Synergy – NSF Center for Sustainable Polymers https://csp.umn.edu Transforming the way plastics are made and unmade Fri, 01 Dec 2023 15:31:24 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.4 https://csp.umn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/cropped-CSP-Icon-32x32.png Synergy – NSF Center for Sustainable Polymers https://csp.umn.edu 32 32 Startup Co-Founded by CSP Investigator Paul Dauenhauer Wins 2023 MN Cup Grand Prize https://csp.umn.edu/2023/12/01/startup-co-founded-by-csp-investigator-paul-dauenhauer-wins-2023-mn-cup-grand-prize/ Fri, 01 Dec 2023 15:31:24 +0000 https://csp.umn.edu/?p=27791 Carba, a startup co-founded by CSP Investigator Paul Dauehauer, was awarded the $50,000 Grand Prize of the 2023 MN Cup, a statewide competition that addresses a wide range of societal challenges for entrepreneurs. 

Carba’s scientists and engineers have developed a process to use plants to suck carbon dioxide out of the air and convert their waste to a recalcitrant solid carbon, then sequestering carbon underground to stabilize it. 

Congratulations Professor Dauenhauer and team!

Read more about this story at the CEMS website.

]]> CSP Participates in the May 2023 Energy and U https://csp.umn.edu/2023/08/08/csp-participates-in-the-may-2023-energy-and-u/ Tue, 08 Aug 2023 12:48:32 +0000 https://csp.umn.edu/?p=27502 The Energy and U program in the Twin Cities metro area has achieved a remarkable milestone, having successfully engaged over 100,000 students in chemistry. This biannual interactive show aims to educate third, fourth, and fifth-grade students about the First Law of Thermodynamics in fun activities. The May 2023 series completion marked the momentous achievement for the program. Energy and U captivates young minds with electrifying explosions, on-stage volunteer opportunities, and dynamic dance breaks, encouraging a sense of enthusiasm for chemistry. In 2023, the program delivered 30 performances, reaching 9,260 students aged 8 to 12, with two presentations specially tailored for Twin Cities Spanish immersion schools.

The collaboration involved close to one hundred students, faculty, and staff from various departments, including Chemistry, Chemical Engineering & Materials Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Theater Arts and Dance (TAD). Jessica Lamb, CSP Investigator & Assistant Professor of Chemistry, made her first presenter appearance, sharing the excitement and joy of the kids as they cheered on the captivating experiments. Supported by the National Science Foundation, UMN Departments of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Theater Arts and Dance, as well as Medtronic and 3M Corporations, the Energy and U program continues to inspire young learners in the world of chemistry.

Read more on this story by visiting the CSE Website.

]]> U of M researchers design respirator mask prototypes from filter technology https://csp.umn.edu/2020/04/10/u-of-m-researchers-design-respirator-mask-prototypes-from-filter-technology/ Fri, 10 Apr 2020 14:50:30 +0000 https://csp.umn.edu/?p=21548 CSP Director Hillmyer joined an interdisciplinary research team focused on developing innovative solutions to supply health care workers with masks to help protect them from Covid-19.

The team of researchers and designers designed and tested two masks—a modified anesthesia mask and a single-use disposable mask—made with supplies that are not as impacted by potential supply chain shortages. Read the full story on the college’s website, “U of M researchers design respirator mask prototypes from filter technology.“

]]> Sustainable Polymer Framework Developed https://csp.umn.edu/2020/03/09/sustainable-polymer-framework-developed/ Mon, 09 Mar 2020 18:14:38 +0000 https://csp.umn.edu/?p=21491 The NSF Center for Sustainable Polymers (CSP) recognizes that the field of sustainable polymers is a very active, broad, and diverse area of research. Moreover, there are social, industrial, and technical definitions, permutations, and uses of the word sustainable that can cloud the meaning of “sustainable polymer” research.

To that end, the CSP sought to holistically define a sustainable polymer. The purpose of this is to develop a tool that researchers can use to articulate and communicate the aspects of their individual research project that meet this definition. Our goal is to introduce an integrated systems-thinking approach that considers the interconnection of all sustainable polymer criteria and their potential impact across the environment, economy, and society.i

The framework relies on four key pillars: Feedstock, Process, End-of-Use, and Intended Use. To learn more, visit our website: https://csp.umn.edu/spf/

To download the full Sustainable Polymer Framework document, visit: https://conservancy.umn.edu/handle/11299/211643

 

]]> CSP featured in MN Corn Growers’ eBook https://csp.umn.edu/2020/01/03/csp-featured-in-mn-corn-growers-ebook/ Fri, 03 Jan 2020 19:44:19 +0000 http://csp.umn.edu/?p=20871 In the Minnesota Corn Growers Association’s new eBook The Expanding Role of Corn, CSP Investigators Frank Bates and Chris Ellison discuss how the renewable properties of PLA plastics, found in feedstocks such as corn, are addressing major issues in the current plastic market. Investigators also talk about PLA’s toughness and aging as well as the essential trial and error that goes into creating renewable plastic blends for market.

