Eminent Caltech polymer scientist to discuss 'mega-supramolecules,' polymer end groups

Dr. Julie Kornfield, an eminent researcher and polymer scientist from Caltech will discuss how polymers known as "mega-supramolecules" can lead to cleaner and safer fuels when she speaks at 2 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 10, at The University of Akron as part of the 2015 Covestro Lectureship. The lecture will be in Room 130 of the Polymer Engineering Academic Center.

Kornfield will also lecture on Sept. 11 about new phenomena and physical properties made possible through controlling interactions between polymer end groups. The lecture will begin at 11 a.m. in the Goodyear Polymer Center, Room 229.

Both talks are free and open to the public, though reservations are requested by those who are not faculty, staff or students at UA. Reserve your seat and receive a free parking pass at uakron.edu/kornfield. Abstracts of both lectures and an interview with Kornfield are at uakron.edu/kornfield/abstract

Dr. Eric Amis, dean of UA's College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering, praised Kornfield's intellect and drive.

"Julie is an exceptional scientist with boundless enthusiasm and an insatiable curiosity for the fundamentals of polymer physics," the dean said. "Her work ranges from biomaterials and drug delivery to polymer blends and jet fuel, and in all of that work we know that Julie will keep digging for the clearest explanations and best paths forward.  My observation is that for Julie, balance usually means 100% commitment in all she does."

Kornfield has been a professor of chemical engineering at the California Institute of Technology for nearly a quarter century.

"The constant stream of questions and mysteries pulls me," Kornfield says about her research. "It is more like having to resist going after all of the beautiful and fascinating opportunities that present themselves. For me, it is like being in an orchard full of fruit trees that I love. The abundance of important problems that can benefit from new polymers, new ways of synthesizing polymers, new ways of processing polymers provides constant inspiration. Polymers are relevant to increasing efficiency in transportation, expanding access to information technology, improving healthcare and more."

Shortly after she joined Caltech, she became the first recipient of support from the newly-founded Gates Grubstake Fund. Since then she has become a leader in the field of polymer science, ranging from liquid crystalline polymers to ocular tissue engineering.

Kornfield holds 27 U.S. patents and is a co-founder of two start-up companies. She is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and of the American Physical Society. The American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) named her as one of the “One (APS) Hundred Chemical Engineers of the Modern Era” in 2008, and she has been the recipient of the John N. Dillon Medal from the APS and a Special Creativity award from the National Science Foundation.

Send questions about either lecture to Dr. Paula Watt at pw19@uakron.edu.