Isao Noda Explained

Isao Noda (born January 29, 1951, in Tokyo, Japan) is a chemical engineer whose research has focused on polymer science and spectroscopy. He holds ninety patents granted in the United States and the EU, has published over three hundred articles, co-authored three books, and received a number of industry-wide awards and recognition for his contributions to his fields of research.^[1]

Education

Noda moved to the United States in 1969 to attend Columbia University in the City of New York, where he graduated in 1974 with a B.S. degree in chemical engineering. He subsequently received his M.S. in bioengineering (1976), as well as M. Phil (1978) and Ph.D. (1979) in chemical engineering from Columbia. In 1997, he received a D.Sc degree in chemistry from the University of Tokyo.

Career

In 1978, Noda joined Procter & Gamble, where he became an authority in the field of polymer science,^[2] specializing in a type of biopolymer, polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA). Noda developed medium-chain-length branched polyhydroxyalkanoates (mcl-PHA).^[3] The most promising PHA product developed during this time was trademarked as Nodax.^[4] After retiring from Procter & Gamble in 2012, he accepted a position as adjunct professor at the University of Delaware, where, as of 2014, he continues to teach and research in the areas of polymer science and spectroscopy.

Noda developed a novel class of bio-based biodegradable plastics and received multiple awards for his development of two-dimensional infrared (2D IR) correlation spectroscopy.^[5] In February 2013, he became Senior Vice President of Innovation at Meredian Holdings Group Inc., which recently announced the start up of the world's largest production facility for mcl-PHAs.^[6]

Selected awards

• 1991 – William F. Meggers Award from the Society for Applied Spectroscopy presented at 19th Annual Meeting of the Federation of Analytical Chemistry and Spectroscopy Societies, Anaheim, CA, October 8, 1991.^[2]
• 2002 – Williams-Wright Award from the Coblentz Society presented at Pittsburgh Conference (Pittcon 2002), New Orleans, LA, March 19, 2002.^[2]
• 2005 – Cincinnati Chemist of the Year Award from the Cincinnati Section of the American Chemical Society, Cincinnati, OH, February 16, 2005.^[7]
• 2008 – International Academic Cooperation and Exchange Medal from Chinese Chemical Society and Chinese Optical Society presented at 15th National Conference on Molecular Spectroscopy, Beijing, China, October 19, 2008.^[2]
• 2009 – Gold Medal from the New York Section of the Society for Applied Spectroscopy presented at Eastern Analytical Symposium and Exposition, Somerset, NJ, November 18, 2009.^[2]
• 2011 – Bomem-Michelson Award from the Coblentz Society presented at Pittcon 2011, Atlanta GA, March 15, 2011.^[2]
• 2011 – Ellis R. Lippincott Award from the Optical Society of America, the Coblentz Society, and the Society for Applied Spectroscopy presented at FACSS 2011, Reno, NC, October 5, 2011.^[8]

Books

• I. Noda and D. N. Rubingh, Eds., Polymer Solutions, Blends, and Interfaces (Proc. Procter & Gamble UERP Symp.), Elsevier: New York, 1992.
• Y. Ozaki and I. Noda, Eds. Two-Dimensional Correlation Spectroscopy, AIP Conference Proceedings 503, AIP: Melville, 2000.
• I. Noda and Y. Ozaki, Two-Dimensional Correlation Spectroscopy — Applications in Vibrational and Optical Spectroscopy, Wiley: Chichester, UK, 2004.

External links

• Plastics Today interview
• Isao Noda Selected Readings HighBeam Research

Notes and References

1. Web site: Meredian Holdings Group – Meet the Executive Team. Meredian Holdings Group. 4 December 2014.
2. Web site: Bomem–Michaelson Award: Isao Noda . Spectroscopy Europe . 2014-12-04.
3. Biodegradable plastic under commercial development . Medical Textiles . July 1, 2002 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150329055725/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-88268753.html . dead . March 29, 2015 . 2014-12-04.
4. Developmental 'Reactive Pellets' For Making Bio-Polyester . Plastics Technology . December 2008 . 2014-12-04.
5. News Spectrum . Spectroscopy . 1 January 2011 . 26 . 1 . 2014-12-04.
6. Meredian Starts Up World's Largest PHA Biopolymer Plant . Plastics Technology . December 2012 . 2014-12-04.
7. Cintacs. 2005 Cincinnati Chemist of the Year. Cincinnati Section of the American Chemical Society. 4 December 2014.
8. Web site: Dr. Isao Noda Receives the Ellis R. Lippincott Award . Procter & Gamble . 4 December 2014.