Asian Polymer Association

Asian Polymer Association
Name	Asian Polymer Association
Formation	1984
Type	Professional society
Headquarters	Tokyo
Region served	Asia-Pacific
Membership	Researchers, educators, industry professionals
Leader title	President

Asian Polymer Association The Asian Polymer Association is a regional professional society promoting polymer science and technology across Asia and the Asia-Pacific region. It brings together researchers, industry leaders, and educators from institutions such as University of Tokyo, Tsinghua University, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Seoul National University, and National University of Singapore to advance polymer research, education, and industrial applications. The association organizes conferences, issues awards, and coordinates collaborative projects linking laboratories like Riken, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, and Institute of Materials Research and Engineering.

History

The association was founded during a period of rapid expansion in polymer research influenced by developments at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Harvard University, California Institute of Technology, and Asian centers such as Peking University and Kyoto University. Early meetings included delegates from University of Melbourne, University of Hong Kong, A*STAR, Indian Institute of Science, and University of Malaya. Milestones mirror regional scientific cooperation exemplified by agreements like the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation initiatives and were shaped by leaders with ties to institutions such as Imperial College London and ETH Zurich. The association evolved alongside international societies including American Chemical Society, Royal Society of Chemistry, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, and European Polymer Federation.

Organization and Membership

Governing bodies have included presidents and secretaries affiliated with National Taiwan University, Hokkaido University, Chulalongkorn University, University of Indonesia, and University of the Philippines. Membership spans academia, industry, and government laboratories such as Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation, LG Chem, Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, and DuPont. Regional chapters coordinate activities in cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Mumbai, Bangkok, Jakarta, Manila, Seoul, Osaka, Taipei, and Singapore. Membership categories emulate models used by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Materials Research Society, and American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Conferences and Events

The association hosts biennial congresses and symposia attracting speakers from Max Planck Society, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Korea University, Fudan University, and Nanyang Technological University. Events often run alongside exhibitions featuring companies like BASF, Dow Chemical Company, Sumitomo Chemical, Toray Industries, and Covestro. Specialized sessions have mirrored programs at Gordon Research Conferences, Faraday Discussions, and International Congress on Polymer Science events, with keynote lecturers affiliated with Columbia University, University of Cambridge, Princeton University, Yale University, and University of California, Berkeley.

Publications and Research Initiatives

The association supports publication venues and proceedings similar to Macromolecules (journal), Polymer (journal), Progress in Polymer Science, Journal of Polymer Science, and ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. Collaborative research initiatives have involved consortia with European Commission Horizon 2020 partners, national agencies like Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Department of Science and Technology (India), and Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Creativity. Projects emphasize topics researched at Scripps Research, Weizmann Institute of Science, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, and University of Oxford including block copolymers, nanocomposites, biodegradable polymers, and stimulus-responsive materials.

Awards and Recognition

The association confers medals and prizes analogous to honors from Nobel Prize, Wolf Prize, Copley Medal, Priestley Medal, and awards administered by Royal Society divisions. Recipients have been faculty from University of Cambridge, University of Chicago, McGill University, Monash University, and Pohang University of Science and Technology. Awards highlight achievements in polymer synthesis, characterization, and applications in collaborations with industrial partners such as Toyota Central R&D Labs, Hitachi, Sony Corporation, and Panasonic Corporation.

Collaborations and Partnerships

Partnerships include joint programs with Asian Development Bank, ASEAN Secretariat, United Nations Industrial Development Organization, and research linkages to National Institutes of Health. Academic collaborations span University of Sydney, University of Auckland, University of British Columbia, ETH Zurich, University of Freiburg, and Politecnico di Milano. Industry-academic consortia mimic models used by VentureWell and TechConnect to accelerate commercialization of polymer technologies including membranes, adhesives, and biomedical polymers pioneered at Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins University, and Karolinska Institutet.

Impact and Contributions to Polymer Science

The association has influenced advances in polymer blends, copolymer self-assembly, conductive polymers, and biodegradable materials, paralleling breakthroughs reported from Bell Labs, AT&T Labs Research, IBM Research, and Toyota Research Institute. It has fostered talent development connected to graduate programs at Cornell University, Duke University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, University of Wisconsin–Madison, and Northwestern University. Contributions include facilitating multi-institution projects addressing energy storage, water purification, and biomedical devices with partners such as Tesla, Inc., Siemens, GE Healthcare, and 3M.

Category:Scientific societies Category:Polymer science organizations Category:Asia-Pacific research organizations