Christopher N Bowman

Biography

Professor Christopher N. Bowman is currently the James and Catherine Patten Endowed Chair and a Distinguished Professor of the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University of Colorado with additional appointments in the the Materials Science and Engineering Program, the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and the Dental School. He received his B.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University in 1988 and 1991, respectively. After receiving his Ph.D., he began his academic career at the University of Colorado in January of 1992.

As a faculty member Professor Bowman has built a program focused on the fundamentals and applications of crosslinked polymers including covalent adaptable networks (CANs) formed via photopolymerizations and click reactions. His research focuses on the design and development of new polymer structures and understanding and translating those developments into practical improvements in material performance, particularly for smart, responsive polymer materials.  In particular, his research involves the:

• Understanding and implementing photopolymerization reactions and understanding the interactions of light with matter,

• Development and implementation of thiol-X and CuAAC Click Chemistries as polymerization and polymer modification reactions,

• Design, understanding and implementation of dynamic covalent chemistry in polymer networks to form CANs,and

• Synthesis of novel monomers and employing them to achieve polymer properties and behavior not possible through conventional monomers and polymerizations.

RSC affiliations

• Editorial board, Polymer Chemistry