polymer link - university of akron · of soft materials. in addition to program changes, i am...
TRANSCRIPT
LINKP o l y m e r
2 0 0 8 - 2 0 0 9
The Magazine for Alumni and Friends of the College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering
The University of Akron
2 AKRON’S BIO-FUTURE
5 THREE NEW PROGRAMS
6 NATIONAL RUBBER BANDCONTEST
7 GENT IN SOUTH KOREA
8 RUBBER CELEBRATES CENTENNIAL
9 RENEKER HONORED
10 OPTICAL FILM HITS $1 BILLION IN SALES
11 KENNEDY,CAKMAK & PUSKASHONORED FOR INNOVATION
12 WORLD-RENOWNED EXPERTS JOIN FACULTY
14 FOSTER APPOINTED ASSOCIATE DEAN
15 KELLEY GETS FLORY POLYMER AWARD
16 RESEARCH FUNDING BOOMS
17 BOOK UPDATE: TWO NEW PUBLICATIONS
18 PS ALUMNI/FACULTY/STUDENT NEWS
21 PE ALUMNI/FACULTY/STUDENT NEWS
22 PE CELEBRATES 25 YEARS
C O N T E N T S
Polymer Link2008 - 2009
Published by the College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering
Dean’s Office
Stephen Cheng Dean
Mark FosterAssociate Dean
R. Kent MarsdenAssistant to the Dean
Rosemary Kolton Senior Administrative Assistant
Elizabeth Barber Events Assistant
Editors
Elizabeth BarberSarah Thorley
Writers
Jack Feeney, Denise Henry, R. Kent Marsden, Dave Nypaver,Cheryl Slusarczyk
Design
TymcioHoffman & Company
For more information, contact:The University of Akron College of Polymer Science and Polymer EngineeringDean’s OfficeAkron, OH 44325-3909
Phone: 330-972-7667Fax: 330-972-5290www2.uakron.edu/cpspe/
2 Akron’s Bio-Future
5 Three New Programs
6 National Rubber Band Contest
7 Gent in South Korea
8 Centennial Celebration
9 Reneker Honored
10 Optical Film Hits $1 Billion in Sales
11 Kennedy, Cakmak and PuskasHonored for Innovation
12 World Renowned Expert Joins Faculty
14 Foster Appointed Associate Dean
New Advancement CouncilMembers
15 Kelley Receives Flory Award
16 Cakmak Drives $8M Effort
16 Research Funding Booms
17 Book Update: Two New Publications
18 Polymer Science Alumni/ Faculty/Student News
21 Polymer Engineering Alumni/ Faculty/Student News
22 Chrys Wesdemiotis ReceivesJoint Appointment
25 Polymer Engineering Celebrates 25 Years
C O N T E N T S
The public research university for Northern Ohio
1M E S S A G E F R O M T H E D E A N
Dear Faculty, Staff, Alumni and Friends:
Before I introduce you to our new collegemagazine, allow me to introduce myself. I joined the UA faculty in 1987 as anassistant professor and was appointed fullprofessor in 1995. In 1998, I was namedthe Trustees Professor – in 2001, theRobert C. Musson and Trustees Professor.I chaired the Department of PolymerScience from 2001 to 2005, and I havebeen the dean since August of 2007. So,my deanship is simply the latest chapter in a long history with UA.
This magazine has been two years in themaking, so we have much to share with youof recent accomplishments and future goals.The focus of this issue is our college’s newdirection toward bio-initiatives. Since thestart of my deanship, we have worked hardat redefining our college with the brightvision articulated in our five-year strategicplan. This plan builds on our strongbackground in traditional polymer scienceand polymer engineering programs byactively promoting research and teaching in cutting edge nano-, bio-, energy andenvironmental technologies. Intimatelyrelated to the field of polymers, these topicsare at the frontiers of future scientificdiscovery. I assure you, though, that we willcontinue to focus on our core mission in thedisciplines that gained us internationalrecognition in the science and engineeringof soft materials.
In addition to program changes, I ampleased to announce that our new NationalPolymer Innovation Center building projectis under way in the lot adjacent to ourPolymer Engineering Academic Center.Scheduled for occupancy June 25, 2010, the facility, with 42,750 square feet, willhouse 10 laboratories equipped withstate-of-the-art research instrumentation for solving problems in the aforementioneddisciplines. These labs will not only help us diversify our knowledge and developnew materials – they will also provide aplatform for training a skilled workforceand creating new jobs.
At the same time, our Olson ResearchCenter is undergoing yet anotherrenovation, and by December of this year,three new labs will provide appropriatespace and infrastructure to supportbio-related research.
Over the past two years, several facultymembers have retired while others havemoved on in their careers. We wish themwell and are grateful for their contributions.Meanwhile, new colleagues have joined us with more to come, many of whom will fill critical bio-related research andteaching positions.
This year, we are also introducing three new 3/2 academic programs that enable students in three of UA’s undergraduateprograms to earn both a bachelor of scienceand master’s degree within five years. You’llfind a detailed article in this newsletter.
In closing, I invite all of you to visit ourimproved college Web site — the address ison the facing page. It’s the best way to stayupdated with our current news, futurelectures, changes in personnel, etc. It is mypersonal goal to maintain relationships withall of you through this newsletter and/or ourWeb site. I hope to meet each of you in thenear future. It is my honor to serve all ofyou – faculty, staff, alumni and friends – asthe dean of this college. I hope that you areas excited about the future of polymerscience and engineering at UA as I am.Enjoy.
Sincerely
Stephen Z.D. Cheng Ph.D.Dean
1
2 O U T L O O K
Akron’s
bright biofutureIt’s as simple – and as difficult –
as getting all the right people in the same room
Located adjacent to the Polymer
Engineering Academic Center, the
42,750-square-foot facility will house 10
laboratories equipped with state-of-the-art
research instruments and large high bay
area designed especially for the
installation of prototype manufacturing
apparatus for innovation in fabrication
of materials and devices, particularly in
collaboration with industry. These novel
facilities will be used for creating new
knowledge, developing new materials
for solving problems of national interests
in health, energy and environment,
providing platforms for training a skilled
workforce and creating new jobs in the
state of Ohio. Working cooperatively in
this facility, faculty, students and research
partners from polymer and health
industries will generate new knowledge
in the emerging areas of biomaterials
synthesis, biosensors and bio-devices
design, and fabrication of photovoltaic
and membrane materials.
hen veteran orthopedic surgeon Dr. Dennis Weiner talks about Akron’sBioInnovation Institute, there’s a gleam in his eye and real excitement in his voice.
“I’ll tell you,” he says, “the satisfaction of sitting in a room with people sodifferent from me, and me so different from them, and we’re all working on acommon research goal – it’s electrifying. It’s a chemical thing that happens when you put the right people together.”
Weiner is chairman of orthopedic surgery at Akron Children’s Hospital and an enthusiasticresearcher with hundreds of clinical studies to his name. He’s talking about a brave newworld of focused research that brings scientists who can find the big answers together withthe orthopedic clinicians who know the right questions.
With the launch of the BioInnovation Institute in Akron (BIIA) in October of 2008, there’snow a funded, working plan to bring these essential people together in a single, focused researcheffort. Soon, a handpicked team of university and medical school scientists with expertise inbiopolymers, bioengineering and regenerative medicine will be ready to work with the ortho-pedic clinicians who have a day-to-day knowledge of the problems that must be overcome.
The results could very well amaze and astonish us all.
Researchers will actively pursue new modalities of treatment, new biopolymer materials toreplace damaged cartilage or bone and new advances in tissue engineering — where polymer“scaffolds” will support the growth of tendon and bone that would simply not heal otherwise.With a little luck and a lot of work, these new technologies and materials will spawn newbusinesses, new jobs and new prosperity for Akron and Northeast Ohio. In fact, the institutehas already put The University of Akron at the center of an enterprise that is drawingnational attention and world-class talent to the city and the campus.
Abolishing the Traditional BoundariesThe question is, why hasn’t this kind of collaboration been happening all along? Theanswer lies in how scientific research has traditionally been conducted in modern hospitalsand universities.
“I’ve been interested in a number of orthopedic problems with the growing part of the boneand cartilage for more than 35 years,” says Weiner. “For the first 30 years, I looked around andcouldn’t find anyone to help me with them. The Ph.D.s at medical schools and universitieswere doing their thing. Orthopedic surgeons were doing their thing. That’s not goodenough. We need to be working together on things that improve the overall quality of life.
“Can we do it?” he asks, and answers immediately. “I think so.”
W
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Five minutes away, at The University of Akron’s College of PolymerScience and Engineering, Dean Stephen Cheng shares Weiner’sabolish-the-boundaries vision, and applies it to the modern university.
“For the last 50 years,” he says, “American professors have beentaught to over-value individuality. It’s all about capital ‘M’ capital‘E’.” He relates how, in traditional academia, researchers pursue theirideas alone, guided mostly by their own personal subject matterinterests. At the end of the process, almost as an afterthought, theymight have some suggestions on how their ideas could be usefuloutside the ivory tower.
“We have to change this,” insists Cheng. “We have to flip that ‘M’upside down and turn the ‘ME’ to a ‘WE.’ It’s the only way towin in this new, highly competitive world economy.”
University President Dr. Luis M. Proenza is on thesame wavelength. “As science and technologyevolve, not only is teamwork necessary, but wemust have the people who are working on basicprinciples collaborate directly with the people whoare trying to solve applied problems with medicaltreatment procedures. Bringing these peopletogether in close proximity — the scientist, theclinician, the engineer and the businessman — blurs theboundaries and creates a whole new set of opportunities.”
Dr. Proenza will tell you that the most useful, most excitingdevelopments happen, not within established scientific disciplines,but at the boundaries, the points where one discipline intersectswith another. Magnetic Resonance Imaging wasn’t invented untilphysicists began to talk with medical diagnosticians. The map of the human genome is the result of biology bumping up againstcomputer science.
The intersection of orthopedic medicine and polymer science canproduce similar wonders.
