C&EN: ACS NEWS - ACS LAUDS HEROES OF CHEMISTRY

Chemistry is an enabling science. The impacts of the chemical sciences on our lives surround us--note, for example, the development of plastics used in the water bottles that sit on our desks, fuel cells for environmentally friendly cars, and drugs to control cholesterol levels. Particularly important in today's world are the accomplishments of chemical scientists in protecting life and property. Yet the industrial chemists and chemical engineers responsible for these advances often remain unrecognized.

The American Chemical Society's Heroes of Chemistry program targets these unsung heroes by celebrating industrial scientists whose work in the chemical sciences has led to the successful innovation and development of commercial products that improve our lives. Directed by the ACS Office of Industrial Members Programs, the program was started in 1996 and honors individuals or teams within a specific industry segment. Nominations are made directly by the individual's or team's company.

This year, the theme of the program was honoring scientists who are protecting and securing our world through chemistry. The accomplishments of the 2002 heroes were recognized at a formal reception and banquet during the ACS national meeting held in Boston last month. Honored were two individuals and two teams of scientists.

The ceremony was attended by 115 people. Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Brent Scowcroft, now president of the Scowcroft Group, gave the keynote address (http://pubs.acs.org/cen/acsnews/8036/8036acsnews2a.html). Remarks underscoring the significance of industrial chemists and chemical engineers to the continued advancement of our society were also made by ACS President Eli M. Pearce, ACS Immediate Past-President Attila E. Pavlath, and American Chemistry Council President and Chief Executive Officer Frederick L. Webber.

Protection comes in many forms, from materials that shield us from harm to films and molecular-based tools that protect food supplies. For personal armor and lightweight vehicles to be effective, the materials must provide maximum protection with minimal weight. To achieve this, a team of scientists from DSM High-Performance Fibers aided in the optimization of each step of its production process. The resulting fiber, Dyneema, is the world's strongest material by weight, with tests showing it to be 15 times stronger than steel and twice as strong as aramid fiber.

The team, whose members are Jean Beugels, Koos Mencke, and Réné Steeman, all based in Heerlen, the Netherlands, were recognized in Boston for developing materials and processes that use Dyneema, a superstrong high-performance polyethylene fiber. This fiber can be turned into a fabric or nonwoven textile that displays properties that can be used to stop bullets or other ballistic projectiles in personal armor or to repel fragments from exploding shells or grenades in lightweight vehicle protection. The team also developed Dyneema-based unidirectional-laid sheets for high-velocity ballistic protection.

The discovery of the improved material was made in the late 1980s when DSM learned that Dyneema fibers are better at stopping bullets when the fibers are laid in unidirectional layers with each successive layer rotated 90°. The layers are bonded together with resin and treated with chemicals to form one unidirectional-laid sheet with the desired properties. This process contrasts the traditional one, where lightweight protection is based on woven fabrics.

THE FIBER is currently used in protective garments such as bullet-resistant vests and military helmets as well as for armored cockpit doors and lightweight vehicle panels. It's also used in a variety of sports equipment and medical products.

Beugels, application engineer in vehicle armoring and ballistics, received a bachelor's degree in analytical chemistry from ZLS Sittard, the Netherlands, in 1981 and a second bachelor's degree in chemical technology from HTS Heerlen, the Netherlands, in 1988. Mencke, technology manager, received a master's degree in chemical engineering from Groningen University, the Netherlands, in 1985. Steeman, plant development manager, received a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from HTS Heerlen in 1980 and a master's degree in process engineering from the Technical University Twente, in the Netherlands, in 1989.

Also in the field of polymers, DuPont's Richard W. Rees was honored as a hero of chemistry for discovering Surlyn ionomer resins, a versatile family of plastics used in high-strength food packaging with airtight seals and in laminated safety glass in buildings and automobiles. The family of clear, tough thermoplastic resins results from adding metal ions to ethylene polymers containing acidic groups. The properties of the family of resins--resilient, resistant to abrasion, clear, high melt strength, and resistant to grease and oil--are influenced by their ionic bonding.

The resin's ability to create and maintain a seal in the presence of greasy juices has led to its commercial applications in packaging film for processed meat, resulting in a reduction in leakage over other packaging films while still preserving freshness. Other commercial uses include an adhesive for multilayer juice boxes and extrusion coatings for paper and foil, as well as its application in sports equipment such as golf ball covers.

Used as the interlayer in laminated glass for high-resistance applications, the polymers also offer toughness and clarity. Other applications of Surlyn ionomer resins include bullet-resistant glazing, prison glazing, automotive security applications, and bomb- and blast-resistant windows.

Retired since 1993, Rees last held the position of research fellow at DuPont. He received a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Swansea, in Wales, in 1953.

