• Gender: Male
• Age: 49
• Designation: Manager
• Highest Education Level: Doctrate
• Preferred Country: India
• Notice Period: 30  Days
• Work Experience: 21.1 Year(s)

Education

Ph.D From Dept of Text. Tech., IIT, Delhi, in 2004

M.Text.(Man-made Fiber Tech.) From MSU, Baroda in 2000 with 76.8%

B. Text. (Man-made Text. Tech.)From VJTI, Mumbai in 1997 with 69.66%

Diploma In Man-made Text. Tech. From Diploma In Man-made Text. Tech. in 1995

H.S.C. From Atomic Energy Junior College, Tarapur in 1993 with 89.3% (PCM)

S.S.C. From Atomic Energy Central School, Tarapur in 1991 with 80.2%

Skill Sets

I have worked in polymers all throughout my industry career. In my PhD I have worked on novel method of processing of smart polymers, from monomer synthesis, polymerization, characterization and processing which included film formation using novel processing technique and coating on substrates. 

Smart working, safe incident free working in whole industrial as well as industrial research career, good communication skills, conscientious & presentable personality.

Work Experience

GM (R&D)
Since Feb 2015
Company Profile: Manufacturer of various specialty chemicals catering to industries such as Agro, Construction, Inks, Leather, Paints, Paper, Pharmaceuticals, and Textiles etc.
Job Profile:
Development of ester oils for lubricants.
Few specialty molecules.
Emulsion polymerization.
Handling a DSIR certified laboratory.
Polycarboxylate ethers literature search.

GM (R&D and QC)
Feb 2010 to Feb 2015 
Company Profile : Manufacturer of Polyester and Polyether based Polyols.
Job Profile :  
Research and product development in polyester and polyether polyols. 
Scaling-up of laboratory developments in pilot-plant and subsequently in main-plant.
Handling customer complaints and visits to customers
Discussions with customers and development of tailor made molecules 
Developed and commercialized in plant since July 2010:
Flexible copolymer (EO/PO), EO end-capped polyols (triols)  of MW 3000, 3500, 4800, 5000 and 6000.
Glycerine based polyols of MW 450, 550, 700 and 1000.
Amidic polyol
Sucrose/glycerine, pentaerythritol based polyols and modifications
PET based polyols
Polypropylene glycol (PPG 200, PPG 425, PPG 700, PPG 1000, PPG 
2000 and PPG 4000)
Cell opener polyol 
Polymerization using DMC catalyst
Synthesis of DMC catalysts
Natural Oil Polyols
Variants of polyester polyols 
Developed 
Viscoelastic (shape-memory) formulation
Filter foam formulation 
Integral-skin formulation 
Moulded seat formulation 
High molecular weight polyols (5000 MW, 6000 MW)

Research Scientist 
Nov 2005 to Feb 2010
Company Name : Reliance Ind. Ltd. 
Job Profile : 
Polyester recycling: Productivity improvement/yield improvement by use of alternative catalyst. This was a project proposed by the Hazira plant and involved lab-scale depolymerization studies conducted by me, kinetics, scale-up in pilot reactor, visits to the plant for interactions and the final implementation. 
Polyester recycling: Color improvement by use of alternative catalyst. 
Chain extender reduced the problem of fused fibers by 90 % in 1.5 denier product made from recycled route. 
Recovery of PTA and MEG from dyed blended polyester textile and non-textile waste, patent applied. Process also provides raw material for glycolysis based recycling plants. A process for alternative raw-materials and raw material reduction. Process based on acid and neutral hydrolysis, with suitable enhancements for making it industrially economically attractive. The process can easily handle PET bottle waste. 
Biodegradable polyester based on starch, incorporation of starch at molecular level, patent applied. 
905/MUM/2008, Filed on 23rd April, 2008, Biodegradable starch- copolyester
904/MUM/2008, Filed on 23rd April, 2008, A process for recycling polyester and cotton blended textile

Manager (R&D: Polymers) 
Aug 2004 to Nov 2005 
Company Name : Futura Polyesters Ltd. 
Job Profile : 
Developing specialty resins for flame-retardant poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT)
Low carboxyl end-group resin without color deterioration
Flame-retardant PET with RDP (Halogen-Free)
I was also involved in the group working on improvement of barrier properties of PET for beer packaging, including work on polymer blends, copolymerizations, nano particles / nanotechnology and development of oxygen-scavenger for beer resin 
Clear CIPET: Concept developed by me, (use of copolymer, additives and copolymerization) along with thermoforming (at Faerchplast, Holstebro, Denmark, for prototype samples) of dual-ovenable containers
PET for tooth-powder packaging – filler based. 

Analytical Techniques: - FTIR, DSC, TGA, XRD, AAS, Flame Photometer, Heat Flow Measurement.

