"Polyolefin innovations for clean air and water"

This event is sponsored by FAMU-FSU College of Engineering Department of Chemical & Biomedical Engineering.

Abstract: Securing clean air and water is crucial for fostering a sustainable and prosperous future, where economic equity is closely linked to technological accessibility. This talk will explore how the transformative potential of commodity plastics, among the most cost-effective and widely accessible materials, can be harnessed to drive industrial decarbonization and water remediation. In the first part of the talk, I will address the challenge of process heat in the chemical and materials industries, a significant contributor to energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. I will delve into the additive manufacturing of carbon-based Joule heaters derived from polyolefins and their recycled counterparts, demonstrating how the structure and properties of these complex carbons can be precisely tuned by altering filament composition and processing conditions. This approach enables the electrification of heating processes, thus facilitating the decarbonization of chemical and energy production. The second part of the talk will focus on the development of functional mesoporous materials from low-cost thermoplastic elastomers and their efficient application in removing micropollutants from water, particularly per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). This presentation will highlight the transformative role of polyolefins in advancing a sustainable future for our planet and society

Dr. Zhe Qiang

SSCT Endowed Chair and Associate Professor, Polymer Science and Engineering

University of Southern Mississippi

Speaker Bio: Dr. Zhe Qiang is the SSCT Endowed Chair and Associate Professor of Polymer Science and Engineering at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM). He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Polymer Engineering from the University of Akron and subsequently completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Northwestern University. Dr. Qiang’s research group focuses on the materials and manufacturing science of polymers and their derived functional materials, with an emphasis on sustainable development for the environment and society, including industrial decarbonization and waste recycling. Since beginning his independent career in 2019, Dr. Qiang has received many awards and honors, including being named to Forbes 30 Under 30 in Science (2022), the ACS PMSE Early Career Investigator (2023), SAMPE Young Professional of the Year (2023), NSF CAREER Award recipient (2023), AIChE 35 Under 35 (2023), RCSA Scialog Fellow, IUPAC Young Observer (2025), and the PPS Early Career Award (2025).