ACS SCHB abstracts acs 246nm Indianapolis Meeting

American Chemical Society

246th National Meeting

Indianapolis, Indiana

September 8-12, 2013

Division of Small Chemical Businesses

ABSTRACTS OF ORAL PAPERS & POSTERS

SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Small Business Chemistry in Motion G. Arnold, Organizer, Presiding; Paper 1

MONDAY MORNING

SCHB Poster Session G. Ruger, Organizer, Presiding; Papers 2-4

MONDAY EVENING

Sci-Mix G. Ruger, Organizer; Papers 2-4

TUESDAY MORNING

True Stories of Success from Chemical Entrepreneurs G. Ruger, Organizer, Presiding, Papers 5-10

TUESDAY AFTERNOON

STEM Women in Innovation and InvestingJ. Bryant, Organizer; J. Maclachlan, Organizer; J. Giordan, Presiding; Papers 11-14

WEDNESDAY MORNING

Applications of Ionic Liquids from the Small Business Sector S. Seelig, Organizer, Presiding; Papers 15-19

WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON

Biofuels in Motion K. Andrews, Organizer, Presiding; Papers 20-22

SCHB 1 Business of science: How to turn your scientific skill set into a successfulbusiness enterprise

Gianna Arnold1, [email protected], Jacqueline L. Allen1, Elizabeth Hart Wells2, Rajesh Nair3, LindaSivik4. (1) Saul Ewing LLP, Baltimore, MD 21202,(2) Kurz Purdue Technology Center, WestLafayette, IN 47906, (3) Saul Ewing LLP, Washington, DC 20006, (4) The Procter & GambleCompany, Cincinnati, OH 45202.

Join our wide spectrum of speakers for a facilitated presentation and discussion aimed atassisting you with the business of science. The session will begin with “Best Steps to BusinessSuccess - and Pitfalls to Avoid,” an overview on creating a technology-based company. Furtherpresentation and discussion will include the elements: creating an organizational structure, variousforms of intellectual property and their use as strategic business assets, roles an expert can fill as aconsultant to an early stage company or as a scientific advisory board member, alternative forms ofcompensation as a consultant, key considerations in agreements, technology transfer, industrycollaboration, and much more! This is your opportunity to ensure the success of your new or plannedendeavor.

SCHB 2 Ariadne: A next generation chemical inventory and ELN web application Valentin O Rodionov, [email protected] LLC., United States.

Keeping track of thousands of chemicals in a research lab is not a trivial task. Specializedinventory software does exist. However, such software is often focused squarely on regulatorycompliance, and is perceived by end users as a burdensome layer of digital bureaucracy.Laboratories in academia are especially likely to keep vital inventory records in ordinaryspreadsheets, or even on paper. Recently, we introduced Ariadne, a web application combining achemical inventory with an electronic lab notebook (ELN). Ariadne assigns the location of everychemical semi-randomly, based on storage compatibility rules. The system reveals the item locationonly after the item has been checked out by the user. Mandatory checkout ensures item movement istracked in real time, with no extra effort from users. Ariadne utilizes our JavaScript chemical structureeditor, ChemWidget, to enable structure input in any web browser. This presentation will describe ourexperience in developing chemical software for the modern web.

SCHB 3 Benefits of a Division of Small Chemical Businesses membership Jennifer L Maclachlan1, [email protected], Stan Seelig1, Mukund Chorghade1, Sharon Vercellotti1,David Deutsch1, Joseph E Sabol1, Michael Haukaas1, Anis Rahman1, Ronald Versic1, Carlyn Burton1,George Ruger. (1) Division of Small Chemical Businesses, Sandwich, MA 02563.

The ACS Division of Small Chemical Businesses Division (SCHB) has provided valuable memberbenefits and informative programming, featuring small businesses and with resources for smallbusinesses, at ACS national and regional meetings, since 1977. SCHB member benefits include freemembership for the first year, listing in the SCHB website members' directory of products and services,deeply discounted ACS national meeting expo booth space the Small Chemical Business Row,scholarship to the ACS Leadership Courses, the opportunity to shape and direct SCHB, and, the best ofall: amazing networking opportunities in-person at ACS meetings and via SCHB's social media platforms(ACS Network, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.) Patron [corporate] membership is also available.

