This is a past event.

MAE Graduate Seminar Speaker Series

proudly presents

Ron Abbott, PhD

Business Development Director (Retired)
Feedstocks & Recycling Americas

Abstract

Plastics demand has grown from a novel discovery in the 1930s to a global industry exceeding 450 million metric tons per year, and continues to grow at or above global GDP. The very attributes that make plastics indispensable—lowcost manufacturing, design flexibility, and exceptional performance—also make them challenging to recover, repurpose, and recycle at scale. Despite decades of effort, recycling rates remain stalled near 9% while public pressure for credible recycling solutions continues to intensify.
This seminar will examine the full plastics value chain, the economic and regulatory forces shaping today’s production and recycling landscape, and the strengths and weaknesses of today’s technologies currently used in the recycling industry. We will conclude with the operational, economic, and policy headwinds that must be overcome for recycling rates to achieve meaningful, sustained improvement.

Bio

Ron Abbott is a petrochemical executive with over 35 years of experience evaluating the commercial potential of emerging technologies and leading the most promising innovations to successful market deployment. He began his career at Phillips Petroleum Company as a catalyst chemist, where he co‑developed the Reduced Vapor Pressure (ReVap) alkylation process which was commercialized in the mid 1990s.
Over subsequent roles with Chevron Chemical Company, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, and Vopak, he held a range of technical and commercial leadership positions including Petrochemicals R&D Manager, Normal Alpha Olefins Commercial Product Manager, Sustainability Technology Manager, and Vice President of Chemical Recycling. During this period, Abbott led teams that commercialized the world’s first selective 1‑Hexene process, a novel mid‑viscosity PAO process, a pyrolysis‑technology spin‑off company, and CPChem’s Marlex® AnewCircular Polyethylene — the first commercial‑scale circular polymer produced in North America.
In his current role, Abbott works in an advisory role with entrepreneurial companies seeking to maximize the commercial potential of their innovations.
Abbott earned his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Vermont and his Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry under F. Albert Cotton at Texas A&M University. He is an inventor on 30 U.S. patents spanning plastics recycling and circularity, 1-Hexene catalyst and process technology, polyethylene catalysis, and HF alkylation.
Outside of his professional work, Abbott and his wife Andrea Sulak enjoy time with their two sons, daughters‑in‑law, and three energetic young grandchildren, along with outdoor activities such as hiking and distance running. They are also actively involved with Compassion International, supporting initiatives aimed at eliminating child poverty in developing communities.

Invited by: Ezra Bar Ziv