Scientists working on safe, biodegradable alternatives to plastics made from agricultural waste awarded £500,000 2026 Hill Prize in Physical Sciences.
Teysha Technologies and Texas A&M University, Dr. Karen Wooley and Matthew Stone, along with team members Dr. Senthil Kumar Boopathi and Dr. Ashlee Jahnke, received the award for a joint venture to develop biodegradable alternatives to plastics.
Wooley and Stone were recognised for their patent-pending polymer chemistry, which converts plant-derived sugars and natural phenolic compounds into high-performance alternatives to bisphenol A (BPA).
The materials are engineered to match or exceed the durability and functionality of conventional plastics, while safely degrading at end of life, with the aim of eliminating long-term environmental and human health risks.
The Hill Prize awards early-stage scientific research with strong societal impact. It provides $500,000 in non-dilutive funding to accelerate the translation of breakthrough science into real-world applications.
Dr. Karen Wooley, Chief Technology Officer of Teysha Technologies and Distinguished Professor and W. T. Doherty-Welch Chair in Chemistry at Texas A&M University, commented: “This funding allows us to accelerate the transition from university lab-scale innovation to materials that can be adopted by industry, without sacrificing performance or safety.”
Stone founded the materials company Teysha Technologies, which has developed a biopolymer platform with the aim of producing commercially viable materials validated across packaging, cosmetics, 3D printing and durable goods.
In 2025, Teysha Technologies says materials it produced were tested during a world-record Mount Everest expedition, withstanding temperatures below –40°C, extreme UV exposure and prolonged mechanical stress.
Matthew Stone, CEO and Founder of Teysha Technologies, said: “This award validates the idea that sustainable materials must work within existing industrial systems.”
“With the Hill Prize, we can scale KarmaCane faster and support partners who are actively looking to replace toxic plastics with practical, high-performance alternatives.”