Thrust Teams
Thrust #1 - Functional Deconstruction of Non-Polyolefins
Combines experimental deconstruction strategies with computational analysis to enable efficient valorization of vinyl-based and step-growth polymers.
Thrust #2 - Recycling and Upcycling of Complex Plastics Waste
Aims to develop catalysts, strategies, and knowledge for handling complex feedstock compositions and common impurities.
Thrust #3 - Circular-By-Design Polymers
Leverages current plastics waste as building blocks to realize new, reprocessable materials with little cycle-to-cycle property fade and expanded end-of-life optionality.
Senior Investigators
At the Center for Plastics Innovation, Senior Investigators represent one or more thrusts based on their core knowledge and develop emergent projects through collaboration across thrust boundaries.
LaShanda Korley
Univ. of Delaware
Thomas H. Epps, III
Univ. of Delaware
Mike Berg
Univ. of Delaware
Juan de Pablo
Univ. of Chicago
Hui Fang
Univ. of Delaware
Mariathi Ierapetritou
Univ. of Delaware
Aditya Kunjapur
Univ. of Delaware
Daeyeon Lee
Univ. of Pennsylvania
Frank Leibfarth
Univ. of N. Carolina
Dongxia Liu
Univ. of Delaware
Raul Lobo
Univ. of Delaware
Josh Michener
Oak Ridge Nat’l Lab
Eleftherios Papoutsakis
Univ. of Delaware
Stuart Rowan
Univ. of Chicago
Brent Sumerlin
Univ. of Florida
Dion Vlachos
Univ. of Delaware
John Vohs
Univ. of Pennsylvania
Mary Watson
Univ. of Delaware
Past Research Thrusts
2020-2024
Thrust #1 - PPW Deconstruction
Tunable heterogeneous catalysts and microwave energy for the conversion of plastic packaging waste (PPW) into fuels, lubricants, precision macromolecules, and monomers.
Thrust #2 - PPW Upcycling
Functionalization and upcycling using a) plasma-assisted, catalysis and surface treatment, b) photoredox-catalyzed decarboxylation, and c) enzymatic routes to generate high-value monomers and polymers.
Thrust #3 - Cross-Cutting Tools
New cross-cutting tools driven by AI, PPW characterization, macromolecular property prediction through modeling, and additive manufacturing to enable scientific advances.