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Polymer Process Technology Expert, Specializing in Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA)

Technical Consultant #1919


Expertise

  • Technology management - global research and development, technology assessments and needs analysis, project prioritization.
  • Polymer processes and manufacture.
  • Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and vinyl acetate emulsion process development and scale-up.
  • Industrial gases applications.
  • Project portfolio management.
  • Rheology investigations for quality coatings.
  • Risk assessment of technical programs.
  • Pilot plant design and operation.
  • Stage gate process for new product development.

Experience

Independent Consultant, Present

  • Serving the Portfolio Management and Research and Development industries.

Air Products and Chemical, Allentown, PA, 1978 - 2012

Director, Merchant Research and Development, 2001 - 2012

  • Global responsibility for development of new applications to support the industrial gas business.
  • Markets include food, glass, metals, pulp and paper, water and metals processing.
  • Supervision of labs in U.S., Thailand, Great Britain, China and Spain.
  • Broad range of technology areas - cryogenics, combustion, reactive atmospheres, water treatment.

Director, Solutions Process Technology, 2000 - 2001

  • Global responsibility for process technology for all performance chemical products at Air Products (emulsions, epoxy hardeners, surfactants).
  • Reorganized technology staff and realigned projects to better match the needs of the business.

Manage, Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVOH) Research and Development, 1991 - 2001

  • New products developed to meet key market areas and integration of these products for manufacturing with minimal operational and environmental impacts.
  • Major process improvements developed for capital and operating cost savings.
  • Implemented improved control systems to improve product consistency.
  • Developed plan to transfer technology to Far East joint venture.
  • Technology lead for new plant start-up.
  • Budget and personnel manager for research and development activities supporting the business.

Research Engineer, (Polyvinyl alcohol, Vinyl Acetate Emulsions, Solvent Refined Coal), 1978 - 1991

  • Developed proprietary process to reduce residual methanol in PVA for improved quality and handling safety.
  • Designed, constructed and supervised operation of two polymer pilot plants.
  • Technical evaluations for plant expansions in the areas of polymerization, solids flow, rheology and dust explosively.
  • Designed and optimized bench scale high pressure emulsion polymerization systems.
  • Data directly moved to the plants for new product scale-up.
  • Developed solid/liquid separation process for removing ash in the solvent refined coal (SRC-I) process.

E. I. DuPont de Nemours, Photo Products, Parlin, NJ, 1976 - 1978

  • Developed methods to improve yields during coating of photographic emulsions. Investigated effects of rheology on coating quality.

Honors & Publications


Academic and Professional Affiliations

  • American Institute of Chemical Engineers - AIChE
  • Engineers Without Borders - President
  • Tau Beta Pi

Publications and Patents

  • Several external publications, many internal (APCI and DuPont) publications.
  • Two chapters on manufacture of polyvinyl alcohol in polyvinyl alcohol - Developments.
  • Invited speaker at ACS and AIChE meetings.

Education

  • Ph.D. Chemical Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
  • B.S. Chemical Engineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA
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