University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 25 (Conclusion)

This will serve as the defacto conclusion to the “U. Akron/Dr. Joseph P. Kennedy Expose” blog series for the time being.  Should I happen across more incidences of blatant examples of stolen inventions or falsified research by “Kennedy” I will publish them at a future date under the same series title.  At this moment I want to reiterate the main purpose behind this seriesScience is (ideally) based on facts and not lies.  When an individual operates under false names and uses his position not only to disseminate false research but also to rob people of their inventions it is our responsibility as scientists to take a firm stand and expose them for who they are.  In this manner we preserve the integrity of our field of endeavor!  Unfortunately not long after leaving U. Akron I discovered that many people as well as companies have been injured as a result of this person and the amount of damage done by this individual was only magnified by the deafening silence of the very people that “Kennedy” had harmed.  It is the opinion of this author that it will take many years to undo the damage caused by this person and to properly vet the chemical literature in regards to the validity of what has been published.  Another case in point is that when professors, who actively engage in questionable and in many instances illegal activities like “Kennedy” has (e.g., falsification of accident report forms), do not suffer any consequences it creates an environment that engenders further crimes.  I would like to end this blog series with a list of other people/institutions who stonewalled my investigation and are actively involved in a cover-up.

Bela Ivan:  This person is a longtime collaborator of “Kennedy”.  I asked him point blank, after receiving an invitation from him to attend a conference on living polymerization (see below), as to what the true identity of “Kennedy” is.  Dr. Ivan refuses to answer this question (his contact information is below).  It is interesting to note that I had very early on contacted the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (of which Ivan is a member) with similar requests and they too refused to return correspondence!  So is it little surprise that Dr. Ivan is a member of this organization as well?

Prof. Bela Ivan, ivan.bela@tkk.mta.hu

Bela Ivan Invitation

McMaster University:  I attempted (only about 15 times) to verify that “Kennedy” had attended this institution as a post-doctoral student.  Correspondence was sent to all manner of people including the president (see contact information below) of the “University”.  Although I did receive confirmation from numerous people at McMaster that they had received my requests none were willing to provide assistance.  As hard as it is to believe, this school would not even to confirm that “Kennedy” had served as a post-doc and furthermore would not comment as to what alias he had used.  From a literature search1 I was finally able to determine that he was using the name “Joseph P. Kennedy” while at this school.  It would be of great interest if “Kennedy” had entered Canada using falsified documentation from Vienna or if he somehow legally changed his name while residing there.

Patrick Deane, president@mcmaster.ca

David S. Wilkinson, provost@mcmaster.ca

Sorbonne University (Paris):  This is one of the few places that actually tried to help me; however, all information on post-doctoral students who attended this school is supposedly on file in government archives and records pertaining to “Kennedy” proved impossible to find (especially due to my lack of fluency in French).  No publications bearing any of “Kennedy’s” aliases were discovered during the period he claims to have attended here!

A number of final questions still stick out in my mind.  How is it that a person who is trained in biochemistry somehow becomes sought after in the polymer field?  It is interesting to note that “Kennedy’s” first employer is none other than Hoechst Celanese, the largest member of the infamous conglomerate (and company directly responsible for the rise of Hitler) I.G. FarbenCould my assumptions that there were ties with this nefarious group (i.e., Nazis) be correct after all?  IF “KENNEDY’S” FATHER WAS INDEED KILLED BY THE NAZIS THEN WHY WOULD HIS FIRST JOB BE AT A GERMAN COMPANY THAT WAS VITAL TO HITLER OBTAINING POWER!!!!  It could obviously be a coincidence; however, I find it interesting that a “Kennedy’s” protégé, and replacement at U. Akron, also has the same background (i.e., biochemistry degree)It is unfortunate that I have uncovered yet more instances of falsified research, now with her (i.e. “Kennedy’s U. Akron protégé) name as a coauthor

References

(1) Bickis, I. J.; Kennedy, J. P.; Quastel, J. H. Phenylalanine Inhibition of Tyrosine Metabolism in the Liver Nature 1957, 179, 1127-1126.

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 24 (Cover-up by Cleveland Plain Dealer and Akron Beacon Journal)

Not long after I began my expose series on Dr “Joseph P. Kennedy” and the various criminal shenanigans going on at The University of Akron I contacted the Cleveland “Plain Dealer”.*  Specifically I went to the editor of this paper as well as a Mr. Thomas Ott who had written a science related article.  Despite repeated emails, the former refused to return correspondence.  I was able to get acknowledgement from the latter who seemed somewhat interested at first; however, as time progressed I was unable to generate a response from anyone at this paper.

Meanwhile, as I began to dig further into the enigma of “Kennedy” I began to uncover inconvenient truths.  During this research I stumbled across two blog articles (“Joseph Kennedy, Akron’s King of Polymers, proves inventors are young at heart” and “Joseph P. Kennedy, Ph.D.”) written by “journalists” at the “Plain Dealer”.  What was most troubling is the authors of these blogs (Robert L. Smith, email = rsmith@plaind.com; Terri Mrosko email = mrosko@cox.net) appear to be paid shills hired for the expressed purpose of generating propaganda to promote Dr. “Kennedy” as some sort of guru in the polymer field.**  I sent emails (please see below this paragraph) to each of the aforementioned shills but neither had the integrity to respond nor did either reply to any of the comments I left on their blog postings.  So much for getting the plain deal, from the “Plain Dealer”.

Smith and Mrosko email

Around the same time I began contacting the “Plain Dealer” I also sent numerous emails to the editor of the “Akron Beacon Journal”.  The same paid shill behavior was on display, no response.  For those of you who think it is a fluke I contacted Bob Downing (email = bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com) of this lower rag (i.e., lower than the “Plain Dealer”) on a story he ran on another topic.  Low and behold I immediately generated a response (see below) despite changing nothing in the way I had been sending inquiries!  When I informed Bob of the problems going on at U. Akron he too disappeared!!!

Downing email

In conclusion, both of the aforementioned papers appear to be on the payroll of either U. Akron or someone at this school.  They are not interested in disseminating the truth but instead are actively involved in covering it up.  It is disappointing but not at all shocking that both papers appear to have long since lost face when it comes to being trustworthy sources of news.***

A final comment that I need to make follows a discussion I had last week with a researcher at a big U.S. oil company.  I was told that a large chemical company in the U.S. recently got burned by “Kennedy” when they hired him and then tried to replicate his chemistry only to find out (oddly enough) that it doesn’t workOh, boo hoo I thought!  I was told a similar story in 2011 by one of the head R&D scientists at BASF, a man who would appear to have been recently screwed again (please see the “Recent News Section” of the website for the posting entitled “More Chicanery in the Cationic Polymerization Field?”)**** this time by a conglomerate of scientists (one being a “Kennedy” crony).  My message to the contact at the U.S. oil company (as well as to the reader) was as follows.  The cowardice of people in the polymer science community is at epidemic proportions.  It does no good either from a business perspective nor scientific standpoint to perpetuate “Kennedy” as some sort of stellar scientist.  Instead it is our duty to point out the falsehoods and other crimes this individual has been involved in.  If you are reading this and you haven’t in the very least told your colleagues about this, posted a comment on articles by these “newspapers”, contacted the American Chemical Society, informed the governor of Ohio, etc. then you too are just as guilty as “Kennedy” when it comes to scientific dishonesty…

* I have put the words “Plain Dealer” inside of quotation marks since it is obvious they are a dealer of bullshit and not truth.  The sad fact is that most people recognize they can no longer trust so-called establishment media any more.  No doubt this paper is a poor reflection of what was (most likely) a reliable source of news.  Likewise there is little question that their demise in turn mirrors the same decline seen in the once proud city of Cleveland in a state that could be more accurately described as the “heart of the rust-belt”.

** Mrosko’s article is preceded by the wordage “sponsored content”.  It would be interesting to know exactly who the sponsor was.  Could it be that the tax payer got hosed again to promote this fraud, Dr. “Joseph P. Kennedy”?  Or maybe The University of Akron paid this newspaper to shill for them?  One thing is for sure, neither Mrosko nor Smith have an ounce of integrity.

*** In the next blog posting we will look at a Canadian “university” that is actively involved in covering up Dr. “Kennedy’s” past.  One has to ask, what is it about this person that is so important that this many different entities are scrambling to hide facts relating to him!

**** I will be reinvestigating the claims of these scientists yet again.  If these experiments fail as did my previous attempts to replicate this chemistry I will be calling them out publicly.

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 23 (Cover-up in Progress!)

It has been some months since the case of “Dr. Kennedy” was visited.  Following the last blog posting on this topic I attempted to dig up more information; however, a very funny thing occurred.  MY SOURCES ALL DRIED UP!  I won’t go into detail as to what I was searching for but will say the following appear to be true.

