Five undergraduate students from the Davidson School of Chemical Engineering were successfully chosen to compete in the recent 2016-2017 Purdue University Student Soybean Innovation Competition. Hosted by the School of Agricultural & Biological Engineering, this year’s competition marked the twenty-third anniversary of the Indiana Soybean Alliance sponsored event.

Team Polysoymer was made up of four juniors from Chemical Engineering: Andrew Cameron, Sara Hansen, Andrew Orosz, and Jacob Ryan. The students created Polysoymer, a soy-based elastomeric polymer material that has numerous applications relevant to many industries. Depending on consumer demands, Polysoymer can easily be altered to fit the needs of product requirements. From adhesives, to plastics, to foams, Polysoymer spans a large continuum of applications. Although many different uses of Polysoymer have been investigated experimentally, the Polysoymer team decided to focus on one of the adhesives applications of Polysoymer: a soy-based pressure sensitive adhesive.

Faculty advisors for Team Polysoymer were Dr. Enrico Martinez, Chemical Engineering, and Dr. Inez Hua, Environmental & Ecological Engineering.

Team Soycology included Nurul Adina Binti Mohd Fauzi, a sophomore in Chemical Engineering. Other members were Terence Babb, a Multi-Disciplinary senior, and Zhesheng Huang, an Agricultural & Biological Engineering sophomore.

To meet the growing market demand for personal wipes and natural, plant-based cosmetics, the team created a disposable facial cleansing wipe, Soycology, that utilizes soy as the primary cleansing agent, moisturizer, and preservative. Soycology is fully compostable and biodegradable, and the cleaning agent contains 62% soy product with milk included (or 25% soy extracts, if the water in the milk is excluded). The cleansing solution consists of an emulsion comprised of purified water and soybean oil and milk. This simple combination results in an effective facial wipe that cleanses and moisturizes, all without the addition of extra ingredients.

Faculty advisors were Dr. Chad Laux, Technology Leadership & Innovation, and Dr. Chris McEvoy, Entrepreneurship.

Learn more about the Purdue University Student Soybean Product Innovation Competition at https://engineering.purdue.edu/ABE/academics/competitions.

Photos by Michelle Creech, Program Manager, Purdue Student Soybean Innovation Competition.