Raised in Mumbai, Ajay Dhawale said his fascination of polymeric materials started from his father, who owned a chemical company specializing in textile manufacturing and surfactant manufacturing.
"My father would bring me to work, and watching the enormous reactors, specialized lab equipment and fascinating polymers being manufactured, it was a clear decision for me to pursue a career in the chemical industry," Dhawale said.
Dhawale graduated from the Institute of Chemical Technology in India with a bachelor's degree in polymer engineering and technology and Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., with a master's degree in materials science and engineering.
"My research at Cornell University was in the area of polymer-modified asphalt. My work involved investigating the interfacial mechanisms between nanoparticles, a polymer modifier and asphalt matrix. We were able to conclude that by leveraging the properties of nanofiller, we could cut down on the use of SBS polymer (a petroleum-based polymer) by 50 percent by substituting it with waste-tire rubber (recycled polymer). Thus, this work enabled a more sustainable and environmentally friendly solution, and the work resulted in a co-authored article in Construction and Building Materials journal, which is a highly reputed journal for asphalt research with an impact factor of 7.4," he said.
Dhawale's first job in the plastics industry was working for Clariant's masterbatches unit as a research and development intern.
"I was tasked with developing new color standards. This work involved melt processing polymer pellets and pigment containing masterbatches and evaluating their colorimetric properties," he said. "This work enabled me to get a deeper understanding of extruders, injection molding machines and how various processing parameters affect the outcomes of the plastics' properties."
Dhawale also was an R&D intern for Momentive Performance Materials in Tarrytown, N.Y., then a process engineer and now yield development engineer for Intel Corp. in Hillsboro, Ore.
A member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers professional organization, Dhawale said he has been fascinated by the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning in the plastics industry.
"The applications of these technologies are immense, and they can be exploited to minimize costs and manual intervention. Use of AI/ML enables to find novel polymers specifically designed to address certain applications and properties, it enables to optimize the polymer processing conditions and allows for an automated monitoring of manufacturing processes," he said. "I'm excited to see where the advancements in AI/ML area lead the plastics industry."
Dhawale believes in encouraging plastics as a career option to students at the school level.
"Being affiliated [with the] chemical industry, I have been fortunate to explore chemicals as a career right in my school days. Exposing the avenues that [the] plastics industry presents in a setting like schools would do miracles for finding new STEM talent from diverse backgrounds," he said.
"My advice to someone starting their plastics journey would be to immerse themselves in the various aspects of the plastics industry. … Once you find your specialty, dig deeper and become a true subject-matter expert in that particular area," Dhawale added. "And don't be afraid to fail while trying new things."