April 23, 2025
This is part of a series featuring Albemarle experts who lead the world in transforming essential resources into critical ingredients that power our lives.
When Kevin Caple was only 6 or 7 years old, he took a risk when his mom’s back was turned.
A tray of freshly baked cookies was resting on the stove. As Caple debated whether to sneak one, he knew the baking sheet was hot, but he wondered about the aluminum foil covering. He reached up, and he was stunned.
The foil was cooling much faster than the tray.
“I wanted to know why,” Caple says. “I guess I always had an innate interest in science and math.”
That curiosity stuck with him. Caple studied chemical engineering at Oregon State University, earning both a master’s degree and a Ph.D. He then moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and joined Albemarle’s research and technology team in 2014.
Today, Caple and his team develop new process improvements for products across the bromine and lithium markets. A central pillar of their work relies on thermal conductivity and the overall flow of energy in a system – the same principle demonstrated by the cooling aluminum foil that intrigued him as a boy.
As a process development manager, one of Caple’s jobs is to take molecules that scientists develop in research and development labs and ramp up their production for customers. The challenge: It’s not easy for molecules made in laboratories to be reproduced in large-scale manufacturing. With massive production equipment, it’s critical to maintain precise control over a variety of factors, including temperature and timing. Even a slight miscalculation can force you to start over.
“This job requires such a degree of problem-solving skills, and Kevin and his team make the difficult look easy,” said Wesley Hamilton, Albemarle’s chief technical officer. “It’s incredible how much he’s helped us deliver innovations that help our customers.”
One of Caple’s biggest achievements came last year, as Albemarle worked on a new product. It needed a different solvent than what had been used, and people were pessimistic.
“We came up with something,” Caple says, “that people thought wouldn't work and that went against 20 years of scientific precedence.”