PhD: 
I have completed my PhD (completed on 24.07.2004) in the Department of Textile Technology, IIT Delhi. I had worked on “Synthesis and Processing of Temperature-Sensitive Copolymers of N-tert-butylacrylamide and Acrylamide”. 
A significant contribution was made in the smart-polymers field with this study and six publications were made in refereed international journals. 

Stimuli-sensitive polymer hydrogels, exhibit reversible phase change behavior in response to environmental stimuli. These are being extensively studied because of their potential applications in biomedical, robotics, and chemical industry (separation applications). However, major hurdles in their development have been their slow response, low-efficiency, and poor mechanical properties. One of the main reasons for these shortcomings is the difficulty of processing them into mechanically fine structures in polymer gel form.  In my work, a novel approach was developed to process temperature-sensitive polymers into mechanically stable thin films and coated fabric. 

Stimuli-sensitive polymers (SSP) and the processing technique was developed in my study overcame the above limitations;
These materials could be processed into thin films as coatings on glass surfaces with thickness in the range of few microns, which were mechanically stable and faster in response. 
These materials could be integrated as coatings to other non active substrates (cotton fabric in this study), and
The resultant film or SSP-substrate composite (cotton fabric) could retain the thermo-sensitive property.
My work has addressed to the shortcomings. Thin films of SSP developed in my project showed fast response to stimuli and better utilization of functional sites, while the integration (coating) to substrate (cotton fabric) resulted in durable SSPs with improved mechanical properties.  
The SSP coated cotton fabric showed temperature dependent (reversible) water-vapor permeability. 
Coated cotton yarns with the SSP gave very exciting results. A model fabric made out of the coated yarns showed temperature dependent (reversible) porosity.

Study involved: 
Monomer synthesis
Copolymerization – free radical
Characterization of the polymers and the copolymers
Film formation followed by curing 
Coating on textile followed by curing
The linear polymer was applied to the substrate as a solution, which contained crosslinker, the cross linking was carried out post film formation or coating

M. Tech: 
Grafting using ?-irradiation technique was studied on polypropylene (PP) fiber substrate using monomers like, vinyl acetate (VAM), hydroxyethylmethacrylate (HEMA) and methylmethacrylate (MMA). The grafting was optimized to obtain best results in terms of grafting percentage, time and property loss in the fiber substrate. The study was carried out in Board of Radiation and Isotope Technology (BRIT), Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mumbai. The project was completed on February 2000. 

Patents:
905/MUM/2008, Filed on 23rd April, 2008, Biodegradable starch- copolyester
904/MUM/2008, Filed on 23rd April, 2008, A process for recycling polyester and cotton blended textile

Publications:
Jassal M., Agrawal A. K., “Smart Breathable Fabric”, Journal of Industrial Textiles, 2005, 34(3), 139-155.

Prasad S. Upasani, Ashwin K. Jain, Uday S. Agarwal, Anil K. Kelkar, “Chemical Recycling of PET Flakes into Yarn”, Journal of Applied Polymer Science,, 2012, 123, 520–525. 

Jassal M., Agrawal A. K., “Stimuli-Sensitive Copolymer Poly(N-tert-butylacrylamide-ran-acrylamide). Synthesis and Characterization, Journal of Applied Polymer Science 2005, 95(3), 672-680.

Jassal M., Agrawal A. K., “Stimuli-Sensitive Copolymer Poly(N-tert-butylacrylamide-ran-acrylamide). Processing into Thin Films and their Transitional Behavior, Polymer 2003, 44, 7979-7988.
 
Jassal M., Agrawal A. K., “Polyacrylamide Based Breathable Coatings for Cotton Fabrics” Journal of Industrial Textiles, 2002, 32(2), 119-138. 

Agrawal A. K., Jassal M., Vishnoi A, “Temperature Resposive Fibers with Anisotropic Transitional Behavior”, Journal of Applied Polymer Science 2005, 95(3), 681-688. 

Jassal M., Agrawal A. K.,“Thermoresponsive smart textile”, Indian Journal of Fibre & Textile Research, Vol 31, March 2006.

Agrawal  A. K., Jassal, M., “Environmentally Responsive Textiles Based on Temperature Sensitive Polyacrylamide”, Proceedings of the 7th Asian Textile Conference, New Delhi, 2003, pp IN-1.

Agrawal  A. K., Jassal, M., Processable Stimuli-Sensitive Polymers for Smart Fibers and Films, Proceedings of the Advanced Flexible Materials and Structures: Engineering with Fibers, Loughborough University, UK, June-July 2003, 83-84.