The Collaborative Evolution of an IdeaThe institute has five founding partners: Akron Children’s Hospital,Akron General Health System, Northeastern Ohio UniversitiesColleges of Medicine and Pharmacy (NEOUCOM), Summa HealthSystem and The University of Akron. In order to get communitysupport, crucial funding and political leverage, the right leadershiphad to break down the traditional boundaries that separated them.And they had to think beyond their own institutions.
Proenza was involved from the beginning. “The idea began rathersimply with a conversation between Summa’s president, ThomasStrauss, and myself. We were looking for opportunities for collabora-tion, and I said ‘Why don’t we start an academic health center?’”
A conversation with Weiner and input from the KnightFoundation narrowed the scope of the project to an
orthopedic research institute.
“It was that idea,” Proenza remembers, “that grewinto an unprecedented collaborative presentation tothe Knight Foundation in Miami in December of2007. There were 27 of us, CEOs from the three
hospitals, the president of the medical school, myself,Mayor Plusquellic, the County executive, the president
of FirstEnergy, the Chamber of Commerce, and a number of other leaders from our community.”
Bill Considine, president and CEO Children’s Hospital, remembersthat presentation as a turning point. “Being in the room, just hearinghow the Knight people reacted, made me think, you know, we mightbe on to something here. The foundation people marveled andapplauded the involvement of our city, our county.”
Sitting on the other side of the table, Juan Martinez, chief financialofficer for the Knight Foundation, saw all this and more. “We wereimpressed by the commitment and hard work at the highest levels of these organizations. And we were doubly impressed by the wellthought out, five-part structure they designed to take research all theway from idea to product to clinical trial to business opportunity. It hadthe potential to be truly transformational for the Akron economy.”
“...BRINGING THESE PEOPLE TOGETHER INCLOSE PROXIMITY — THE SCIENTIST, THECLINICIAN, THE ENGINEER AND THEBUSINESSMAN — BLURS THE BOUNDARIESAND CREATES A WHOLE NEW SET OFOPPORTUNITIES.”LUIS PROENZA
“...DESIGNED TO TAKE RESEARCH ALL THE WAY FROMIDEA TO PRODUCT TO CLINICAL TRIAL TO BUSINESSOPPORTUNITY. IT HAD THE POTENTIAL TO BE TRULY
TRANSFORMATIONAL FOR THE AKRONECONOMY.”JUAN MARTINEZ
“... it’s electrifying. It’s a chemical thing that happenswhen you put the right people together.”DENNIS WEINER
VP, C
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Pictured above: Boston Scientific’s TAXUS drug-eluting stent has a UA-developedpolymer coating that releases an anti-clogging agent into artery tissue.
CHAIRMAN AND ORTHOPEDIC SURGEON, AKRON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL
PRESIDENT, THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON
4
Here in brief is how those five elements work together at the Institute. l> Center for Biomaterials and Medicine builds on the strengths of
Akron’s 200+ researchers in orthopedics and polymers.l> Medical Device Development Center helps companies and
researchers design, test, synthesize and manufacture newmaterials and healthcare applications of biomaterials.
l> Center for Clinical Trials supports the implementation andadministration of clinical trials, and promotes collaborationamong scientists and clinicians across institutions.
l> Center for Health Care Training provides simulation-based education, training and research, facilitatingthe use the emerging technologies and devices.
l> Community Outreach coordinates and acceleratesregional efforts to give underserved populationsaccess to healthcare and wellness programs.
The presentation was a success. After a year of planning, the Knight Foundation announced the decision to back theinstitute with $20 million in funding over five years. Soon after,the state of Ohio joined in with another $20 million and FirstEnergypledged $10 million.
The University of Akron College of PolymerScience and Polymer Engineering offers threenew academic programs to top students,allowing them to earn both undergraduateand graduate degrees within five years.
The first of these year-round programs enablesits students to earn, in three years, a bachelor’sdegree in natural sciences with a concentrationin polymer chemistry. Then after two years ofgraduate study in the College of PolymerScience and Polymer Engineering, they willreceive a master’s degree in polymer science.The program is open to outstanding, honorschemistry majors, who will receive a tuitionwaiver from the Honors College and a stipendfrom the polymer college.
A second program enables students to earn a B.S. in Applied Mathematics and a master’sdegree in polymer engineering. Students will
be expected to complete core courserequirements and most electives for thebachelor’s degree in the first three years ofthe program. During their third year ofundergraduate study, students must formallyapply to the graduate program. Those whoare accepted will be expected to completetheir remaining undergraduate electives, 24credits of graduate coursework and sixcredits of thesis research in the last two yearsof the program. At the beginning of theirfourth program year, students are eligible toreceive a graduate stipend and tuition waiver of graduate courses.
The third program combines a B.A. inphysics/chemical physics at the College ofWooster with a master’s degree in polymerengineering at UA. The College of Woosterwill award the undergraduate degree tostudents after they complete the fourth year
of coursework at UA. In their fourth and fifthyears, students will receive a tuition waiverfor graduate courses taken at UA. Fifth yearstudents will also be eligible to receivestipends when they are registered for at leastnine graduate credits. This limited admissionprogram is designed for outstanding physicsand chemistry majors who want to earn their bachelor’s and master’s degrees bycompleting 162 to 170 coursework credithours and thesis research. Admission to this program is limited.
For more information about the polymerscience program, contact Dr. Claire Tessier at [email protected] or at 330-972-5304 or Dr. Li Jia at [email protected] or at330-972-7511. For more information aboutthe polymer engineering programs, contact Dr. Sadhan C. Jana at [email protected] or at 330-972-8293. n
Polymer College Introduces Three Accelerated B.S./M.S. Programs
The Future Starts NowAram Nerpouni is a vice president at BioEnterprise in Cleveland andhas been the acting director of the BioInnovation Institute of Akron.He maintains that our region’s collective expertise in the biomedicalapplication of polymers gives us a real advantage in the nationalcompetition for investors and markets. “A large part of the Institute’sfocus,” he says, “will be to make sure that the creation of this researchengine also leads to the creation of new companies and new jobs.”
With a five-year budget of $80 million, the BioInnovationpartners are currently staffing the institute. Following a
national search, Dr. Frank L. Douglas was chosen in lateAugust to serve as its first president and chief executive.He is the founder of the Massachusetts Institute ofTechnology’s Center of Biomedical Innovation.
“The caliber of the individuals who applied to lead theBIIA, where they have been, what they have done —
wow,” says Dr. Walter Horton, professor and vice presidentfor research at NEOUCOM. “Seeing people of this caliber just
reinforces the fact that we are on the right path.”
At UA’s College of Polymer Science and Engineering, Cheng issearching for and hiring top research talent in bioengineering andbiopolymers – five just this past spring and summer. The Universityhas broken ground on its new National Polymer Innovation Center,and plans for an additional research wing are already in motion.
Getting the right people in the right room is now an official mandate. n
O U T L O O K
Pictured above: UA’s revolutionary nanofibers are spun into lifesaving antibacterial“super” bandages that heal otherwise disabling parasitic infections.
E V E N T S 5
80
Reneker Honored with Order of the Phoenix at 80th Birthday Symposium
lready recognized in 2002 as a University of Akron Outstanding Researcher, Professor Darrell H. Reneker receivedwhat is perhaps The University of Akron’shighest accolade as he was inducted into
the Order of the Phoenix this past March at asymposium offered in honor of his 80th birthday.
In his official proclamation, University President Dr. Luis M. Proenza recognizes Reneker for achieve-ment in a multitude of areas important to the prestigeand well-being of the University: “This visionaryresearcher and exceptional scientist, honoredcolleague and respected teacher, devoted publicservant and accomplished administrator, haspioneered new realms of technology and opportunity,fired the imaginations of scholars as well as students,and harnessed the potential of nanotechnology forthe greater common good.”
Reneker’s long and fruitful research career includesapproximately 160 publications. In the past 15 years,he has published more than 50 articles that have ledthe worldwide growth of interest in electrospinningand nanofibers. As of 2002, he had generated morethan $5.5 million dollars in external research support— an average of $458,000 per year over a 12-yearperiod. He has more than 30 issued U.S. patents andpending applications patents, including some thatcontributed to the creation of SNS Nanofiber Tech-nology, LLC in Ohio.
Dr. Yuris Dzenis, a Professor at University ofNebraska-Lincoln, has fond memories of his workwith Reneker. “Darrell has a phenomenal physicalintuition and a knack for explaining complex physicalphenomena using simple examples and models. Hisability to pick a promising new direction, such aselectrospinning, when nobody was interested in it,and to produce a string of seminal papers is unequalled.I feel very fortunate for having had him as my boss,collaborator, and mentor. He has made the mostlasting impact on my career.”
Reneker began working on electron microscopy of polymers at the Dupont Company in 1959, afterreceiving his Ph.D. degree in Solid State Physics from the University of Chicago. He earned his B.Sc.degree in Electrical Engineering from Iowa StateUniversity (Ames). n
A
th
Rubber Centennia� Ce�e�ra�esRemarkable Partnership in the Pursuit of Knowledge
Above: Dr. Luis M. Proenza traces thehistory of polymer science and outlines thepromise of biopolymers.
Opposite: Some 300 celebrants kicked offthe centennial year in high style with dinner,dancing and stimulating conversation.
The academic year 1909 -10 gave birthto both the American ChemicalSociety’s Rubber Division and the
world’s first course in rubber chemistry,offered by The University of Akron’spredecessor, Buchtel College. The 2009Centennial celebrates the scientific andtechnological journey that polymerscience and industry have taken in theyears since.
The first event of the year, held onMonday, May 4, 2009, at the John S.Knight Center in Akron, was a spectacularblack tie event sponsored by both theUniversity and the Rubber Division.More than 300 people were in attendancefor an evening of dinner and dancing.High points included the keynote addressby the Honorable John D. Ong, chairmanemeritus of what is now Goodrich Corporation and retired United Statesambassador; an address by The Universityof Akron’s Dr. Luis M. Proenza tracing
the evolution of polymer science fromthat first course in 1909 to the glitteringpromise of today’s biopolymers; and thepresentation of the Rubber Band Contestwinner, seventh grader Max Aifer, whotraveled from Arlington, Va., to receive his award.
