Dow's Melinda H. Keefe to Receive 14th Annual SCI Gordon E. Moore Medal

PHILADELPHIA, May 23, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Society of Chemical Industry (SCI), America Group, announced today that Dr. Melinda H. Keefe of The Dow Chemical Company will be awarded the 14^th annual SCI Gordon E. Moore Medal.

The SCI established the Gordon E. Moore Medal to recognize early-career success in innovation, as reflected both in market impact and improvement to quality of life. Dr. Keefe will be presented the award at a luncheon in her honor during Innovation Day hosted jointly by SCI and the Chemical Heritage Foundation (CHF) on September 12, 2017 at CHF headquarters in Philadelphia.

Dr. Keefe has successfully combined her passion for art and chemistry into an exceptional career encompassing the multi-faceted area of coating science. Currently a Senior R&D Manager for Architectural Coatings with The Dow Chemical Company, Keefe and her co-workers were responsible for the development of the remarkable EVOQUE™ Pre-Composite Polymer platform which facilitates higher performing and more sustainable paints. Over the last 10 years Dr. Keefe has also led a technical collaboration between Dow and the art conservation science community. In this skill-based volunteerism effort, Dr. Keefe and her colleagues have successfully leveraged Dow's coating, analytical, solvent, and formulation science ability and resources to specific challenges in the art conservation field. Including a collaboration between Dow and the Tate Gallery in London which resulted in the successful restoration of Mark Rothko's painting Black on Maroon 1958.

"Dr. Keefe's influence on the world of paint is remarkable," said Christopher D. Pappas, President and CEO of Trinseo and Chair of SCI America. "She is in the unique position to not only have a positive ecological influence on the commercial paint market but her developments in the field of art conservation science are equally impactful. I can't think of another scientist whose skills trnslate in such a singular and specific way."

"Dr. Keefe is a scientist with a passion," said Dr. Sarah Eckersley, Global R&D Director, Dow Coating Materials. "In a short period of time she has pursued and achieved a career's worth of accomplishments. On behalf of Dow, we join SCI in celebrating Dr. Keefe for her contributions to coatings innovation, to the conservation of precious art, and to science."

About Melinda H. Keefe
Dr. Keefe is Senior R&D Manager for Architectural Coatings with The Dow Chemical Company. She has been a driving force behind both a revolutionary new technology for coatings and for activities related to art conservation. Dr. Keefe and her coworkers developed a technology that improves the performance of titania in paints, and improved the performance of the paint as a result, and was a driver in the development and commercialization of a composite forming polymer marketed by Dow Coating Materials as EVOQUE™ Pre-Composite Polymer. In the near future, Dr. Keefe will transition to Associate R&D Director in Dow's Core Formulation Sciences team where she will further leverage her coating expertise and customer engagement.

Her work in art conservation has included improving wet cleaning systems for acrylic painted surfaces and other water sensitive art. These new approaches to cleaning artwork are being broadly disseminated within the art conservation field via workshops, conferences, invited lectures and publications. A highlight of Dow's contribution has been assisting Tate on solvent selection in support of the removal of graffiti ink from Mark Rothko's painting Black on Maroon.

Keefe received a B.S. in Chemistry from Penn State University in 1997 and a Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from Northwestern University in 2001. She was awarded the 2013 R&D 100 Award, 2013 Presidential Green Chemistry Award, the 2014 Fortune 500 "Heroes of the 500" Award, and the 2015 ACS Rising Star Award from the Women Chemists Committee of the American Chemical Society.

About the SCI Gordon E. Moore Medal
The Society of Chemical Industry (SCI) established the SCI Gordon E. Moore Medal to recognize early-career success in innovation, as reflected both in market impact and improvement to quality of life. By highlighting extraordinary individuals and their work, SCI aims to promote public understanding of research and development in modern chemical industries, enhance the interest of students in applied chemistry by providing role models, and emphasize the role of creative research in the global economy.

About the Society of Chemical Industry (SCI)
SCI America Group, launched in 1894, is part of the Society of Chemical Industry's international organization. It provides a unique networking forum for chemical industry leaders, industrial scientists and technologists to exchange new business ideas and best practices. It celebrates achievement to promote public awareness of the contributions of industrial chemistry and inspire students to enter technical careers. SCI America events are managed by the Chemical Heritage Foundation (CHF).

About the Chemical Heritage Foundation
CHF fosters dialogue on science and technology in society. Our staff and fellows study the past in order to understand the present and inform the future. We focus on matter and materials and their effects on our modern world in territory ranging from the physical sciences and industries, through the chemical sciences and engineering, to the life sciences and technologies. We collect, preserve, and exhibit historical artifacts; engage communities of scientists and engineers; and tell the stories of the people behind breakthroughs and innovations.

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SOURCE SCI America

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