Seminars: Sustainability as a Roadmap for Materials Design

Sustainability as a Roadmap for Materials Design

LaShanda Korley is a Distinguished Professor in Materials Science and Engineering and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Delaware and is a Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS), American Chemical Society Division of Polymeric Materials: Science and Engineering (ACS PMSE), and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE).  She also is the Director of an Energy Frontier Research Center—the Center for Plastics Innovation (CPI)—funded by the Department of Energy.  Korley is a global leader in using biologically inspired and sustainable principles for the molecular design, manufacture, and valorization of functional polymeric systems. In January 2023 she was selected as one of the seven distinguished scientists to serve as U.S. Science Envoys for the U.S. Department of State.

Abstract of the seminar: Several examples of how natural systems inspired the design of functional material Systems will be highlighted. Motivated by the critical need to transition from a dependence on petroleum feedstocks, it will be also explored the utilization of biomass building blocks with diverse functionality in the development of robust polymeric materials. Deconstruction and upgrading approaches that tackle the complexity of plastic waste will be showcased.