Sponsors for the evening includedBridgestone Americas Tire Operations,LLC; Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs;The Dow Chemical Company, ExxonMobil Chemical Company, LORDCorporation, Polymer Valley Chemicals,Inc.; Rhein Chemie Corporation, StruktolCompany of America, Sunoco, Inc; and The University of Akron. n
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6 E V E N T S
Ce�e�ra�ion
7
E V E N T S
When the South Korean Ministryof Education, Science andTechnology recently implemented
a major program to enhance the researchcapabilities of 30 Korean universities, TheUniversity of Akron’s Alan Gent, professoremeritus of polymer physics, was amongthe first experts to arrive on the scene.
The project, formally named the WorldClass University (WCU) program, waslaunched in June 2008 under a govern-ment-led effort to improve educationalquality by exposing South Korean students to internationally eminentscholars and researchers.
Says Gent, “I was invited by ChonbukNational University to work with a formerstudent, Professor Changwoon Nah, adistinguished faculty member there. Hisproposal on new sources of energy was one of the first to be funded under thisnational program.”
In the first photograph, taken at anOctober 2008 reception given by formerstudents in Seoul, are, left to right,Professors Shinyoung Kaang, ChonnamNational University; and ChangwoonNah, Chonbuk National University; Dr. Jongkoo Jeung, consultant, ChemicalTechnology; A.N. Gent, retired UAprofessor; Youngwook Chang, HanyangUniversity; Dr. Seung-cheol Han, KumhoChemical Company; and ProfessorKilwon Cho, Pohang Institute of Scienceand Technology.
In the second photograph, taken as aChonbuk University rubber researchgroup tours Old Jeonju City in April2009, are, left to right, Jee Young Lim,graduate student; Dr. RajatsenduSengupta, postdoctoral researcher;Professor Changwoon Nah; A.N. Gent,retired UA professor; Ms. Jieun Jeon,secretary; and Gi-Bbeum Lee and YoungHee Kim, graduate students.
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Gent Pursues New Knowledge and Old UA friendships in South Korea
Gent reports that the two began coopera-ting on research immediately. Because thetime available for joint research is so short,only one or two months per year, they hadto work quickly and effectively.
However, as Gent notes, “The substantialsupport provided by the government hascreated a ‘can do’ attitude in this researchteam that was quite invigorating. I amlooking forward to the next period ofresearch with them, in October.”
During a month-long visit to South Koreain April, Gent reports meeting a number of Akron alumni and notes that some of his former students are now prominentin Korean science and technology. Forexample, Professor Shinyoung Kaang ofChonnam National University, a Universityof Akron student some 20 years ago, is thecurrent president of the Korean RubberSociety. And the president of the KoreanPolymer Society is Professor Kilwon Cho of Postech Institute of Science and Tech-nology, another former Akron student.
“In fact,” Gent notes with a smile, “theAkron alumni in Korea (about 100 persons)have become so influential that they areknown locally as the ‘Akron Mafia’!”n
8
a
E V E N T S 9
As every kid knows, the fun thing about arubber band is that it has a molecular memory.Stretch it out as you will, it will remember its original shape … and snap right back. MaxAifer, a smart seventh-grader from Arlington,Va., put this molecular memory idea to work in a surprising invention that won hima $10,000 savings bond and top honors in the inaugural Rubber Band Contest forYoung Inventors.
Aifer’s winning entry, called “Plant Sitter,”services a thirsty houseplant by suspendingit under a water basin with seven rubberbands. As dehydration makes the plantlighter, it rises. The payoff comes when itsrise prompts a sink strainer to release waterfrom the basin above.
Aifer said he came up with the idea when his family faced theage-old dilemma of keeping their houseplants alive while away onvacation. “If you’re on vacation and you can’t trust your neighbor to watch your plants, this is the product for you.”
Promoting Polymer Science in the Schools
Eighth graders made super bouncing balls and exploredmystery powders and poly puttyas part of Family Polymer ScienceNight at Barberton High Schoolthis past November. The evening,led by the Akron Global PolymerAcademy (AGPA) at The Universityof Akron, was the culmination of
Rising to the top of a field that included 313competitors, “Plant Sitter” and its creatorwere honored at an awards ceremony heldon Feb. 14 at The University of Akron.
Aifer’s contenders were Grant Neil, aneighth-grader from Kirkland, Wash., whoinvented “The Rip Band,” a device thatremoves labels from food cans, and JaredMann, a sixth-grader from Christiansburg,Va., whose “Power Tree” uses wind powerto move magnets through wire coils togenerate inexpensive electricity. Neilreceived a $5,000 savings bond for placingsecond in the competition and Mann, whoplaced third, received a $2,500 savings bond.
The contest commemorated the 100thanniversary of the Rubber Division, ACS
and the 100th anniversary of the world’s first rubber chemistrycourse, offered at Buchtel College, now The University of Akron. It was sponsored by Alliance Rubber Co. of Hot Springs, Ark., andadministered by the National Museum of Education, coordinator of the BubbleWrap® Competition for Young Inventors. n
a month-long program. The eventshowcased the students’ projectsand experiments in polymerscience and polymer engineering.And the students’ families,encouraged to participate at theinteractive stations and meet withcareer representatives from areapolymer companies, were part of the excitement.
“Families need to be drawn into their child’s learning,” saysDr. Katharine Owens, associatedirector of operations at AGPA.“Bridging the school to the homethrough educational outreachprograms such as Polymer ScienceNight helps inspire young peopleto develop a love of science andlearning and engages familymembers in the process.”
Created with the help of a 2004grant from the Ohio Board ofRegents’ Improving TeacherQuality Professional DevelopmentProgram, the AGPA has grownexponentially since then. Its onlinevenue has evolved into a valuablescience learning resource, andservices have expanded to includea summer science teachingtechniques institute for educators.AGPA received a subsequentRegent’s grant of nearly $61,000in February of 2008. The summerof 2009 saw teachers’ institutesboth in Akron and at Dayton’sWright Patterson Air Force Base’sStarbase facility. Dr. Carin Helferand Owens facilitated bothinstitutes.n
www.agpa.uakron.edu/
A P G A S T R E T C H E SI M A G I N A T I O N S W I T H A
N A T I O N A L
R U B B E R B A N D C O N T E S T
F O R Y O U N G I N V E N T O R S
Above left to right: Grant Neil (second place), Max Aifer (first place), and Jared Mann (third place).
10 F A C U LT Y R E S E A R C H N E W S
thin, optical polymer film invented by Dr. StephenCheng, dean of the UA College of PolymerScience and Polymer Engineering, and Dr. FrankHarris, UA distinguished professor emeritus ofpolymer science, reached a $1 billion sales markearlier this year.
“We were in the right place at the right time,” says Harris, explaining how their 1989 developmentof soluble polyimides, when converted to film,enabled large liquid crystal displays (LCDs) to be
viewed from all angles for the first time. “It was a big event. Thistechnology helped enable the production of large-screen LCDs.”
The National Science Foundation provided $6 million in funding for the formation of the Center for Advanced Liquid CrystallineOptical Materials, through which the polymer film was developed.This consortium, which included UA, Kent State University andCase Western Reserve University, was created to provide a linkbetween the academic and business worlds and to develop LCDprototypes for industry.
Rockwell Automation, a corporate member of the consortium, tookparticular notice of the unique polymer film and signed an agreementwith UA to license the technology in 1994. As a result of the licensing,the film is used on the cockpit displays of Boeing Co. aircraft.
According to Harris, Rockwell obtained several licensing agreementspertaining to the technology, but decided to retain only the cockpitdisplay-related patent, opening doors to other licensing possibilities.
Enter Nitto Denko, a Japanese manufacturer of polarizers,which are components of LCDs.
A“Nitto wanted to combine our film with its polarizer and sell it as a package. So we worked with Nitto a few years in perfecting thematerial so it would meet the industry’s needs. By the year 2000,Nitto was ready to put it on its polarizers and sell it to LCDmanufacturers,” Harris explains.
Nitto wanted a capable material supplier and Harris and Chenganswered the call with Akron Polymer Systems (APS), anAkron-based company they formed in 2002 with the help of theUniversity of Akron Research Foundation. Since then, the film has exceeded $1 billion in sales and is on many commercial LCDtelevision screens, including all of those produced by SharpElectronics, according to Harris.
Nitto Denko later commissioned a Japanese company to supply thepolymer, but that did not hinder APS, which has signed agreementswith two Fortune 100 chemical companies seeking second- andthird-generation versions of the film.
Situated as a startup company in Fairlawn’s OMNOVA Solutionsfacility, APS already has spurred job growth in the area, including 12 positions, 11 of which are filled by doctoral graduates from UAand KSU. And this is just the beginning, according to Cheng.
“In addition to optical films, we now work on other high-performance polymers for missile nose cones, biomedical devicesand fuel cells. We are also in negotiations with the city of Akron and the state of Ohio to obtain funding to build a new facilitydowntown,” Cheng says.
Harris adds that APS already has produced polymers on the kilogram scale, but has remained focused primarily on technologydevelopment. However, the company owners now have their sightsset on establishing a small manufacturing operation as well.n
Developed by Stephen Cheng
and Frank Harris Generates
$1 billion in Sales
College Takes LEADin Published Research
The excellence of The University of Akron’sCollege of Polymer Science and PolymerEngineering faculty is clearly evident through
the significant publication of its research in leadingindustry journals. Specifically, UA polymer scienceand polymer engineering faculty members wrote296 research papers between 2004 and 2008 —more articles than those of the 40 institutions withresearch published by their faculties in principalpolymer journals. These articles, published in Macromolecules, Polymer and the Journal of PolymerScience, represent 6.39 percent of the total 4,629articles published in these journals throughout the five-year period.
“Our college’s research, particularly with regard to the science and engineering of soft materials, isunveiling significant medical and clinical applicationsin biopolymer materials,” says Dr. Stephen Cheng,dean of the college. “These innovations, in concertwith our continuous engagement in researchactivities in the BioInnovation Institute in Akron, will further strengthen our leading position in these academic publications.”
