Organic micropollutants (OMPs) in climate change affected natural environment such as wetlands, and engineered systems have brought serious concerns for water security and public health. These issues have increased the demand for better managing water resources and developing effective technologies for aqueous micropollutants removal. This thesis investigated these subjects through the following five sub-research projects. First, boreal peatland was used as a case study for understanding how peatland fires and droughts impacts peatland resilience. Laboratory results suggested that heating and moisture condition, coupled with peat organic hydrophobic transformations, influence peat soil hydrophobicity and the resultant water-extractable pollutant leaching, which potentially threatens peatland downstream receiving waters such as potable waters by high organic loads. Further, post-fire peat chemistry and their mechanistic relationships to leached pollutants (total organic carbon (TOC), nutrients and phenols) were elucidated through a laboratory leaching study. Increased contaminant loading was observed in post-heated peat leachates, suggesting negative effects to water treatment efficiency and an increase of treatment costs to surface waters as potable water source. Next, peat soils damaged from extreme fires and droughts were upcycled for producing high surface area, value-added porous carbons based on a rapid, facile chemical activation approach. This application had the simultaneous benefit of peatland ecological restoration, protecting downstream communities from heavy run-off, and using the sustainable damaged peats for effective environmental remediation though adsorption. Moreover, a critical review of nano-enabled composite membranes for OMP removal (size-exclusion, adsorption, charge interaction, and photo- and electro-catalysis) and their respective benefits and limitations were discussed. This work brought new perspectives for next-generation nanocomposite membranes for OMP removal. Finally, a novel, hyperbranched polyethylenimine (HPEI) crosslinked iron doped reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanocomposite membrane was synthesized for process-intensified flow-through separation of phenolic micropollutants. Mechanisms and separation performance to phenolic micropollutant and azo dyes were investigated. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Climate change, industrial manufacture, and population growth have been exacerbating the global water stress. Organic micropollutants (OMPs) are potentially toxic, persistent and can exist even at trace levels, which have been increasingly discovered and identified in natural and built systems. In this research, environmental chemistry of climate-change impacted boreal peatland soils, and their mechanistic relationships to peat soil hydrophobicity, organic substance transformations, micropollutant leaching, and impacts to downstream potable water quality was investigated as a case study. Two different innovative water treatment strategies were developed for restoring peatland resilience and enhancing water resource sustainability including treating peatland phenolic micropollutants. The first approach converted shallow layer wildfire- and drought- damaged peats into value-added porous carbons for adsorption. The second approach synthesized a novel reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanocomposite membrane for process-intensified flow-through separation. These solutions provide novel insights for source water protection and wastewater treatment in adaption to climate change.

Lignin-derived precursors were used in the synthesis of bio-based high-performance polymers. The project consisted of synthesizing a series of poly(ester amide)s (PEAs) from lignin building blocks and natural amino acids. In particular, the amino acid moieties were incorporated into the PEAs’ architecture to explore the effect of the side-chain size on the thermal properties and the crystallinity of the resulting materials. The polymers, which were prepared by melt polycondensation, all possessed high thermal stability in nitrogen and air with onsets of thermal degradation (Td onset) exceeding 330 °C and glass transition temperatures (Tg) ranging from 136 °C – 238 °C. It is worth noting that the Tg greatly depended on the size of the pendant R-group on the amino acid. Remarkably, the thermal stability was mostly maintained even after subjecting the polymers to various pH media (pH 1, 4 and 8) for 1 week at 50 °C. Furthermore, wide-angle X-ray scattering experiments revealed semi-crystalline polymers with identical diffraction patterns and percent crystallinity ranging from 21 – 37%. To probe the impact of chirality on the thermal properties, a meso polymer of DL-alanine was prepared and compared to the chiral version. A slight drop in the Td onset and Tg of the DL-alanine-containing polymer relative to the L-alanine counterpart occurred, signifying moderate thermal stability resulting from the chiral group. Overall, these characteristics make these bio-based PEAs potential candidates for further investigation as alternatives to petrochemical-derived thermoplastics for high-performance materials.