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BULLETPROOF DSM team members developed processes, materials, and products based on a polyethylene fiber used in personal armor and vehicle protection. Seen here are (back row from left) Pearce; Emmo Meijer, chief technology officer at DSM; Mencke; Beugels; (front row from left) Steeman; and Frank Schaap, the winning team's research group manager at DSM.

SEALED AND DELIVERED The food industry improved its packaging ability with the help of resin discovered by Rees (second from left), pictured with (from left) Thomas M. Connelly, senior vice president and chief science and technology officer at DuPont; Linda A. Powell, DuPont vice president of R&D in packaging and industrial polymers; and Pearce.

FOOD DETECTORS Tice (back row, center), Barbour (front row, left), Tseng (front row, center) and Jensen (not pictured) receive congratulations from Connelly (back row, left); Peter M. Mrozinski, director of R&D operations at DuPont Qualicon (front row, right); and Pearce for their work to detect harmful pathogens in the food supply.

SHATTER PROOF (From left) Francis Gerberich, director of performance films R&D at Solutia; Victoria Holt, vice president and general manager of performance films at Solutia; and Pearce help Moran (second from right) celebrate his recognition for improved plastic interlayers used in laminated safety glass.
PHOTOS BY SUSAN MORRISSEY

THE MEMBERS OF DuPont's other prizewinning team, Mark A. Jensen, W. Mark Barbour, George Tice Jr., and Susan Y. Tseng, overcame many chemical and engineering challenges to commercialize a new food-pathogen detecting system. This genetics-based screening system--the Bax system--quickly and accurately detects bacteria and other pathogens in raw ingredients and finished food products. The system detects bacteria using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to identify DNA of the pathogen from other genetic information that might be found in the food ingredients or test samples.

By using PCR to determine the pathogen by its DNA and automating the system, Bax gives fewer false positives, reduces reporting time from days to hours, and improves efficiency over other traditional screening methods. The system can effectively identify food-borne pathogens such as Escherichia coli 0157:H7, Salmonella, and Listeria strains.

Developing this system, the team was challenged with the identification of serotypes for target bacteria and the development of primers designed to the unique sequences and optimized for specific hybridization to DNA fragments from species of interest--but not genetically similar organisms. Developing a unique, stable reagent-delivery system in dry tablet format and an analysis method that detects only the target DNA fragment and not the background DNA from food ingredients or other anomalies also presented challenges for the team.

Today, Bax is being adapted to detect viral and bacterial diseases in livestock. Pharmaceutical and personal care applications are also under development. The system has been adopted by the Department of Agriculture's Food Safety & Inspection Service for L. monocytogenes screening in meat and poultry samples.

Jensen, senior research scientist at Agilent Technologies in Centerville, Del., was formerly with DuPont Qualicon. He received a B.S. in chemistry from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1973 and a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from the University of Michigan in 1977. Barbour, senior development microbiologist, earned a bachelor's degree in biology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, followed by a Ph.D. in microbiology from North Carolina State University in 1988. Tice, senior development biochemist, received a B.S. in nutrition from Rutgers University in 1976 and an M.S. in nutrition from Drexel University in 1982. Tseng, senior research biochemist, holds an M.S. in immunology and microbiology from Duke University.

THE FINAL 2002 hero of chemistry is James Moran of Solutia, who was recognized for the development of the Saflex IIIG polyvinyl butyral interlayer used in laminate safety glass. The laminate glass is formed by bonding the plastic interlayer between two pieces of glass under heat and pressure. The material has many automobile, architecture, and residence uses.

The resulting protective glass is useful in windows of buildings and automobiles because it reduces debris-related injuries and deaths in car accidents, bomb explosions, hurricanes, and earthquakes. As glass cracks and fragments from the impact of shock waves from an explosion or impact, the Saflex glass adheres to the plastic interlayer and remains in the pane within its frame. The enhanced glass can also deflect an explosion by absorbing the blast pressure and offsetting some of the blast energy that causes damage to the interior of a building.

Moran has also been involved with the development of advanced composite interlayer products that provide improved safety and security performance. One of the commercial products resulting from this technology is Vanceva Secure interlayer used in automobile glass. The glass offers up to two minutes of resistance to intrusion by window break-in for front, side, rear, and roof windows.

Moran, a Solutia fellow, received a B.S. in chemical engineering from City College of New York in 1968. He continued on to complete graduate studies in polymer science at the University of Massachusetts in 1972.

Next year's Heroes of Chemistry theme is honoring chemical innovators in the pharmaceutical industry. The nomination process will begin in the spring, with nominations due in May 2003. For more information about the Heroes of Chemistry program, visit the Office of Industry Member Programs website at http://www.chemistry.org/industry.