  1. No records exist to prove this person’s true identity.
  2. A massive cover-up of this person’s past is underway.
  3. This hiding of facts is not just limited to my sources in Hungary, but extends into the so-called “news” media as well as “universities”.
  4. The “news” media has engaged in spreading falsehoods that portray this individual in a favorable light and yet never did any sort of background check on him.

The information I was seeking in Hungary is supposedly easy to obtain.  So the reader will be quite interested to know that not long after I published the list of fictitious names (only about 5) that this person has operated under, in addition to disclosing the fact that his own biography contains important discrepancies, all of my sources in Hungary disappearedSince none of my sources in Hungary knew of my expose series it makes the cover-up that much more obvious.

Over the course of the next several blog postings I will be pointing out individuals/institutions in the U.S., France, and Canada who are all involved in the cover-up.  I realize that a large number of people worldwide are beginning to wake up to what this person is really about.  I request that you (the reader) begin to put pressure on these institutions including U. Akron and the “state” of Ohio and demand not only an investigation but punishment.*

One last thing I will say is the following.  Through various methods I have found that this person, who refers to himself as “Dr. Joseph P. Kennedy”, has earned the disdain of the majority of students who worked for him.  It is quite amusing to the author of this blog that these individuals** (many who are well-known in the cationic polymerization field) don’t have a single good thing to say about this individual…

* U. Akron alumni need to withhold donations to this institution.  This individual needs to be stripped of rewards for inventions he supposedly made that are most likely the fruits of the minds of his students and should be forced to repay the bulk of his previous wages/pension.

** For the sake of these people I will not mention their names; however, I will point out their complete lack of courage and integrity; a fact which most of them will take to their graves.  The time to speak out is now; otherwise, history will record you in a most unfavorable light.  One other thing I will point out (for the curious reader) is the following.  Through numerous contacts in the polymer field I have discovered that no less than two other “luminaries” in the polymer science field are greatly hated by their students.  Interestingly enough, large gatherings of these students at birthday celebrations held in honor for these great professors are nothing more than hate fests for their students who spend the bulk of their time bad-mouthing their former guru advisor!

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 22

Another Invention Stolen by “Kennedy”

Before we get to the interesting topic of Dr. “Kennedy’s” name and his history we should explore at least one more instance of where he had stolen an invention from other scientists.  As I’ve mentioned before, all instances of where “Kennedy” has stolen inventions, with the exception of those involving myself and P.V. Kurian, were discovered by accident during reviews of the chemical literature.  Since I conduct quite a bit of work in this field do not be surprised if in the not too distant future I discover more instances of this behavior (which I will post).  Now to our final example of stolen inventions by “Kennedy”.

Early in “Kennedy’s” Esso Corp. (i.e., Exxon Mobil) career two patents were issued to him involving the use of dialkylaluminum halides in conjunction with halogens for the polymerization of isobutene.1,2  As it so happens, this particular initiator system had previously been the focus of a great deal of research by scientists at SNAM Progetti S.P.A., again for the polymerization of isobutene.3-9  Despite the fact that the Italian researchers not only published extensively on this system but also had patented it first, “Kennedy” inexplicably (or is it implausibly) not only reinvents the same initiator system but is also granted patents covering it no less than three years following the issuance of the original SNAM Progetti patent!  It is interesting to note that “Kennedy” further published on this system while at U. Akron despite the fact that its origins are well traced to other inventors.10

The Enigma of “Kennedy’s” True Identity and History

I have to preface this section of the current blog posting with the following.  At this juncture I do not know the true identity of “Dr. J.P. Kennedy.”  Nor can I prove or disprove the story he provides of his background.  What I can say is he has operated under no less than four different aliases over the past 70 years and there appear to be important discrepancies between the story he tells and what available records detailAnother thing I can say without a doubt is that no one, including his former students and his employers, can provide concrete evidence as to his true identity or history and my guess is that “Dr. Kennedy” also cannot furnish credentials that prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is who he claims to be!

It first makes sense to refer to a Cleveland Plain Dealer* article entitled “Joseph Kennedy, Akron’s King of Polymers, proves inventors are young at heart”11 and see what “Kennedy” has to say concerning his true identity and past.  According to this article “Kennedy’s” real name is “Joseph Kenedi”.11  “Kennedy” claims to have been born on July 7th, 1928 to a middle class family.12 (see below)  Furthermore, “Kennedy” claims to have attended college in Hungary up to 1948 at which he left (at age 19) because the communists forced him out.11  He makes mention that the Nazis killed his father and that the Russians imprisoned his mother.11  It was then that he claims to have fled to Vienna to finish a college degree.11  Now we need to see what the records actually reveal in terms of aliases and the time line “Kennedy” claims.

Kennedy 75th Birthday Invitation

I first attempted to locate records on “Kennedy” by approaching Efraim Zuroff of the Simon Wiesenthal Center for help.  Zuroff was incapable of finding anything! So I began my own investigation starting at the University of Vienna where “Kennedy” claims to have studied.11  Indeed, I did find that a “Josef Paul Kenedy” was awarded a degree (Contributing to the Knowledge of the Phosphate Metabolism of Yeast) here during 1954, following his supposed expulsion from Hungary. (see below).  It is unknown how he was able to pay for his schooling, food, and lodging at this time (stipend?) but we should note the change in his name.  It also seems unlikely that he entered school in 1948 as this would mean six years were spent in a Ph.D. program and it would seem more likely he began studies either mid-late 1949 or in 1950.  This latter observation will make sense to the reader when they see the discrepancy between school records in Hungary and the story told by “Kennedy” to the Plain Dealer.

Josef Paul Kenedy U Vienna pt 1

Josef Paul Kenedy U Vienna pt 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Having discovered the information contained in the previous paragraph I attempted to travel back in time and figure out which college “Kennedy” had attended in Hungary prior to moving to Vienna.  According to “Kennedy” it was “The University of Budapest” which he was expelled from in 1948.11  Of schools that went by that name, both Corvinus University of Budapest and Budapest University of Technology and Economics told me that no one under the “Kennedy” name (or anything remotely similar) attended school there during the time frame 1945-1950. (see below).  I then discovered that Eötvös Loránd University (formerly Pázmany Péter University) did have records of a student who went by two aliases (“Joseph Kenedi” and “Józef Pál Kenedy”) during the period 1946-1949. (see below)  One interesting fact here is that “Kennedy” had already been operating under two names even during this early stage of his life!  The other interesting point is he finished both semesters in 1948, and thus his expulsion from school would appear to have occurred in the year of 1949 making him 20 years of age.  One more important fact becomes apparent in the response given to me by this college.  That is, from the year 1949 to 1952 this school has no records on its chemistry students and as such it is impossible to determine what actually happened to “Joseph Kenedi” or “Józef Pál Kenedy”.  As the reader can see, “Kennedy” not only supplies dates that are off by one year but he also doesn’t mention his other alias in Hungary.

U Corvinus Kennedy

Budapest University of Technology and Economics Kennedy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kennedy Record Eostvos Lorand Univ

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One thing I find very unusual is that in this particular news article11 “Kennedy” states the Nazis killed his father and yet the Russians (who only ravaged Germany and Hungary due to their hatred of the Nazis) put his mother in prison.  These two facts seem incompatible.  “Kennedy’s” continual explanation of being “too bourgeois” also does not seem to cut the mustard when it comes to rationalizing these two seemingly disparate events.  One has to question how “Kennedy” and his mother would have escaped execution by the Nazis, especially since the Nazis purged Hungary of what they deemed “undesirables” prior to the end of the war.  Another relevant question is how would “Kennedy” have attended college while his mother was imprisoned?  Yet another question is if “Kennedy’s” father was an enemy of the Nazis’ why would the Russians imprison his mother? Finally, why would “Kennedy” extol Stalin as not being a bad guy (see blog posting part 9 of this series) when the Russians imprisoned his mother?  It is interesting as a side note to point out that Joseph Stalin is also an alias.  Could “Kennedy’s” name changes be a veiled attempt to feign being “American born” just as Uncle Joe’s was to portray himself as being steel (stalin) like?  Did “Kennedy” steal this identity from someone else prior to leaving Hungary?