No description available.

No description available.

Biomass feedstock is a viable alternative to finite fossil fuel resources to provide many of the same—plus others that petrochemicals cannot—chemical building blocks required to fabricate durable and high-performance materials. We demonstrate here for the first time a new generation of synthesized elastomers, namely bio-based engineering elastomers (BEE). These are of particular significance because they are synthesized from monomers derived from biomass, by routes which are suitable for large scale production, and they exhibit thermo-mechanical properties at least equivalent to current commercial petrochemical-derived elastomers. Bio-based monomers in large scale production, such as sebacic acid, itaconic acid, succinate acid, 1,3-propanediol, and 1,4 butanediol are chosen to generate the first synthetic BEE matrix through melting polycondensation—a comparatively simple reaction scheme offering good control and the potential for low cost, large-scale production. A novel linear BEE, an almost non-crystalline copolyester elastomer with low glass transition temperature (Tg) containing double bonds is designed and synthesized using multiple monomers (to help suppress crystallization). Silica nanoparticles are then introduced into the BEE matrix to achieve significant strengthening and improved environmental stability. Chemical crosslinks formed by peroxide and the pendant double bonds in the copolyester macromolecules endow the BEE with both the necessary high elasticity and required environmental stability. The BEE nanocomposites obtained exhibit excellent thermomechanical properties, such as an ultimate tensile strength of 20 MPa.

La première partie de ce projet à consisté à isoler la lignine à partir de liqueurs industrielles et à la purifier pour s’affranchir des sucres, des minéraux et autres constituants. Pour cela, un protocole efficace en trois étapes a été proposé pour obtenir des échantillons de lignine avec une pureté satisfaisante (95%) et pour récupérer 68% de la lignine initialement présente dans la liqueur alcaline de départ. La lignine alcaline purifiée a ensuite été caractérisée d’un point de vue moléculaire et par analyses thermiques. L’élucidation de la structure de la lignine alcaline a permis d’appréhender sa fonctionnalisation par oxydation. Les analyses par chromatographie d’exclusion stérique de la lignine après oxydation ont montré une diminution de la masse molaire confirmant ainsi le clivage. Trois fractions différentes ont été isolées après l’oxydation de la lignine selon le solvant d’extraction ; d’une part des oligomères (plus ou moins fonctionnalisés) et d’autre part des molécules aromatiques (dont15% de vanilline). Ce travail de thèse aura abouti à la synthèse de composés aromatiques à haute valeur ajoutée (vanilline) et d’oligomères de lignine fonctionnalisés par des fonctions acide carboxylique. Les applications envisageables de ces « polyacides » issus de lignine sont nombreuses pour la formation de nouveaux polymères bio-sourcés tels que des polyesters, polyamides ou encore polyuréthanes. / A valorization of alkaline lignin from an industrial pulping liquor has been proposed for this project. Before considering any chemical modification or potential applications, the lignin structure has been elucidated. An efficient three-steps protocol for extraction and purification of lignin from industrial liquor has been established. This protocol leads to high purity sample of lignin (95%) and allows the recovery (68%) of the lignin initially present in the alkaline liquor. Alkaline lignin has been characterized utilizing analytical methods and thermogravimetric analysis. This precise structure elucidation was critical for proceeding to chemical modification of alkaline lignin. Chemical modification of alkaline lignin has been done by oxidation in alkaline media. Three major oxidized products have been isolated depending on the extraction solvent: oligomers bearing carboxylic groups and aromatic molecules. This thesis work led to the synthesis of value-added bio-sourced chemicals and functionalized oligomers. The polyacids from lignin obtained should be studied to form new biobased polymers such as polyesters, polyamids or polyurethanes.

