Jun.-Prof. Dr. Alex Plajer - Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Prizewinner 2026
Polymer Chemistry, University of Bayreuth
Plastics are chemically robust. They degrade very slowly and are difficult to recycle. In the environment, they pose a threat to a wide range of organisms and ecosystems. Alex Plajer works on sustainable yet versatile polymers whose inorganic components can be more easily separated and, ideally, recycled. He and his research team have already succeeded in producing a new class of fluorinated polyesters that are more easily degradable than conventional polyesters. Plajer has also developed designs for entirely novel sustainable plastics containing sulphur. These involve dynamic disulphide bonds that function as a kind of molecular breaking point. The sulphur–sulphur bonds can be opened and closed under pressure and heat, thereby facilitating the recycling of thermosets. By innovatively integrating inorganic synthesis into macromolecular chemistry, Plajer has laid the foundations for a new subdiscipline of polymer science.