Research Scientist
Irving, Tx, Us
Individual contributor on development and commercialization teams responsible for treatment chemistries and technologies used to modify the surface properties of nonwoven roll goods.+ Developed and commercialized internal melt additive for MicroCOOL breathable barrier film used in surgical apparel. Responsibilities included design of experiments to identify best additive chemistry and optimal addition level, coordination of testing to obtain product and occupational safety approvals, and development of bench test to correlate surface energy to viral barrier properties. (US 7,381,666)+ Developed new topical treatment formulation for application of fluorochemicals to barrier nonwovens that greatly enhances fluid barrier and lowers the cost of the treatment step. Improvements were obtained by understanding electrostatic interactions between fluoropolymer chains and adding an agent to screen these interactions while removing surface active agents that tend to depress the fluid barrier properties. (US 7,811,949; US 7,931,944)+ Developed new methods to reduce blood strikethrough on cuffs of surgical gowns through chemical treatments of the cuff, converting methods, and disrupting fluid channels to prevent wicking of blood. (US 6,934,969; US 7,155,746)+ Developed printing process that enables high speed, registered, crock-fast graphics to be applied to nonwovens roll goods moving at extremely high speeds (up to 1000 fpm). Solution required improvements to ink/polyolefin interface to improve ink adhesion, tracking technologies to ensure proper placement of individual colors to form desired multi-color graphic, and air handling systems to minimize impact of air disturbances on print quality. (US 6,957,884)