The University’s renowned polymer faculty, whichcurrently totals 30, includes many of the world’s topresearchers and innovators in the discipline. Withconcentration on research in biomolecular materials,renewable energy materials, microelectronics andoptics, and environmentally benign polymers, the college continues to recruit faculty memberswho specialize in these areas. n
Joseph Kennedy and Miko Cakmak Receive NorTech Innovation Awards
Judit Puskas Named Semifinalist
Dr. Joseph Kennedy, UA distinguished professor of polymerscience and chemistry, and Dr. Mukerrem Cakmak, UA professor of polymer engineering, were selected as 2009 NorTechInnovation Award finalists for their artificial pancreas technology.This award was presented on Feb. 18 in Cleveland, as a top honorunder the biosciences category.
Kennedy and Cakmak collaborated to make a biocompatible,polymer-coated nanofiber tube populated with insulin-producingcells from a pig. This implantable device could becomethe first long-term cure for diabetes.
Dr. Judit Puskas, professor of polymer science,was selected as a semifinalist for her developmentof a carbon nanocomposite based on thermo-plastic rubber and silica and targeted to become a safer breast implant material.
The NorTech Innovation Awards recognizemeaningful innovations originating from universities,companies, nonprofit organizations and entrepreneursthroughout the region. Presented by Crain’s Cleveland Business,the program grants awards in categories including biosciences,instrumentation controls and electronics, advanced materials,information and communications technologies, and advancedenergy, power and propulsion. n
Dr. JosephK e n n e d y ( l e f t ) i s a n
expert in polymer chemistry. Dr. Miko Cakmak (be low) has a
pass ion for polymer engineer ing.Their collaborative research is yielding
promising results in the development of an experimental bio-artificial pancreas,
a device that automatically monitorsglucose levels and releases
insul in into the blood-stream — just like a
normal, healthypancreas.
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World-RENOWNED Polymer experts Join UA Faculty
Since October 2008, the UA College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering has expanded its faculty to include Dr. Matthew Becker, associate professor of polymer science; Dr. Alamgir Karim, Goodyear Chair in Polymer Engineering; and Dr. Robert Weiss, Hezzleton E. Simmons Chair in Polymer Engineering.
1 2
F A C U LT Y N E W S
Dr. Matthew BeckerBecker, who most recently served as a staffscientist and project leader for the NationalInstitute of Standards and Technology PolymerDivision, assumed his new post in April.
“Dr. Becker’s expertise in tissue engineering andorganic chemistry will significantly complementthe biopolymer research currently under way atthe College of Polymer Science and PolymerEngineering, and will enhance the biomolecularmaterials research at UA and at the BioInnovationInstitute in Akron,”says Dean Stephen Cheng.
Becker’s most recently funded research, “IntegratedTechnologies for Polymeric Biomaterials:RESBIO,” for which he was a co-investigator andarea leader, received $5.5 million from theNational Institutes of Health — National Instituteof Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering.
Among his other accomplishments, Becker haspublished more than 40 refereed papers and was aNational Research Council postdoctoral fellow atNIST from 2003 through 2005. Previously, Beckerwas an NIH chemistry-biology interface trainingfellow at Washington University in St. Louis.
Dr. Matthew Becker
Dr. Alamgir Karim
Dr. Alamgir Karim Formerly the group leader overseeing nanostruc-tured materials in NIST’s polymers division, Karimbegan his endowed professorship in November.Since he joined NIST in 1993, Karim also servedas a physicist specializing in polymer thin-filmblends and processing; as leader of the polymerdivision’s combinatorial and high-throughputmethods group; and as National NanotechnologyInitiative liaison for the NIST director, amongother roles.
Karim says UA’s world-class polymer program andthe visionary leadership of its dean, Dr. StephenCheng, attracted him to the University.
“The University of Akron is one of the preemi-nent polymer programs worldwide. It has madetremendous contributions to nanotechnology andbiotechnology, and it is paving the way for majormedical and industrial breakthroughs,” Karimsays. “Dean Cheng’s vision captured my interest.The University has the structure, support,research tools and people essential to be on agrowth curve. There is just a feeling of a dynamicresearch and teaching environment here.”
Among his accomplishments, Karim has published120 refereed papers, is a Fellow of The AmericanPhysical Society and has received the NISTBronze medal and Department of CommerceSilver medal award.
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3“As the college moves forward on biomedicalresearch as part of the BioInnovation Institute forAkron, Dr. Weiss’ advanced research experiencewill significantly complement the University’srole as an institute partner.”
Among his many accomplishments, Weiss hasauthored three books and monographs, as well as 192 reviewed journal articles and bookchapters. He was a Fulbright Scholar, served as a United States representative to the VersaillesProject on Advanced Materials and Standardsand was a postdoctoral fellow at the Society ofPlastics Engineers, among other fellowships.Weiss has 19 patents. n
Dr. Robert WeissWeiss, previously with the University ofConnecticut, where he served as the UnitedTechnologies Corporation professor of advancedmaterials and processing and as a professor ofchemical engineering, joined UA in July.
Weiss also served as a Board of TrusteesDistinguished Professor at UConn for the pastseven years and was director of its polymerprogram until 2005.
“Dr. Weiss’ expertise in chemical engineeringand polymer research will serve an integral role in the College of Polymer Science andPolymer Engineering’s biomaterials and biotech-nology initiative,” says Dean Stephen Cheng.
Over the past two years, DeanStephen Cheng has reappointedthree of the University’s mostprominent polymer scientists totheir sitting leadership positions.“You simply cannot argue withsuccess,” says Cheng. “And I wantto commend all three individualsfor their contributions to thecollege, the field and the University.” The three appointees are:
Dr. Roderic P. Quirk, interimdirector, Institute of PolymerScience and Polymer EngineeringFirst appointed interim director of the Maurice Morton Institute ofPolymer Science in 2006, Quirkassumed the responsibilities ofinterim director of the combinedInstitute of Polymer Science andPolymer Engineering in fall 2007.
Quirk was reappointed July 1,2009, for another year-long term as interim director of the combinedinstitute. Also the Kumho Professor& Distinguished Professor ofPolymer Science, Quirk manages a technical support staff thatprovides instruction and service forstudents and faculty in laboratoriesdedicated to electron microscopy,polymer characterization, polymerprocessing, and a variety of otherresearch essentials. The instituteprovides technical service forindustry and government throughthe Polymer Blending andCompounding Center and theApplied Polymer Research Center.Quirk’s research interests center on anionic polymerization. Quirk,who joined UA in 1983, holds aPh.D. from the University of Illinois.
Dr. Sadhan C. Jana, chair, Department of PolymerEngineering Appointed as chair in 2004, Jana was reappointed for afour-year term on Nov. 1, 2008.He also teaches and leads aresearch group that is creditedwith four patents. Jana’s researchinterests include nanotechnology— specifically, nanocompositeformation by a “bottom-up”self-assembly approach that issuperior to its “top-down” alter-native in achieving nanoscaledispersion. Jana holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering fromNorthwestern University, and hastaught at The University of Akronsince 1998.
Dr. Ali Dhinojwala, chair,Department of Polymer ScienceFirst named interim chair in August2008, Dhinojwala was appointedas department chair for a four-yearterm in December 2008. He also is the H.A. Morton Professor ofPolymer Science and leads aresearch group that is developingspectroscopic techniques forstudying polymeric surfaces. Thesesurface properties play an importantrole in understanding friction, adhe-sion, wetting and interfacial tension— which in turn has led to the devel-opment of synthetic adhesivesusing aligned carbon nanotubesinspired by the surface propertiesof Gecko foot hairs. Dhinojwala,who joined UA in 1997, holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineeringfrom Northwestern University.n
Dr. Robert Weiss
Dr. Ali DhinojwalaDr. Sadhan C. JanaDr. Roderic P. Quirk
Cheng Appoints Quirk, Jana, Dhinojwala
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7 8 9
We are delighted to announce nine new Advancement Council members to the current committee. Members are leaders of the polymer, alumni,business, academic, entrepreneurial and public service communities, bothwithin the state of Ohio and nationally. They serve at the request of thedean to provide insight, counsel, critical review and intellectual support.
The new members are: 1. Dr. Benjamin Chu
Distinguished Professor, Chemistry Department, Stony Brook University
2. Dr. Eric AmisDirector, Physical Sciences United Technologies Research Center
3. Dr. Frank HarrisPresident and Chief Executive Officer, Akron Polymer Systems, Inc.
4. Dr. Dave BenkoR&D Fellow, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
5. Dr. James McGrathUniversity Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, Ethyl Chaired Professor, Virginia Tech
6. Dr. Donald PaulErnst Cockrell, Sr. Chair in Engineering, Director of the Texas Materials Institute, University of Texas at Austin
7. Dr. Elsa ReichmanisProfessor of Chemistry and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
8. Dr. Andy Tsou Section Head, Corporate StrategicResearch, Exxon Mobile Research& Engineering Company
9. Dr. Edwin ThomasDepartment Head and MorrisCohen Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
College welcomes NEW Advancement Council Members
F A C U LT Y N E W S
With the appointment of Dr. Stephen Cheng as dean have come some changes in the collegeorganization. One of these changes has been areconfiguration of the associate dean’s position.In fall 2008 Professor Mark Foster wasappointed associate dean of programs, policyand engagement, following three years as chairof the Department of Polymer Science. Fosternow oversees and coordinates programmaticand curricular initiatives in the college andensures that college policies are developed tokeep up with the changing environment at the University. Further, he coordinatesinitiatives to engage the campus at large and the community. Along with these responsibilitiescame a move from a position as associate
director of the Akron Global Polymer Academyto its director. Professor Foster earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from WashingtonUniversity in St. Louis and a Ph.D. in ChemicalEngineering from the University of Minnesota.After time in Germany as a postdoctoral fellow,and temporary staff scientist and work as asenior postdoctoral associate with Frank Bates,he joined UA in November 1989. Fostercontinues his research in the structure anddynamics of polymer thin films and surfaces,and novel scattering and scanning probetechniques for studying these phenomena. n
Foster Appointed as of Program Policyand Engagement and
15
Frank Kelley Receives
DISTINGUISHED Flory Award
For his achievements in promotingpolymer education, Dr. Frank N. Kelley,dean emeritus of the College of PolymerScience and Polymer Engineering, wasawarded the 2008 Paul J. Flory PolymerEducation Award, the highest honorpresented from the Polymer Chemistry
Division of the American Chemical Society(ACS). The award was established in 1981 torecognize, encourage and stimulate outstandingachievements by an individual or team inpromoting undergraduate and/or graduatepolymer education.
