Calling all students of Chemistry from GCSE to A Level to university! We’re inviting you to hear from a researcher at the cutting edge of interdisciplinary chemistry - Professor Stefan A. F. Bon, Professor of Polymer and Colloid Chemical Engineering at the University of Warwick. 

Talk title

Polymer colloids rock!

Talk description

What are colloids, and more specifically, polymer colloids? How do we make them, and what are they useful for? Join Professor Stefan A. F. Bon, chemical engineer at the University of Warwick, to explore these and other questions.

In this lecture, we will delve into the world of polymer latexes: small polymer particles, 20 nm to a micron in diameter, dispersed in water. We will learn about the emulsion polymerisation process as a method for making them. We will look at how the polymer particles behave in water, how they move, and how we can prevent them from bumping into each other and clustering together.

Together, we will investigate how all these processes help to make the right polymer latex so that it can be used for coatings, glove making, paper manufacturing and adhesives. We will wrap up with some out-of-the-box ideas and sustainability challenges.

About the speaker

Professor Stefan A. F. Bon is a chemical engineer at the University of Warwick who loves turning big scientific ideas into real-world materials. His work focuses on polymers — the giant molecules behind everything from packaging and engineering plastics to advanced coatings and high-tech materials for personal care and agriculture.

He studied chemical engineering at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, then earned his PhD in polymer chemistry before joining Warwick, where he has built a research career in sustainable supracolloidal chemical engineering.

Here, together with his team of enthusiastic scientists and engineers, he designs and investigates new types of soft materials by combining polymer chemistry, colloid science, and chemical engineering. They often work in partnership with industry to make a difference to society.

He is also deeply committed to teaching and inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers. At Warwick, he teaches subjects such as polymer chemistry and physics, chemical reaction engineering, and colloid science. In 2024, he founded Polymer Café, a community that brings exciting polymer science to students and staff.

Professor Bon is well known in the global scientific community and has received international recognition for his research and teaching, including a Warwick Award for Teaching Excellence.