Reinventing the wheel: the importance of knowing the literature

Is ‘reinventing the wheel’ always frowned upon? The answer could be ‘it depends!’ Prevention or encouragement of reinvention demands a keen awareness of the prior literature; however, the immense amount of literature from the rapid expansion of polymer- and materials-oriented journals presents the researcher with a daunting task. Internet search engines have facilitated the process to find the relevant literature, and the recent arrival of artificial intelligence (AI) has further facilitated our awareness of the relevant peer-reviewed publications. Polymer International as a leading polymer science and engineering journal has nurtured reviews,1, 2 perspectives3 and special issues4, 5 to aid our readership with the digestion of a vast prior literature. Moreover, the journal invited a novel mini-review format,6-10 thus facilitating the preparation and readability of the review manuscript. Reviews initially arrived at our desktops as an aid to digest the vast earlier literature, and it could be argued that the classic review format was created decades ago in the absence of more efficient internet search engines. However, it is important to note that a review paper also integrates the perspective of the author, presumably a leader in the field and one who has deemed the cited literature as the seminal research and most exciting recent results. The perspective of the author is a critical element of the review! How does the classic review format of the 1980s adapt to the rapidly evolving search tools in 2025? As Polymer International Editor-in-Chief, I think the answer includes a shorter review to prepare, a shorter review for readability and a review that augments the perspective of the invited international author in the field. Is it acceptable to reinvent the wheel? My answer is yes! Many polymer compositions and synthetic methods including new monomers were investigated many years ago, yet our fundamental understanding of polymerization processes, the advent of sophisticated analytical tools and novel strategies for well-defined molecular architectures now are available to move these earlier inventions into new directions. Furthermore, opportunities for societal impact or changing consumer needs catalyze reinvention, often demanding a twist of creativity. Simply stated, we continue to learn! For example, cycloaliphatic replacements for bisphenol-A were reported decades ago, but only introduced when scientists recognized the possibility of bisphenol-A as an endocrine disrupter.11 Soybean protein and soy oil were used to frame early automobiles, and now we are focused on imposing novel catalysis to tailor the molecular structure of fatty acids.12 Now sustainability, circularity and the potential for negative impact of polymers in both human and environmental health loom largely again in the minds of scientists, engineers and society. We need to look back before we look forward! Our attention to polymer sustainability and circularity is not new. Our scientific community has recognized this need for decades, but we now approach one trillion pounds of plastic manufactured across the world, and this does not include other polymer-based consumer products from adhesives and coatings to foams and electronics. The search for a ‘universal compatibilizer’ in the 1990s led to poly(vinyl phenol)-containing block copolymers that tackled a mixed waste stream of polyolefins and polyesters.13 The wildlife ingestion of plastic waste was observed in the 1960s, only a relatively short time after the discovery of polyolefin coordination catalysts.14 It is truly time to reinvent earlier technologies and impose a modern-day lens on recycling, reducing, reusing and redesigning. The Society of Chemical Industry recognizes the importance of polymer sustainability, and its vision motivates our scientific community to reinvent and redefine the manufacturing and consumption of plastics with a grounding in fundamental polymer science and engineering. Polymer International catalyzes a vision for interdisciplinary research with a lens of translational research to the chemical industry, and sustainability remains as a cornerstone for the journal. Special issues within the journal further help to digest the earlier literature and nucleate a more comprehensive discussion of the field.15 However, we are often challenged to simply define polymer sustainability and circularity: the definition is not simple, truly all-encompassing from bio-sourced monomers and depolymerization to sustainable advanced manufacturing and the principles of green chemistry. Polymer International intends to deliver more reviews for our readership, thus facilitating a retrospective of the literature and enabling a new perspective. Thanks go to the leadership of Roger Hiorns as he canvases the globe for scientific leaders to prepare reviews. This editorial serves as an invitation to prepare a review in a field that you have considered during your career. What were the seminal findings? What fundamental science led to commercial impact? What is the trajectory for the field? What are the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead? This perspective will catalyze innovation with the identification of potential obstacles for commercialization, perhaps nurturing life cycle assessment, techno-economic analysis, material flow analysis and machine learning. I take this opportunity to recognize the tireless efforts of many colleagues at the Society of Chemical Industry and Wiley, who collectively strive to raise the impact and internationality of the journal. I particularly want to acknowledge Lucy as she moves to the next chapter of her career, and her efforts have left an indelible mark on science. Here is hoping for a new year filled with success in your efforts to change the world for the better!