"Initiation, Facilitation, Regeneration: Catalyzing Teamwork with Chemistry"
In this presentation, I’ll describe research from the Autonomous Materials Systems Group (AMS Group) at Beckman to advance lifecycle control in high-performance polymers and composites. This formidable challenge benefits from the diverse expertise and shared goals of our collaborative, interdisciplinary team. I’ll begin with an exploration of the chemistry underpinning resin development, a catalyst for innovations like self-healing polymers, morphogenic manufacturing, and growth printing. Next, I’ll describe methods for intentional materials deconstruction, inspiring concepts like the tension-activated covalent bond, the restoring force triangle, electrocatalytic depolymerization, and innate catalyst reprocessing. Drawing upon this knowledge, we set our sights on developing regenerative materials that harness renewable energy and biosourced monomers, ushering in a closed-loop, circular lifecycle.