SCHB 4 Chemical professionals investing in chemical companies Mark Vreeke, [email protected], Sid White, Judith Giordan.Chemical Angel Network, UnitedStates.

The Chemical Angel Network (CaN) is a nationwide angel investing network for early stagechemical businesses (ie. businesses with a significant chemistry component). The CaN network offerschemists, chemical engineers, and chemical professionals a unique opportunity to participate in thegrowth of companies in the chemical and related industries. In addition to possibly significant financialupside opportunities, the CaN network encompasses several unique elements. We anticipate that asignificant number of the qualified investors will be retired or semi-retired chemical professionals. In

addition to capital, the network will draw upon the retired and semi-retired member's unique experienceand knowledge base to provide special due diligence, mentoring, contacts, and general technicalexpertise. Our hope is that CaN will become the smart capital choice for early stage chemical companies.

SCHB 5 Surviving a start-up by innovation Anis Rahman, [email protected] Research & Photonics, Harrisburg, PA 17111

In today's world the name of the game is competition. Especially when the ever-changingworld of technology is bringing the next best thing more often, making the state of the art a thing ofpast more quickly. However, innovation or having a new idea alone is never sufficient to build andsurvive a business. It is important to have a priori knowledge about how the new technology or thenew product will attract target users. An important question is, “why people should consider thisproduct?” So, the value proposition must be strong. At the same time diffusion of knowledge of thenew technology to the target population is always a challenge. More often than not, newentrepreneurs lack the foresight, since “success” never is a straight line; as such a great deal oflessons must be learned the hard way. Some examples will be outlined from a start-up point of view.

SCHB 6 Commercializing your research and finding focus for your start-up using theteachings of the NSF I-Corps program

Andrew D Basner, [email protected] of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY13244

The National Science Foundation has supported science and engineering for many years.Some of this research has the potential for applications in the commercial world butcommercialization is often not realized. To help foster this transition from research to a commercialproduct, the National Science Foundation developed the Innovation corps program. Over the courseof an intensive 8 week program, our team talked to over 100 potential customers, defined andvalidated a value proposition for clear customer segments, identified revenue strategies and models,identified the correct channels for our technology, and met with key potential partners. The teachingteam for the NSF I-Corps helped us identify key pitfalls that are common in technology based start-ups and led us to a single, clear, and focus scalable business model. A number of key ideas from thisprogram can be used by anyone who is interested in commercializing their research or by anyonewho is in the process of finding an ideal market segment to fit into.

SCHB 7 HESI: Creating science-based solutions for a sustainable, healthier world Jennifer Young Tanir, [email protected] Health and Environmental Sciences Institute,Washington DC, United States.

The ILSI Health and Environmental Sciences Institute (HESI) was established in 1989 as aglobal branch of the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) to provide an international forum toadvance the understanding of scientific issues related to human health, toxicology, risk assessment,and the environment. With a vision of creating science-based solutions for a sustainable, healthierworld, HESI recognizes sustainability as vitally important as it identifies and resolves global healthand environmemntal issues through engagement with scientists from academia, government andindustry. As a non-profit organization, HESI provides a unique, objective forum for initiating dialogueamong scientists with different perspectives and expertise from a range of sectors includingpharmaceuticals, agricultural and industrial chemicals, personal care and consumer product, andothers. HESI's broad scientific portfolio spans translational biology, new approaches and techniques,environmental toxicology, and risk assessment. Using a committee structure to engage scientists,supported by expert staff with advanced scientific degrees, HESI enables hundreds of scientists towork together to address public health needs, from 49 corporate sponsors, 70 universities, 32government agencies (international, national, and state), foundations and non-governmentalorganizations, by a financially viable model. This presentation will highlight several of HESI's successstories.