Kelley earned his undergraduate and graduatedegrees at UA. After serving in industry, at bothThe Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company andUnion Carbide Corporation, as well at UA’sInstitute of Polymer Science, Kelley enteredactive duty as a first lieutenant in the U.S. AirForce and was assigned to its Rocket PropulsionLaboratory at Edwards Air Force Base. Uponcompletion of his military tour in 1964, Kelleyworked as a civilian at Edwards Air Force Base,where he conducted research and managedtechnical programs associated with solid-propellant mechanical properties, and eventuallybecame chief scientist. He then joined Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton to occupy asimilar position and to later serve as director of its 450-person materials laboratory.
Kelley returned to UA as a professor and directorof the Institute of Polymer Science in 1978 andwas appointed as dean of the College of PolymerScience and Polymer Engineering when it wasestablished in 1988. He held that post for 18 years.
“He helped to guide the college into a renownedprogram ranked second in the nation by U.S.News & World Report,” says Dr. Stephen Cheng,current dean, noting that Kelley has publishedabout 50 articles and book chapters, supervisedthe research of 18 doctoral and six master’s degreestudents, delivered lectures in 30 countries andhas two active patents.
A symposium was arranged in Kelley’s honor at the Polymer Chemistry Division’s fall 2008meeting in Philadelphia.
Widely recognized for his contributions topolymer education, Kelley has received severalhonors over the years, including the 2008 NationalG.S. Whitby Award in Rubber Education from the ACS Rubber Division. n
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G R A N T S , F U N D I N G &
L I C E N S I N G
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CAKMAK drives $8 Million Effort in Polyimide Films and Nanocomposites
Fiscal year 2008-2009 saw recordlevels of external support (research,sales and gifts) for the College of Polymer Science and PolymerEngineering. Annual attainmentfor the college totaled $13,121,631in awards.
“Typically in higher education,research attainment is recorded in expenditures to satisfy federalguidelines,” says Kent Marsden,assistant to the dean.“That number($10,686,021) is the highest everrecorded by the college, a 21.7percent increase over fiscal 2007-08. Of that, $9,679,883 wasfaculty research.”
Dean Stephen Cheng believesthat the college’s success in theseareas reflects, first and foremost,the faculty’s high level of energyand commitment. “I am veryproud of our faculty and theirefforts this past year, and lookforward to even greater successas we continue to add facultypositions to our bio-initiatives.”n
External Funding Reachesrecord LEVELS
l> Flexible photovoltaics to enableproduction of self-powered, flexibledisplays in e-books, as well asconformable photovoltaics for the aircraft and spacecraft industries.
l> Electronic thermal management (ETM)films to expel heat generated as a resultof the decreasing size of electronic devices,laptop computers and cell phones. n
Ph.D. candidate Han Yan is initializingthe iTi Material Inkjet printer forsubstrate patterning.
$2,000,000
$4,000,000
$6,000,000
$8,000,000
$10,000,000
$12,000,000
‘08-’09 ‘07-’08 ‘06-’07 ‘05-’06 ‘04-’05
them ideal for use in flexible electronics,self-powered, flexible LCD displays,high-strength barrier films, aerospace andbiomedical products.
The PI program consists of five interrelatedprojects called “Thrust Areas.”
l> Optical films for liquid crystal displaysthat will enhance the brilliance and colorrendering in the video image they depict.
l> High-strength carbon nanofiberreinforced PI films to substantially reducethe weight of high altitude airships andaerospace applications while providingstrength and desired electrical properties.
l> Nano-structured, ultra-performancecomposites for production of three-dimensional, load-bearing parts todramatically lower the weight of themilitary and civilian aircraft, saving fueland maintenance. The much broaderbiomedical functional products marketwill be a significant beneficiary of thisdevelopment as costs come down on the experience curve.
Miko Cakmak is one of UA’s busiestpeople. Besides being the Harold A. MortonChair and Distinguished Professor of
Polymer Engineering, he leads theCenter for Multifunctional
Polymer Nanomaterials andDevices (CMPND)
research program at UA,which recently won an$8M Ohio ThirdFrontier ResearchCommercializationProgram grant.
The program broughttogether a key consortium of
Ohio companies and academicinstitutions to synthesize, scale-up,
prototype, manufacture and commercializecurrent and next-generation polyimide (PI) materials and products.
PIs can withstand extreme thermal,electrical and mechanical environmentswhile maintaining desirable optical,electrical and mechanical properties. They can also be enhanced with emergingmaterial and process technologies,including nanomaterials. This makes
While “plastics” was a one-word joke in the 1967 movie The Graduate,plastics and other polymers have never been a laughing matter at The University of Akron, with its world-renowned College of PolymerScience and Polymer Engineering. “Chains of Opportunity: The University of Akron and the Emergence of the Polymer Age,1909-2007” tells the story of the University’s rise to prominence in thefield, beginning with the world’s first academic course in rubberchemistry almost a century ago. “Chains of Opportunity” explores theUniversity’s pioneering contributions to rubber chemistry, polymerscience and polymer engineering. It traces the school’s interaction withAkron rubber giants such as Goodyear and Firestone, recounts itsadministration of the federal government’s synthetic rubber programduring World War II, and describes its role in the development andprofessionalization of the academic discipline in polymers. TheUniversity of Akron has been an essential force in establishing thepolymer age that has become a pervasive part of our material lives, in everything from toys to biotechnology.
Mark D. Bowles has authored or co-authored sevenbooks on the history of space exploration, nuclearresearch and medicine. His book, “Science in Flux,”won the American Institute of Aeronautics andAstronautics’ 2005 History Manuscript Award, which ispresented each year for the best historical manuscriptdealing with the impact of aeronautics and astronauticson society. Bowles received his B.A. in Psychology andM.A. in History from The University of Akron, his Ph.D.in the History of Technology from Case WesternReserve University and his MBA In Technologymanagement from the University of Phoenix. Hefounded Belle History in 2007. He is married to Nancyand they have three daughters.
B O O K U P D AT E 17
The Rubber Division of the American Chemical Society was founded to promote the education, professional growth and betterment of thoseindividuals associated with the rubber and associated industries. Theyear 2009 marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the RubberDivision. Over those 10 decades, the elastomeric profession hasundergone innovations, improvements, retooling, and rethinking.“The Rubber Mirror: Reflections of the Rubber Division’s First 100 Years”traces the history of the division and details how it became the forumfor the many people who ultimately impacted the advances in therubber industry.
Started by 28 rubber chemists in the early 1900s, the Rubber Division,has grown substantially. Its story reflects how people of simplebackgrounds, working together, have propelled advances in naturaland synthetic rubber materials and applications, polymer engineeringand manufacturing, thermoplastics research and chemistry.
The history of the organization is multifaceted and covers: inventorsand patents; a library including informational assets of Firestone,General, Goodrich, Goodyear and U.S. Rubber; agreements anddisputes; pioneering correspondence courses in rubber technology;and scholarships and awards.
This well-researched book includes several appendices that detailofficers of the Rubber Division from 1909-2009, inductees of theInternational Rubber Hall of Fame, the Charles Goodyear Medalwinners, and many other special award recipients.
Henry J. Inman is a former newspaper writer andcorporate public relations executive with the TheGoodyear Tire & Rubber Company. Inman has writtenfor Akron Life & Leisure, Modern Tire Dealer, Rubber &Plastics News, is a contributing editor to Tire Reviewand has edited four novels. He is president of CuyahogaFalls-based Goldfinch Communications, Inc. In his sparetime, he and his wife, Karen, enjoy hiking, biking, andspending time with their grandchildren.
‘Chains of OpportunityThe University of Akron and theEmergence of the PolymerAge, 1909 - 2007’
By Mark D. Bowles
‘Rubber MirrorReflections of the Rubber Division’s First 100 Years’
By Henry J. Inman
18 P O LY M E R S C I E N C E
A L U M N I / FA C U LT Y / S T U D E N T N E W S & A W A R D S
A L U M N I U P D A T E
Mahmoud C. Assaad, (Ph.D. 2008,M.S. 1989) Won first place in themachinery and equipment categoryof the “2008 Create The FutureDesign Contest” sponsored byDS-SolidWorks, NASA-Tech Briefs,Comsol, Hewlett-Packard andNational Instruments.
His entry was related to the work hehas done jointly with NASA-Glenn Research Center to produce a flexibleheat flux sensor capable of measuringthe heat flux and the film coefficientsneeded for heat transfer work. Thecontest had more than 765 entriesfrom 120 countries.
Assaad is featured on the NationalGeographic web site as one of theinventors who helped save the planetand lives:http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/03/photogalleries/create-the-future/photo3.html
Dr. Burak Begen (Ph.D. 2007) April 2009 – started working at BenVenue Labs (Bedford, Ohio), asubsidiary of Boehringer-Ingelheim,as quality systems specialist II.
Dan Graves (M.S. 1984) May 2009 – has been with Firestonefor more than 35 years with 15 atCentral Research and about 20 withFirestone Polymers LLC, where henow holds the top technical positionin the company, manager of productdevelopment. “I consider myself very fortunate to have started as achemical technician and end up onthe top of the technical ladder,considering all of the Ivy LeaguePh.D.s that are located at research. I owe most of this success to a topnotch education at UA.” He also won the IISRP International TechnicalAward in 2006 and Firestone’sLeadership in Innovation Award in2008 for holding 50 U.S. patents with the company.
Dr. Sarah B. Hiza (Ph.D. 2005)Accepted a new position in June2008 as senior manager of energeticmaterials & processes in the Test &Research Operations at ATK SpaceSystems. She has been with ATK forfive years and is located in Utah.Some of ATK’s current developmentefforts in this area include caselessammunition, insensitive explosives,military pyrotechnics, and the nextgeneration of high performancerocket and missile propellants.Energetic Materials & Processes alsoprovides production support forestablished ATK products, such as thesolid rocket boosters for the SpaceShuttle and intercontinental Tridentand Minuteman missiles.
