Robert Lochhead Honored with Chemical Pioneer Award

Long-time cosmetic industry expert Robert Y. Lochhead has received the American Institute of Chemists’ Chemical Pioneer Award. He was presented with the honor at the Chemical Heritage Foundation in Philadelphia on April 13. Lochhead was recognized for his accomplishments in the field of polymer science and engineering. He has decades of accomplishments, but his most recent work includes new dispersants and absorbents to treat oil spills. In other areas, he and his team is continuing research on polymer-surfactant coacervates—that’s what makes 2-in-1 shampoos work and it is called the “Lochhead Effect.” He is also planning to work on nanostructured “smart” surfaces—”if our most recent proposal is funded,” he added.

Despite his many personal accomplishments, Lochhead noted that his proudest achievements revolve around his students, several of whom went on to receive their PhD and post-doctorate work.

“Of course, I am proud of my family,” noted Lochhead. “It is wonderful to go out with my wife when a people comes up to her and thank her for getting them through math—and that happens a lot. My wife was (and still is) an excellent instructor and has the patience of a saint. I am also very, very proud of my daughters—one is the manager of supply chain logistics finance for Quaker and the other was the chief scientist on the research vessel that sailed from Bermuda,” he said.

Lochhead’s industrial career spanned 25 years with stints at some of the industry’s biggest names—Unilever and BFGoodrich—all before he took on his best-known post at the helm of one of the most significant US programs in polymer science at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Having joined USM as an associate professor in 1990, he is currently director of the School of Polymers and High Performance Materials. In addition, Lochhead served as president of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists (SCC) in 1994 and 2010 and president of the International Association of Formulation Chemists in 2000. He was the 2000 recipient of the Maison G. De Navarre Medal; the highest honor in the Arts and Sciences of Cosmetics, and also the SCC National Merit Award, 2006.Lochhead also serves on the International Nomenclature for Cosmetic Ingredients Committee.

The author of approximately 300 scientific papers, Lochhead has conducted a monumental amount of work in the field of polymer/surfactant interactions. In fact, Lochhead has played a role in the development of some of the marketplace’s best-known product forms. For example, he developed a rheology modifier for the stabilization of antidandruff and silicone conditioning shampoos. He was named an inventor in US Patents 5,820,695 and 6,007,769 for precise nanostructured liquid crystals used in Liquid Drano that were invented jointly at USM and SC Johnson Wax. He also managed the team that developed the polymeric binder and rheology modifier for Crest toothpaste and invented polymeric emulsifiers (acrylates/C10-C30 alkyl acrylate crosspolymer)—a new class of compounds that made possible skin lotions for sensitive skin and agricultural sprays. He also led the team that developed poly (acrylic acid) thickeners for hypochlorite bleach with the desired chemical resistance and rheological profile, which made possible the now familiar liquid gel automatic dishwash products.