The AIChE Chicago Section is pleased to host an in-person meeting featuring Dr. Chris Nicholas (C2P Sciences L3C). The meeting will also include a student poster competition and announcement of McCormack Award winners. PDHs will be awarded for attendance of the technical presentation.
When: Thursday, April 21st, 2022
Where: Northwestern University
Technological Institute (Room M345)
2145 Sheridan Rd, Evanston, IL 60208
Poster session, registration and social hour: Willens Atrium
Dinner: Room M345
Parking information:
Topic: Zeolite Structure/Property Relationships for Catalysis and the Building of a Business Strategy from your Science”
Speaker: Christopher P. Nicholas,
C2P Sciences L3C
Speaker Biography:
Chris is the Principal of C2P Sciences L3C, a small business for the advancement of science in the areas of chemistry and catalytic processes and the Co-Founder and President of Låkril Technologies, the startup he created in mid-2021 to commercialize a catalytic process for bio-based acrylic production. Prior to founding a business based on sustainable catalysis, he worked 15 years at Honeywell UOP in technical and managerial roles primarily focused on inventing and catalytically testing new materials and processes. Chris was awarded the 2020 Herman Pines Award in Catalysis.
Chris earned his Bachelor of Arts from Kalamazoo College and a PhD in 2006 at Northwestern University. Chris is a 25-year ACS Member and an AIChE Senior member who is an inventor on more than 115 US and foreign patents and coauthor of 30+ peer-reviewed journal articles and a book chapter.
Presentation Abstract:
Acidic solids including zeolites are the base for many catalytic applications in today’s world. Zeolites are aluminosilicate solids with well-defined crystallographic connectivity possessing permanent microporosity and used at scale, including for production of almost all gasoline. During the talk, I will discuss several zeolitic solids where we have exploited the unique structural features to enable novel selectivity patterns during catalysis.
A second topic will be description of our recent work utilizing inorganic/organic composite Na-FAU based zeolite catalysts. Acrylic acid and the four primary acrylate derivatives are the cornerstone of a $10B market with broad application across super-absorbent polymers, paints, coatings, and adhesives industries. We focus on the conversion of feeds derived from lactic acid, a product sustainably fermented from a range of bio-derived sugar sources.
Finally, I’ll finish with a business focused discussion. Many of us have had the thought during difficult times that we’d love to be our own boss. But what does that really entail and is it for you? Among the keys to converting scientific potential into a growing chemical business is developing and then meshing the overall business strategy with the necessary R&D strategy to form a minimum viable product. I’ll discuss what this means and how can you apply these strategies to your day-to-day work.
Meeting Agenda:
5:00 to 5:30 PM - Poster setup
5:30 to 6:30 PM - Poster session, registration and social hour
6:30 to 7:30 PM - Dinner
7:30 to 7:45 PM - Section Announcements & McCormack Awards
7:45 to 8:45 PM - Technical Presentation
8:45 to 9:00 PM - Presentation of Poster Awards
AIChE Chicago Section
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