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DEPARTMENT OF POLYMER ENGINEERING NEWSLETTER | FALL 2006 Alumni Reunited at ANTEC 2006 By Sarah Thorley D espite cooler temperatures and some rainy weather, the city of Charlotte, N.C. welcomed conference attendees to ANTEC 2006. The Department of Polymer Engineering hosted its second annual Alumni Reception in conjunction with this event on Tuesday, May 9, at the Hilton Charlotte Center City. Alumni, faculty, current students, and industry personnel mingled while enjoying a wine and hors d’oeuvres buffet. The alumni, representing graduation years 1985 through 2005, came in from Ohio, Minnesota, Delaware, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia, Texas, South Carolina, and countries South Korea and Thailand. The reception was well-attended and provided a fun evening for guests to see old friends and catch up on the latest news. Plan now to join us next year on Tuesday, May 8, for the Alumni Reception during ANTEC 2007 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Watch your mail next Spring for details! Above: (left-right) Antonio Carrillo, Kaan Gunes, Rishi Kumar, Xiaoping Guo (St. Jude Medical), Jushik “Jay” Yun (Schlumberger), Avraam Isayev, Sadhan Jana, kneeling Wenlai Feng (Solutia), Xiyun Serene Fan (DuPont), Reza Sadeghi (A. Schulman) gather at ANTEC 2006. Below right, Michael Gintert and Steve Brenno of RTP mingle at the Alumni Reception. Above: Juan Adames, Johanna Baena, and Karnav Kanuga of 3M enjoy the Alumni Reception. Left: (left -right) Byung-Hwa “Elliot” Lee (ENTEC), In Kim (Samsung), Kyun Ha Ban, Jinhai Yang, Jaein Suh, Sug Hun “James” Bumm, and James White take time to catch up with each other.

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DEPARTMENT OF POLYMER ENGINEERING NEWSLETTER | FALL 2006

Alumni Reunited at ANTEC 2006 By Sarah Thorley

Despite cooler temperatures and some rainyweather, the city of Charlotte, N.C. welcomed

conference attendees to ANTEC 2006. TheDepartment of Polymer Engineering hosted itssecond annual Alumni Reception in conjunctionwith this event on Tuesday, May 9, at the HiltonCharlotte Center City. Alumni, faculty, currentstudents, and industry personnel mingled whileenjoying a wine and hors d’oeuvres buffet.

The alumni, representing graduation years 1985through 2005, came in from Ohio, Minnesota,Delaware, Massachusetts, Rhode Island,Tennessee, Virginia, Texas, South Carolina, andcountries South Korea and Thailand. Thereception was well-attended and provided a funevening for guests to see old friends and catch upon the latest news. Plan now to join us next yearon Tuesday, May 8, for the Alumni Receptionduring ANTEC 2007 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Watchyour mail next Spring for details! Above: (left-right) Antonio Carrillo, Kaan Gunes, Rishi Kumar, Xiaoping Guo (St. Jude Medical), Jushik “Jay” Yun

(Schlumberger), Avraam Isayev, Sadhan Jana, kneeling Wenlai Feng (Solutia), Xiyun Serene Fan (DuPont), RezaSadeghi (A. Schulman) gather at ANTEC 2006. Below right, Michael Gintert and Steve Brenno of RTP mingle atthe Alumni Reception.

Above: Juan Adames, Johanna Baena,and Karnav Kanuga of 3M enjoy theAlumni Reception.

Left: (left -right) Byung-Hwa “Elliot” Lee(ENTEC), In Kim (Samsung), Kyun Ha Ban,Jinhai Yang, Jaein Suh, Sug Hun “James”Bumm, and James White take time tocatch up with each other.

