Calgary Professor Wins Major Canadian Science Award

The man who makes plastics makers glad

(Ottawa, Ontario) – The future of the plastic pop bottle depends on Dr. Warren Piers' daily bike ride. That's because the 10km trek to and from his lab at the University of Calgary is the perfect catalyst for this synthetic chemist's active imagination.

His success in turning a scientist's vision into a myriad of new chemicals has transformed the ways that some plastics are made. It's cutting-edge research that has earned him a 2001 Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council Steacie Fellowship – one of Canada's premier science and engineering prizes.

The award is one of six announced today by The Honourable Brian Tobin, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), and Dr. Tom Brzustowski, President of NSERC.

"With the NSERC Steacie Fellowships, six of our best scientists and engineers will do what they do best – push forward the frontiers of innovative research and improving the quality of our lives," said Minister Tobin. "Dr. Piers fundamental studies are taking chemistry into exciting new directions. It's unknown territory that someday might hold major benefits for all of us."

Like the avid Rocky Mountain scrambler – the energetic sport of literally scrambling up rock inclines – that he is, Dr. Piers has always sought out challenging chemical terrain.

"Synthetic chemists are artisans, we make things at the molecular level," says Dr. Piers. "The challenge is that you have to operate within certain rules, chemical rules. You can envision chemical structures in your mind's eye. The trick is to build them."

Born in Edmonton, Dr. Piers grew up in Richmond, B.C. As a PhD student in the mid-1980s, Dr. Piers worked in the chemistry sub-discipline of organometallic chemistry – organic molecules bonded to large metal atoms. His postdoctoral research was part of a revolution in the understanding of the chemical behaviour of so-called early-transition metals, such as scandium and titanium.

Many of these organometallic molecules function as powerful catalysts – the chemical equivalents of matchmakers.

And some of the catalysts created by Dr. Piers and his research team have significantly improved our understanding of the polyethylene creation process. Most people know polyethylene as a plastic used to make countless products, from drink bottles to plastic wrap. But it starts out as a gas. It requires catalysts to knit together the small, single gas molecules to form large solid ones.

"Polyethylene is a commodity polymer with a huge market," Dr. Piers says. "Over the last 10 to 15 years, the way in which it is manufactured has undergone a fundamental change."

Reactions that previously involved a stew of catalysts, now involve only a single one. The result is the ability to create plastics with more precise structures and therefore unique and useful physical properties.

For Dr. Piers, however, it's the chemical ride and not just the destination that counts.

"The joy I get from synthetic chemistry stems from the design and execution of elegant preparations of complex molecules," says Dr. Piers. "The fact that the target molecules are useful is intentional, but this is secondary to me."

What the award means: Dr. Piers plans to use the research freedom provided by the 2001 NSERC Steacie Fellowship to explore some really big potential catalysts. Known as dendrimers, these are large, complex molecules in which chemical branches radiate outwards in a starburst pattern from a central core. These "arms" can be chemically manipulated to act as catalysts. And once they've done their job, the dendrimer's large size makes it easier to separate from the end products. "Their large size offers the potential of eliminating a serious problem with catalysis in an industrial setting: separating the catalyst from the products of reaction," says Dr. Piers.

The Prize: NSERC Steacie Fellowships are awarded to the most outstanding Canadian university scientists or engineers who have earned their doctorate within the last twelve years. Nominations are received by NSERC from universities across Canada and judged by a distinguished panel of independent experts. The award includes a payment to the University of Calgary towards Dr. Piers' salary, and increased research funding from NSERC, freeing him to pursue his research full-time.

The five other award winners this year are:
Dr. Simaan AbouRizk (University of Alberta);
Dr. Peter Grütter (McGill University);
Dr. Ben Koop (University of Victoria);
Dr. Arokia Nathan (University of Waterloo); and
Dr. Sarah Otto (University of British Columbia).

Contacts:

Dr. Warren Piers, University of Calgary, (403) 220-5746, wpiers@ucalgary.ca.

Francis Lionnet, NSERC, at (613) 992-9001, fzl@nserc.ca.