פרופ' מיכאל סילברסטין

• Honours BASc 1983 (University of Toronto)
• DSc 1988 (Technion)

Chairman, Interdepartmental Program in Polymer Engineering, Technion

After receiving his doctorate, Prof. Silverstein spent a year as a research associate at the Center for Applied Polymer Research, Department of Macromolecular Science, Case Western Reserve University. He joined the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Technion in 1989 and has spent sabbatical years at the Department of Engineering Physics, Ecole Polytechnique, Montreal, Canada and at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, USA. He is a member of the Materials Research Society, the American Chemical Society, and the Israel Polymers and Plastics Society.

Macromolecular materials, also known as polymers, are increasingly vital for advanced technological applications in such fields as microelectronics, telecommunications, biomedical engineering, energy, and aerospace. Superior materials can now be produced through the synergistic combination of very different types of materials within nanoscale blends and nanocomposites. The development of such materials depends upon innovative synthesis and processing techniques as well as upon an in-depth characterization of the resulting material. This in-depth characterization must encompass the molecular structure, crystalline structure, nanoscale morphology, thermal properties, mechanical properties, and properties that are related to the specific application of interest (e.g., conductivity, biodegradability, drug release rate).

The focus of the Macromolecular Materials Laboratory, headed by Professor Michael S. Silverstein, is the development of novel macromolecular systems with unique properties and the use of in-depth characterization to understand the relationships between the synthesis, structure, processing, and properties. Once these relationships are understood, the material properties can be “dialed-in” using the advanced synthesis and processing techniques developed in the Lab. The research in the Lab includes the synthesis of novel emulsion-templated porous materials, ‘PolyHIPEs’, within high internal phase emulsions (HIPEs). These materials can be lighter, greener, more versatile, and less expensive than the alternatives and can also be enhanced with functionalities that are otherwise unavailable.

• M. S. Silverstein, “Interpenetrating polymer networks: So happy together?”, Polymer, 207, 122929 (2020).
• M. S. Silverstein, “The Chemistry of Porous Polymers: The Holey Grail”, Israel Journal of Chemistry, 60, 140-150 (2020).
• T. Zhang, R. A. Sanguramath, S. Israel, M. S. Silverstein, “Emulsion Templating: Porous Polymers and Beyond”, Macromolecules, 52, 5445-5479 (2019).
• L. Weinstock, R. A. Sanguramath, M. S. Silverstein, “Encapsulating an organic phase change material within emulsion-templated poly(urethane urea)s”, Polymer Chemistry, 10, 1498-1507 (2019).
• T. Zhang and M. S. Silverstein,“Highly porous, emulsion-templated, zwitterionic hydrogels: amplified and accelerated uptakes with enhanced environmental sensitivity”, Polymer Chemistry, 9, 3479-3487 (2018).
• T. Zhang and M. S. Silverstein,“Microphase-Separated Macroporous Polymers from an Emulsion-Templated Reactive Triblock Copolymer”, Macromolecules, 51, 3828-3835 (2018).
• K. Kapilov-Buchman, L. Portal, Y. Zhang, N. Fechler, M. Antonietti, and M. S. Silverstein,“Hierarchically porous carbons from an emulsion-templated, urea-based deep eutectic”, Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 5, 16376-16385 (2017).
• T. Zhang and M. S. Silverstein,“Doubly-crosslinked, emulsion-templated hydrogels through reversible metal coordination”, Polymer,126, 386-394 (2017).
• M. S. Silverstein,“Emulsion-templated Polymers: Contemporary Contemplations”, Polymer,126, 261-282 (2017).
• S. Kovacic and M. S. Silverstein,“Superabsorbent, High Porosity, PAMPS-Based Hydrogels through Emulsion Templating”, Macromolecular Rapid Communications, 37, 1814-1819 (2016).
• S. Israel, I. Gurevitch, and M. S. Silverstein,“Carbons with a Hierarchical Porous Structure through Pyrolysis of Hypercrosslinked Emulsion-templated Polymers”, Polymer, 72, 453-463 (2015).
• M. S. Silverstein,“PolyHIPEs: Recent advances in emulsion-templated porous polymers”, Progress in Polymer Science, 39, 199-234, (2014).
• M. S. Silverstein,“Emulsion-templated Porous Polymers: A Retrospective Perspective”, Polymer, 55, 304-320, (2014).
• I. Gurevitch and M. S. Silverstein, “Shape Memory Polymer Foams from Emulsion Templating“,Soft Matter, 8, 10378-10387 (2012).
• I. Gurevitch and M. S. Silverstein, “One-Pot Synthesis of Elastomeric Monoliths Filled with Individually Encapsulated Liquid Droplets“,Macromolecules, 45, 6450-6456 (2012).
• I. Gurevitch and M. S. Silverstein, "Polymerized Pickering HIPEs: Effects of Synthesis Parameters on Porous Structure", J. Polym. Sci. A: Polym. Chem., 48, 1516-1525 (2010).
• Y. Lumelsky, I. Lalush-Michael, S. Levenberg, and M. S. Silverstein,“Porous, Biodegradable, Emulsion-templated Polyacrylate: Structures, Properties, and Cell Growth”, J. Polym. Sci. A: Polym. Chem., 47, 7043-7053 (2009).
• D. David and M. S. Silverstein, “Porous Polyurethanes Synthesized within High Internal Phase Emulsions“,J. Polym. Sci. A: Polym. Chem., 47, 5806-5814 (2009).
• S. Livshin and M. S. Silverstein, “Enhancing Hydrophilicity in a Hydrophobic Porous Emulsion-Templated Polyacrylate”, J. Polym. Sci. A: Polym. Chem., 47, 4840-4845 (2009).
• T. Gitli and M. S. Silverstein, “Bicontinuous Hydrogel – Hydrophobic Polymer Systems through Emulsion-templated Simultaneous Polymerizations“,Soft Matter, 4, 2475-2485 (2008).
• S. Livshin and M. S. Silverstein, “Crystallinity and Cross-linking in Porous Polymers Synthesized from Long Side Chain Monomers through Emulsion Templating”, Macromolecules, 41, 3930-3938 (2008).
• J. Normatov and M. S. Silverstein, “Silsesquioxane-Crosslinked Porous Nanocomposites Synthesized within High Internal Phase Emulsions”, Macromolecules, 40, 8329-8335 (2007).
• O. Kulygin and M. S. Silverstein, “Porous Poly(2-hydroxyethyl acrylate) Hydrogels Synthesized within High Internal Phase Emulsions”, Soft Matter, 2, 1525–1529 (2007).
• M. S. Silverstein, H. Tai, A. Sergienko, Y. Lumelsky, and S. Pavlovsky,“PolyHIPE: IPNs, Hybrids, Nanoscale Porosity, Silica Monoliths and ICP-based Sensors”, Polymer, 46, 6682-6694 (2005).
• A. Y. Sergienko, H. Tai, M. Narkis and M.S. Silverstein, “Polymerized High Internal Phase Emulsions: Properties and Interaction with Water”, J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 84, 2018-2027 (2002).
• H. Tai, A. Sergienko and M.S. Silverstein,“Organic-Inorganic Networks in Foams from High Internal Phase Emulsion Polymerizations”, Polymer, 42, 4473-4482 (2001).