Read the full story and get a free copy of the eBook here.

 

]]> NSF Center for Sustainable Polymers receives $20M grant for sustainable plastics research https://csp.umn.edu/2019/08/13/nsf-center-for-sustainable-polymers-receives-20m-grant-for-sustainable-plastics-research/ Tue, 13 Aug 2019 12:32:28 +0000 http://csp.umn.edu/?p=20383 The University of Minnesota announced today that it has been awarded a $20 million grant renewal from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for research in the NSF Center for Sustainable Polymers (CSP) focused on discoveries of the next generation of environment-friendly plastics. Polymers are the molecules of plastic and the center emphasizes basic research on these compounds. The funding also includes an educational component to build awareness surrounding the impacts of plastics on our environment.

The NSF Center for Sustainable Polymers is one of only nine Phase II Centers for Chemical Innovation ever funded by the NSF. The Centers for Chemical Innovation awards are the largest single awards made by NSF’s Division of Chemistry.

“We’ve seen many successes already, but the potential is endless,” says Marc Hillmyer, Director of the CSP. “Technology is changing quickly, and we need to find ways to push the limits of science to develop better materials that meet our needs and won’t damage our environment.”

Read the press release

This story in the news:

]]> CSP research featured on the cover of The Journal of Chemical Physics https://csp.umn.edu/2018/11/28/csp-research-featured-on-the-cover-of-the-journal-of-chemical-physics/ Wed, 28 Nov 2018 14:59:01 +0000 http://csp.umn.edu/?p=18732 Collaborators Russell K. W. Spencer and Professor Mark W. Matsen from the University of Waterloo recently published an article on field-theoretic simulations of bottlebrush copolymers in The Journal of Chemical Physics. This exciting CSP-supported work is on the cover of the November 2018 issue of the journal. Read the full article here.

]]> Polymer additive could revolutionize plastics recycling https://csp.umn.edu/2017/02/27/polymer-additive-could-revolutionize-plastics-recycling/ Mon, 27 Feb 2017 15:13:15 +0000 http://csp.umn.edu/?p=17127 CSP investigator Geoff Coates, researcher James Eagan, and investigator Anne LaPointe, are featured in the Cornell Chronicles in an article titled, Polymer additive could revolutionize plastics recycling, for their work recently published in Science.

 

image source: Robert Barker/University Cornell Photography

 

]]> Collaborative CSP research published in Science https://csp.umn.edu/2017/02/24/collaborative-csp-research-published-in-science/ Fri, 24 Feb 2017 16:37:03 +0000 http://localhost:8888/?p=16009 Collaborative CSP research by Coates, LaPointe, Bates, and Macosko groups has been published in Science. This research focuses on compatibilizing the recycling process for two of the most common plastics. Polyethylene (PE) and isotactic polypropylene (iPP) constitute nearly two-thirds of the world’s
plastic. Despite their similar hydrocarbon makeup, the polymers are immiscible with one another. Thus, common grades of PE and iPP do not adhere or blend, creating challenges for recycling these materials.We synthesized PE/iPP multiblock copolymers using an isoselective alkene polymerization initiator. These polymers can weld common grades of commercial PE and iPP together, depending on the molecular weights and architecture of the block copolymers. Interfacial compatibilization of phase-separated PE and iPP with tetrablock copolymers enables morphological control, transforming brittle materials into mechanically tough blends.

 

Read more in the Science publication, “Combining polyethylene and polypropylene: Enhanced performance with PE/iPP multiblock polymers”

Learn about the team of CSP researchers behind this project in the Synergy Vignette, “Combining the Most Used Plastics with Multiuse Polymers“

]]> Researchers invent a breakthrough process to produce renewable car tires from trees and grasses https://csp.umn.edu/2017/02/08/csp-research-featured-on-umn-college-of-science-and-engineering-website/ Wed, 08 Feb 2017 19:52:58 +0000 http://localhost:8888/?p=16290 CSP research by Dauenhauer and Zhang groups on renewable car tires featured by the University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering. Read about the project in the article titled, “Researchers invent a breakthrough process to produce renewable car tires from trees and grasses.“

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