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ARS Home Midwest Area Peoria, Illinois National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research Bio-oils Research People







Demichael D Winfield    Research Chemist  DeMichael Winfield, Ph.D.Research Chemist
Phone: (309) 681-6106Room 1201USDA ARS NCAURBio-Oils Research1815 N University St.Peoria IL 61604
ORCID:0000-0003-0016-4489
/ARSUserFiles/56776/20240127-DeMichael_12p.jpg Synthesis of Biobased Materials from Plant Oils ♦ Research Chemist with a PhD in Polymer Chemistry   o Oleochemistry, biolubricants, thermoplastic polymers, green organic synthesis♦ Modification of vegetable oils for industrial applications♦ Development of green synthetic methodology for functionalizing agricultural feedstocks♦ Synthesis of novel polymers derived from agricultural feedstocks   o Seed oils, terpenes, phenolic lipids, waxes /ARSUserFiles/56776/All_300px.jpgLeft-to-Right: Pennycress, Lesquerella, Castor beans  Research on Biolubricants ♦Evaluated new seed oils and their estolides for use as lubricantsoPennycress, castor, lesquerella♦Evaluated the estolides of different soybean oil varieties as lubricants♦Tested physical and lubrication properties:oPour and Cloud PointsoViscosity and Viscosity IndexoLubricityoOxidative Stability  Research on Synthesis ♦Developed amphiphilic ionic liquid catalysts for applications in oleochemical functionalization♦Hydroxyalkoxylation of epoxidized vegetable oil derivatives♦Recycling of ionic liquid catalyst
 Graph showing the cold-flow properties of estolidesGraph showing the cold-flow properties of estolides /ARSUserFiles/56776/Winfield-Scheme1.jpgUsing ionic liquid catalyst for epoxy ring-opening
 
 Research on Polymers ♦Utilization of biobased platform chemicals with unique structures to make novel polymers♦Synthesis of plant derived polymer additives♦Synthesis of linear and branched estolides
 linear (top) and branched (bottom) estolides examples of studied estolides (linear and branched)
 BIO: Dr. DeMichael Winfield is a Research Chemist with expertise in polymer and organic chemistry. He received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Georgia in 2021. His doctoral work focused on the synthesis and characterization of thermoplastics from plant biomass.  In 2022 Dr. Winfield worked as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Bio-oils research unit at NCAUR, where he developed sustainable synthetic methods for functionalizing oleochemicals for fuel and lubricant applications. Dr. Winfield joined the Bio-oils research group as a Research Chemist in 2023. His primary research focus is on the chemical modification of plant oils for industrial applications. Current projects include utilizing new crops as biobased feedstocks for applications as lubricants, biodiesel, polymers, and polymer additives. Another area of research is developing green, metal-free synthetic methods that are competitive with traditional industrial methods.  ProjectsDevelopment of New Value-Added Processes and Products from Advancing Oilseed CropsIn-House Appropriated (D)Accession Number:436964 Publications(Clicking on the reprint iconReprint Icon  will take you to the publication reprint.)Cold-flow properties of estolides: The older (D97 and D2500) versus the mini-(D5773 and D5949) methods-(Peer Reviewed Journal) Bantchev, G.B., Lew, H.N., Chen, Y., Winfield, D.D., Cermak, S.C. 2024. Cold-flow properties of estolides: The older (D97 and D2500) versus the mini-(D5773 and D5949) methods. Lubricants. https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants12050141.Characterization, physical properties, and potential industrial applications of high oleic pennycress oil-(Peer Reviewed Journal) Winfield, D.D., Dunn, R.O., Winkler-Moser, J.K., Cermak, S.C., Marks, D.M. 2024. Characterization, physical properties, and potential industrial applications of high oleic pennycress oil. Industrial Crops and Products. 210. 118095. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2024.118095.Evaluation of a high oleic soybean oil variety in lubricant and biodiesel applications-(Peer Reviewed Journal) Winfield, D.D., Cermak, S.C., Evangelista, R.L., Moser, B.R., McKinney, J., Pantalone, V. 2023. Evaluation of a high oleic soybean oil variety in lubricant and biodiesel applications. Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society. https://doi.org/10.1002/aocs.12788.Characterization, physical properties, and applications of high oleic pennycress oil-(Abstract Only) Winfield, D.D., Dunn, R.O. 2023. Characterization, physical properties, and applications of high oleic pennycress oil [abstract]. Association for the Advancement of Industrial Crops Conference. p. 87.Synthesis and characterization of estolide diamides for use as thickeners-(Abstract Only) Cermak, S.C., Isbell, T.A., Kenar, J.A., Vermillion, K., Winfield, D.D. 2023. Synthesis and characterization of estolide diamides for use as thickeners [abstract]. Association for the Advancement of Industrial Crops Conference. p. 86.Selective hydroxyalkoxylation of epoxidized methyl oleate by an amphiphilic ionic liquid catalyst-(Abstract Only) Winfield, D.D., Moser, B.R. 2023. Selective hydroxyalkoxylation of epoxidized methyl oleate by an amphiphilic ionic liquid catalyst [abstract]. American Oil Chemists' Society Annual Meeting & Exposition.Selective hydroxyalkoxylation of epoxidized methyl oleate by an amphiphilic ionic liquid catalyst-(Peer Reviewed Journal) Winfield, D.D., Moser, B.R. 2023. Selective hydroxyalkoxylation of epoxidized methyl oleate by an amphiphilic ionic liquid catalyst. Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society. 100(3):237-243. https://doi.org/10.1002/aocs.12672.
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