Message from the Chair By Sadhan Jana

News from PESO By Kaan Gunes, 2005-06 PESO President

Ihope you all had a very nice summer. I am happy topresent a few updates on the department. The year

2006 has been a very good year so far for thedepartment. Two new faculty members, Drs. KevinCavicchi and Hendrik Heinz have joined ourdepartment. Dr. Cavicchi works on block copolymersand block copolymer membranes for proton exchangemembrane fuel cells. Dr. Heinz works oncomputational aspects of polymeric materials andmulti-scale materials processing. Both are veryeager to establish strong research programs and tofoster collaboration among various research groupsin the university and outside.

Our graduate students have won many more awardsthis year at SPE ANTEC, which include Chase PlasticsEducation Award, Stretch Award, and Perkin-ElmerAward. You will find the descriptions of otherawards under highlights section of this newsletter.

We just celebrated 50 years of a polymer doctoralprogram at The University of Akron with gala eventsin the Student Union during Aug. 9-11, 2006. I wasvery happy to see some of the Department ofPolymer Engineering alumni at the events. Theevents, which included keynote presentations byinvited speakers on the emerging technologies inpolymers, were very successful in attracting localmedia and the alumni as far back as from 1958. Dr.Arden L. Bement, director of the National Science

Foundation, gave a keynote presentation on thetheme issue of the impact of globalization ontechnology policy. These events also presented to ussome thoughts on how we will celebrate in 2008 thefirst 25 years of the formation of the polymerengineering program at The University of Akron. I, ofcourse, will be looking forward to your input in duecourse of time.

Dr. Frank N. Kelley, dean of the College of PolymerScience & Polymer Engineering, has announced hisretirement and a search for a replacement isunderway. The College Dean search committeerecommended five finalists who visited the campusduring the weeks of Aug. 21 and 28. It is very likelythat a new dean will be named by the time thisnewsletter reaches your hand.

I hope to see you all back on campus for theoccasions of Alumni Day and Sponsors’ Day duringOct. 26 and 27, 2006. This year’s DistinguishedAlumni Award recipient will be chosen by takinginput from both you and the faculty. Sarah Thorleywill be contacting you soon with more details.

Keep up with your good work and stay well. Hope tosee you soon!

Mark Your Calendar

2006Oct. 26 Sponsors Day and Polymer

Processing Hall of FameOct. 27 Alumni Day

2007May 6-10 ANTEC 2007, Cincinnati

Convention Center, OhioMay 8 Alumni Reception at ANTEC,

Details to be announced

EditorsMark D. Soucek; Sarah Thorley

Connect With DPE is published bythe Department of PolymerEngineering at The University of Akronfor its alumni, students, faculty,contract professionals, staff andfriends.

Please direct correspondence to:Sarah A. ThorleyDepartment of Polymer EngineeringPolymer Engineering Academic CenterAkron, OH 44325-0301, USAPhone 330-972-8845Fax 330-258-2339E-mail [email protected]

Visit us at: www.poly-eng.uakron.edu

PESO had a very fruitful year filled with excitingsocial and academic activities and our growingsuccess was again recognized by the Society ofPlastics Engineers with two awards. First, the SPEStudent Chapter at The University of Akron wasacknowledged at ANTEC 2006 with the STRETCHAward, which has now been granted to ourorganization two years in a row.

The CHASE Plastics Education Award was alsoreceived by our student chapter. The grant providedby the CHASE award is being used to organize thefirst Plastics Awareness Day. By motivating local K-12students to create polymer related science projectsand organizing competitions to bring students andthe public together, PESO will be able to promote theimportance of research in polymers and theachievements of our department throughout thecommunity. The Plastics Awareness Day will includeworking displays of polymer processing equipment, apolymer trivia quiz, an essay competition and manymore fun activities.

PESO has also been very successful in creating asocial environment for students, faculty, and staff byarranging activities such as picnics, canoeing, andbowling and movie nights. These events provide asocial outlet that all participants can enjoy with their

friends and families, which is also why theattendance is always so high. Organization of career building seminars andpublishing graduate student resume books areamong the academic functions of PESO.Approximately 50 copies of the second edition ofthe resume book were printed in May anddistributed at ANTEC and later in June at NPE2006. The success of the resume book project canbe seen in the increased numberof employer interviews and joboffers awaiting our graduates.