Stephen Horvat (M.S. 1977) Works out of his home office inSolon, Ohio, as account manager for P.T. Hutchins, a national chemicaldistributor, with corporate headquar-ters in City of Industry, Calif. Horvat is responsible for sales in Ohio,Michigan, western Pennsylvania and southern Indiana.
Dr. Frank N. Kelley (M.S. 1959, Ph.D. 1961, Dean and Professor, Emeritus) Society of Plastics Engineers FredSchwab Education Award (2008)
G.S. Whitby Award in RubberEducation, American ChemicalSociety Rubber Division (2008)
Paul J. Flory Award from the PolymerDivision of the American Chemical Society (2008)
Erica Martin (M.S. 1999)Works as a North American productline analyst for Dow CoatingMaterials, Dow Chemical Companyin Philadelphia, Pa. An avid runner,she completed her first half marathonin September 2008, and competesregularly in road races. She also playsclarinet in the Audubon SymphonyOrchestra in the Philadelphia suburbs.
P O L Y M E R S C I E N C E
Previous Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients
2008 Ronald Sanderson, Ph.D.,
1969
2007Goh Suat Hong, Ph.D.,
1971
2006Robson Storey, Ph.D.,
1983
2005Sharell Mikesell, Ph.D.,
1971
2004Karl G. Kempf , Ph.D.,
1977
2003Frank N. Kelley, Ph.D.,
1961
2002Russell A. Livigni, Ph.D.,
1960
Polymer Science Alumni
474 Industry and Industrial Consulting
62 Academia – Teaching25 Academia – Non teaching
and Government588 Unknown30 Deceased
1179 Total Alumni
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Dr. Sharell Mikesell (Ph.D. 1971)Named associate vice president ofthe Industrial Liaison Office (ILO)created by the Ohio State University– Office of Research to fostereconomic development opportunitieswithin Ohio and beyond. ILO willserve as the “gateway” to Ohio Stateinnovation and expertise, connectingbusiness and industry to theuniversity’s vast network of resources– locally, nationally andinternationally. Since July 2005, Mikesell has servedas the co-director for the Center forMultifunctional Polymer Nanomaterialsand Devices at Ohio State. Thecenter is Ohio’s first state-fundedmulti-university center in nanotech-nology funded by the OhioDepartment of Development’s ThirdFrontier Program.
Dr. Amy Philips-Randall (Ph.D. 2006) In August 2006, Phillips-Randall joinedthe Bridgestone Americas Center forResearch and Technologies in Akron.She is a material research scientistfocusing on lower rolling resistance intires and adhesion/interfacial tack inrubber. “I recently had the opportunityto travel to the Bridgestone TechnicalCenter in Tokyo, Japan, for onemonth of cross training. And I amtaking Japanese language classes. Ihad a wonderful time in Japan and Ienjoyed all the food and culturalsightseeing. In personal news, my
husband and I bought our first houseat the end of 2008 and are happilysettled into the Fairlawn area.”
Dr. Susan M. Rhodes (Ph.D. 2007)Dr. Susan Rhodes and her husband,Kyle Rhodes, are expecting their firstchild, a baby girl, in early October2009, to be named Kathryn (Katie)Marie Rhodes. She has accepted theadditional role of technical leader forthe Adhesion Program - ElectronicsBusiness within the SCB InnovationAccelerator at Dow CorningCorporation. She will chair theAmerican Chemical Society Local FallScientific Meeting in Midland, Mich.,on Oct. 10, 2009. Interested personsshould visit the local ACS Web site at www.midlandacs.org.
Dr. Visit Vao-soongnern (Ph.D. 1999) Works at the School of Chemistry,Institute of Science, SuranareeUniversity of Technology, in Thailand.He was promoted to the head ofresearch department which isequivalent to associate dean ofresearch. He is also active indeveloping international collabora-tions, which have resulted in someformal agreements of collaborationwith some renowned universities –mostly in Asian countries. He hopesto see future activities between hisuniversity and UA.
F A C U L T Y A W A R D S
Dr. Stephen Cheng2008 – Member National Academyof Engineering (NAE), United States
Dr. Ali Dhinojwala2008 – Endowed Chair - H.A. MortonProfessor in Polymer Science, UA
2008 – Most Interesting Person inCleveland, Cleveland Magazine
Dr. Joseph P. Kennedy2009 – Letter by the Commission ofPatents for 100 Issued U.S. Patents
2009 – Hydrogel Membranes
2009 – Cleveland NorTech InnovationAward (Biosciences), Northeast Ohio Technology Association
2008 – Charles Goodyear MedalAward, Rubber Division, ACS
Dr. Coleen Pugh2006-2009 – National ScienceFoundation Special CreativeInvention Award
Dr. Judit Puskas2008 –“Biomaterials of the Month”June, selected by the Society forBiomaterials
2008 – Chemistry of ThermoplasticElastomers Award – ACS, Rubber Division
2008 – Cleveland NorTech Awardfinalist
Dr. Darrell H. Reneker2008 – Order of the Phoenix Award
2008 – 20-year Service Award
2009 – Fiber Society Invited Speaker
Dr. Alexei Sokolov2008 – Fellow, American Physical Society
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Nishant Kumar Fall 2009 – Received a $2,000Demming-Baker Scholarship, which is awarded to incoming graduatestudents with stellar credentials.Kumar started his studies this fall.
Shelia Khodadadi September 2008 – Chosen as thepolymer science student recipient ofa 2008 Frank N. Kelley Student Awardin Polymer Science and PolymerEngineering. The award carries a$3,000 prize and is presented annuallyto one student each in polymerengineering and in polymer science.
Sham RavindranathMay 2009 – Chosen as a finalist at APS Padden Award Symposium.
Bradley SchmidtFall 2009 – Received a $3,000Demming-Baker Scholarship, which is awarded to incoming graduatestudents with stellar credentials.Schmidt started his studies this fall.
Sunny Sethi March 2009 – Received theOutstanding Student Research Award for his accomplishments inresearch during the 2009 Conferencefor Undergraduate and GraduateResearch sponsored by UA’sGraduate School.
William Storms Fall 2008 – Received a $2,000Demming-Baker Scholarship, whichis awarded to incoming graduatestudents with stellar credentials.Storms started his studies last fall.
S T U D E N T A W A R D S
Sarang BhawalkarFall 2008 – Received the $1,000Ronald Eby Award, which is awardedannually to the top internationalstudent after the completion of thefirst year of core courses in the Ph.D. program.
Carlos Barrios April 2009 – Awarded the 2009Distinguished Scholar Award for“Toward Robust High ResolutionChemical Imagining,” a papersubmitted to Microscopy &Microanalysis 2009. This award isgiven to students presenting highquality technical papers withsignificant microanalysis content atthe annual meeting. Award winnersare selected by the MicrobeamAnalysis Society president.
Yi-Tsu ChanSpring 2008 – Received anExcellence in Engineering PlasticsAward for 2008 from Ticona at aluncheon ceremony on Nov.18, 2008.The award is given each semester to one student for the best formalseminar presentation.
Elizabeth Foreman Orlowski 2009Selected as a participant of the 59thMeeting of Nobel Prize Winners inChemistry, June 28 to July 3, 2009,Lindau, Germany.
Michael HeiberFall 2008 – Selected the MauriceMorton Award recipient. Awardedannually to the top U.S. student aftercompletion of the first year of corecourses in the Ph.D. program, thisaward carries a $1,000 cash prize.
Jonathan JanoskiFall 2008 – Received the $7,500annual Goodyear Fellowship, which is awarded to the top U.S. polymerresearch student for the best formalseminar performance. This fellowshipis among the oldest in the department,dating back 30 years.
P O LY M E R S C I E N C E
A L U M N I / FA C U LT Y / S T U D E N T N E W S & A W A R D S
Gregory ZartmanFall 2008 – Received a $2,000Demming-Baker Scholarship, which isawarded to incoming graduatestudents with stellar credentials.Zartman started his studies last fall.
Wenbin Zhang Fall 2008 – Received the first annual Lubrizol Fellowship, which is awarded to one student whoseresearch involves polymer synthesis.The chosen student can be in any year of his/her program and may receive consecutive funding of $25,000.
Fall 2007 – Also received anExcellence in Engineering PlasticsAward for 2007 from Ticona at aluncheon ceremony on Nov. 18, 2008.The award is given each semester toone student for the best formalseminar presentation.
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21P O LY M E R E N G I N E E R I N G
A L U M N I / FA C U LT Y / S T U D E N T N E W S & A W A R D S
A L U M N I U P D A T E
Dr. Vardhan Bajpai (Ph.D. 2005)June 2009 – Received $99,853 fromthe National Science Foundation, IIP Division of Industrial Innovationand Partnerships “Small BusinessInnovation Phase I Research Project.”Bajpai is senior nanotechnologyscientist for seldon technologies inWindsor, Vt.
Dr. Santosh Bawiskar (Ph.D. 1997, M.S. 1992)May 2009 – Received the PolyOneChairman’s Achievement Award. The award recognizes technological,operational, or commercial contribu-tions to the company’s strategicbusiness initiatives. Bawiskar ismanufacturing technology managerat GLS Corporation in McHenry, Ill.
Dr. Jamie Dziczkowski (Ph.D. 2008)April 2009 – Received the RoonFoundation Award along with Dr. Mark Soucek for the prize-winningpaper, “A New Class of AcrylatedAlkyd,” during the NPCA/FSCT 2009Coating Technical Conference inIndianapolis. Dziczkowski is employedas a chemist associate at Reichhold inResearch Triangle Park, North Carolina.
Dr. Rajesh Gomatam (Ph.D. 2002)Co-edited with K.L. Mittal,“Electrically Conductive Adhesives.“Leiden, The Netherlands: VSP, 2008.
Also guest edited “ElectricallyConductive Adhesives, Part 1,” No. 8-9, and “ElectricallyConductive Adhesives, Part 2,” No. 14, both in the Journal ofAdhesion Science and Technology,Vol. 22 (2008). Gomatam is a softwaredeveloper for ERP Integration atOSISoft, Inc. in Philadelphia.
Andrew Guenthner (Ph.D. 2000)Received the Department of PolymerEngineering Distinguished AlumniAward during the department’s 25thAnniversary Celebration of PolymerEngineering at The University ofAkron on Aug. 7, 2008. Guenthner ishead of the polymer science andpolymer engineering branch at theU.S. Naval Air Warfare Center inChina Lake, Calif.
