Chemical Technicians
Conduct chemical and physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative and quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, and gaseous materials for research and development of new products or processes, quality control, maintenance of environmental standards, and other work involving experimental, theoretical, or practical application of chemistry and related sciences.
Also Known As:
Analytical Laboratory Technician (Analytical Lab Technician)
Chemical Analyst
Chemical Technician
Laboratory Analyst (Lab Analyst)
Laboratory Technician (Lab Tech)
Laboratory Tester (Lab Tester)
Organic Preparation Analyst (Organic Prep Analyst)
Quality Control Laboratory Technician (QC Lab Tech)
Quality Control Technician (QC Tech)
Research Technician
Wages
Annual wages for Chemical Technicians in United States
Job Outlook
Average
New job opportunities are likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
59,000
4% Change From 2024
Explore Chemical Technicians video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Set up and conduct chemical experiments, tests, and analyses, using techniques such as chromatography, spectroscopy, physical or chemical separation techniques, or microscopy.
- Set up and conduct chemical experiments, tests, and analyses, using techniques such as chromatography, spectroscopy, physical or chemical separation techniques, or microscopy.
- Develop or conduct programs of sampling and analysis to maintain quality standards of raw materials, chemical intermediates, or products.
- Prepare chemical solutions for products or processes, following standardized formulas, or create experimental formulas.
- Write technical reports or prepare graphs or charts to document experimental results.
- Design or fabricate experimental apparatus to develop new products or processes.
- Operate experimental pilot plants, assisting with experimental design.
- Maintain, clean, or sterilize laboratory instruments or equipment.
- Provide technical support or assistance to chemists or engineers.
- Direct or monitor other workers producing chemical products.
- Order and inventory materials to maintain supplies.
- Provide technical support or assistance to chemists or engineers.
- Train new employees on topics such as the proper operation of laboratory equipment.
- Provide and maintain a safe work environment by participating in safety programs, committees, or teams and by conducting laboratory or plant safety audits.
- Compile and interpret results of tests and analyses.
- Conduct chemical or physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative or quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, or gaseous materials.
- Maintain, clean, or sterilize laboratory instruments or equipment.
- Monitor product quality to ensure compliance with standards and specifications.
- Develop or conduct programs of sampling and analysis to maintain quality standards of raw materials, chemical intermediates, or products.
- Develop new chemical engineering processes or production techniques.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")