SCHB 8 Building a microencapsulation company: A 35 year history of controlled release Ronald J Versic, [email protected] Ronald T. Dodge Company, Dayton, OH 45459.

In the spring of 1979 the author started out with USD 500 and a desire to build a companybased upon the principles of (1) multiple microencapsulation capabilities, a desire to (2) manufacturemicrocapsules and (3) scientific soundness. The results for this international company are describedalong with the difficult path to the current business status.

SCHB 9 History of NanoVir, LLC, a drug discovery company supported by the NIH andgrown partly through interactions with academia

James K Bashkin, [email protected] Department of Chemistry, NanoVir, LLC, Saint Louis, MO63121, United States Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Center for Nanoscience, University ofMissouri-St. Louis, Saint Louis, MO 63121.

NanoVir LLC is a company that was started jointly by a chemist (myself) located in St. LouisMO and a biologist (Dr. Chris Fisher) located in Kalamazoo MI. Our purpose was the discovery anddevelopment of antiviral agents suitable for therapy against high-risk, cancer-causing humanpapillomavirus (HPV). In order create the company, we co-wrote a Phase I small business proposalto the National Institutes of Health and also submitted a proposal to the Biosciences Research &Commercialization Center (BRCC) funded by the State of Michigan. We were successful with our firstNIH proposal and the BRCC proposal, allowing us to begin work as a real company. Ourheadquarters and Biology Department are located at the Southwest Michigan Innovation Center inKalamazoo. Since I had held the position of Research Associate Professor in Chemistry &Biochemistry at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, we were able to establish and grow the companyunder the STTR mechanism, with chemistry done under subcontract to the University. Now, after twoPhase I and two Phase II NIH STTR grants, we have a large set of active compounds with IC50values in the 8-40 nM range, and many more with IC50s below 100 nM. Furthermore, we have a pairof compounds in preclinical development and a significant patent estate. The basis of our work is thedesign, synthesis and testing of sequence-selective DNA binding molecules that target keyinteractions between viral proteins and the viral genome, which is a double-stranded circular DNAmolecule of about 8 kb. Chemistry and biology have been tightly integrated throughout the entireprogram, and this has contributed significantly to success. For the purpose of animal studies, wehave scaled up compound synthesis and have tested a wide range of formulations on differentiatedhuman tissue cultures, organotypic cultures, grown from keratinocyte monolayers.

SCHB 10 50 years of success at Nice Pak Products Rick West, [email protected] Pak Products, Orangeburg, NY 10962.

Nice Pak Products / PDI was started a little over 50 years ago by the Julius family and is stillprivately owned today. During that time, it has grown from a one room operation in NYC to where it istoday- locations in NY, IN, AR, and a facility currently being built in China. Nice Pak producesproducts for the healthcare sector and also for the household sector. Some of the more interestingproduct lines will be discussed. Currently, Nice Pak produces approximately three billion wipes ayear. The relative volume of liquid batches produced and some annual chemical consumption datawill be provided. Some of the company's success stories and a few difficulties will be discussed.

SCHB 11 Challenges and opportunities in technology transfer: How are STEM women faring? Mary Foley Phillips, [email protected] for Commercialization and CorporateDevelopment Research Office, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331

As Associate Director for the Office for Commercialization & Corporate Development at OregonState University (OSU), Dr. Mary Foley Phillips is responsible for overseeing the management ofintellectual property and licensing of OSU inventions. Dr. Phillips will discuss her perspectives on thechallenges and opportunities in technology transfer for commercializing technology, and will discuss herviews and share insights on how women are faring and can continue to thrive in this environment.

SCHB 12 Challenges of starting (and growing) a start-up Nicola L. Pohl, [email protected], Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405.

Starting a company is easier than growing it into a success. This talk will focus on the challengesencountered in founding LuCella Biosciences, Inc., a carbohydrate-focused biotechnology company thatsprung out of university-related research.

SCHB 13 Women-led ventures: Insights from the X Squared Angels Group Carol Clark, [email protected] X Squared Angels Group, Columbus, OH 43212.