Jassal M., Agrawal A. K., “Application of Polyacrylamide as a Protective and Breathable Coating”, Proceedings of MACRO 2002, IIT Kharagpur, December 2002, page O3.24.

Kumar R., Raj V., Agrawal A. K.,Jassal M., “Synthesis of Stimuli-Sensitive Polymers Based on N-substituted Acrylamides”, Proceedings of MACRO 2002, IIT Kharagpur, December 2002, Page O9.4.

Choughule S. V., Varshney L., “Thermal Characterization of Radiation Processed (Vinyl Acetate Grafted) Polypropylene Fiber”, Proceedings of the Twelfth National Seminar on Thermal Analysis, Thermans 2000, DDU Gorakhpur University, Gorakhpur.

Ashwini K Agrawal, Manjeet Jassal, S Periyasamy, Arnab K Ghosh, K R T Ramasubramani, Amrish Vishnoi, M Palanikkumaran & Kishor K Gupta, “Environmentally responsive smart textiles” 1- 15 May 2005, Express Textile.

Ashwini Agrawal, Manjeet Jassal, Arnav K Ghosh, K R T Ramasubramani, Anusuya Sahoo and Amrish Vishnoi, “Smart textile materials based on random copolymers of substituted acrylamides”, proceedings of International Conference On Emerging Trends In Polymers & Textiles, 7-8 January 2005, New Delhi.

Manjeet Jassal, Ashwini K. Agrawal, Anasuya Sahoo, Arnab K. Ghosh, K. R. T. Ramasubramani and Amrish Vishnoi, Smart Polymeric Structures, Macro 2006 , Dec 17-20, 2006,  NCL Pune, India.

M. Palanikkumaran, Manjeet Jassal, and Ashwini K Agrawal, Protective Breathable Textiles Based on Hydrophilic Polymers, Macro 2006, Dec 17-20, 2006, NCL Pune, India.

Presentations :
Jassal M., Raj V., Rajeev, Agrawal A. K., “Synthesis of Stimuli Sensitive Polymers Based on N-substituted Acrylamides”, Proceedings of MACRO-2002, International seminar on frontiers of polymer science and engineering.

Jassal M., Agrawal A. K., “Application of Polyacrylamide as a Protective and a Breathable Coating”, Proceedings of MACRO-2002, International seminar on frontiers of polymer science and engineering.

“Productivity and Quality Enhancement by Catalyst Changeover at Glycolysis Plant at Hazira Location”, RTC Research Review Seminar, July 2008.
Save N. S., “Textile Recycling”, Subject Expert Review Series, June 2009.

In-plant Training (7th semester B. Text)
Siyaram’s Silk Mills Ltd., Weaving Preparatory and weaving of p/v blend suitings

Balakrishna Industries Ltd., Processing and dyeing of p/v blend suitings

Dicitex Industries Ltd., Texturing and twisting

Academic Projects :
M. Text (Man-made Fiber Technology) : Grafting of polypropylene fibers with vinyl acetate, HEMA and MMA, by -irradiation. This project was carried out in the Isomed Laboratory of BRIT, BARC, Mumbai.

B. Text (Man-made Textile Technology) : Development of software package in C-language for weaving designs and simulation of woven fabrics

Diploma in Man-made Textile Technology : Study on electronic shedding machines

Achievememnts:
Precitex Award for the best student in spinning
Developed doffing system for TFO machines at Dicitex Industries Ltd., Tarapur that led to a reduction in time required for doffing.
GATE-99 Score: 94.93 percentile (Rank – seventeen)
Baroda Rayon Corporation Scholarship in M. Text.

Academic (thesis/projects/in-plant training) (5 years 2 months)
PhD Research: 48 months
M Text Project Research (at BARC, Mumbai):  7 months 
B Text In-plant Training: 7 months 

Keywords:
Esterification, transesterification, glycolysis, polyester fibres, polymer modifications, functional polymers, propoxylation, ethoxylation, emulsion polymerization, polyester polyol, polyether polyol, polyurethane polyol, polypropylene glycol, catalysts, polymerization with double metal cyanide (DMC) catalyst, kinetics study, functional polymers, resins, functional monomers, condensation polymerization, addition polymerization, free radical polymerization, recycling, alternate raw materials, smart polymers, intelligent polymers, crosslinking, coating, copolymerization, copolymers, comonomers, polyols, hydrophilic polymers, hydrophobic polymers, polyacrylamide, polyester, N-tert-butylacrylamide, grafting with vinyl acetate, hydroxyethyl methacrylate, viscoelastic, shape-memory formulations, polyurethane, polyurethane polyol development, polyurethane formulation development, ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, alkoxylation, alkoxides, polyalkylene glycols, barrier properties in packaging, ester oils, PAG, polyalkylene oxides, scale-up.

Future Goals

Growth