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Dr. Kevin Cavicchi

Dr. Kevin Cavicchi

Title: Professor
Dept/Program: School of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering
Office: PEAC 217
Phone: 330-972-8368
Fax: 330-972-3406
Email: kac58@uakron.edu

Biography

Kevin Cavicchi joined the University of Akron in January 2006 after completing a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Massachusetts- Amherst in the Department of Polymer Science and Engineering. He has been recognized with a number of awards including Polymer Networks Group Young Investigator Award (2014), Top 10 Reviewer for Soft Matter (2016), William C. Zekan Memorial Award, Akron Section of the Society of Plastics Engineers (2017), Distinguished Service Award, Polymer Chemistry Division (POLY) American Chemical Society (ACS) (2019), American Chemical Society Fellow (2019), POLY Fellow (2020), Sparks-Thomas Award, Rubber Division, ACS (2021).

Research

Cavicchi’s research interests are in the structure-propertyrelationships of nanostructured soft materials. Specific research areas are in the thermodynamics of small molecule organogelators; the synthesis and characterization shape memory polymers; and the synthesis of supramolecular polymers through ionic interactions including block copolymers, ionically crosslinked elastomers, and polyelectrolyte-surfactant complexes. A range of synthetic techniques employed include controlled free radical polymerization, anionic polymerization, and postpolymerization modification are used to prepare well-defined polymer materials. Characterization includes morphology (optical and atomic force microscropy, X-ray scattering) and mechanical testing and rheology.

Publications

Google Scholar | ResearchGate | Ohio Innovation Exchange

  • Peng, B.; Yang, Y; Gu, K.; Amis, E. J.; Cavicchi, K.A. Digital Light Processing 3D Printing of Triple Shape Memory Polymer for Sequential Shape Shifting ACS Materials Letters, 2019, 1, 410-217. DOI: 10.1021/acsmaterialslett.9b00262 
  • Pantoja, M.; Boynton, N.; Cavicchi, K.A.; Dosa, B. Cashman, J.L.; Meador, M.B. Increased Flexibility in Polyimide Aerogels Using Aliphatic Spacers in the Polymer Backbone ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 2019, 11, 9425-9437.DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b20420
  • Pantoja, M.; Jian, P.-Z,; Cakmak, M. Cavicchi, K.A. Shape Memory Properties of Polystyrene-block-Poly(ethylene-co-butylene)-block-Polystyrene (SEBS) ABA Triblock Copolymer Thermoplastic Elastomers ACS Applied Polymer Materials, 2019, 1, 414-424. DOI:10.1021/acsapm.8b00139
  • Zhang, X.; Zhao, J.; Ye, C.; Lai, T.-Y.; Synder, C.R.; Karim, A.; Cavicchi, K.A.; Simmons, D.A. Dynamical Correlations for Statistical Copolymers from High-Throughput Broad-Band Dielectric Spectroscopy ACS Combinatorial Science2019, 21, 276-299. DOI: 10.1021/acscombsci.8b00160
  • Öztürk, T.; Cavicchi, K.A. Synthesis and Characterization of Poly(epichlorohydring-g-e-caprolactone) Graft Copolymers by “Click” Chemistry Journal of Polymer Materials 2018, 35, 209-220. DOI:10.32381/JPM.2018.35.02.6
  • Pantoja, M.; Alvarado, T.; Cakmak, M.; Cavicchi, K.A. Stearic Acid Infused Polyurethane Shape Memory Polymer Foams Polymer 2018, 153, 131-138. DOI:10.1016/j.polymer.2018.08.002
  • Zhang, C.; Cavicchi, K.A.; Li, R.; Yager, K.G.; Fukuto, M.; Vogt, B.D. Thickness Limit for Alignment of Block Copolymer Films Using Solvent Vapor Annealing with Shear. Macromolecules 2018, 51, 4213-4219. DOI:10.1021/acs.macromol.8b00539
  • Pantoja, M.; Lin, Z.; Cakmak, M.; Cavicchi, K.A. Structure-Property Relationships of Fatty Acid Swollen, Crosslinked Natural Rubber Shape Memory Polymers. Journal of Polymer Science, Part B: Polymer Physics 2018, 56, 673-688. DOI:10.1002/polb.24578
  • Deng, G.; Cavicchi, K.A. Tuning the Viscoelastic Properties of Poly(n-butyl acrylate) Ionomers Networks through the Use of Ion-Pair Comonomers. Macromolecules2017, 50, 9473–9481. DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.7b01529
  • Zhao, Z.; Peng, F.; Cavicchi, K. A.; Cakmak, M. M.; Weiss, R. A.; Vogt, B. D. 3D Printed Shape Memory Objects Based on Olefin Ionomer of Zinc-Neutralized Poly (ethylene-co-methacrylic acid). ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces2017, 9, 27239-27249. DOI: 10.1021/acsami.7b07816

Education

  • PhD, Materials Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota
  • B.S., Materials Science and Engineering, Cornell University