Carol Clark's entrepreneurial roots date back to 1981 when she and Fran Papalios co-foundedMindLeaders, an online software training company that was sold in 2007. Taking what she learned, Carolbecame an angel investor and member of several well-known and influential angel groups, including theOhio TechAngel Funds, Golden Seeds and Investors' Circle. One of latest endeavors is founding the XSquared Angels Group - focused on women-led ventures. Carol's background and perspective as both afemale angel investor (who seriously intends to help other women) and as an entrepreneur will help yougain the insights you need to succeed - whether it is to move your idea ahead or to understand the rolesyou, as a women in STEM, can play in technology commercialization. Carol also currently serves on theCollege of Arts and Sciences Technology Review Board at the Ohio State University where ideas andinventions are vetted for commercialization.

SCHB 14 Issues women face in research and commercialization from academia: Personalinsights from a successful company founder

Kathryn Uhrich, [email protected] & Physical Sciences (SAS), Rutgers University,Piscataway, NJ 08854

As Professor of Chemistry and Dean of Mathematical & Physical Sciences (SAS) at RutgersUniversity, Dr. Kathryn Uhrich's research focuses on synthesis and characterization of biocompatible,biodegradable polymers for medical, dental, cosmetic and personal care applications. In 2000 she co-founded Polymerix Corporation, a specialty pharmaceutical company developing and commercializingPolyNSAIDs as coatings for implanted medical devices, such as orthopedic implants, sutures, surgicalmeshes, coronary stents, and vascular grafts, as well as long-acting formulations for drug delivery. As achemistry professor, dean and company founder, Dr. Uhrich has a unique perspective on the issueswomen face in research and commercialization from academia – and she will bring to the discussion herinsights into how women can succeed on all of those fronts.

SCHB 15 Green solvents and ionic liquids: A business venture for the global conservation ofwater

Stanley S Seelig, [email protected]. Seelig and Associates, Lakeland, FL 33810. Over the last 50 years (or longer) many processes were defined as solvent or water processes (or

solventless or waterless). The halogenated solvents were beneficial as excellent cleaners with recyclableand reclaimable processes but many had toxicity, ozone depletion or global warming issues. Then manycompanies switched back to water based processes only to have to deal with poor cleaning, wastestreams, and excessive surfactants. Now there is an option to switch to green(er) solvents on a globalbasis. How can this approach lead to a successful business venture? We will discuss a number of greensolvents and their processes and how they are changing the world away from excessive waste waterstreams and assisting to preserve the conservation of water. From laundry to dishwasher to toilets andmore, closed-loop solvent processes are a wave in the future. Water treatment plants are working atmaximum to keep up with technology. Green solvents can relieve some of that pressure. And smallbusinesses will provide the answers.

SCHB 16 Separation of hydrocarbons from sand or other minerals using ionic liquids Paul Painter, [email protected], Bruce Miller, Aron Lupinsky, Maria Sobkowiak, Andrea Choperena,Nuerxida Pulati.The E&MS Energy Institute, Penn State University, University Park, PA 16802.

The separation or extraction of hydrocarbons such as oil and bitumen from soil, sand, or otherforms of mineral matter is a difficult and expensive process that also results in environmental problemsassociated with the disposal of waste products. For example, the separation of bitumen from tar or oilsands involves large amounts of energy and water. The process water generated in the separation is toxicto aquatic life and is a major environmental problem. Similarly, the oil and gas industry has to deal with oilcontaminated sand, waste drilling muds and drill cuttings in its operations. We have developed a novelmethod for separating bitumen, oil or other hydrocarbons from sand or soils through the use of ionicliquids (ILs). The separation occurs at ambient temperatures and does not result in the generation ofsignificant quantities of waste process water. A preliminary patent application and a continuation in partdescribing the use of analogue ILs has been filed by the Penn State Research Foundation (PSRF) and asmall company, IL Fuels LLC, founded to develop the technology. The company was granted an exclusivelicense to the technology from PSRF in exchange for a 5% equity stake. Some investment funds havebeen raised and a small pilot/demonstration unit built at Penn State. Potential licensees are now using thepilot unit for tests. Conversations with other potential investors and the patent office have been interesting.The presentation will elaborate on the problems we have faced.