L’objectif de ces travaux de recherche était de synthétiser de mousses polyuréthane (PUF) bio-basées à partir d’oligomères hydroxytéléchéliques issus du caoutchouc naturel (HTNR) ou à partir de poudrettes de pneus usagés (HTWT) et du diol de la polycaprolactone (PCL) comme segments soft. Les paramètres étudiés ont été le type de polyol et le rapport molaire entre HTNR/PCL et HTWT/PCL. La masse molaire de HTNR, HTWT et PCL étaient respectivement 1,800, 1400 et 2000 g/mol. L’effet du rapport molaire HTNR/PCL et HTWT/PCL (1/0, 1/0/5/, 1/1, et 0.5/1) sur la vitesse de formation des mousses et sur les propriétés chimiques et physiques a été étudié. Les structures chimiques de HTNR, HTWT et PUF ont été confirmées par FTIR et 1H-RMN. Le diol de la PCL était le plus réactif donc augmentant le contenu de PCL-diol la vitesse de formation des mousses a augmenté. La densité des mousses a changé légèrement avec le rapport molaire cependant la résistance à la traction reste dans la même gamme. Le diamètre moyen des cellules a augmenté en fonction du contenu de PCL-diol et la tendance inverse a été observée pour l’allongement à la rupture et la résistance à la compression. L’observation au microscope électronique à balayage (MEB) a montré que les mousses basées sur les HTNR étaient alvéolées et fermées. La biodégradabilité a été évaluée selon le test de Sturm. Polyéthylène à baisse densité et benzoate de sodium ont été utilisés respectivement comme témoins négatif et positif. Les mousses ont montré une période d’induction de 33 jours dans lequel le pourcentage de dégradation était ~ 7-10%. La biodégradation de PUF contenant seulement HTNR a été 8.4% après 28 jours et 31.89% après 60 jours ; les PUF contenants 1/0.5 HTNR/PCL ont montré un pourcentage supérieure : 11.31% après 28 jours et 45.6% après 60 jours. Le rapport molaire HTWT/PCL a influencé beaucoup la vitesse de formation des mousses et leur morphologie. Cellules fermées de forme polyédrique ont été observé par microscopie électronique à balayage. Les résultats de l’analyse thermogravimétrique ont montré que l’addition du diol de la PCL a augmenté la température de dégradation. Il a été observé qu’une basse vitesse de réaction génère des mousses à haute densité, petit diamètre de cellule et haute distribution des diamètres. La biodégradation des PUF contenant seulement HTWT a été 31.2% après 28 jours et 51.3% après 60 jours, tandis que les PUF contenant 1/0.5 HTWT/PCL ont montré une dégradation plus élevée : 39.1% après 28 jours et 64.3% après 60 jours. La vitesse de formation des mousses basées sur les HTWT était supérieure à celle des mousses basées sur les HTNR. Toutes les mousses basées sur les HTWT ont une densité supérieure et une taille de cellule inférieure à celles basées sur HTNR. La structure des cellules des mousses basées sur les HTNR ou HTWT était différente cependant toutes les mousses ont montré des cellules quasi complètement fermées. Les mousses basées sur les HTWT ont montré des propriétés thermiques et de biodégradation meilleures par rapport aux mousses basées sur les HTNR. / The aim of this research was to prepare a bio-based polyurethane foam (PUF) containing hydroxyl telechelic oligomers from natural rubber (HTNR) and waste tire crumbs (HTWT) and polycaprolactone diol (PCL) as soft segments. The studied parameters included type of polyols and molar ratio between HTNR/PCL and HTWT/PCL. The molecular weight of HTNR and HTWT derived from 1H-NMR spectra were 1,800 and 1,400 g/mol, respectively. The molecular weight of PCL diol was 2000 g/mol. The effect of HTNR/PCL and HTWT/PCL molar ratio (1/0, 1/0.5, 1/1 and 0.5/1) on the foam formation rate and physical and chemical properties of the resulting PUF was investigated. The chemical structure of HTNR, HTWT and PUF were confirmed by FTIR and 1H-NMR. PCL diol provided faster reaction, thus higher PCL diol content showed higher foam formation rate. The foam density slightly changed with the molar ratio whereas the specific tensile strength of all samples was in the same range. The average diameter of cell increased with increasing contents of PCL diol. The addition of PCL diol resulted in reduced elongation at break and compressive strength. The cellular structure observed by SEM micrographs of HTNR based foams showed an almost closed cell. The biodegradability was assessed according to a modified Sturm test. Low density polyethylene and sodium benzoate were used as a negative and positive control sample, respectively. PUF samples showed an induction time of 33 days in which the percentage of biodegradation was  7-11%. The biodegradation of PUF containing only HTNR was 8.4% and 31.89% at 28 days and 60 days of testing respectively whereas the PUF containing 1/0.5 HTNR/PCL (by mole) showed a higher biodegradation: 11.31% and 45.6% at 28 days and 60 days of testing respectively. The molar ratio of HTWT/PCL strongly affected the kinetic rate of foam formation and foam morphology. According to SEM micrographs, polyhedral closed cells were observed. The addition of the PCL diol increased the thermal degradation temperature of the PUF based on TGA results. A low kinetic rate provided PUF with a high density, small cell size and a broad cell size distribution. The biodegradation of PUF containing only HTWT was 31.2% and 51.3% at 28 days and 60 days of testing respectively whereas the PUF containing 1/0.5 HTWT/PCL diols (by mole) showed a higher biodegradation: 39.1% and 64.3% at 28 days and 60 days of testing respectively. The foam formation rate of HTWT based PUF was higher than the one of HTNR based PUF. All HTWT based PUF have a higher density than HTNR based PUF. The HTWT based PUF had an inferior cell size in comparison to HTNR based PUF. The cellular structure of HTNR based and HTWT based PUF were different, but all PUFs showed almost closed cells. The HTWT based PUF had a higher thermal degradation temperature and biodegradation properties than foams from HTNR. / วัตถุประสงค์ของงานวิจัยนี้ เพื่อทำการเตรียมโฟมพอลิยูรีเทนชีวภาพ (PUF) จากยางธรรมชาติดัดแปรที่มีหมู่ปลายไฮดรอกซิล (HTNR) ยางคลัมบ์ดัดแปรที่มีหมู่ปลาย ไฮดรอกซิล (HTWT) และพอลิคาโปรแลคโทน (PCL) ศึกษาผลของชนิดพอลิออล และสัดส่วนโดยโมลระหว่าง HTNR/PCL และ HTWT/PCL ที่สัดส่วน 1/0, 1/0.5, 1/1 และ 0.5/1 โดยโมล นํ้าหนักโมเลกุลของ HTNR, HTWT และ PCL ที่ใช้สำหรับงานวิจัยนี้ คำนวณจาก 1H-NMR คือ 1,800, 1,400 และ 2,000 g/mol ตามลำดับ ลักษณะโครงสร้างทางเคมีของ HTNR, HTWT และPUF