In July, elections were held forthe 2006-07 PESO officers.Elected were Sylvain Seif,president; Traian-OvidiuGheorghiu, vice president;Shanshan Wang, treasurer;external affairs officers MichaelMorr and Wei Zhao; andcoordinators NeelakandanChandrasekaran and MauriceWadley. As the outgoing PESOpresident, I wish the new PESO officers a productive2006-07 term. I have full confidence that they willstrive to achieve even greater successes.

Canoers are all smiles. Top photo (left-right) areAtanas Gagov, Pankaj Rathi, Emily Ringwalt, RushiMatkar, Elif Alyamac, and Kaan Gunes. Photo above(left-right) are Rahul Shingte, Elif Alyamac, KaanGunes, and Rishi Kumar.

October 27 is Alumni Day!

By Sarah Thorley

Alumni, please mark your calendars to returnto campus on Friday, Oct. 27, for the second

annual Polymer Engineering Alumni Day. Lastyear’s first-ever event was a resounding successand we have received lots of positive feedback.

The day will kick-off with a welcome by the deanand department chair followed by a morning oftechnical presentations by alumni.

A noon luncheon will include the presentation ofthe Distinguished Alumni Award. Both facultyand alumni will be able to vote prior to AlumniDay to select the recipient of this year’s award(more details coming in your mail and by e-mail!). A roundtable discussion, building tours,and poster presentations will take place in theafternoon and conclude with a social mixer inthe atrium of the Polymer Engineering AcademicCenter.

Also keep in mind that the day before, Thursday,Oct. 26, will be Sponsor’s Day with morningpresentations by faculty on their research toindustry attendees followed by lunch. Theafternoon will host the Polymer Processing Hallof Fame Symposium followed by an eveningbanquet. Alumni are welcome to join in oneither or both of these Thursday events inaddition to Alumni Day on Friday.

More details will follow in your mail/e-mail onboth day’s events, but for now, please mark yourcalendars to return “home” at the end ofOctober. We are looking forward to seeing you!

Darunee Aussawasathien, Ph.D.“Electrospun Conducting Nanofiber-Based Materials and TheirCharacterizations: Effects of FiberCharacteristics on Properties andApplications”Advisors: Dr. Erol Sancaktar, Dr. Liming Dai

Karnav Kanuga, Ph.D.“A Fundamental Study on the Non-Linear Mechano-Optical Behavior ofPolyethylene Naphthalate, its Blendswith Polyetherimide and itsNanocomposites”Advisor: Dr. Mukerrem Cakmak

Teik Lim Kwa, M.S.“Development of On-Line True Stress-Strain-Electrical Conductivity UniaxialTensile Stretching MeasurementSystem & its Utility in Thermo-Mechano-Electrical Behavior ofCarbon Black (CB) Filled PolyLacticAcid (PLA), Binary & its Nanoclay(NC) Ternary Nano”Advisor: Dr. Mukerrem Cakmak

Ahmet Nebioglu, Ph.D.“Network Formation and Thermo-Mechanical Properties of Photo-Curing Inorganic/Organic HybridCoatings”Advisor: Dr. Mark Soucek

Erika Pedraza, M.S.“A Study of the Effects ofFunctionality on Certain Aspects ofCross-Linkable Latex Systems”Advisor: Dr. Mark Soucek

Haifeng Shan, Ph.D.“Structure Development in MeltSpinning, Cold Drawing and ColdCompressing Poly(ethylene-co-1-octene) with Different Octene Content”Advisor: Dr. James L. White

Chonggang Wu, Ph.D.“Transesterification, MechanicalProperties and Rheology of Blends ofThermoplastic Polyester and ModelThermotropic Polyester”Advisor: Dr. Chang Dae Han

