When: 8 – 10 September 2025
Where: Trinity College, University of Oxford, Broad Street, Oxford, OX1 3BH, United Kingdom
Join us in Oxford in September 2025 for this edition of the Faraday Discussion series. The Faraday Discussions are unique international discussion meetings that address current and emerging topics at the forefront of the physical sciences.
This meeting is for established and early-career scientists, postgraduate students and industrial researchers working on various aspects of polymer science.
This Faraday Discussion meeting will focus on the scientific questions, challenges and areas for future development to advance polymer science. It will comprise the following interrelated themes: (i) utilisation of novel feedstocks and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in making polymers; methods to control monomer sequence and polymer architectures for function and application; polymerisation processes, including data-driven design and manufacturing processes; recycling and depolymerisation methods, including biodegradation, to improve circularity.
Novel feedstocks
This session will focus on the chemistry and processes to make monomers and to functionalise natural biopolymers. It will include presentations on the use and benefits for biomass derived monomers, such as those from carbohydrates, triglycerides, lignin and terpenes, with a particular focus on use of co-products and wastes in polymer production.
Catalysis
This session will investigate how catalysis can be used to make polymerisation processes more efficient and more sustainable, and to control polymer sequences, stereo- and regiochemistry, so as to enable innovative material and properties. Discussion topics will include organocatalysis, metal-based catalysis and heterogeneous catalysis, the synthesis of novel catalytic systems, the elucidation of catalytic reactions using experimental and computational methods (including in-situ reaction monitoring), and the impact of residual catalytic species on polymer properties.
Polymerisation processes and computational methods to control structure
This session will discuss how to regulate, control and effect control over polymer sequences, structures, architectures and molar mass distributions by using external stimuli and process control. The session will also discuss how data and machine learning-driven approaches can help to improve polymerisation processes. The types of chemistry to be discussed will include ‘triggers/switches and stimuli’, methods to control molar mass distributions, polymer syntheses in flow, and computational approaches to optimise structures and performances.
Closing the loop – the chemistry of depolymerisation, polymer recycling and environmental degradation
This session will examine the chemistry and fundamental science challenges associated with the different end-life options for polymers. Discussion topics will include chemical recycling, designing polymer structures for efficient mechanical recycling, polymer upcycling and re-purposing, depolymerisation kinetics/thermodynamics and mechanisms, depolymerisation catalysis, polymer composting and biodegradation. The environmental chemistry of polymers will also be discussed. The future opportunities to combine effective polymerisation and depolymerisation strategies into the design of polymer structures is at the heart of this session and the associated discussions.
Oral abstracts
Submit an oral/paper abstract if you wish to be considered for an oral presentation and associated published paper. A full research paper containing new unpublished results always accompanies oral presentations at Faraday Discussions. The oral/paper abstract should outline current research in progress. Authors of the selected abstracts must then submit a full research paper with a significant amount of new, unpublished work by 28 April 2025.
The research papers are reviewed upon submission and are sent to all delegates 4 weeks before the meeting so they can be read in advance. At the meeting the presenting author is allowed five minutes to highlight the main points of their paper, and the rest of the time is for discussion. The discussion is recorded and will be published alongside the research paper in the Faraday Discussions volume.
Oral abstract deadline: 28 November 2024
Poster abstracts
Submit your poster abstract by 30 June 2025. Posters are displayed throughout the meeting and a poster session is held on the first evening. A poster prize will be awarded to the best student poster presented at the conference.
Poster abstract deadline: 30 June 2025
For more information and to register visit https://www.rsc.org/events/detail/78403/polymerisation-and-depolymerisation-chemistry-the-second-century-faraday-discussion?utm_campaign=e_fd_poly_depoly&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social_organic&utm_content=tgroup_all