สามารถวิเคราะห์และยืนยันด้วยเทคนิค FTIR และ 1H-NMR รวมถึงทำการวัดอัตราการก่อโฟม (Foam formation rate) ทดสอบสมบัติทางกายภาพ ทางเคมี และสมบัติการย่อยสลายทางชีวภาพ พบว่าในกรณีของโฟมพอลิยูรีเทนจาก HTNR/PCL เมื่อใช้ PCL ในปริมาณที่มากขึ้นจะส่งผลให้อัตราการก่อโฟมเร็วขึ้น และขนาดของเซลโฟมมีขนาดใหญ่ขึ้นด้วย ในขณะที่ค่าความหนาแน่น และความต้านทานต่อแรงดึงจำเพาะมีการเปลี่ยนแปลงเล็กน้อย การเติม PCL ในส่วนผสมของโฟมยังส่งผลให้ความสามารถในการยืด ณ จุดขาด และความทนทานต่อการกดมีค่าลดลง การคืนตัวหลังการกดของโฟม PUF2 (สัดส่วนระหว่าง HTNR/PCL = 1/0.5) จะให้ค่าตํ่าที่สุดคือ 40% ลักษณะของโฟมที่ได้จากการทดลองนี้โดยส่วนใหญ่จะเป็นแบบเซลปิด ความสามารถในการย่อยสลายทางชีวภาพของโฟม ทดสอบโดยใช้วิธี Sturm Test มี LDPE เป็นตัวเปรียบเทียบเชิงลบ และใช้ Sodium benzoate เป็นตัวเปรียบเทียบเชิงบวก พบว่าโฟมเริ่มมีการย่อยสายเกิดขึ้นอย่างเห็นได้ชัดที่เวลา 33 วัน มีเปอร์เซ็นต์การย่อยสลายในช่วง 7-11 เปอร์เซ็นต์ เปอร์เซ็นต์การย่อยสลายของโฟมจาก HTNR (PUF1) อยู่ที่ระดับ 8.4 และ 31.89 เปอร์เซ็นต์ และเปอร์เซ็นต์การย่อยสลายของโฟมจาก HTNR/PCL (1/0.5) อยู่ที่ระดับ 11.31 และ 45.6 เปอร์เซ็นต์ ที่เวลาในการทดสอบ 28 และ 60 วัน ตามลำดับ กรณีของโฟมพอลิยูรีเทนจาก HTWT/PCL เมื่อใช้ PCL ในปริมาณที่มากขึ้นจะส่งผลให้ค่าความหนาแน่นสูงขึ้น ขนาดของเซลโฟมลดลงมีการกระจายของเซลในวงกว้างไม่สมํ่าเสมอ เปอร์เซ็นต์การย่อยสลายทางชีวภาพของโฟมจาก HTWT (PUF5) อยู่ที่ระดับ 31.2 และ 51.3 เปอร์เซ็นต์ และเปอร์เซ็นต์การย่อยสลายของโฟมจาก HTWT/PCL (1/0.5) อยู่ที่ระดับ 39.1 และ 64.3 เปอร์เซ็นต์ ที่เวลาในการทดสอบ 28 และ 60 วัน ตามลำดับ เมื่อทำการเปรียบเทียบโฟมที่ได้จากการเตรียมโดยใช้พอลิออลหลักเป็น HTNR และ HTWT พบว่าโฟมจากพอลิออลหลัก HTWT ให้อัตราการก่อตัวของโฟมเร็วกว่า ขนาดของเซลโฟมเล็กกว่า ความหนาแน่น ความต้านทานต่อความร้อน และเปอร์เซ็นต์การย่อยสลายทางชีวภาพสูงกว่า เมื่อเทียบกับโฟมจากพอลิออลหลัก HTNR

Master of Science / Department of Grain Science and Industry / Xiuzhi Susan Sun / Soybean oil-based resin for transparent flexible coating applications were formulated by dihydroxyl soybean oil (DSO) with commercial epoxy monomers (i.e., epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) and 3,4-epoxycyclohexylmethyl-3,4-epoxycyclohexanecarboxylate (ECHM)). The resin was formed to thermoset polymers using cationic ring-opening photopolymerization. The ether crosslinking and post-polymerization of the polymeric network were observed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Thermal properties of the bio-based coating materials and their copolymerization behaviors were examined using a differential scanning calorimetry and a thermogravimetric analyzer. Crosslink density and molecular weight between crosslink were obtained from dynamic mechanical analysis. ECHM/DSO (1: 1.43 weight ratio) films showed the highest elongation at break (49.2 %) with a tensile strength of 13.7 MPa. After 2 months storage, the elongation at break and tensile strength of films were 32 % and 15.1 MPa, respectively. ESO/DSO films (w/w ratios of 1:0.1, 1:0.15, and 1:0.2) exhibited stable flexibility around 11-13 % of elongations at break without significant reductions of tensile strengths (2.5 to 4.4 MPa) during 2-months shelf life. Optical transparencies of the films were comparable to commercial glass and polymers, and water uptake properties (0.72 and 2.83%) were significantly low.

