Skills it runs on
The capabilities O*NET rates most important for this occupation — the human ground the work is built on.
See all skills →Chemical Engineers
Occupation · SOC 17-2041.00
Design chemical plant equipment and devise processes for manufacturing chemicals and products, such as gasoline, synthetic rubber, plastics, detergents, cement, paper, and pulp, by applying principles and technology of chemistry, physics, and engineering.
Also called: Chemical Engineer · Development Engineer · Engineer · Process Engineer · Engineering Scientist · Process Control Engineer · Project Engineer · Refinery Process Engineer · Research Chemical Engineer · Scientist · Absorption and Adsorption Engineer · Blending Coordinator
Job family: Architecture and Engineering Occupations
Take this to your AI
A source-stamped Markdown brief of this occupation — paste it into an agent, or fetch
/roles/role-17-2041-00/context.md directly.
AI work map
A fast read on where AI already shows up in this occupation, where it stays a copilot, where humans remain in the loop, and what the labor market is doing. Built from observed Claude.ai conversations mapped to O*NET tasks and from published research — measures of usage and exposure, not advice or predictions that the job is going away.
Market signal
Independent published positions, read together — not a forecast.
- About average employment outlook (+2.6% by 2034)
- 1,100 openings/yr
- Moderate AI exposure
- Median pay $121,860/yr
- Work is mostly on-site (not teleworkable)
- A reversal from 2013 — rated low automation risk then (13th), high AI task-overlap now (75th)
75th-percentile task overlap — yet about 1,100 openings a year (+2.6% projected, BLS) . What exposure means →
AI & job outlook
What today's research says about this occupation's exposure to AI, how AI is actually being used in it, and where employment is headed. These are positions within published studies — measures of exposure and usage, not predictions that this job will disappear.
Exposure to current AI
Each study uses its own scale, so the raw scores are not comparable across rows — the percentile (this job's rank among all U.S. occupations with data) is the comparable figure, and sizes the bars.
| Measure | Rank vs all occupations | Percentile | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.) High | 91st | 1.3 | |
| LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) High | 71st | 0.8 | |
| AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) Moderate | 59th | 0.2 |
OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.1), with simple added tooling (β 0.5), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.8). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.
This job mostly cannot be done remotely (Dingel–Neiman) — its hands-on tasks sit outside what software-based AI reaches.
Historical automation estimate (2013)
A pre-LLM (2013) estimate of how automatable this job is by computerization and robotics. Shown for historical context only — it is not part of any current AI ranking.
Frey–Osborne probability 0.0 · 13th percentile among occupations · Low
How AI is actually used in this job
Among measured AI assistant conversations mapped to this occupation (Anthropic Economic Index, 2026-01-15), these task types came up most. These are shares of observed AI conversations — not shares of the job, of worker time, or of what could be automated.
| Troubleshoot problems with chemical manufacturing processes. | 1.2% | |
| Design measurement and control systems for chemical plants based on data collected in laboratory experiments and in pilot plant operations. | 0.3% | |
| Evaluate chemical equipment and processes to identify ways to optimize performance or to ensure compliance with safety and environmental regulations. | 0.3% |
Job outlook
Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.
| Outlook | About average · +2.6% by 2034 |
| Projected annual openings | 1,100 |
| Employment 2024 → 2034 | 21,600 → 22,100 |
“Annual openings” counts new jobs plus replacements for workers who leave the occupation, so it can be large even when growth is modest.
Where this work sits on the global GenAI gradient
The ILO's 2025 global study scores generative-AI exposure on the international ISCO-08 occupation system, not US SOC. Bridged through the published (and approximate, many-to-many) IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 crosswalk, this US occupation corresponds to the international occupation below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.
Chemical Engineers sits at the 65th percentile of 427
occupations on the global GenAI task-exposure gradient
— exposure rose from 2023 to 2025. Each dot is one occupation; the
ringed one is this work. Exposure is task overlap, not automation or jobs lost.
35% mean task exposure (2025)
65th percentile of 427 placed occupations
+5 pts shift 2023 → 2025
| International occupation (ISCO-08) | Task exposure (2025) | Most tasks fall in |
|---|---|---|
| Chemical Engineers · 2145 | 35% | Minimal |
Read the whole six-band gradient on the GenAI exposure gradient page. The crosswalk is approximate: a US occupation can map to several international ones, and the ILO scores describe the international occupation, not this exact US role.
Tasks
All 13 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.
- Develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions. Core · importance 4.4
- Troubleshoot problems with chemical manufacturing processes. Core · importance 4.3
- Monitor and analyze data from processes and experiments. Core · importance 4.2
- Evaluate chemical equipment and processes to identify ways to optimize performance or to ensure compliance with safety and environmental regulations. Core · importance 4.2
- Design and plan layout of equipment. Core · importance 3.8
- Prepare estimate of production costs and production progress reports for management. Core · importance 3.7
- Perform tests and monitor performance of processes throughout stages of production to determine degree of control over variables such as temperature, density, specific gravity, and pressure. Core · importance 3.6
- Conduct research to develop new and improved chemical manufacturing processes. Core · importance 3.6
- Determine most effective arrangement of operations such as mixing, crushing, heat transfer, distillation, and drying. Core · importance 3.4
- Develop processes to separate components of liquids or gases or generate electrical currents, using controlled chemical processes. Core · importance 3.4
- Design measurement and control systems for chemical plants based on data collected in laboratory experiments and in pilot plant operations. Core · importance 3.3
- Perform laboratory studies of steps in manufacture of new products and test proposed processes in small-scale operation, such as a pilot plant. Core · importance 3.3
- Direct activities of workers who operate or are engaged in constructing and improving absorption, evaporation, or electromagnetic equipment. Core · importance 3.1
Emerging tasks
Newer responsibilities O*NET has flagged as growing for this occupation.
- Adapt processes to convert from small-scale laboratory operations to large-scale commercial production.
- Develop process flow diagrams or pipe and instrumentation diagrams.
Work activities
- Determine causes of operational problems or failures.
- Evaluate characteristics of equipment or systems.
- Monitor the productivity or efficiency of industrial operations.
- Conduct validation tests of equipment or processes.
- Research engineering aspects of biological or chemical processes.
- Design computer modeling or simulation programs.
- Develop safety standards, policies, or procedures.
- Determine operational methods.
- Estimate operational costs.
- Prepare operational reports.
- Direct industrial production activities.
- Research industrial processes or operations.
- Develop technical methods or processes.
- Design control systems for mechanical or other equipment.
- Design industrial processing systems.
Knowledge, skills & abilities
O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).
Knowledge
| Engineering and Technology | 4.8 | |
| Chemistry | 4.7 | |
| Mathematics | 4.3 | |
| Design | 4.0 | |
| Physics | 4.0 | |
| Production and Processing | 4.0 | |
| English Language | 3.7 | |
| Computers and Electronics | 3.2 |
Essential skills
| Science | 4.1 | |
| Critical Thinking | 4.1 | |
| Reading Comprehension | 4.0 | |
| Active Learning | 3.9 | |
| Mathematics | 3.8 | |
| Speaking | 3.5 | |
| Active Listening | 3.3 | |
| Writing | 3.1 | |
| Monitoring | 3.1 |
Transferable skills
| Complex Problem Solving | 4.0 | |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.9 | |
| Systems Analysis | 3.9 | |
| Systems Evaluation | 3.9 | |
| Operations Analysis | 3.6 |
Abilities
| Oral Comprehension | 4.0 | |
| Written Comprehension | 4.0 | |
| Oral Expression | 4.0 | |
| Problem Sensitivity | 4.0 | |
| Deductive Reasoning | 4.0 | |
| Inductive Reasoning | 4.0 | |
| Information Ordering | 4.0 | |
| Category Flexibility | 4.0 | |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 3.9 | |
| Near Vision | 3.8 | |
| Number Facility | 3.6 | |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.5 | |
| Originality | 3.5 | |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.5 | |
| Written Expression | 3.3 | |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.1 | |
| Visualization | 3.1 | |
| Speech Recognition | 3.1 |
Skills in demand
Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.
Showing the top 40 of 44.
Tools & technology
Showing the top 40 of 54.
Work context
How characteristic each condition is of the job, on O*NET's 1–5 context scale (higher = more present in day-to-day work). Each condition links to how it varies across all occupations.
How to get in
- Job zone
- Zone 4 — Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
- Education
- Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
- Typical entry-level education
- Bachelor's degree · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement
- Related experience
- A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
- Preparation level
- SVP (7.0 to < 8.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.
What to study: Engineering . Fields of study crosswalked to this occupation (NCES CIP–SOC), not a requirement.
Education of current workers
Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.
| Bachelor's Degree | 91.3% | |
| Post-Baccalaureate Certificate | 4.3% | |
| Post-Master's Certificate | 4.3% |
Interests & work styles
The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.