There are four final things I wish to touch on before reaching the conclusions section.  One is, having spent many hours in “Kennedy’s” office at U. Akron I recall the honorary diploma he received being on prominent display just above the computer were he use to collect hardcopies of the ideas of his students.  Although my memory of the name on it is quite vague I do seem to recall the name was listed as “Josephus Pal Kenedi”.  If so, this would yet be a fifth alias!  It would be of interest for people who wish to investigate this matter further to determine if the name listed on this diploma matches up to one of the four aliases that are now recorded as having been used by this individual.  The second point is “Kennedy” has been recently touting himself as the “inventor” of block copolymers used in stents for arteries when the truth is he is only a co-inventor and not a sole inventor of such block copolymers.13,14  It is of interest to note that the initial patent13 is owned by Firestone and the author of this blog suspects that a similar occurrence to that involving Terry Hogan of Firestone may have occurred.**  A third point is that a cursory patent search of approximately 100 patents showed that “Kennedy” is only a sole inventor on less than 10 % of them!***  Finally, “Kennedy” is quick to state he is the author of multiple books, when in reality there are coauthors on all them but one and it is sad to think he cannot even give credit to these people.  Again, we see a track record of lies and deception being promulgated by this individual.

Conclusions

Throughout this expose series a large number of irrefutable facts have been presented that demonstrate the following.

1.      Dr. “Kennedy” has stolen numerous inventions from others.

2.      This same individual tried to perpetrate intellectual fraud via falsification of research data.

3.      Dr. “Kennedy” purposefully falsified accident report forms with U. Akron.

4.      Dr. “Kennedy” operated a dangerous laboratory environment.

5.      This person has had no less than four different aliases.

6.      University of Akron employees and newspapers from Cleveland and Akron are complicit in a cover up of these facts.

7.      No official documents appear to exist that would corroborate Dr. “Kennedy’s” history or prove his true identity.

When history is written it is the belief of the author of this blog series that Dr. “Kennedy” will be discovered to one of the biggest frauds that the polymer science field has ever witnessed and that U. Akron will have a serious black eye which will never heal!!!

* Before ending this blog series I want to make it clear that I have contacted all of the following (in many instances multiple times) and none have attempted to investigate “Kennedy” or take steps to punish him: U. Akron, The American Chemical Society, The National Science Foundation, The Attorney General of Ohio, The Hungarian Academy of Sciences, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, and The Akron Beacon Journal.

** The first of these patents deals only with diblock copolymers and not triblock copolymers.  The latter are the actual thermoplastic elastomers used in the stent application.  My point here is “Kennedy’s” initial foray into block copolymers seems to have come from Firestone and secondly the earliest report of tri-blocks in the patent literature has no less than two other inventors!  It is sad to think that such a simple concept as block copolymers couldn’t be solely devised by “Kennedy” as it was well established for anionic polymerization many years prior.

*** I may have a lot more to say about this in the not too distant future once I dig up some more important documents.  The revelations will most likely be quite damning to say the least.

References:

(1) Kennedy, J. P. Cationic Polymerization Catalyst U.S. Patent 4,029,866, 1977.

(2) Kennedy, J. P. Cationic Polymerization Catalyst U.S. Patent 4,081,590, 1978.

(3) Baccaredda, M.; Giusti, P.; Priola, A.; Cesca, S. Catalysts Suitable for use in the Polymerization of Unsaturated Compounds; The Polymerization Processes Employing such Catalysts and Products Obtained by the Processes GB Patent 1,362,295, 1974.

(4) Cesca, S.; Giusti, P.; Magagnini, P. L.; Priola, A. Studies on Polymerizations Initiated by Syncatalytic Systems Based on Aluminum Organic Compounds, 4 Macromol. Chem. Phys. 1975, 176, 2319-2337.

(5) Cesca, S.; Priola, A.; Bruzzone, M.; Ferraris, G.; Giusti, P. Studies on Polymerizations Initiated by Syncatalytic Systems Based on Aluminum Organic Compounds, 5 Macromol. Chem. Phys. 1975, 176, 2339-2358.

(6) Giusti, P.; Priola, A.; Magagnini, P. L.; Narducci, P. Studies on Polymerizations Initiated by Syncatalytic Systems Based on Aluminum Organic Compounds, 3 Macromol. Chem. Phys. 1975, 176, 2303-2317.

(7) Maina, M. D.; Cesca, S.; Giusti, P.; Ferraris, G.; Magagnini, P. L. Studies on Polymerizations Initiated by Syncatalytic Systems Based on Aluminum Organic Compounds, 6 Macromol. Chem. Phys. 1977, 178, 2223-2234.

(8) Priola, A.; Cesca, S.; Ferraris, G.; Maina, M. Studies on Polymerizations Initiated by Syncatalytic Systems Based on Aluminum Organic Compounds, 2 Macromol. Chem. Phys. 1975, 176, 2289-2302.

(9) Priola, A.; Ferraris, G.; Maina, M.; Giusti, P. Studies on Polymerizations Initiated by Syncatalytic Systems Based on Aluminum Organic Compounds, 1 Macromol. Chem. Phys. 1975, 176, 2271-2288.

(10) Kennedy, J. P.; Sivaram, S. Olefin Polymerization and Copolymerization with Alkylaluminum-Initiator Systems. VII. Initiation by Electrophilic Halogens J. Macromol. Sci., Part A-Chem. 1973, A7, 969-989.

(11) Smith, R. L. Joseph Kennedy, Akron’s King of Polymers, proves inventors are young at heart. The Plain Dealer, September 6, 2012.

(12) Peetz, R. Visions in Macromolecular Engineering. The Maurice Morton Institute of Polymer Science, U. Akron, June 2, 2003.

(13) Kennedy, J. P.; Melby, E. G. Diblock Copolymers and Process of Preparing Same U.S. Patent 3,994,993, 1976.

(14) Kennedy, J. P.; Smith, R. A.; Ross, L. R., Jr. Novel Telechelic Polymers, Block Copolymers and Processes for the Preparation Thereof U.S. Patent 4,276,394, 1981.

 

 

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 21

As I stated in the last blog, the current posting will contain another example of where “Kennedy” stole an invention made previously by a famous scientist.  Before getting to that particular case a little bit of digression is necessary to illustrate another “Kennedy” tactic.  That tactic is obscuring or in many cases simply omitting facts.  A prime example is work the “Kennedy” group did on the copolymerization of isobutene with β-pinene.  As it turns out, Emil Ott (of Hercules) first patented the copolymerization of isobutene with β-pinene where the solvent was ethyl chloride and the Lewis acids were BF3 and AlCl3.1  Much latter the “Kennedy” group reinvestigated copolymerization of these two monomers, the only difference being the use of EtAlCl2 and lower polymerization temperatures.2-5  In two of “Kennedy’s” books,2,5 the reader is led to believe that successful copolymerization of these two monomers had not been effected until “Kennedy” came upon the scene.  These two books appeared after a peer reviewed article3 and patent4 had been published.  The article itself is quite interesting to make note of since its title “Poly(isobutylene-co-β-Pinene) A New Sulfur Vulcanizable, Ozone Resistant Elastomer by Cationic Isomerization Copolymerization” is very significant as it is purposely worded to be misleadingThat is, this copolymer had already been disclosed almost 15 years prior to “Kennedy’s” work!

Since the latter two documents were proofed by outsiders they make mention of Ott’s prior art disclosure1 of such copolymerizations; however, without such intervention “Kennedy” apparently thought to pull a fast one (in his books) and convince the reader that he invented the copolymer.  Another very interesting fact is that in all of the aforementioned “Kennedy” references2-5 “Kennedy” puts forth another falsehood.  “Kennedy’s” lie is that EtAlCl2 gives rise to azeotropic copolymerization whereas he claims other Lewis acids (e.g., AlCl3) do notA close look at “Kennedy’s” patent4 (e.g., Tables II & III) actually demonstrates that AlCl3 (i.e., the system originally described by Ott) not only gives rise to azeotropic copolymerization but that it does so at a much higher reaction temperature than “Kennedy’s” EtAlCl2 system!  These falsehoods were accidentally discovered when I was researching terpenic resins and were first disclosed in a book chapter6 that I coauthored on the subject.  So not only was one of “Kennedy’s” first inventions at U. Akron actually made by another researcher 15 years prior but “Kennedy” mislead people to believe this invention has actual benefit over Ott’s disclosure when in fact it is less beneficial because it is more energy intensive.  It is unknown the exact amount of money wasted by U. Akron on “Kennedy’s” inventions but the author of this blog believes it well exceeds $ 1 million.