SCHB 17 Production of ionic liquid based electrolytes for electrochemical storage devices Joe C Poshusta, [email protected]. Boulder Ionics, Arvada, CO 80007.

Ongoing research and development in electrochemical storage devices strives to improve theircapacity, longevity, environmental resilience, and safety. With their wide electrochemical window and lowvapor pressure, electrolytes containing room temperature ionic liquids are a key enabling technologycommon to all of these improvements. Electrochemical device applications impose stringent purityrequirements on the electrolyte in order to maintain device lifetime. In particular, halide and watercontamination cannot be tolerated above a few ppm by weight. Conventional ionic liquid synthesis ofteninvolves solvent based reactions, halide intermediates, and repetitive batch-wise purification to achieveelectrochemical device requirements. While able to synthesize a wide variety of ionic liquids, these laborintensive and time consuming methods drive up cost, leading many device manufacturers to reject ionicliquids. Boulder Ionics has developed alternative synthetic routes adapted to scalable continuousprocessing techniques that can provide electrochemical grade ionic liquids in system residence times ofjust minutes. While vastly reducing labor cost, the continuous approach also enables tight process controland minimizes product handling, producing a high purity material. Ionic liquids and salts of interest forelectrochemical devices include the fluorinated anioIns bis(trifluoromethyl sulfonyl)imide (TFSI) andbis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (FSI). These anions are often paired with pyrolidinium and imidazolium basedcations in ionic liquids, while their lithium salts are useful in lithium and lithium-ion batteries. The TFSIanion has been commercially available for several years, but its cost can dominate the ionic liquid materialcost. We have developed a scalable synthetic route to the much less expensive FSI anion, while at thesame time proving to meet performance requirements as demonstrated by our development partners andother researchers. This presentation will review some of the performance capabilities of FSI based ionicliquids in electrochemical storage devices as well as discuss synthetic approaches to manufacturingrelated electrolyte systems.

SCHB 18 Using academic resources to expand your chemical enterprise: Graphenics, LLCexample

Rachel M Frazier1,2, [email protected], Hunter Adams2, Dan T Daly1. (1) Alabama Innovation andMentoring of Entrepreneurs, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, (2) Graphenics, LLC,Tuscaloosa, AL 35487.

Ionic liquids (ILs) have numerous applications, making them ideal materials for platformtechnologies. A key challenge to any new material is advancing from the laboratory to the marketplace,thereby bridging the gap from proof-of-concept to prototype. ILs are no exception to this process, thus weexplore the developmental part Alabama Innovation and Mentoring of Entrepreneurs (AIME) plays in

transitioning ILs from invention to innovation. We will explore the vital role AIME has played in helping toset up Graphenics, LLC for success. Exfoliation of graphite in ILs to produce graphene has been identifiedas having significant potential for success and AIME has assisted in developing the technology beyondproof-of-concept. We will present the translation of this technology from academia to the marketplace anda case study of a new chemical enterprise, Graphenics. Graphenics, LLC provides graphene materialsand consulting services to both academia and industry. Graphenics core strength is the expertise in theexfoliation of graphite and the know-how of the proprietary process technology.

SCHB 19 Novel chitin fibers for wound care Robin D Rogers, [email protected], Gabrielle Gurau.AIME, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL35405.

525 Solutions, Inc., a faculty start-up incubated at The University of Alabama with a mission totransfer fundamental research into new business enterprises while providing opportunities for studentsand staff to become entrepreneurs, proposes to use the newly discovered property of ionic liquids (ILs;salts which melt below 100 oC) to dissolve high molecular weight chitin directly from biomass to designnovel composite fibers of natural polymers with embedded additives to improve the immune system andfacilitate wound healing. 525 Solutions, Inc., will use the proprietary process to directly dissolvebiopolymers (e.g., chitin, alginate, etc.) with or without functional additives into homogeneous solutionswhich will allow for the direct dry-jet wet spinning of composite materials.