Ming Zhou, Ph.D.“Synthesis, Characterization, PhaseBehavior and Rheology of CombinedMain-Chain/Side-Chain Liquid-Crystalline Polymers””Advisor: Dr. Chang Dae Han

SUMMER 2006

Zehra Kalkan, Ph.D.“Generation of Advanced Polyamide-6,6 Nanocomposites via InterfacialPolycondensation”Advisor: Dr. Lloyd Goettler

Sergey Lapshin, Ph.D.“Experimental and Theoretical Studyof Polyolefin-Clay NanocompositesPrepared Using High PowerUltrasound”Advisor: Dr. Avraam Isayev

Dr. Thein Kyu is one of two UA professors tohave recently been named distinguished

professors at The University of Akron. Candidatesfor this honor must be a professor at theUniversity for at least five years and excel inteaching and in scholarly activity or artisticperformance at a level significantly beyond theexpectations for the rank of professor.

Dr. Kyu joined the University’s College of PolymerScience and Polymer Engineering as a professor ofpolymer engineering in 1983. While his primary

research interests are in polymer science andengineering, he also has emerged as a

leader in the cross-disciplinary field ofsoft matter physics involving a

unique combination oftheory, simulation andexperimentation.Accordingly, Dr. Kyuwas a guest speaker atthe InternationalWorkshop of SoftMatter Physics held inJuly at Kyoto University.

In 1998, Kyu receivedUA’s Outstanding Research Award. His researchfunding has exceeded $4.5 million with receipt ofconsistent awards from the National ScienceFoundation and other federal agencies such as theU.S. Army and Air Force. His research work has

culminated in 170 refereed papers, nine bookchapters and four patents. He has co-edited a bookand has another two-volume book under contract.During Dr. Kyu’s tenure at The University of Akron,he has graduated 23 master of science and 20doctoral students. Currently, he is advising ninegraduate students.

Born in Prome, Burma, Dr. Kyu studied in Japan,where he earned a bachelor of science in textileengineering from Kyoto Institute of Technology andmaster of science and doctoral degrees in polymerchemistry from Kyoto University.

Dr. Thein Kyu Promoted to Distinguished Professor By Institutional Marketing

Recent Polymer Engineering Graduates Spring 2006

FACULTY

Dr. Mukerrem CakmakJune 2006 – Dr. Cakmak (Co-PI) and Dr. Celal Batur(PI) of the Department of Mechanical Engineeringreceived $110,880 in continued monies from CaseWestern Reserve University/subcontractor to theU.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research for“Directionally Solidified Multifunctional Ceramics.”August 2006 – Received $98,655 from NASA GlennResearch Center for “Silica Aerogel FilmDevelopment Utiliting Continuous Casting Process.”

Dr. Avraam IsayevNovember 2005 – Was awarded $10,049 by NASALangley Research Center for continuing researchon “Continuous Ultrasonic Process for Dispersionof Nanofibers and Nanotubes in Polymer Melts andManufacture and Products from PreparedNanocomposites.”

Dr. Thein KyuAugust 2006 – Was promoted to DistinguishedProfessor in the Department of PolymerEngineering.

Dr. Arkady LeonovJune 2006 – Received $188,668 from Weir MineralsAustralia Ltd. for “Mechanics and Physico-Chemistry of Elastomer Wear in Slurry Pumps.”

Dr. Erol SancaktarSpring 2006 – Received a Certificate of Appreciationfrom the Design Engineering Division of ASME forhis service as Conference Chair for the 18thReliability, Stress Analysis and Failure PreventionConference at the ASME IDETC/CIE 2005.April 2006 – Received a Certificate of Appreciationfrom the Design Engineering Division of ASME forhis Associate Editorship of the Transactions of theASME, Journal of Mechanical Design during 2003-2006. He is currently serving as an associate editorof ASME Transactions, Journal of Medical Devices,as well as serving in the Editorial Board of theJournal of Adhesion Science and Technology.

