior Research Chemist to help invent the next generation of sustainable superabsorbent polymers in our labs. You will need a recently completed PhD in chemistry or polymer chemistry, ideally with a few years of postdoctoral or industrial experience, and strong hands-on synthesis skills. We want someone organised, who can execute with pace in the face of uncertainty. Experience with polymers, hydrogels or biopolymers is a bonus.

💼 Competitive salary, 📊 equity and 🚀 massive upside – backed by world-class climate and deep-tech investors – in a hands-on role that grows with the company.

Location: Oxford, UK – Begbroke Science Park (on-site, laboratory-based)

Employment: Full-time, permanent

Start date: Immediate – as soon as possible

Visa sponsorship: Available for exceptional candidates

Company: A&B Smart Materials

Help Build the Future of a Global Industry

A&B Smart Materials is a materials science venture based at the University of Oxford Begbroke Science Park, developing bio-based and/or biodegradable superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) to replace today’s fossil-based plastics.

SAPs are almost magical materials: a single gram can absorb hundreds of grams of water. They are the absorbent cores inside diapers, menstrual pads and incontinence products, and the “water-storage crystals” that help soil retain moisture in agriculture. Today’s SAPs are persistent plastics, and regulatory pressure, consumer demand and the scale of the microplastics crisis are making sustainable alternatives increasingly urgent.

Our goal is simple and ambitious: to replace the synthetic superabsorbents that dominate a $9B market today, expected to reach $17B by 2035, with materials that achieve the essential trifecta of top performance, competitive pricing and large-scale manufacturability. This is a generational opportunity to reinvent an essential material and make sustainable SAPs the new standard.

Why A&B Smart Materials?

We recently closed a heavily oversubscribed $2M pre-seed round, backed by an exceptional group of investors including Sake Bosch, caesar., Living Hope VC, Archipelago Ventures, Triple Impact Ventures, Cranfield University Seed Fund and Oxford Seed Fund, alongside leading business angels from the Cambridge Capital Group and Oxford Innovation Finance.

A&B Smart Materials was named in the UK Startups 100 2026, won the Planet Positive Award at MRE 2026, and one of our founders has been recognised by Forbes 30 Under 30. We are supported by Chemstars, the EarthScale Accelerator and the Green Tech Legal Collaborative.

We have also signed a deal with one of the world’s largest chemical companies. Achieving this at our stage is an exceptional milestone and a strong validation of our technology, team and commercial momentum.

We have some of the best advisors in the industry. They include the former Managing Director, the former Head of Research and Development North America and the former Head of Production and Technology of the world’s third-largest superabsorbent polymer producer, industry veterans who have spent their careers working on superabsorbent polymers, and the inventor behind a key patent of one of our competitors.

Our mission is to make sustainable SAPs the global standard.

The Opportunity

We are looking for an innovative Junior Research Chemist to join our R&D team and help invent the next big thing in sustainable chemistry: new bio-based and/or biodegradable superabsorbent polymers.

Working alongside our senior scientists at Begbroke Science Park, you will come up with new chemical approaches, design and run your own synthesis experiments, characterise what you make and turn the results into the next idea.

This is a hands-on role with real responsibility. Our chemistry is still being invented, so you will need to stay organised and execute with pace in the face of uncertainty. We already have commercial contracts in place, so your experiments feed directly into partner programmes with some of the world’s largest chemical companies. We are looking to fill this role immediately.

What You Will Do

· Invent new materials. Design and synthesise new bio-based and/or biodegradable superabsorbent polymers, exploring new chemistries, modifications and crosslinking strategies.

· Turn ideas into working materials. Plan and run your own synthesis programmes, from first concept to a material that performs.

· Characterise what you make. Measure absorption, retention under load, gel strength and biodegradability, and link structure to performance.

· Learn fast from data. Analyse results, see what works and decide what to make next.

· Build intellectual property. Identify inventions, help document them and contribute to our patents.

· Take materials towards scale. Help move your most promising materials from the bench to larger batches and partner trials.

· Keep rigorous records and a safe lab. Keep clear lab notebooks so every result can be traced, and follow our safety procedures, including COSHH and risk assessments.

What We Are Looking For

Strong practical chemistry skills, a rigorous mind and the right attitude matter more to us than years of experience.

You should bring a PhD in chemistry, polymer chemistry or materials chemistry or a closely related discipline, recently completed, ideally followed by a few years of postdoctoral or industrial experience. Exceptional candidates with a Master’s degree and substantial hands-on synthesis experience will also be considered.

You should also have:

· Strong hands-on synthesis skills, and confidence designing and running your own experiments.

· Experience with standard characterisation techniques and confidence analysing data.

· A sound understanding of laboratory safety, including COSHH and risk assessment.

· Careful record-keeping, good organisation and good working knowledge of Excel.

· Clear written and spoken English.

Polymer Experience Is an Advantage

We particularly value experience with:

· Polymer synthesis, hydrogels or crosslinked materials.

· Biopolymers such as cellulose derivatives, starch, alginate, chitosan or other polysaccharides.

· Techniques such as FTIR, NMR, TGA, DSC, rheology or swelling studies.

· Hygiene or agricultural applications of absorbent materials.

· An industrial or startup laboratory environment.

How You Work

· Inventive. You come up with new ideas, test them quickly and want to invent the next big thing in sustainable chemistry.

· A go-getter. You see what needs doing and get on with it without waiting to be asked.

· Organised. You plan your work, keep clean records and deliver what you said you would.

· A team player. In a small team everyone relies on each other, and you pull your weight.

· Executes in uncertainty. Our chemistry is still being invented, and you make progress without waiting for every answer.

Our Culture and What We Offer

We are an ambitious, collaborative, results-oriented startup, for people who take ownership, move with urgency and want to do the best work of their careers. We offer:

· Equity, so you share directly in the company’s success.

· Comprehensive health insurance and 28 days of paid holiday annually.

· Hands-on experience across the synthesis, testing and scale-up of sustainable superabsorbent polymers.

· Mentoring from senior scientists, with responsibilities that grow as you do.

· The chance to contribute to new intellectual property and work with industrial partners.

· The chance to help build a category-defining company from an early stage.

Join Us

If you are a motivated chemist who wants hands-on research experience in a company aiming to change a global industry, we want to hear from you. We are reviewing applications as they arrive and can move quickly for the right candidate.

Application form: https://tally.so/r/lae9kN

Recruitment email: recruitment@absmartmaterials.com (monitored only irregularly – please apply through the application form)