Specialty Polymers and Materials: Advances, Technologies, Applications, and Future Trends

Specialty polymers are noted for their ability to retain valuable mechanical, thermal, and chemical characteristics when subjected to harsh environments, such as high temperature, high pressure, and corrosive chemicals. This new volume focuses on specialty polymers and polymer-based materials in novel application areas, discussing the synthesis and preparation methods, the materials derived from them, and how they are applied. The volume touches on applications that vary from biomedical and defense to high-performance coatings and smart materials for catalytic, agricultural, environmental, and packaging applications. Chapters explore the characteristic and distinct properties of specialty polymers, such as biodegradability, high performance, smart behaviors, and other distinct characteristics, along with their diverse applications, such as in oil fields, focusing on carbon geo-storage; for agricultural uses of various polymeric nanocomposites; for smart polymeric coatings and adhesives, including edible polymers and their applications in the food packaging industry; in biosensor design; and more.

Shrikaant Kulkarni, PhD, is currently a Research and Technical Advisor at Filantrofia Sarvada CleanTech Pvt. Ltd., Pune, India. Dr. Kulkarni has been a senior academician and researcher for more than four decades. He has delivered invited lectures and conducted sessions at national and international conferences as well as faculty development programs. He has guided many major and minor projects in the subject areas such as engineering chemistry, green chemistry, nanotechnology, analytical chemistry, catalysis, chemical engineering materials, industrial organization, and management. He has published over 100 research papers in national and international journals and conferences of repute. He has authored 45 book chapters in books published by CRC, Springer Nature, Apple Academic Press, Elsevier, Wiley, and IET. He has edited twelve books published by Apple Academic Press/CRC Press and Springer Nature. Another ten books are in the offing. He authored four textbooks in engineering chemistry. Dr Kulkarni possesses MSc, MPhil, and PhD degrees in Chemistry in addition to master’s degrees in Economics, Business Management, and Political Science. He has expertise in the fields of materials science, green chemistry and engineering, analytical chemistry, and green nanoscience and nanotechnology. He also has expertise in wastewater treatment, green and analytical chemistry, and advanced areas in chemical engineering and materials science.

Vasi Shaikh, PhD, is Professor and Program Head of MSc Industrial Polymer Chemistry in the School of Chemistry at MIT World Peace University, Pune, India, where he established the Polymer Chemistry Research Laboratory and an industry-oriented postgraduate program in industrial polymer chemistry. He has over 30 years of experience in education, research, and industry. He was awarded the Ideal Teacher Award and the Best Techer Award by MIT-WPU and Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), respectively. A PhD advisor in chemistry and chemical engineering, he was a member and chairman of the board of studies (BoS) and a faculty member of chemical and petroleum engineering at Savitribai Phule Pune University. He has published book chapters and articles in national and international journals, presented at conferences and given invited talks, worked on a few research projects, and consulted on various projects. His areas of research include LCPs, microplastics, plant extract-derived nanoparticles and nanocomposites in drug applications, water purification, green and bio materials, etc. He started his career as a production chemist with Asian Paints (I) Ltd. and worked as a junior and senior research fellow on a DST-sponsored research projects. He completed his PhD in Liquid Crystalline Polymers. He received research funding under the Young Scientist Scheme from DST, New Delhi, India.