Dr. Mark SoucekFebruary 2006 – Received $28,500 in continuedfunding from Behr Process Corporation for“Nanostructured UV-Blocking Clearcoat for Decks,Fences, Furniture, Other Coatable Surfaces and theLike.”May 2006 – Was awarded $6,682 from UniversityInnovation Ventures for “Characterization ofUnsaturated Polyesters Oligomers.”Spring 2006 – Received tenure at The University ofAkron.June 2006 – Received $44,044 from WaterloxCoatings, Inc. for “Ultra-Low VOC Tung Coatings”.July 2006 – Awarded a $25,000 P&G ResearchFellowship on Alkyds.July 2006 – Received $10,957 from UniversityInnovation Ventures for “Analysis andCharacterization of Paints, Caulks and Sealants.”August 2006 – Granted a two-year joint appointmentas Associate Professor in UA’s Department ofChemistry.

ALUMNI

Mr. Pritam Das (M.S. 2004)April 2006 – Pritam Das,Lead ApplicationDevelopment Engineer forThermoplastic Compositesat the National CompositeCenter (NCC), along withLead Design Engineer Dr.Brian Knouff and Lead TestEngineer Jessica Ravine,was awarded a $69,000Technical Oversight

Committee (TOC) research grant at the NCC’sMembers Day. As a primary investigator, Mr. Daswill integrate Long Fiber Thermoplastic (LFT)processing technology with current film and nano-technologies in the market to manufacturethermoplastic composite parts for structural-cum-cosmetic applications. The grant would also be usedto develop a complete well defined process control

system for LFT materials. Theawarded proposal intends to promotecollaboration among industries,research institutes, and universitiesfor commercialization of advancedthermoplastic compositetechnologies. Collaborators in thisprogram include educationinstitutions such as the University ofAlabama at Birmingham, commercialcompanies like Celanese and A.Schulman, and research institutionsincluding the University of DaytonResearch Institute (UDRI) and NCC.Additional in-kind support for theproject exceeds $150,000 from thecollaborators in the form of tools,materials, and services. Pritamstudied with Dr. R. Byron Pipes.

Dr. Andrew Guenthner (Ph.D. 2000)Spring 2006 – Was inducted into theMilton-Union Schools’ Hall of Honoras one of five distinguished alumnifrom the more than 100-year historyof Milton-Union High School, WestMilton, Ohio.Spring 2006 Publication — Wright,M. E.; Petteys, B. J.; Guenthner, A. J.;Fallis, S.; Yandek, G. R.; Tomczak, S. J.;

Minton , T. K.; and Brunsvold, A. “ChemicalModification of Fluorinated Polyimides: NewThermally Curing Hybrid-Polymers with POSS.”Macromolecules 39 (2006): 4710-4718.

Mr. Liqun “Harrison” Yu (M.S. 2000)Co-Inventor of two U.S. patents from LancasterLaboratories: “Cigarette Filters ComprisingUnfunctionalized Porous Polyaromatic Resins forRemoving Gas Phase Constituents from MainstreamTobacco Smoke”, Patent No. 6,863,074, and“Continuous Process for Impregnating SolidAdsorbent Particles into Shaped Micro-Cavity Fibersand Fiber Filters”, Patent No. 6,913,784.

STUDENTS

Ms. Jane Fujiyama-NovakAugust 2006 – During the University’s 50thAnniversary Celebration of the First Ph.D. Program,Jane won Best Poster in the category ofApplications/ Technology/Engineering for her poster“Development of Spatial Structural Hierarchy in ClayNanoparticle Filled Polypropylene Melt-Spun Fibers.Jane is a doctoral student with Dr. Miko Cakmak andanticipates graduating this December.

Ms. SomaGuhathakurtaMay 2006 – Was co-recipient of theTicona Excellence inEngineering PlasticsAward – PolymerEngineering. Soma isa third year doctoralstudent studying withDr. Kyonsuku Min.