Work styles
| Dependability | 7.0 | |
| Attention to Detail | 6.0 | |
| Integrity | 5.0 | |
| Cautiousness | 4.0 | |
| Intellectual Curiosity | 3.0 | |
| Innovation | 2.4 |
Interest areas
| Engineering | 6.6 | |
| Physical Science | 6.2 | |
| Mathematics/Statistics | 5.0 | |
| Mechanics/Electronics | 3.5 | |
| Information Technology | 2.7 | |
| Life Science | 2.2 | |
| Management/Administration | 2.2 |
Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)
| Realistic | 6.3 | |
| Investigative | 5.8 | |
| Conventional | 4.5 |
Wages & employment
U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)
| 10th percentile | $78,520 |
| 25th percentile | $96,040 |
| Median (50th) | $121,860 |
| 75th percentile | $152,290 |
| 90th percentile | $182,150 |
| People employed | 20,330 |
Industries that employ this occupation
Where these workers are employed, by number of jobs (national, BLS OEWS). Pay shown is the occupation's national median, not industry-specific.
| Industry | Workers | National median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing · Sector | 10,020 | $116,170 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector | 5,360 | $122,800 |
| Engineering Services · National industry | 2,400 | $125,420 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector | 1,300 | $138,480 |
| Wholesale Trade · Sector | 710 | $115,970 |
| Educational Services · Sector | 390 | $64,450 |
| Construction · Sector | 370 | $127,340 |
| Utilities · Sector | 180 | $117,310 |
| Testing Laboratories and Services · National industry | 170 | $107,370 |
| Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction · Sector | 110 | $130,840 |
| Nuclear Electric Power Generation · National industry | 110 | $130,430 |
Where this work is most concentrated
Industries where this occupation is far more common than in the economy as a whole. The location quotient is how many times more concentrated it is here (a value of 5 means five times its economy-wide share).
| Industry | Concentration | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Nuclear Electric Power Generation · National industry | 22.46× | 110 |
| Engineering Services · National industry | 15.74× | 2,400 |
| Testing Laboratories and Services · National industry | 7.57× | 170 |
| Manufacturing · Sector | 5.95× | 10,020 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector | 3.77× | 5,360 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector | 3.51× | 1,300 |
| Utilities · Sector | 2.36× | 180 |
| Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction · Sector | 1.45× | 110 |
Related occupations
Part of the Advanced Manufacturing and Agriculture career clusters.
- Materials Engineers · 17-2131.00 Compare →
- Manufacturing Engineers · 17-2112.03 Compare →
- Materials Scientists · 19-2032.00 Compare →
- Chemists · 19-2031.00 Compare →
- Biofuels/Biodiesel Technology and Product Development Managers · 11-9041.01 Compare →
- Industrial Engineers · 17-2112.00 Compare →
- Petroleum Engineers · 17-2171.00 Compare →
- Mechanical Engineers · 17-2141.00 Compare →
- Nuclear Engineers · 17-2161.00 Compare →
- Mechatronics Engineers · 17-2199.05 Compare →
- Chemical Plant and System Operators · 51-8091.00 Compare →
- Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians · 17-3026.00 Compare →
Side-by-side comparisons place two occupations’ pay, preparation, skills, and AI exposure on the same page — same data, same scale, no forecast.
What you can do with this
Options the data surfaces for Chemical Engineers — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.
Skills that travel
Capabilities this work builds that are used across many other occupations.
Adjacent roles
Occupations O*NET rates as related — the nearby moves on the map.
Paths in
How people typically prepare for this work.
- Bachelor's degree · typical entry level
- Job zone 4 — Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed · preparation tier
- Engineering · field of study
Zoom out
On the global GenAI exposure gradient this work sits around the 65th percentile of 427 international occupations.
Write a report on thisheadline · factoids · citation
Chemical Engineers show 75th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 1,100 annual U.S. openings
- Chemical Engineers rank in the 75th percentile (High band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated.Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE
- The occupation is projected to see about 1,100 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- BLS projects employment to be about average (+2.6%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- Median annual pay is $121,860, across about 20,330 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
Copy the whole kit
Chemical Engineers show 75th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 1,100 annual U.S. openings • Chemical Engineers rank in the 75th percentile (High band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated. (Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE) • The occupation is projected to see about 1,100 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • BLS projects employment to be about average (+2.6%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • Median annual pay is $121,860, across about 20,330 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024)) Source: Singulariki — "Chemical Engineers". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-17-2041-00 Note: AI task overlap measures what today's AI can attempt, not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
AssetsShare imageMethodology & sourcesPress & newsroomThe newsroom
Every line is built only from figures this page already shows and cites. AI task overlap means what today's AI can attempt — not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
- Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
- ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
- IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
- Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
- Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Plain
Singulariki. "Chemical Engineers." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-17-2041-00
APA
Singulariki. (2026). Chemical Engineers. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-17-2041-00
BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-17-2041-00,
title = {Chemical Engineers},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/roles/role-17-2041-00}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.