As following blog postings will show, a repetitive pattern emerges when one scratches the surface of “Kennedy” patents.  This pattern is that much of what “Kennedy” has patented is prior art (i.e., someone else invented it and disclosed it prior to “Kennedy”)A prime example is work done in 1961 by Sinn, Winter, and Tirptiz.7  Most people in the polymer science community will recognize Sinn’s name since he and Kaminsky are credited with discovering that alkylaluminoxanes are useful activators for metallocenes and ushered in a new era (i.e., single site catalysis) in the polymer science field.  In the aforementioned Sinn, Winter, and Tirpitz paper these researchers describe the cationic polymerization of styrene by initiator systems consisting of dialkylaluminum halide + hydrohalogen acid and trialkylaluminum halide + hydrohalogen acidDespite this fact, some years latter “Kennedy” was able to patent these same initiator systems for cationic polymerization while at Esso Corp!8  Interestingly, “Kennedy” comes clean about their true origin, not only in several journal articles9,10 but also in one of his books (the reader must go to the section on styrene to find this).2  Still, prior to this batch of “Kennedy” patents, “Kennedy” again mentions in both his paper and book that Russian researchers11 also previously described initiator systems based on dialkylaluminum halide + Brønsted acid for inducing cationic polymerization.  It is unknown how these “Kennedy” patents were allowed to issue when it is clear to even the most casual observer that previous researchers had already disclosed these initiator systems as being useful for effecting cationic polymerization.  As we will see in other blog postings, “Kennedy” continues this pattern; however, the most interesting topic of all is yet to come.*  That is, the mystery of “Kennedy’s” true identity and the conflicting story he provides surrounding his past…

* Please note that with the exception of my invention and that of P.V. Kurian all other instances involving “Kennedy’s” stealing of other people’s inventions and his obfuscation or complete omission of facts were inadvertently discovered during review of journal articles and/or the chemical patent literature.  It is the belief of the author of this blog that the total number of inventions stolen by “Kennedy” is in the many tens of instances.

References:

(1) Ott, E. Terpene Resins U.S. Patent 2,373,706, 1945.

(2) Kennedy, J. P. Cationic Polymerization of Olefins: A Critical Inventory; John Wiley and Sons: New York, 1975; pp 99-100.

(3) Kennedy, J. P.; Chou, T. Poly(isobutylene-co-b-Pinene) a new Sulfur Vulcanizable, Ozone Resistant Elastomer by Cationic Isomerization Copolymerization Adv. Polym. Sci. 1976, 21, 1-39.

(4) Kennedy, J. P.; Chou, T. M. Process for the Preparation of Isobutylene/Beta-Pinene Copolymers U.S. Patent 3,923,759, 1975.

(5) Kennedy, J. P.; Marechal, E. Carbocationic Polymerization; John Wiley and Sons: New York, 1982; pp 1-510.

(6) Mathers, R. T.; Lewis, S. P. Monoterpenes as Polymerization Solvents and Monomers in Polymer Chemistry.; In Green Polymerization Methods: Renewable Starting Materials, Catalysis and Waste Reduction; Mathers, R. T., Meier, M. A. R., Eds.; Wiley-VCH: New York, 2011;  pp 91-128.

(7) Sinn, H. J.; Winter, H.; Tirpitz, W. V. Polymerisations- und Isomerisierungsaktivitat von Aluminiumtrialkyl, Alkylaluminiumhalogeniden und Ziegler-Mischkatalysatoren Makromolekulare Chemie 1961, 48, 59-71.

(8) Kennedy, J. P. Butyl Rubber Catalyst System Utilizing AlR2X with an HX Promoter U.S. Patent 3,349,065, 1967.

(9) Kennedy, J. P. Olefin Polymerizations and Copolymerizations with Aluminum Alkyl-Cocatalyst Systems. I. Co-catalysis with Bronsted Acid Systems J. Polym Sci., Part A-1 1968, 6, 3139-3150.

(10) Kennedy, J. P.; Gillham, J. K. Cationic Polymerization of Olefins with Alkylaluminum Initiators Adv. Polym. Sci. 1972, 10, 1-33.

(11) Tinyakova, E. I.; Zhuravleva, T. G.; Kurengina, T. M.; Kirikova, N. S.; Dolgoplosk, B. A. Dokl. Akad. Nauk 1962, 144, 592.

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 20

While working on a document several months ago I recalled “Kennedy” stating, during a seminar at U. Akron, that carbon dioxide could be used as a solvent for cationic polymerization.  Use of solid carbon dioxide as an internal refrigerant in cationic polymerization dates well into the earlier 1900s;1 however, application of supercritical CO2 is relatively new.*  During a literature search I stumbled across a familiar pattern, “Kennedy” published work on cationic polymerization in supercritical CO2 at the same time that another researcher, Professor Joseph DeSimone (UNC) did as well!2,3  I dug a little deeper and found out that DeSimone had indeed published his results several months earlier (April of 1994) than “Kennedy” (May of 1994)** but “Kennedy” somehow had filed patent applications before DeSimone did.4  When I contacted DeSimone to determine if he was the true inventor he not only indicated that he was but that “Kennedy” had stolen the idea from a lecture delivered by DeSimone at U. Akron which was followed up with a personal meeting with “Kennedy” that same day!!!  It would appear DeSimone informed “Kennedy” that he was conducting cationic polymerization in supercritical CO2 during this personal meeting.  Please refer to the following email exchange with DeSimone here Re_ cationic pzn in supercritical CO2 . 

I asked DeSimone if he would pursue this but he declined to do so.  As I told him, this gutless behavior is the root cause of the rampant intellectual dishonesty plaguing the field of science today but he still shrugged off his responsibility.  Apparently his defeat by “Kennedy” was too much of an ordeal for him to confront. 

Possibly one of the most disgusting aspects of “Kennedy’s” stealing of DeSimone’s invention is the fact that he makes the following statement in reference #3.  “Our exhaustive manual and computer-aided literature and patent search, including data-bases such as RAPRA, STN International, and CAS, failed to identify a single reference concerning C+Pzn in SC·CO2 that is at temperatures higher than Tc = 31.1 °C, the critical temperature of CO2.”  Another salient point to the reader is although I entered the “Kennedy” lab only four years following publication of “Kennedy’s” work in supercritical CO2 there was little evidence that he ever possessed the proper equipment to conduct the experimental work.  A very antiquated and poorly maintained Parr reactor (ca. 200 mL capacity) was present in the laboratory but its state of disrepair and appearance make the author of this blog question as to whether actual polymerizations were ever conducted in the “Kennedy” lab in supercritical CO2.

As we progress in chronicling inventions “Kennedy” has stolen from other scientists we will eventually come to a very interesting case involving a scientist whose name is well-known to those in the polymer field.  The reader won’t need to take my word for this but instead “Kennedy” himself acknowledges that he took this invention from this particular scientist…

* This is currently the most detailed current review*** of initiator systems for cationic polymerization although other materials are forthcoming.  It also contains the first public disclosure of “Kennedy’s” attempt to falsify research data.  Please note, I’m only referencing the first couple references in context to cationic polymerization in supercritical CO2 as disclosed by DeSimone and Kennedy.

** It should be pointed out that many of “Kennedy’s” coinciding publications of either stolen or copycatted work (i.e., almost identical) were routinely published in the periodical “Polymer Bulletin” which “Kennedy” served as founding editor.  Obviously, there is no conflict of interest there.  IT IS QUITE INTERESTING TO NOTE THE “KENNEDY” EVEN COPIES DESIMONE’S USE OF THE TERMINOLOGY “TUNED” AND THAT THIS WORD IS USED IN ALMOST IDENTICAL POSITIONS (IN REGARDS TO THE STANDARD OUTLINE OF JOURNAL ARTICLES) OF PAPERS AUTHORED BY THESE TWO RESEARCHERS {SEE REFERENCE 2 (BOTTOM OF THIRD PARAGRAPH, INTRODUCTION) AND REFERENCE 3 (BOTTOM THIRD PARAGRAPH, INTRODUCTION)}!!!

*** The review by Gandini and Cheradame5 is the most exhaustive but somewhat dated.

References:

(1) Lewis, S. P.; Mathers, R. T. Advances in Acid Mediated Polymerizations.; In Renewable Polymers, Synthesis, Technology and Processing; Vikas, M., Ed.; Wiley-VCH: New York, 2011;  pp 69-173.

(2) Clark, M. R.; DeSimone, J. M. Cationic Polymerizations in Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Polym. Prepr., Am. Chem. Soc. Div. Polym. Chem. 1994, 35,482-483.

(3) Pernecker, T.; Kennedy, J. P. Carbocationic polymerizations in supercritical carbon dioxide I. Exploratory experiments with isobutylene Polym. Bull. 1994, 32,537-543.

(4) Kennedy, J. P.; Pernecker, T. Carbocationic polymerizations in supercritical CO2 U.S. Patent 5,376,744, 1994.

(5) Gandini, A.; Cheradame, H. Cationic Polymerisation: Initiation Processes with Alkenyl Monomers. Adv. Polym. Sci. 1980, 34-35,1-284.

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 19

The following example is one involving “Kennedy’s” almost exact copycatting of another researcher’s work.  If one takes a close look at the research reported by “Kennedy” they can come to a very quick conclusion of what the standard modus operandi is.  That is, conducting work almost identical to that of other investigators and/or stealing the ideas of others.*  From the foregoing blog posts it is obvious that a third track used by this individual is to falsify research data.  In regards to this latter strategy I was told that a female American student of his (who graduated around the time I was dismissed by “Kennedy” for refusing to falsify data) had in fact falsified the majority of experiments used in her dissertation.**  Subsequent blog postings will provide specific examples of ideas stolen by “Kennedy” and the copycatting aspect will only be secondary in terms of importance.

