The Prime Minister’s Prize for Science has been awarded to Professors Ezio Rizzardo and David Solomen from the CSIRO and the University of Melbourne for their work in the field of polymer science.

 

The $300,000 prize recognises their work in reinventing polymer science by devising a means of custom building plastics and other polymers for plastic solar cells, drug delivery, paints, adhesives, lubricants and everything in between.

 

Their techniques are employed in the laboratories and factories of DuPont, L’Oréal, IBM, 3M, Dulux and more than 60 other companies. Their work has been cited more than 12,000 times in the scientific literature and is integral to more than 500 patents.

 

A full list of this year’s recipients can be found here