(continued on next page)

“And the Winner Is...” FACULTY, ALUMNI AND STUDENT NEWS, AWARDS AND GRANTS

Celebrating the success of their colleague are (left - right) Guillermo Jimenez, Feina Cao, Ling Du, Perkin-Elmer Award RecipientSedat Gunes, Michael Gintert, Chang-Min Hong (Samsung), and Sadhan Jana.

Like last year, the annual Sink or Swim CoatingsSymposium was held on The University of Akron

campus May 23-24, 2006 in the Student Union andthe Martin Center. This year there were fourspeakers invited from outside of the ClevelandCoating Society to give plenary lectures.

The technical meeting had a total of 18presentations and was well attended with more than150 people. There was also an excellent showing ofmore than 55 exhibitors which filled the StudentUnion Ballroom with a total of 240 people inattendance. More than 30 students, post-doctoralfellows, and professors from the University ofCincinnati, The Ohio State University, and TheUniversity of Akron contributed to the conference.

There were many excellent talks with the first dayending with a Speakers Reception at the elegantMartin Center. During both the first and second

days, coating workshops were held includingFundamentals of Coatings; Corrosion; Catalysis; andLinking Creativity with Commercialization. A tour ofthe Polymer Engineering and Polymer Sciencefacilities was available, which was muchappreciated by the attendees.

Overall, the symposium was a stunning success withan universal impression of technical excellence,state-of-the-art facilities, and beautiful surroundingsfor networking. Currently, it is anticipated that thesymposium will be held once again next year at TheUniversity of Akron in late May 2007.

More than 55 exhibitors filled the Student Union Ballroom.

We Want to Hear From You!

Alumni, we would like to hear from you! Pleasesend us your recent news, awards and career

updates. Either log on to the department’s Website at http://www.poly-eng.uakron.edu and clickon the Alumni link under People to complete thesurvey, or contact Sarah Thorley, coordinator ofacademic programs, at [email protected].

In future editions of the newsletter, we want toinclude coverage of alumni. Your news will be ofinterest to your fellow alumni as well as ourdepartment members and current students. Youalso are welcome to include a digital photo ofyourself to accompany your news.

We are proud of you, our distinguished alumni,and we look forward to hearing from you!

Enjoying the SpeakersLuncheon are (left - right)Juan Jarufe (XIM), MarcHirsch (Luna Innovations),Associate Professor MarkSoucek, and SteveAlessandro (PPG).

Sink or Swim 2006: Cleveland Coating Society Technical Coatings SymposiumBy Mark D. Soucek

Mr. Kaan GunesApril 2006 – Kaan Gunes,who is beginning his thirdyear of doctoral study withDr. Avraam Isayev, receivedthe Most OutstandingOfficer “LIFE” (Legacy,Integrity, Fellowship, andExcellence) LeadershipAward for recognition ofhis work as President ofthe Polymer EngineeringStudent Organization in

2005-06. The award is presented to the officer of aregistered UA student organization whodemonstrates outstanding leadership andaccomplishment. Kaan was recognized for hisdedication to PESO and his contribution to improvingthe career, academic, and social life for students inthe Department of Polymer Engineering.

Mr. Sedat GunesMay 2006 – Sedat Gunes won the 2006-07PerkinElmer Award from the Composites Division ofthe Society of Plastics Engineers with his proposedresearch, “Analysis of the Effects ofNanoparticulate Fillers and the Processing

Conditions on Shape Memory Properties ofPolyurethane Nanocomposites.” Sedat receivedhis award during SPE’s ANTEC conference, May 7-11, 2006, in Charlotte, N.C. The PerkinElmer Awardincluded a cash prize and provided all conferencetravel expenses. Sedat is a third year doctoralstudent studying with Dr. Sadhan Jana.

Mr. Byoung-Jo LeeMay 2006 – Was co-recipient of the TiconaExcellence in Engineering Plastics Award – PolymerEngineering. Byoung-Jo is a third year doctoralstudent studying with Dr. Sadhan Jana.