Recent “Kennedy” Copycatting Example

The area of using perfluoroarylated Lewis acid (PFLA) based initiators has been one of intense activity, especially during the 1990s up until recently.1-46  One of the early innovators in this field is Dr. Tim Shaffer of Exxon Mobil who developed a number of PFLA based initiator systems for the polymerization of isobutene (IB).  One of the initiator systems Shaffer devised was based upon the salt [Et3Si]+[B(C6F5)4] which is formed by hydride abstraction from a silane (i.e., Et3SiH) by [Ph3C]+[B(C6F5)4].40,42,43  This chemistry is well known (i.e., the driving force is formation of a stronger C-H bond from a weaker Si-H bond); however, it wasn’t until recently that such salts were shown to typically contain coordinated Et3SiH.47  Regardless, this system devised by Shaffer is one of very few initiator systems based on silanes for initiation of cationic polymerization.  Shortly after Shaffer’s disclosures (almost within the exact time frame) “Kennedy” reports an identical initiator system (i.e.,[Et3Si]+[B(C6F5)4]);15,16,36 however, in this instance [Et3Si]+[B(C6F5)4] is generated in situ via the metathesis reaction between Li[B(C6F5)4] and Et3SiCl (in this case the triethylsilylium tetrakis(pentafluorophenyborate) salt is formed along with LiCl)!!!  I can assure you that Zhengjie Pi (aka, Jack) was intimately involved in devising this system.***  Even those readers who are not trained chemists will realize the chemical identity of the initiator system reported by “Kennedy” is identical to that originally invented by Shaffer and only differ slightly in the way that the ion pair is generated.  The likelihood of “Kennedy” developing an almost identical initiator system independently and at the same time as Shaffer is about the same as the reader winning the Powerball lotto jackpot, especially given the scarcity of Si based initiator systems for cationic polymerization.****

Footnotes 

* In later blog postings we are going to see that “Kennedy” not only has a habit of stealing ideas, but also has a habit of stealing the names of other people!

** Since this was conveyed to me by another “Kennedy” student I can only treat this as hearsay at the time of this writing.

*** It is believed that “Kennedy” had gained foreknowledge of Shaffer’s chemistry and tasked Jack Pi to develop a competing route that could be patented.   As I have mentioned several times earlier in this blog series, Jack was one of the few skilled chemists in the “Kennedy” group at that time and he was the only one who was specifically trained in silicon chemistry.  It is unknown if U. Akron filed patent applications on the copycatted invention made by “Kennedy”.  The author of this blog estimates that U. Akron has spent > $1×106 on “Kennedy’s” patents!

**** The author of this blog has invented two of the ≈ 5-6 known (i.e., reported) Si based initiator systems.  Only one of these has the author of this blog reported which is patent pending and published.48,49

References 

(1) Baird, M. C. Polymerization of iso-butylene. US Patent 5448001, 1995.

(2) Baird, M. C. Carbocationic Alkene Polymerizations Initiated by Organotransition Metal Complexes: An Alternative, Unusual Role for Soluble Ziegler-Natta Catalysts. Chem. Rev. 2000, 100,1471-1478.

(3) Barsan, F.; Karan, A. R.; Parent, M. A.; Baird, M. C. Polymerization of Isobutylene and the Copolymerization of Isobutylene and Isoprene Initiated by the Metallocene Derivative Cp*TiMe2(µ-Me)B(C6F5)3. Macromolecules 1998, 31,8439-8447.

(4) Bochmann, M.; Dawson, D. M. The Aluminocenium Cation [AI(C5H5)2]+: A Highly Effective Initiator for the Cationic Polymerization of Isobutene. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 1996, 35,2226-2228.

(5) Bochmann, M.; Garratt, S. Process for production of butyl rubber. US Patent 7041760, 2006.

(6) Bohnenpoll, M.; Ismeier, J.; Nuyken, O.; Vierle, M.; Schon, D. K.; Kuhn, F. Process for the production of highly reactive polyisobutenes. US Patent 7291758, 2007.

(7) Burns, C. T.; Shapiro, P. J.; Budzelaar, P. H. M.; Willett, R.; Vij, A. Bis(permethylcyclopentadienyl)aluminum Compounds: Precursors to [Cp*2Al]+ but Not to Cp*3Al. Organometallics 2000, 19,3361-3367.

(8) Carr, A. G.; Dawson, D. M.; Bochmann, M. Zirconocenes as Initiators for Carbocationic Isobutene Homo- and Copolymerizations. Macromolecules 1998, 31,2035-2040.

(9) Carr, A. G.; Dawson, D. M.; Bochmann, M. The [Zr(N{SiMe3}2)3]+cation as a novel initiator for carbocationic isobutene homo- and isobutene/isoprene co-polymerisations. Macromol. Rapid Commun. 1998, 19,205-207.

(10) Collins, S.; Piers, W. E.; Lewis, S. P. Polymerization of i-butane in hydrocarbon media using bis(borane) co-initiators. US Patent 7196149, 2007.

(11) Garratt, S.; Carr, A. G.; Langstein, G.; Bochmann, M. Isobutene Polymerization and Isobutene-Isoprene Copolymerization Catalyzed by Cationic Zirconocene Hydride Complexes. Macromolecules 2003, 36,4276-4287.

(12) Garratt, S.; Guerrero, A.; Hughes, D. L.; Bochmann, M. Arylzinc Complexes as New Initiator Systems for the Production of Isobutene Copolymers with High Isoprene Content. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2004, 43,2166-2169.

(13) Hijazi, A. K.; Yeong, H. Y.; Zhang, Y.; Herdtweck, E.; Nuyken, O.; Kühn, F. E. Isobutene Polymerization Using [CuII(NCMe)6]2+ with Non-Coordinating Anions as Catalysts. Macromol. Rapid Commun. 2007, 28,670-675.

(14) Huber, M.; Kurek, A.; Krossing, I.; Mulhaupt, R.; Schnockel, H. [AlCp2]+: Structure, Properties and Isobutene Polymerization. Z. Anorg. Allg. Chem. 2009, 635,1787-1793.

(15) Jacob, S.; Pi, Z.; Kennedy, J. P. Cationic polymerizations at elevated temperatures by novel initiating systems having weakly coordinating counteranions 2. Isobutylene/isoprene copolymerizations. Polym. Bull. 1998, 41,503-510.

(16) Jacob, S.; Pi, Z.; Kennedy, J. P. Highest molecular weight polyisobutylenes and isobutylene copolymers by initiating systems having weakly coordinating counteranions. Polym. Mater. Sci. Eng. 1999, 80,495.

(17) Jianfang, C.; Lewis, S. P.; Kennedy, J. P.; Collins, S. Isobutene Polymerization Using Chelating Diboranes: Reactions of a Hindered Pyridine with Carbocations Bearing α-Protons. Macromolecules 2007, 40,7421-7424.

(18) Kennedy, J. P.; Collins, S.; Lewis, S. P. Polymerization of i-butene in hydrocarbon media using bis(borane) co-initiators. US Patent 7,202,317, 2007.

(19) Kostjuk, S. V.; Ganachaud, F. Cationic Polymerization of Styrene in Solution and Aqueous Suspension Using B(C6F5)3 as a Water-Tolerant Lewis Acid. Macromolecules 2006, 39,3110-3113.

(20) Kostjuk, S. V.; Ouardad, S.; Peruch, F.; Deffieux., A.; Absalon, C.; Puskas, J. E.; Ganachaud, F. Carbocationic Polymerization of Isoprene Co-initiated by B(C6F5)3: An Alternative Route toward Natural Rubber Polymer Analogues? Macromolecules 2011, 44,1372-1384.

(21) Kostjuk, S. V.; Radchenko, A. V.; Ganachaud, F. Controlled/Living Cationic Polymerization of p-Methoxystyrene in Solution and Aqueous Dispersion Using Tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane as a Lewis Acid: Acetonitrile Does the Job. Macromolecules 2007, 40,482-490.

(22) Kumar, K. R.; Hall, C.; Penciu, A.; Drewitt, M. J.; Mcinenly, P. J.; Baird, M. C. Isobutene Polymerization Initiated by [CP*TiMe2]+ in the Presence of a Series of Novel, Weakly Coordinating Counteranions. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2002, 40,3302-3311.

(23) Kumar, K. R.; Penciu, A.; Drewitt, M. J.; Baird, M. C. Isobutene–isoprene copolymerization initiated by [Cp*MMe2][(n-C18H37E)B(C6F5)3] (M=Ti, Hf; E=O, S) and related compounds. J. Organomet. Chem. 2004, 689,2900-2904.