Dr. Mohamed Hassan (Ph.D. 2004)Holds the title of Assistant Professorin the Department of Industrial and Management Engineering at the Arab Academy for Science,Technology and Maritime Transportin Alexandria, Egypt.
John Jenkins (M.S. 2007) Awarded the honor of lifetimemembership to the Museum ofModern Art in Manhattan, N.Y., fordeveloping a foamed TPE hearingprotection device that was chosen fordisplay by the museum due to itscontemporary design. Jenkins issenior research and developmentengineer at Bacou-Dollaz in SanDiego, Calif.
Dr. Chang Kook Hong (Ph.D. 2001)April 2009 – Co-authored a bookchapter with Jue Lu and RichardWool, “Bio-based Nanocompositesfrom Functionalized Plant Oils,” in thePolymer Nanocomposites Handbookpublished by CRC Press. Hong is aprofessor in applied chemicalengineering at Chonnam NationalUniversity in South Korea.
Dr. Jin Kuk Kim (Ph.D. 1990) April 2009 – Co-authored a bookchapter with Marissa Pagalicawanand V. Sridhar, “Utility of CarbonaceousNanofillers in Elastomers andThermoplastic Elastomeric Gels” in the “Polymer NanocompositesHandbook” published by CRC Press.Kim is a professor of polymer scienceand polymer engineering atGyeongsang National University in South Korea.
Polymer Engineering Alumni
329 Industry and Industrial Consulting32 Academia – Teaching14 Academia – Non teaching and
Government38 Unknown3 Deceased
416 Total Alumni
P O L Y M E R E N G I N E E R I N G
Previous Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients
2008Dr. Andrew Guenthner
Head, Polymer Science & Polymer Engineering Branch
U.S. Naval Air Warfare Center
2007(Alumni Day not held in order to prepare
for the 2008 25th Anniversary Celebration)
2006Dr. Murthy Simhambhatla
Vice President and General ManagerDrug Eluting StentsAbbott Laboratories
2005Bimal Kalvani
PresidentAlcoa Flexible Packaging
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22
Dr. Kwang-Jea Kim (Ph.D. 1998)April 2009 – Along with Drs. RakeshGupta and Elliot Kennel of WestVirginia University, Kim co-compiledthe “Polymer NanocompositesHandbook,” published by CRC Press.Kim also co-wrote several of the bookchapters: “Overview of Challengesand Opportunities” with Gupta andKennel; “Nanoparticle Dispersion andReinforcement by Surface Modifica-tion with Additives for RubberCompounds” and “Dispersion ofAgglomerated Nanoparticles inRubber Processing,” both with JamesL. White. The book includes 19chapters authored by world leaders in nanocomposite research. Kim is a professor in the College ofEngineering at Gyeongsang NationalUniversity in South Korea and remainsaffiliated with the Institute of PolymerEngineering at The University of Akron.
Dr. Jairo Perilla (Ph.D. 2004)September 2008 – Recognized for hisoutstanding research activities by theCouncil of Engineering Faculty at theNational University of Colombia, wherehe is an associate professor.
Amrutheswar Puttarudraiah (M.S. 2003)Fall 2008 – Accepted a new positionas catalyst and product developmentspecialist at Flint Hills Resources(KOCH Industries) in Longview, Texas.
Dr. Chang Hoon Song (Ph.D. 1999, M.S. 1994) April 2009 – Co-authored a bookchapter with Avraam Isayev,“Nanocomposites of LiquidCrystalline Polymers Dispersed inPolyester Matrices,” in the “PolymerNanocomposites Handbook”published by CRC Press. Song is senior research scientist withColortech in Morristown, Tenn.
Prabhu Soundarrajan (M.S. 2003)April 2009 – Elected to the board ofdirectors of the National HydrogenAssociation, Small Business Class.Soundarrajan currently works asdirector of strategic applicationsdevelopment for H2scan Corporationin Valencia, Calif.
Dr. Ximei Sun (Ph.D. 2007) Fall 2008 – Is a materials scientist atZpower, Inc. in Camarillo, Calif.
Dr. Sadhan Jana 2009 – Associate Editor of PolymerEngineering & Science.
2008 – Elected Fellow, Society ofPlastics Engineers.
Dr. Erol Sancaktar 2008 – Certificate of Appreciation by the ASME Design Division.
Dr. Mark Soucek 2009 – Roon Foundation Award,NPCA/FSCT Coating Technical Conference.
Dr. Robert Weiss2008 – International Award, Societyof Plastic Engineers.
2008 – Best Paper Award, PolymerAnalysis Division, Society of PlasticsEngineers.
2008 – Institute of Materials ScienceDistinguished Lecturer, University of Connecticut.
Dr. James L. White2009 – Charles Goodyear Medal,Rubber Division, American ChemicalSociety.
Hemant Thakkar (M.S. 2003)December 2008 – Accepted a newposition as polymer engineer in the materials laboratory of Greene,Tweed & Company in Kulpsville, Pa.
Liqun “Harrison” Yu (M.S. 2000)Elected chair of the SPE PolymerAnalysis Division Technical Programfor the joint SPE and SPI conferenceand NPE industry show in Chicago inJune 2009. He serves as seniorchemist at Lancaster Laboratories.
F A C U L T Y A W A R D S
Dr. Miko Cakmak2009 – Cleveland NorTech InnovationAward (Biosciences), Northeast Ohio Technology Association.
Dr. Hendrik HeinzJune 2009 – Giovanni Novelli Prize,Italian Association for the Study ofClay Minerals.
Dr. Avraam Isayev 2008 – Elected Fellow, Society ofPlastics Engineers.
2008 – Editorial Board, InternationalJournal of Polymers and Technologies.
P O LY M E R E N G I N E E R I N G
A L U M N I / FA C U LT Y / S T U D E N T N E W S & A W A R D S
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Dr. Chrys Wesdemiotis will serve both the Buchtel College of Arts andSciences and the College of PolymerScience and Polymer Engineering as a distinguished professor of chemistryand polymer science. Wesdemiotispreviously served as a distinguishedprofessor of chemistry.
“Dr. Wesdemiotis’ joint appointmentwith full faculty rights in the Depart-ment of Polymer Science willstrengthen ongoing collaborationswith the polymer science and polymer
engineering faculty and will certainly lead to new ones, facilitating joint grants and publications,” says Dr. Stephen Cheng, dean of UA’sCollege of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering.
Wesdemiotis will not only participate in teaching polymer sciencecourses and add lectures on mass spectrometry techniques, which areused increasingly in polymer research, but also will be actively involvedin the decision making process and supervise graduate students in the department. Any current graduate students assigned to thedepartment who are interested in Wesdemiotis’ research can choosehim as their adviser, Cheng added.
“Many of these synergistic activities take place within the IntegratedBioscience Program and will, consequently, promote the developmentof new biomaterials and new biological applications of syntheticpolymers,” Wesdemiotis says.
The joint work with the department of polymer science and theintegrated bioscience groups will help further advance the UA MassSpectrometry Center as a national core facility for mass spectrometrystudies of synthetic macromolecules and biomaterials, according to Wesdemiotis. n
Chrys Wesdemiotis Receives Joint Appointment
23
S T U D E N T A W A R D S
Neelakandan ChandrasekaranMarch 2009 – For his accomplish-ments and excellence in research,Chandrasekaran was chosen to receivethe Outstanding Student ResearchAward during the 2009 Conferencefor Undergraduate and GraduateResearch sponsored by the GraduateSchool at The University of Akron.
February 2009 – Selected as a 2009-10recipient of the Ohio AgriculturalScience and Bioproducts ResearchScholarship. This $5,000 award isgranted by the Ohio Soybean Councilon the basis of research focused onthe development and use ofbiobased products and materialsderived from soybeans.
February 2009 – Delivered thelecture, “Development of Multifunc-tional Polymer Membranes viaPhytochemical Modification forHemodialysis Applications,” duringthe Department of Polymer Engineer-ing’s Spring 2009 Seminar Series.
September 2008 – Chosen as thepolymer engineering studentrecipient of the 2008 Frank N. KelleyStudent Awards in Polymer Scienceand Polymer Engineering. The awardcarries a $3,000 prize and ispresented annually to one studenteach in polymer engineering and inpolymer science.
Kelley Student Award winner,Neelakandan Chandrasekaran (center)with his adviser Dr. Thein Kyu (left) andDean Emeritus Frank N. Kelley.
Jaseun ChoiNovember 2008 – Received anExcellence in Engineering PlasticsAward from Ticona at a luncheonceremony on Nov. 18, 2008. The award is given to a second year student based upon high GPA and Ph.D. qualifying scores.
Jane Fujiyama-NovakAugust 2008 – Received one of two first place poster awards for“Integrated Real Time Birefringenceand Light Depolarization Studies onStructural Evolution During CompleteProcessing Cycle: Heating-Stretching-Holding-Cooling of Polymer Films”during the department’s 25thAnniversary Celebration of PolymerEngineering at The University ofAkron, Aug. 7, 2008.
Kaan GunesFebruary 2009 – Delivered thelecture, “Ultrasonically AssistedExtrusion of Blends of Polyesters andThermotropic Liquid CrystallinePolymers” during the Department ofPolymer Engineering’s Spring 2009Seminar Series.
Sedat GunesDecember 2008 – Was selected as aMaterials Research Society GraduateStudent Silver Award winner at its fall 2008 meeting. Finalists for theawards are selected from leadinguniversities in the field of materialsscience and engineering. In additionto giving a talk on his research, Guneswas honored during ceremonies onDec. 3 in Boston.
Sedat Gunes (first row, second fromright) with fellow award winners at theMRS conference.
September 2008 – Delivered thelecture, “Shape Memory PolyurethaneNanocomposites” during theDepartment of Polymer Engineering’sFall 2008 Seminar Series.
September 2008 – Was chosen asThe University of Akron recipient of the 2008 - 09 Eastman Chemical Fellowship. The award is given inrecognition of academic and researchsuccess. The fellowship provided a$5,000 award as well as a trip to visit the Eastman facility in Kingsport, Tenn., where Gunes gave a presenta-tion on his research.
