Dr. Stephane Costeux (DuPont USA) awarded the 2025 SPE TPM&F Outstanding Achievement Award

The Outstanding Achievement Award (OAA) committee of the Thermoplastic Materials & Foams division of the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) is pleased to announce that Dr. Stephane Costeux, Senior Laureate at DuPont, has been selected as the recipient of the esteemed 2025 OAA award. This accolade recognizes individuals who have made substantial contributions to advancing the scientific and industrial impact of polymeric materials and foams.

Dr. Costeux began his career in thermoplastics at McGill University and Dow Chemical, where his research provided new insights into the molecular structure of branched polyolefins and its correlation with rheological processing behavior. He invented several new high melt strength PE and PP commercial products tailored for various manufacturing processes.

At Dow Building and Construction, he played a key role in developing increasingly sustainable generations of extruded polystyrene foams. His efforts culminated in the commercialization of the current low global warming potential Styrofoam™, earning him and his colleagues the ACS Heroes of Chemistry award.

Dr. Costeux has conducted pioneering research on nanocellular foams, demonstrating the feasibility of reduced density nanofoams and successfully showcasing an extrusion process for these materials. These innovations generated significant interest and opened new avenues for lightweight materials with distinct mechanical or optical properties.

In recent years at DuPont, he has continued to advance the science and technology of polymeric materials and foams for construction applications, enabling the development of sustainable insulation, spray foam products, and structural insulation panels characterized by high performance and low global warming potential.

Throughout his industry career, Dr. Costeux has upheld high standards in applying fundamental principles, collaborating with academia to develop modeling and analytical tools for better understanding foaming mechanisms. In addition to his research and innovation, he has significantly contributed to the TPM&F division, serving as a board member since 2013. Notably, he led the redesign of the annual FOAMS conference and its expansion to Asia and Europe, and organized it six times as conference chair or technical chair since 2018. He was elected SPE Fellow in 2016.

Dr. Stephane Costeux joins a distinguished list of 40 previous recipients of the OAA since 1981, whose inventions and contributions have had a lasting impact on the plastic industry and society. He will receive the award during the SPE FOAMS 2025 conference in Naples, Italy, in October.