(24) Langstein, G.; Bochmann, M.; Dawson, D. M. Process for the production of polyisoolefins by means of novel metallocene type initiator systems. US Patent 5703182, 1997.

(25) Langstein, G.; Bochmann, M.; Dawson, D. M.; Carr, A. G.; Commander, R. Controlled preparation of polyisoolefins at high temperatures using a new initiator system based on titanium, zirconium and hafnium cyclopentadienyl hydrides and a boron compound. DE Patent 19836663 A1, 2000.

(26) Lee, S.-J.; Shapiro, P. J.; Twamley, B. Synthesis and Characterization of [(C5Me4H)2Al]+, an Initiator for the Polymerization of Isobutene. X-ray Crystal Structures of [(C5Me4H)2Al(µ-Cl)]2 and [(C5Me4H)2Al][B(C6F5)4]. Organometallics 2006, 25,5582-5586.

(27) Lewis, S. P.Project 1. Synthesis of PIB-Silsesquioxane Stars via The Sol-Gel Process  Project 2. Solution and Aqueous Suspension/Emulsion Polymerization of Isobutylene Coinitiated by 1,2-C6F4[B(C6F5)2]2., Ph.D. Thesis, The Univ. of Akron, Diss. Abstr. Int. 2004, vol. 65, p. 770. Cf: Chem. Abs. 2004, vol. 143, p. 173195., 2004.

(28) Lewis, S. P. Heterogeneous Perfluoroaryl Substituted Lewis Acid Catalysts for Cationic Polymerizations. US Patent 8283427, 2012.

(29) Lewis, S. P.; Henderson, L.; Parvez, M. R.; Piers, W. E.; Collins, S. Aqueous Suspension Polymerization of Isobutene Initiated by 1,2-C6F4[B(C6F5)2]2. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2005, 127,46-47.

(30) Lewis, S. P.; Jianfang, C.; Collins, S.; Sciarone, T. J. J.; Henderson, L. D.; Fan, C.; Parvez, M.; Piers, W. E. Isobutene Polymerization Using Chelating Diboranes: Polymerization in Aqueous Suspension and Hydrocarbon Solution. Organometallics 2009, 28,249-263.

(31) Lewis, S. P.; Piers, W. E.; Taylor, N.; Collins, S. Isobutene Polymerization Using a Chelating Diborane Co-Initiator. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2003, 125,14686-14687.

(32) Li, Y.; Voon, L. T.; Yeong, H. Y.; Hijazi, A. K.; Radhakrishnan, N.; Köhler, K.; Voit, B.; Nuyken, O.; Kühn, F. E. Solvent-Ligated Copper(II) Complexes for the Homopolymerization of 2-Methylpropene. Chem. Eur. J. 2008, 14,7997-8003.

(33) Lin, M.; Baird, M. C. Benzyl group abstraction from Ti(CH2Ph)4 by B(C6F5)3 and [Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] to form Ziegler–Natta and carbocationic alkene polymerization initiators. J. Organomet. Chem. 2001, 619,62-73.

(34) Mathers, R. T.; Lewis, S. P. Aqueous Cationic Olefin Polymerization Using Tris(pentafluorophenyl)gallium and Aluminum. J. Polym. Sci., Part A. Polym. Chem. 2012, 50,1325-1332.

(35) Nuyken, O.; Vierle, M.; Kuhn, F. E.; Zhang, Y. Solvent-Ligated Transition Metal Complexes as Initiators for the Polymerization of Isobutene. Macromol. Symp. 2006, 236,69-77.

(36) Pi, Z.; Kennedy, J. P. Cationic Polymerizations at Elevated Temperatures by Novel Initiating Systems Having Weakly Coordinating Counteranions. 1. High Molecular Weight Polyisobutylenes, Nato Sci. Ser., Ser. E. ed.; In Ionic Polymerizations and Related Processes; Puskas, J. E., Ed.; Kluwer: Dordrecht, Neth., 1999; Vol. 359, pp 1-12.

(37) Radhakrishnan, N.; Hijazi, A. K.; Komber, H.; Voit, B.; Zschoche, S.; Kühn, F. E.; Nuyken, O.; Walter, M.; Hanefeld, P. Synthesis of Highly Reactive Polyisobutylenes Using Solvent-Ligated Manganese(II) Complexes as Catalysts. J. Polym. Sci., Part A 2007, 45,5636-5648.

(38) SaBmannshausen, J. Cationic and dicationic zirconocene compounds as initiators of carbocationic isobutene polymerization.   Dalton Trans. 2009, 9026-9032.

(39) Shaffer, T. D. Noncoordinating anions in carbocationic polymerization. Tris(pentafluorophenyl)boron as a Lewis acid catalyst.; In Cationic Polymerization; Faust, R., Shaffer, T. D., Eds.; American Chemical Society: Washington, D.C., 1997;  pp 96-105.

(40) Shaffer, T. D. Cationic Catalysts and processes for using said catalysts. US Patent 6699938, 2004.

(41) Shaffer, T. D.; Ashbaugh, J. R. Carbocationic Polymerization with Noncoordinating Boron Gegenions. Polym. Prepr., Am. Chem. Soc. Div. Polym. Chem. 1996, 37,339-340.

(42) Shaffer, T. D.; Ashbaugh, J. R. Noncoordinating anions in carbocationic polymerization. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 1997, 35,329.

(43) Shaffer, T. D.; Dias, A. J.; Finkelstein, I. D.; Kurtzman, M. B. Cationic Polymerization Catalysts. US Patent 6291389, 2001.

(44) Song, X.; Thornton-Pett, M.; Bochmann, M. Synthesis, Structure, and Reactivity of (C5H4SiMe3)2Y{(µ-FC6F4)(µ-Me)B(C6F5)2}: Tight Ion Pairing in a Cationic Lanthanide Complex. Organometallics 1998, 17,1004-1006.

(45) Tse, C. J. W.; Kumar, K. R.; Drewitt, M. J.; Baird, M. C. Isobutene polymerization and copolymerization with isoprene initiated by [Cp*TiMe2]+ in the presence of a novel type of weakly coordinating counteranion. Macromol. Chem. Phys. 2004, 205,1439-1444.

(46) Vierle, M.; Zhang, Y.; Herdtweck, E.; Bohnenpoll, M.; Nuyken, O.; Kuhn, F. E. Highly Reactive Polyisobutenes Prepared with Manganese(II) Complexes as Initiators. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2003, 42,1307-1310.

(47) Nava, M.; Reed, C. A. Organometallics 2011, 30,4787-4800.

(48) Lewis, S. US Patent 2010/0273964, 2010.

(49) Liu, Q.; Mathers, R. T.; Damodaran, K.; Godugu, B.; Lewis, S. P. Greener, cleaner polymerization of isobutene. Green Materials 2013, 1,161-175.

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 18

The next several blog postings will provide examples where Dr. “Kennedy” stole ideas from other investigators and/or students and/or published research that is almost identical to his peers within the exact same time frame.  Because I did not purposely set out to find such examples this list will be limited to about 10 instances of this pattern of behavior, each being presented in reverse chronology with “Kennedy’s” stealing of my invention (see previous blog postings) being the starting point.  On the other hand, since I do routinely discover new cases where this person has been engaged in this behavior my intention is to update this portion of the blog series in the future as time permits.  In some of these cases the reader will find the most damning admissions to such theft of other people’s ideas come from no other than “Kennedy” himself!

Circa 1999-2002

As I have described earlier in this blog series a cohort of mine, Dr. P.V. Kurian, had been assigned to work on ampiphilic networks for use in an artificial pancreas.*  These consisted of networks of a hydrophobic polymer (PIB) in conjunction with a hydrophilic polymer {e.g. polyethylene glycol (PEG)} and a third hydrophobic but oxygen permeable polymer, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS).1-6  Somewhere along the way hydrosilation was attempted as a method for linking α,ω-diallylic PIB to other polymers (e.g., α,ω-diallylic PEG) and as I recall, D5H (polypentamethylcyclopentasiloxane) was investigated as a crosslinking agent.  During these investigations it was discovered that gas was being evolved during hydrosilation effected crosslinking using Karstedt’s catalyst.  Again, no one in the “Kennedy” group with the exception of Dr. Zhengjie Pi had any real understanding of silicon chemistry (Pi’s work will be discussed in the next blog posting).  As such, Kurian discovered the origin of the mysterious gas evolution in part from the one “in lab” guide to silicon chemistry, the Gelest catalog.  Dr. Kurian subsequently conceived the idea that Pt catalyzed aqueous crosslinking of D5H would result in network polymer and he subsequently discovered that this polymer had high thermal stability.7-9  I can state these facts since not only was I privy to his work on a day to day basis but I am also the individual who witnessed the invention in his laboratory notebook.  In previous blog postings you can see Kurian’s signature witnessing ideas that I had conceived while in the “Kennedy” group.