Polymer Engineering Student Organization/SPE Student ChapterMarch 2006 – Awarded $2,500 by Chase PlasticServices, Inc. to develop the first “PlasticsAwareness Day” in the local school district. Thegoal of the event is to increase the awareness of K-12 students about new technologies, scienceeducation, and plastics processing.May 2006 – As a student chapter of the Society ofPlastics Engineers, PESO was selected for thesecond year in a row to receive the Society’sSTRETCH Award for outstanding achievement.

(“And the Winner Is...” continued)

Kaan Gunes and Dr. Sadhan Jana

We are very pleased to introduce Dr. HendrikHeinz as the newest professor in the

Department of Polymer Engineering. Dr. Heinzreceived his formal education at the ETH Zurich,Switzerland, earning his M.S. in chemistry (2000)and Ph.D. in computational materials science andpolymer chemistry (2003). For the past three years,he has been working at the Air Force ResearchLaboratories at Wright-Patterson AFB. Dr. Heinzsaid he is glad to be joining the polymerengineering program here and feels it is a goodopportunity to establish a research program andwork with students to “turn ideas into output thatcan be applied.”

In some of Dr. Heinz’s previous work, he helpeddevelop an atomistic energy model (force field) forsheet silicates (now available through Accelrys,Inc.), and a method to compute local stress tensorsin the presence of angle and torsion potentials. Dr.Heinz says that “better models and methods remainthe key for success of computer simulation methodsand I would like to follow up with the developmentof force fields for pi-conjugated polymers,biominerals and nanoparticles.”

When asked about his vision for a research groupand its areas of focus, Dr. Heinz remarked, “Aresearch group may be any dynamic mix of diversepeople, which remains coherent through similar

professional interests and goals.After initial discussions and aproject outline for a new groupmember, I believe thatacademic freedom isessential for makingoriginal contributions.However, I enjoyteaching and workingtogether so that progresscan be effectively made.Ultimately, good researchcontributions within the graduate program andhaving skills to work with people help start asuccessful career.

“The research will be aimed at challenges innanotechnology and bioengineering, using computersimulation methods in connection with experiment.The activities will include the advancement ofmodels and methods and simulation oftechnologically important systems and processes,coupled with experimental efforts. Opportunities forgraduate students to interact with other groups inindustry, government, or academia will be available,and joint projects with other faculty members canalso be arranged.”

Dr. Heinz believes teaching graduate students ismainly to prepare and provide them with a solid

basis of knowledge about the subject topic andallowing opportunities for problem solving, whetherworking independently or in groups, and making useof the technologies available. Beyond that, hewould help them learn to master complexintellectual challenges rapidly, to acquire a deeplevel of understanding and to flexibly apply theknowledge to more advanced subject topics andother life experiences.

When asked if there was someone or something thatinfluenced his having taken the path of his chosencareer, Dr. Heinz responded: “It was pretty early inmy life that I discovered a passion for chemistry,when I was about 14. I made all kinds of experimentsin a home-based laboratory … In spite of havingmany other choices; I completed my studies inchemistry at ETH Zurich and followed with a Ph.D. inmaterials science and engineering. My supervisor,Ueli Suter, and also Epameinondas Leontidis, now atthe University of Cyprus, both made a very positiveimpression on me, which reinforced me in pursuing ascientific career. I have then continued to work witha number of candid and supportive researchers alongthe way, namely, Kurt Binder and Wolfgang Paul atthe University of Mainz, Germany; Barry Farmer,Richard Vaia, Ruth Pachter, and Rajesh Naik at AFRL;and also Norman Blank, Robert Flatt, and IreneSchober at Sika Corp.”

The University of Akron is an Equal Education and Employment Institution © 2006 The University of Akron 206-PS-38

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THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON

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Faculty Focus: Assistant Professor Hendrik Heinz By Millie Pearson