John Paul Hogan (August 7, 1919 – February 19, 2012) was an American research chemist. Along with Robert Banks, he discovered methods of producing

polypropylene Polypropylene (PP), also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications. It is produced via chain-growth polymerization from the monomer propylene. Polypropylene belongs to the group of polyolefins and ...

and

high-density polyethylene High-density polyethylene (HDPE) or polyethylene high-density (PEHD) is a thermoplastic polymer produced from the monomer ethylene. It is sometimes called "alkathene" or "polythene" when used for HDPE pipes. With a high strength-to-density ratio, ...

. Hogan was born in

Lowes, Kentucky Lowes is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Graves County, Kentucky, United States."Feature Detail Report for: Lowes, Kentucky." United States Geological Survey. Retrieved May 11, 2011. Lowes is northwest of Mayfie ...

to Charles Franklin and Alma (Wyman) Hogan and earned B.S. degrees in both Chemistry and Physics at

Murray State University Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, H ...

of Kentucky in 1942. He taught at both the high school and college level before going to work in research at the

Phillips Petroleum Company Phillips Petroleum Company was an American oil company incorporated in 1917 that expanded into petroleum refining, marketing and transportation, natural gas gathering and the chemicals sectors. It was Phillips Petroleum that first found oil in the ...

in 1944. His work was primarily in the area of plastics and catalysts. In 1951, he invented crystalline

and

(HDPE) with his fellow research chemist Robert Banks. These

plastics Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their Plasticity (physics), plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be Injection moulding, moulded, Extrusion, e ...

were initially known by the name

Marlex Marlex is a trademarked name for crystalline polypropylene and high-density polyethylene (HDPE). These plastics were invented by J. Paul Hogan and Robert Banks, two research chemists at the Phillips Petroleum Company. Interest in the material i ...

. He held (jointly) a number of important patents and authored research papers before he left Phillips in 1985. After a few years as an independent consultant, he fully retired in 1993. In 1987, he and Robert Banks together received the Perkin Medal Award and both were given a ''

Heroes of Chemistry The Heroes of Chemistry is an award given annually by the American Chemical Society. It highlights teams responsible for creation of innovative and impactful products based on chemistry and chemical engineering and is intended to show how human we ...

'' award by the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all d ...

in 1989. In 2001, they were inducted into the

National Inventors Hall of Fame The National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF) is an American not-for-profit organization, founded in 1973, which recognizes individual engineers and inventors who hold a U.S. patent of significant technology. Besides the Hall of Fame, it also opera ...

. Dr. Hogan was inducted into the

Plastics Hall of Fame Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...

in 2014.

References

1919 births 2012 deaths American inventors Murray State University alumni People from Graves County, Kentucky Polymer scientists and engineers {{US-chemist-stub