A Nigerian scientist, Dr Festus Ifeanyi Anagwu, who hails from Ihembosi in Anambra State, has achieved a remarkable breakthrough in high-performance polymer research, uncovering a scientific behaviour never before reported in his field.
Dr Anagwu, who earned his Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Anambra State University, Uli (now Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University), and a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, made the discovery while working on an EU-sponsored project at Cranfield University in the United Kingdom, alongside his colleagues Daniel Preston and Alex Skordos, British and Greek, respectively.
The new finding, published in the journal Polymer, reveals an anomalous behaviour in vitrimers, a class of recyclable engineering materials that combine the environmental resistance of thermosets with the recyclability of thermoplastics. These materials are being developed globally for advanced applications in aviation, defence, space, marine systems, energy technologies and oil-and-gas infrastructure.
Unlike thermosetting polymers, which suddenly gel and stop flowing during curing, the vitrimer studied by Dr Anagwu behaves differently. Instead of “gelling,” it enters a stable viscosity plateau, allowing the material to continue flowing smoothly during processing for a longer time and enabling processing at lower temperatures than conventional thermosets.
Dr Anagwu describes this newly observed phenomenon as the “suppression of gelation,” caused by rapid internal bond rearrangements within the material’s molecular network. This was not known to scientists before the publication by Dr Anagwu.
The discovery is important because it changes scientists’ understanding of vitrimer processing and offers industries clearer guidance for designing lighter, stronger and recyclable composite components for high-performance applications.
The research was originally supported by the Federal Government of Nigeria through the TETFund Scholarship, and later furthered by the European Union’s PLEIADES Project, which focuses on next-generation materials for the aviation and aerospace sectors. The PLEIADES consortium took to LinkedIn and its official website to announce the important finding by Dr Anagwu and his co-authors. It is important to highlight that Dr Anagwu is the first and corresponding author of this discovery.
Dr Anagwu’s achievement highlights the growing impact of Nigerian researchers on global science and offers inspiration to young Nigerians aspiring to careers in engineering, materials science and advanced technology.
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