Thus, both concept of the invention as well as reduction to practice were solely due to Kurian and not “Kennedy”.  Sometime after “Kennedy” fired me from his research group for not falsifying data on Yb(OTf)3 coinitiated aqueous polymerization of IB, Kurian approached me on his way out of U. Akron and informed me that he had found a company (based in Colorado I seem to remember) who had interest in the polymer he had invented and was able to entice them to travel to U. Akron to secure the intellectual property rights.  At that stage of the game not only did U. Akron lock him out of discussions relating to his invention but also only gave a royalty check to “Kennedy”!  Please refer to blog posting 14 of this series for a photograph of “Kennedy” accepting this royalty check which is being handed to him by the school president, Dr. Proenza with department head Newkome patting him on the back.  For those who want to do some digging I suggest looking at the following papers and patents in the references section of this blog posting.**  Unfortunately the story of Kurian is not unique nor is the manner in which he dealt with “Kennedy” either.  Several years ago I asked Kurian to come forward with this information and in typical cowardly fashion (as we shall see is dominate in the polymer community) he declined to, telling me that it was no longer of importance to him.***

‡ I use this term in the loosest possible manner in that I do not associate with cowards, bullies, thieves, liars, etc.  Unfortunately, in places such as graduate school one does not get to choose coworkers and in many instances you do not know a person’s true nature until it is tested.  I can say without exception there are less than a handful of people who I know from this institution who are not pieces of human waste.

* It should be noted that the artificial pancreas concept purportedly was conceived by another scientist(s) than “Kennedy”.  I do not have details on this; however, the savvy researcher should easily be able to produce documents that indeed show this is the case.  I’m guessing that Kurian devised much of this chemistry (i.e., the amphiphilic tripolymer network) but if he did so he never bothered to admit it to me.

** Please note, that in order to avoid copyright infringement I cannot post the actual PDFs to these documents.  Many can be obtained from the publisher {e.g., American Chemical Society (www.pubs.acs.org)} or through search engines at patent offices such as the European Patent Office (www.epo.org).  The latter (i.e. patents) are the easiest to obtain for the general public at no charge.

*** As Edmund Burke stated, “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”  The fact is the sciences have become exceedingly corrupted by evil people because otherwise good men and women have tucked their tail and run instead of confronting such individuals.  Such behavior not only damages the field as a whole but allows for further abuses to occur unchecked.

References 

(1) Kennedy, J. P.; Kurian, P. Physically crosslinked amphiphilic block polyoxyalkylene-polyisobutylene networks, methods of preparation, and uses thereof U.S. Patent 6555619, 2003.

(2) Kurian, P.; Kasibhatla, B.; Daum, J.; Burns, C. A.; Moosa, M.; Rosenthal, K. S.; Kennedy, J. P. Synthesis, permeability and biocompatibility of tricomponent membranes containing polyethylene glycol, polydimethylsiloxane and polypentamethylcyclopentasiloxane domains Biomaterials 2003, 24,3493-3503.

(3) Kurian, P.; Kennedy, J. P. Synthesis and characterization of novel tri-continuous membranes consisting of hydrophilic/lipophilic/oxyphilic domains Polym. Prepr., Am. Chem. Soc. Div. Polym. Chem. 2001, 42,92-93.

(4) Kurian, P.; Kennedy, J. P. Novel tricontinuous membranes for immunoisolation Polym. Prepr., Am. Chem. Soc. Div. Polym. Chem. 2002, 43,631-632.

(5) Kurian, P.; Kennedy, J. P. Novel tricomponent membranes containing poly(ethylene glycol)/poly(pentamethylcyclopentasiloxane)/poly(dimethylsiloxane) domains J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2002, 40,1209-1217.

(6) Kurian, P.; Zschoche, S.; Kennedy, J. P. Synthesis and characterization of novel amphiphilic block copolymers Di-, Tri-, multi-, and star blocks of PEG and PIB J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2000, 38,3200-3209.

(7) Kennedy, J. P.; Kurian, P. Poly(cyclosiloxane) composition and method of synthesis thereof U.S. Patent 8344170, 2013.

(8) Kurian, P.; Kennedy, J. P. Novel cyclosiloxane-based networks Polym. Prepr., Am. Chem. Soc. Div. Polym. Chem. 2003, 44,33-34.

(9) Kurian, P.; Kennedy, J. P.; Kisluik, A.; Sokolov, A. Poly(pentamethylcyclopentasiloxane). I. Synthesis and characterization J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2002, 40,1285-1292.

 

 

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 17

Once I left U. Akron it was as if a great weight had been lifted from my shoulders.  Although my ordeal does not compare in magnitude to his, I kept thinking of the immortal Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s words, “Free at last, free at last.  Thank God almighty we are free at last!”  But in reality I wasn’t fully insulated from the influence of individuals at U. Akron.  Indeed, I had struck out on my own and started a private company (Stewart’s Technologies, LLC) where I was engaged in research for hire services as well as producing small quantities of perfluoroarylated Lewis acids (PFLAs) for sale.*  Despite numerous difficulties I can say without hesitation that even the worst of times on my own were better than the best of times at U. Akron.

Around this time U. Akron sent documentation concerning the patents on which I was listed as a coinventor whereby I’d essentially assign over my interest in the patents to them (see below).  I only signed such documents with the caveat that I contested “Kennedy’s” inclusion as a coinventor on US 7,202,317 (see enclosure #3 in my letters to Ken Preston and George Moxon, both posted below).  Eventually I had raised this concern (again) directly with the director of technology transfer at U. Akron (Mr. Preston) as well as with the attorney (Mr. Moxon) of the law firm (Rotezel and Andress) handling the patent filings (see below).  Despite indicating that I was the sole inventor to U.S. 7,202,317 neither of them followed up with me on the matter, further perpetrating the fraud of “Dr. Kennedy”.  At that time Dr. Collins was still in the employment of U. Akron and had not yet admitted to the fact that indeed I not only conceived the invention but that I was responsible for its full development (please see the last document posted in blog # 16 of this blog series for his admittance of these facts).  I can only assume that Collins was in no position to challenge “Kennedy” or anyone else at U. Akron for that matter.  In fact, on reviewing the invention disclosure form that U. Akron forced me to sign (see below) in April 4, 2003 (this was for the first patent covering the polymerization system devised by Dr. Collins and Dr. Piers) it should be noticed that “Dr. Kennedy” was already listed as a coinventor despite the fact that this document actually predates my actual invention contained in US 7,202,317!  Further casting serious suspicion on his claim to inventorship is the fact that his claim to inventorship is solely verbal.  Regardless, as shown in the previous blog posting, every single document regarding this invention clearly shows it is mine as does the fact that I’m the only person to invent two additional polymerization systems that effect cationic polymerization of IB in aqueous media.

Declaration of power to U.Akron for Inventions

Letter to Ken Preston

Letter to Roetzel and Andress Moxon

Invention Disclosure Form

In an attempt to further disclose another discovery that I had made previously at U. Akron I began writing a journal article on the decomposition of carbocations paired with PFLAs by sterically hindered pyridines (SHPs).  During my stint at U. Akron I discovered that 2,6-di-t-butyl-4-methylpyridine readily consumed cumyl carbocation when the latter was paired with a PFLA derived anion and this finding was unique in that the consensus was such SHPs were too bulky to react with any electrophile other than H+ .  The only problem is that my discovery laid buried in my dissertation and not in a journal.  Most of this article is still on my website to this day; however, it was properly rejected by Dr. Collins due to lack of more thorough experimental investigations** (which I wasn’t about to return to U. Akron to conduct).  Regardless, submission of this draft spurred additional work in the Collins’ lab and I donated some of the PFLAs used in this research.***  This proved to be the final turning point for me in dealings with U. Akron as “Dr. Kennedy” was again somehow able to worm his way into a journal article that focused on my discovery.****  Unfortunately, I was in no position to prevent this from happening as I was not the lead author since the follow-up research had been conducted by a postdoc of Collins.  When this occurred I severed my ties with Collins and soon afterwards, Collins admitted that I was the sole inventor to US 7,202,317 (see last document on the previous blog posting) just prior to departing from U. Akron.