Rishi Kumar August 2008 – Received one of two first place poster awards for“Ultrasound Assisted Extrusion Processfor Continuous Dispersion of CarbonNanotubes in Polymers” during the department’s 25th AnniversaryCelebration of Polymer Engineeringat The University of Akron.
Alexei Melnikov November 2008 – Was selected asone of two recipients for an OhioRubber Group (ORG) GraduateStudent Award of $2,000. He washonored at a luncheon ceremony inJanuary with members of ORG andthe college. Presentation of the award was by Joel Nielsen of the SidRichardson Carbon Co., and chair of the ORG Scholarship Committee.Melnikov will attend local ORGtechnical meetings culminating in apresentation of his research.
ORG Scholarship Committee Chair JoelNeilsen with award winner Alexei Melnikov.
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24
Fall 2007 – Received an Excellence inEngineering Plastics Award for 2007from Ticona at a luncheon ceremonyon Nov. 18, 2008. The award is givento a second year student based uponhigh GPA and Ph.D. qualifying scores.
Left to right: 2008 Ticona Awardswinners, Cheng Qu and Jaesun Choi with 2007 winners Setareh Niknezhad and Alexei Melnikov.
Ratan MishraMarch 2009 – Attended theworkshop “Challenges and Promisesof Multi-scale Schemes for Cementi-tious Materials” held in Derio, Spain.Rathan is a third-year doctoralstudent with Dr. Hendrik Heinz.
Setareh Niknezhad Fall 2007 – Received an Excellence inEngineering Plastics Award for 2007from Ticona at a luncheon ceremonyon Nov. 18, 2008. The award is givento a second year student based uponhigh GPA and Ph.D. qualifying scores.
Cheng QuNovember 2008 – Received anExcellence in Engineering PlasticsAward from Ticona at a luncheonceremony on Nov. 18, 2008. Theaward is given to a second yearstudent based upon high GPA and Ph.D. qualifying scores.
Jason RandallNovember 2008 – Was selected asone of two recipients for an OhioRubber Group (ORG) GraduateStudent Award of $2,000. He washonored at a luncheon ceremony inJanuary with members of ORG andthe college. Presentation of theaward was by Joel Nielsen of the Sid Richardson Carbon Co., andchair of the ORG ScholarshipCommittee. Jason will attend localORG technical meetings culminatingin a presentation of his research.
August 2008 – Received third place for “Evaluating Dimethyldieth-oxysilane for Use in Polyurethane-Crosslinked Silica Aerogels” duringthe poster awards competition of the department’s 25th AnniversaryCelebration of Polymer Engineeringat The University of Akron, Aug. 7, 2008.
N E W H I R E S *
Elizabeth Barber January 2009 – Events Assistant,College of Polymer Science andPolymer Engineering
Dr. Matthew Becker April 2009 – Associate Professor ofPolymer Science, Polymer Science
Jack Gillespie March 2009 – Glassblower, Polymer Science
Dr. Mark Holtman August 2008 – Assistant to theDirector, Institute of PolymerEngineering, Polymer Engineering
Dr. Alamgir Karim November 2008 – Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Chair andProfessor, Polymer Engineering
Jeff Long November 2007 – EngineeringTechnician Senior, PolymerEngineering
Janet Mealy April 2008 – Program Assistant,Akron Polymer Training Center (APTC)
Cheryl Slusarczyk February 2008 – AdministrativeAssistant, Department of PolymerEngineering
Nate Su July 2009 – Graphic DesignSpecialist, Akron Global PolymerAcademy
Anjalee Wagers January 2008 – Office Assistant,Akron Global Polymer Academy
Dr. Robert Weiss July 2009 – Hezzleton E. SimmonsChair and Professor, PolymerEngineering
P R O M O T I O N S *
Dr. Miko Cakmak April 2009 – Distinguished Professor,Polymer Engineering and Harold A.Morton Endowed Professorship
Dr. Mark Soucek April 2009 – Professor
R E T I R E M E N T S *
Cameron Fraser July 2008 – Assistant to the Director, Institute of Polymer Engineering
Dr. Kathie Owens September 2009 – Associate Directorof Operations, Akron Global PolymerAcademy
Millie Pearson January 2008 – AdministrativeAssistant, Department PolymerEngineering
Dr. Roderic Quirk June 2010 – Distinguished Professorof Polymer Science, Interim DirectorInstitute of Polymer Science andPolymer Engineering, KumhoProfessor of Polymer Science
Retirement Symposium May 13-14, 2010
Linda Seib June 2009 – Administrative Assistant,Department Polymer Science
Dr. Ernst Von Meerwall August 2008 – DistinguishedProfessor Emeritus of Physics,Chemistry, and Polymer Science,Associate Dean, CollegeAdministration
D E P A R T U R E S *
Dr. Scott Collins December 2008 – Professor ofPolymer Science
Dr. Alexei Sokolov August 2009 – Professor of PolymerScience - T. A. Knowles Professor
P O LY M E R E N G I N E E R I N G
A L U M N I / FA C U LT Y / S T U D E N T N E W S & A W A R D S
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* Applies to the College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering
With great anticipation, the time finallyarrived to celebrate 25 years since thefounding of the polymer engineeringprogram at The University of Akron. Thefestivities began with a family picnic atMunroe Falls Metro Park on Wednesday,Aug. 6th with more than 100 in attendance.Our wonderful student “chefs” prepared a delicious meal while many enjoyedfootball, volleyball and swimming. It was a great time to get reacquainted and visitfriends and faculty while reflecting on thegrowth of the polymer engineering program.
Thursday began with registration and, asfaculty, students and alumni arrived, theenthusiasm of participating in this joyousoccasion was felt by all. Welcomes weregiven by event chair, Dr. Avraam Isayev,and Dean Stephen Cheng. Following themat the podium was featured speaker, UAPresident Luis M. Proenza, who discussedScience, Technology and Economics. Many outstanding alumni gave presenta-tions throughout the morning, showing thediversity among our graduates and allreflecting positive momentum and interestsin the field of polymer engineering.
Highlighting the alumni luncheon was theannouncement of the 2008 DistinguishedAlumni Award – Dr. Andrew Guenthner,head of the Polymer Science and PolymerEngineering Branch of the U.S. Naval AirWarfare Center in California. Guenthnergraduated in 2000 and was chosen for thisaward by his alumni peers based on hisresearch and career and service accomplish-ments. Dr. James White was also givenspecial recognition as “founder” of thepolymer engineering program in 1983. Whitecontinues to serve as a faculty memberwithin the department. Also receiving specialrecognition was Millie Pearson for her 25years as administrative assistant within thedepartment prior to her retirement inJanuary 2008.
The afternoon showcased a poster presenta-tion by a number of students in the StudentUnion Ballroom. Tied for first place wereJane Fujiyama-Novak and Rishi Kumar withsecond place awarded to Jason Randall …congratulations to all! Event attendees alsohad the opportunity to tour the PolymerEngineering Academic Center, dedicated in2001, as well as the Olson Laboratories.
Culminating the day’s events, the depart-ment hosted a reception and banquetcommemorating the history of the polymerengineering program; how it has grown andthe many accomplishments along the way.It was a great time of celebration as faculty,alumni and students were able to relax,reflect and enjoy time in honor of a programwhich has touched so many lives. ElizabethStroble, senior vice president and provost,the featured speaker, highlighted theaccomplishments and focus of the depart-ment and alumni as well as current facultyand students.
Friday concluded the three-day celebra-tion with a roundtable discussion bydistinguished industry representatives on the topic of global competition. As the events drew to a close, the truesignificance of the celebration will foreverbe summarized in the growth andprosperity of the alumni, faculty, studentsand staff who have been touched by thisexcellent program. n
Ce�e�ra�es Years!25
In the first photograph, left to right: Dr. Sadhan Janaand Dr. Andrew Guenthner, winner of the 2008Distinguished Alumni Award.
Middle photograph, left to right, sitting: Dr. FrankKelley, dean emeritus; Joseph Gingo, president andCEO of A. Schulman, Inc.; and Dr. Thomas Stanley,general manager of plastics technology at SABICInnovative Plastics. Standing, left to right: ThomasWaltermire, CEO of Team NEO; Dr. Jean-Claude Kihn,senior vice president and chief technical officer at The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company; DorothyBaunach, president and CEO of Nortech; and Drs. Erol Sancaktar and Avraam Isayev.
In the bottom photograph, left to right: Ken Keuchel of Keuchel Associates and Spunfab, Ltd. with deanemeritus, Dr. Frank Kelley.
Polymer Engineering
NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON
College of Polymer Science and Polymer EngineeringAkron, OH 44325-3909
Campus Landscape Continues to Change
The New Landscape for Learning is an ongoing campus renovation campaign that began in 2000. The campaign has constructed or acquired 16 new buildings, made 17major additions or renovations, and added 34 acres of new green space to campus. In 2009, the University opened the Midpoint Campus Center in Brunswick, a Student Life Building at Wayne College, and InfoCision Stadium-Summa Field multiplex, UA’s first on-campus football stadium. The University’s 13th residence hall and ninth parking deck are under construction and scheduled to open in 2010.
The College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering occupies an influentialposition in the University’s New Landscape for Learning initiative. The PolymerEngineering Academic Center was the campaign’s first major project, with ground-breaking on Nov. 30, 1999, and dedication on June 8, 2001. And with constructionunder way for a National Polymer Innovation Center that will open in 2010, the college is the only academic unit on campus that has two major building projects under the New Landscape for Learning campaign. n
C O L L E G E A T A G L A N C E
Established ..............................................1988
EmployeesPolymer Science Faculty..............................17Polymer Engineering Faculty ......................14Administration..............................................10Staff...............................................................25
Students Polymer Science ........................................105Polymer Engineering ...................................80
BuildingsGoodyear Polymer Center......................1991Polymer Engineering Academic Center.....................................2001Olson Research Center............................1979Akron Polymer Training Center...............1993National Polymer Innovation Center........ 2010
Alumni (living)Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering .................................419
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The University of Akron is an Equal Education and Employment
Institution © 2009 by The University of Akron /409-PS-22