SCHB 20 CO2 recycling using microalgae for the production of liquid fuels M. M Crocker1, [email protected], M.H.W. Wilson1, J. Groppo1, A. Placido1, S. Graham1,A. Santillan-Jiminez1, T. Morgan1, J. Shoup1, D. Kim1, L. Mills1, H. Y Shin1, C. Crofcheck2. (1) Center forApplied Energy Research, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40511, (2) Department of Biosystems &Agricultural Engineering, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40511.

Given the potential of microalgae for recycling CO2 into bio-products, coupled with the largenumber of coal-fired power plants in Kentucky, the Commonwealth of Kentucky's Department of EnergyDevelopment and Independence tasked the University of Kentucky with determining the technical andeconomic feasibility of algae-based carbon capture and utilization in Kentucky. These research effortshave led to the development and on-going deployment of a pilot-scale photobioreactor system at DukeEnergy's East Bend station. This pilot-scale project is focused on process development/improvement,power plant integration, and the implementation of strategies to increase algae growth rates. The systemis continuously monitored and the process data analyzed to gain insights into system dynamics and toimprove the operation/design of future units. In tandem, we have developed a protocol for the harvestingand dewatering of algae (with minimal energy input) based on flocculation-sedimentation. Methodologieshave also been developed for lipid extraction (from dry and wet algal biomass) and for the conversion ofextracted lipids to liquid hydrocarbons by means of catalytic deoxygenation.

SCHB 21 Microflotation for microorganism harvest James O. Hanotu, [email protected], William B.J. Zimmerman.Perlemax Ltd., Sheffield, UnitedKingdom.

Microbial cells or microorganisms are grown in bioreactors under conditions where they thrive andflourish, yielding a wide range of desired end products. Yeast, Bacteria and Algae are some of the mostwidely explored microorganisms and have been applied for food, water remediation and biofuelproduction. After the appropriate number of generations, the mature cell mass is separated from the spentliquid, then delivered as liquid cream, filtered, and sold as compressed forms or filtered and dried intoinstant dry cells. On occasions when a heterogeneous community is cultured, selective harvesting canpossibly be employed to recover only the desired organism(s). The conventional approach to extractingcells from their growth medium is by centrifugation and filtration. However, these methods are expensiveand often unsuitable for continuous large-scale production. Conversely, traditional flotation separationtechniques (such as Dissolved Air Flotation) are regarded as both intrusive and energy intensive, and areonly naturally suitable for portable water treatment. Our microflotation technique is advantageous due toits laminar flow process, its non-intrusiveness, and scalability to meet continuous industrial production

requirements. The efficacy of microflotation has been demonstrated for algal biomass recovery, as well asfor yeast, showing optimum recovery rates comparable to ideal flotation separation results.

SCHB 22 Integrated energy parks as a model for rural economic development and energydiversification in the Appalachian coalfields

Roger Ford1, [email protected], Eric Mathis2. (1) Patriot Bioenergy Corporation, Pikeville,KY 41501, (2) Emergy Holdings, Inc., Williamson, WV 25661.

Patriot Bioenergy Corporation and Emergy Holdings, Inc. have developed a business model thatprovides diversified energy production on post-mining land in the Appalachian coalfields termed IntegratedEnergy Parks. Through integration of energy resources, the business model couples solar, natural gas,and biomass to generate electricity and to produce energy-related products on post-mining land. As astart-up, we discuss the challenges associated with regulatory barriers and construction of such facilities,as well as the discussion of the dynamics that move us toward energy diversification and integration in theheart of the Appalachian coalfields. Issues discussed include production of sufficient biomass feedstock,post-mining land use, market-based sustainability strategies, and adoption of an 'all-of-the-above' energypolicy framework.

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ACS SCHB abstracts acs 246nm Indianapolis Meeting

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Transcript of ACS SCHB abstracts acs 246nm Indianapolis Meeting