Following this formal severing of ties with Collins I’ve continued to be active in the field of cationic polymerization, now having invented two additional methods for aqueous polymerization of isobutene in addition to numerous other novel discoveries.  Still, during my studies of the patent and scientific literature I’ve stumbled across a number of interesting findings regarding “Dr. Kennedy’s” past inventorship experiences which further serve to collaborate previous blog postings concerning this individual.  These will be detailed in a future blog posting in this series…

* Sadly enough the only individuals to harass me in regards to PFLA manufacture were people from U. Akron and Northwestern University.  In the former instance Mr. Kenneth Preston of U. Akron attempted to coerce me into licensing a patent where I was listed as a coinventor.  The other instance involved an attorney for Northwestern University whom indicated was requested by no other than Tobin Marks to inform me that I had to stop selling PFLA compounds.  In both instances I politely declined their requests since the technology I was using was public domain.  The reader can only cast judgment as to the lack of integrity of these individuals and their respective institutions.

** In this article I attempted to forward a modification of the so called “complex counteranion theory” that supposedly originated from “Dr. J.P. Kennedy”.  As I will be detailing in a subsequent blog posting, a large number of inventions ascribed to this individual are in actuality “prior art” works of others (he even admits this in several publications) and it would appear that the same can be said for a number of concepts that this individual is credited for having developed.  Regardless, I have since devised my own theory that satisfactorily explains the MW-T profile behavior for cationic polymerizations.

*** As far as I can tell my donation of materials was never properly referenced in any of the three subsequent papers that were published by the Collins’ group following my departure from U. Akron.

**** This is the only journal article based on a discovery of mine where “Dr. Kennedy” was able to place his name.

 

 

University of Akron/Professor Joseph P. Kennedy Expose, Part 16

During my stay at U. Akron I became accustomed to making very detailed notes of the going-ons of individuals at this school (in my laboratory notebooks).  This necessity arose from “Kennedy’s” failed attempt to force me to falsify research data on Yb(OTf)3catalyzed aqueous polymerization of IB.  I even reference this habit of note taking in notebooks kept during my subsequent stint in the Collins lab as this practice disturbed numerous people in this research group (see P 87 & 130 Notebook 3).

P 87 Notebook 3

P 130 Notebook 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This habit resulted in a catalog of disturbing and in some cases illegal behavior by people who worked in this department (see below).  Out of kindness I have redacted names in many instances; however, let me state for the record that should circumstances warrant it I will do an entire data dump of these documents and more.

Back to where I last let off in the previous blog.  Several unusual things happened within days of making my invention.  First, Scott tried to make excuses for including “Kennedy” as a co-inventor when he made absolutely no contribution to my invention ( see PP 146-147 Notebook 2).

P 146 Notebook 2

P 147 Notebook 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When that approach didn’t work I was informed by Collins that I might not be able to finish developing my invention and in fact might never be able to report it (see P 155 Notebook 2 and P 1 Notebook 3)!

P 155 Notebook 2 P 1 Notebook 3

There is little doubt in my mind that this might have been a contrived strategy to prevent me from receiving any credit for discovering this form of polymerization.  I met this potential impasse with greater furor than ever.  The work pace imposed on me became quite grueling as not only did I write a 300+ page dissertation but several articles resulted from the work and I did all of the reduction to practice in addition to other related experiments.  It was not uncommon to put in 70-80 hours/week.  As a result I had conducted over 200 polymerizations alone.

While conducting experimentation, I devised a generalized theory as to how my invention operated (PP 17-18 NB 3).

PP 17-18 Notebook 3

As I refined my theory I was able to make steady improvements to yield and to MW/T profiles (P11 Notebook 3, P 20 Notebook 3, P 81 Notebook 3, P 93 Notebook 3).

P 11 Notebook 3 P 20 Notebook 3 P 81 Notebook 3 P 93 Notebook 3

Through the tenants of my theory I invented a couple new types of surfactants (P 79 NB 3) and also proposed a new idea in order to rationalize the unusual effects that sterically hindered pyridines had on carbocations when paired with weakly coordinating anions (see my dissertation and subsequent papers published by this group following my departure).

P 79 Notebook 3

During this period Scott had little to contribute in the way of helpful suggestions when it came to conducting polymerizations (see P 51 NB 3) and in fact one of his suggestions led to an accident that almost killed me (see P 59 NB 3).

P 51 Notebook 3

P 59 Notebook 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If the long hours weren’t bad enough things were ever more taxing due to the environment at U. Akron.  The Collins lab was structured on a socialist model which ultimately meant that state of the art equipment costing many tens of thousands of dollars was never fully operational for meaningful periods of time.  Illustrative of this is the fact is that one glove box had its atmosphere compromised no less than 30 times in less than two years (see P 26 NB 3).

P 26 Notebook 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another example is the Grubb’s still produced solvents of such low purity I was never able to use them for my work and due to the laziness of the students assigned to this setup no less than two solvent reservoirs had been allowed to run dry (see P 87 NB 3).

P 87 Notebook 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If one went to the trouble to clean glassware or purify reagents they had to be closely guarded as people would attempt to steal them in order to avoid working (see P 110 NB 3).  Any common use item could be expected to be filthy and most likely in disrepair (see P 126 NB 3).

P 110 Notebook 3

P 126 Notebook 3

 

Sexual promiscuity and related questionable interactions with students was not uncommon (see P 15 NB 3) and in some instances I saw faculty arrive to the school drunk with empty beer cans spilling from their car as they headed toward the polymer department.*

P 15 Notebook 3

Moreover, one student literally became so irrational that it is a miracle it didn’t result in another school tragedy (see P 123 NB 3, P 127 NB 3, P 128 NB 3, P 129 NB 3).**

P 123 Notebook

P 127 Notebook 3

P 128 Notebook 3

P 129 Notebook 3

 

Sadly enough I couldn’t even venture far from the lab without getting the brunt of the dismay and disrespect that faculty and staff held towards Collins (P 98 NB3, P 128 NB 3, P 131 NB3).  I never fully understood what the underlining causes of this hatred were but it was difficult to deal with and moreover students in the lab issued similar complaints to me.  All of this wasn’t made any better by the fact that my notes on the odd behavior of people at this school were discovered by Collins; however, on review I can vouch for the authenticity of every one of them.

P 98 Notebook 3

P 128 Notebook 3

P 131 Notebook 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

During my entire period at U. Akron I was never kept abreast of anything related to patents stemming from my inventions.  I was shutout of the entire process.  As I was approaching graduation it became apparent that I had no ability to prevent “Kennedy” from worming his way onto the patent covering my invention.  This was most apparent when I approached Dr. Newkome about this and told him all of the details behind my firing by “Kennedy”, my subsequent inventions in the Collins group, and the attempts by “Kennedy” to steal credit for my inventions.  Newkome’s advice was in some regards bittersweet.  He suggested that I could bar “Kennedy” from appearing as a coauthor on any of my publications; however, he informed me that trying to do the same on the patent application would be a futile exercise.  As such, Dr. “Kennedy’s” name is not listed as a coauthor on any publications that I was able to exercise control over (see J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2003, 125 (48), pp 14686–14687 and J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2005, 127 (1), pp 46–47).  It is for this reason that “Kennedy’s” name is not included as a co-author on any of the papers that were published during my stay at U. Akron and the only reason he is mentioned in the “acknowledgments” section is that Newkome suggested this as well, despite the fact that “Kennedy” made no contributions whatsoever.

Within about one year following my graduation Collins left U. Akron.  I’m guessing that the situation there became intolerable but I have no true insight as to what caused his departure.  Following graduation but prior to his departure I had resumed interacting with him as I wanted to publish additional papers on my findings relating to the decomposition of carbocations by sterically hindered pyridines.  A poorly constructed article on my part stimulated additional research by Collins and I contributed a sizable amount of the key reagent required to conduct this work.  But again, “Kennedy” latched onto my work.  Since I was not conducting these follow-up experiments I had no control over the author list and as a result “Kennedy’s” name appears on one of them.  Not long after that episode I realized that people at U. Akron would continue to leach off of me if the opportunity presented itself and thus I formally parted ways with Collins.  Although the reason is unknown to me, Collins finally admitted to a number of key “officials” at U. Akron that indeed I was the sole inventor for the aqueous polymerization systems for IB (see email below).  Unfortunately, none of these people took the proper actions needed to fix this injustice and credit for my invention is still improperly shared with others.  As will be shown in subsequent blog postings, despite repeated attempts on my part U. Akron employees and the law firm involved in handling this patent refused to effect the proper corrections to the names listed as inventors on this patent.  Moreover, at no time did U. Akron ever investigate “Kennedy” or take any sort of corrective action against him.

Collins email

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

* In one instance, myself and another student witnessed a faculty member leave the main office of the polymer science department through the front door while within seconds later his student adulteress left through the backdoor around 8-9pm one night.

** I have to note that another individual from this school later became so troublesome that I had to inform them that should I deem them to be a threat to my physical well-being I will not hesitate to use deadly-force against them.  The unwanted harassment in addition to the fact that I know this person has been on psychotropic medications at times (and since all recent mass shooters have a history of being on these drugs) were of serious concern to me.