This article was originally published on The Nexus blog.
Contributed by ACS GSSPC Spring 2025 Organizers Dallin Smith, Ethan Iverson, Danixa Rodriguez-Melendez, Maya Montemayor, and Sarah Fisher
Tomorrow’s materials are situated at the intersection of chemistry, physics, materials science, engineering, and biology. As the materials market becomes increasingly circular, significant efforts are underway to quantify and improve product sustainability. Soft materials (polymers, gels, colloids, and liquid crystals) are composed of relatively large organic molecules governed by weak interactions. These materials display unique properties that render themselves useful to a variety of industries, such as textiles, electronics, packaging, and biomedical devices. These products have the potential to herald a new era of science and technology in a sustainable context.
As an increasing number of materials are commercialized, sustainability has become an important consideration. Life cycle assessments (LCAs) are often used to evaluate a material from a multitude of angles such as its feedstocks, synthesis, byproducts, processability, recyclability, degradation, sustainability, and environmental impact. Historically, most materials have been conceived for single usage (i.e., a linear economy), after which they are disposed of in a landfill or incinerator. Recently, consumers and producers are increasingly seeking sustainable solutions due to fleeting resources and excessive waste generation. In contrast to a linear economy, a circular economy reduces virgin feedstock consumption and waste generation by ensuring there is an end-of-life plan for products. In reality, sustainable materials often underperform technically or economically compared to existing technology, which limits their commercial adoption, but this gap is shrinking through cutting edge endeavors spearheaded by academic and industrial researchers. This is often achieved via two approaches: 1) intentional facilitation of these materials’ processing, recycling, and upcycling, and 2) the use of sustainable feedstocks, including biomass valorization.
In acknowledgment of this major challenge and the impressive progress being made, we, a group of five graduate students at Texas A&M University serving as the Spring 2025 Graduate Student Symposium Planning Committee (GSSPC), named our symposium “Bonds That Matter: Soft Materials for a Sustainable World.” With this full-day symposium at the Spring 2025 ACS National Meeting, we aim to facilitate the paradigm shift from a linear to a circular materials economy by demonstrating the multiple approaches that can be taken to achieve sustainability in soft materials. We are honored to have Dr. LaShanda Korley (Center for Plastics Innovation, University of Delaware) and Dr. John Warner (Technology Greenhouse) provide the keynote addresses for each session. They will each be accompanied by several leading experts and rising stars in sustainable soft matter synthesis, characterization, and processing. A complete list can be found on our website.
We invite anyone (including students) interested in soft materials. sustainability, and materials science, to attend our off-site networking luncheon between sessions, which will be within walking distance from the San Diego Convention Center. Latest information can be found at our website or by emailing the team at [email protected].
The GSSPC is an ACS program (sponsored by the Division of Chemical Education) that affords graduate students full autonomy in planning a quality national meeting symposium, which includes topic selection, fundraising, speaker recruitment, and advertising. It is a remarkable opportunity for professional development. Students interested in serving as the Spring 2026 GSSPC can learn more on our website.
