James E. McGrath and Garth Wilkes
Five Virginia Tech faculty members have been named to the founding class of Fellows of the Division of Polymer Chemistry of the American Chemical Society.
Included in this class of 59 honorees were Professors James E. McGrath, Robert Moore, and S. Richard Turner and emeritus Professors Tom Ward and Garth Wilkes. All are members of the Macromolecules and Interfaces Institute at Virginia Tech.
Turner is director of the institute and research professor of chemistry in the College of Science. McGrath is a University Distinguished Professor and the Ethyl Corporation Professor of Chemistry in the College of Science. He is also an adjunct faculty member of the chemical engineering department. Moore is professor of physical and polymer chemistry. Ward is Adhesive and Sealant Council Professor Emeritus of chemistry. Wilkes is University Distinguished Professor emeritus in chemical engineering.
Election as a POLY Fellow recognizes significant scientific accomplishments and outstanding service to the profession. The ACS Division of Polymer Chemistry has approximately 8,000 members.
The fellows were named during the 2010 spring national meeting and exposition of the American Chemical Society in San Francisco. The American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific professional society.
MII is an interdisciplinary institute of more than 50 faculty members from five colleges with the goal of promoting research in macromolecular materials and engineering. Macromolecules or polymers are large, chain-like molecules derived from natural sources or prepared synthetically. These ubiquitous materials have wide spread applications in plastics, film, and fibers; and specially designed macromolecules now enable many high technology applications ranging from battery and fuel cell membranes to materials for complexing and delivering therapeutics in medicine.