A Team with Graduate Student Bharadwaja Peddinti and Professor Spontak Receives IChemE Global Award

An NC State team that included graduate student Bharadwaja Srimat Tirumala Peddinti (STP) and Prof. Richard Spontak submitted an entry, Fast-Acting, Broad-Spectrum Antimicrobial Polymers, that was ranked as “highly commendable” (the British equivalent of honorable mention) in the 2019 Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) Global Award competition. The other members of the team are Professors Reza Ghiladi from the Department of Chemistry and Frank Scholle from the Department of Biological Sciences.

Entries were divided into 17 categories, with more than 100 finalist from around the world being selected. The pool of entrants included small and large companies, government agencies, research laboratories, and universities. A high percentage of entries were submitted by large multi-national corporations, both as solo contestants and as co-contestants partnered with other entities.

The team’s entry was submitted in the Pharma category. The project describes a new class of self-sterilizing polymers that was reported in a previous article on this web site. Significantly, only 3 solely non-British entries were selected for awards in any of the 17 categories and the NC State entry was one of a few to make the highly commendable list.

Founded in 1922, the IChemE is a multi-national institution with primary offices in the UK and Australia. According to their web site, “IChemE exists to advance chemical engineering’s contribution worldwide for the benefit of society. We support the development of chemical, biochemical and process engineering professionals and provide connections to a powerful network of over 37,000 members.”

An announcement for the 2019 awards competition says, “The IChemE Global Awards celebrate chemical and process engineering excellence. Now in their 25th year, they are widely considered the world’s most prestigious chemical engineering awards and recognise (sic) outstanding projects, people and companies.”

At present, STP is an Intern at Owens & Minor (Halyard Health). He is working with the new product development team on the next generation of Sterilization Barrier Systems (SBS) and accessory devices. Prof. Spontak is the Alumni Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and a Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering.

Congratulations to Prof. Spontak, STP and the team for this important award!