In order to reduce over-dependency on fossil fuels and to create an environment that is free of non-degradable plastics, and most importantly to reduce greenhouse gas emission, bio-based products are being developed from renewable resources through intense research to substitute conventional petrochemical-based plastics with renewable alternatives and to replace synthetic fibers with natural fibers. Many authors have done quite a lot of work on synthesizing polymers from renewable origin. Polylactic acid (PLA) has been developed and characterized, and it was found that it has enormous potential and can serve as an alternative to conventional thermoplastics in many applications. Modification of the plant oil triglycerides has been discussed by many authors, and research is still going on in this area. The challenge is how to make these renewable polymers more competitive in the market, and if possible to make them 100% bio-based. There is also a major disadvantage to using a bio-based polymer from plant oils because of the high viscosity, which makes impregnation of fibers difficult. Although natural fibers are hydrophilic in nature, the problem of compatibility with the hydrophobic matrix must be solved; however, the viscosity of the bio-based resin from plant oils will complicate the situation even more. This is why many authors have reported blending of the renewable thermoset resin with styrene. In the process of solving one problem, i.e reducing the viscosity of the renewable thermoset resin by blending with reactive diluents such as styrene, another problem which we intended to solve at the initial stage is invariably being created by using a volatile organic solvent like styrene. The solution to this cycle of problems is to synthesize a thermoset resin from plant oils which will have lower viscosity, and at the same time have higher levels of functionality. This will increase the crosslinking density, and they can be cured at room temperature or relatively low temperature. In view of the above considerations, the work included in this thesis has provided a reasonable solution to the compounded problems highlighted above. Three types of bio-based thermoset resins were synthesized and characterized using NMR, DSC, TGA, and FT-IR, and their processability was studied. The three resins were subsequently reinforced with natural fibers (woven and non-woven), glass fibers, and Lyocell fiber and the resulting natural fiber composites were characterized by mechanical, dynamic mechanical, impact, and SEM analyses. These composites can be used extensively in the automotive industry, particularly for the interior components, and also in the construction and furniture industries. Methacrylated soybean oil (MSO), methacrylic anhydride-modified soybean oil (MMSO), and acetic anhydride-modified soybean oil (AMSO) were found to be suitable for manufacture of composites because of their lower viscosity. The MMSO and MSO resins were found to be promising materials because composites manufactured by using them as a matrix showed very good mechanical properties. The MMSO resin can completely wet a fiber without the addition of styrene. It has the highest number of methacrylates per triglyceride and high crosslink density. / Akademisk avhandling för avläggande av teknologie doktorsexamen vid Chalmers Tekniska högskola försvaras vid offentlig disputation, den 6:e maj, Chalmers, KE-salen, Kemigården 4, Göteborg, kl. 10.00.

The purpose of this thesis is, in collaboration with the Swedish company Innventia, to explore the possibilities of using paper machines to create fabric-like nonwoven materials. As part of a relatively new research-area, it serves as some of the ground knowledge that is needed to drive this field forward. The research of this thesis is born from the increasing need for more environmental friendly textiles, and to find new uses for the paper production facilities and companies that are currently experiencing a decline in paper production. The materials used in the research were produced with the Finnish handsheet former and the StratEx sheet-maker made by Innventia. The research consists of the following tests: Tissue Softness Analysis, (TSA), tensile strength and bending stiffness. The tests are done with different combinations of lyocell, PLA, softwood and dissolving pulp in the tested sheets. It is also tested if the lyocell can be a meaningful substitution for PLA in combination with softwood pulp and dissolving pulp when creating the fabric-like materials. In conclusion of this research it can be said that, compared to benchmarking samples like bedding sheets, table cloths and cotton shirts, the sheets created and tested are competitive alternatives to existing materials when it comes to softness. It also became clear that the tensile strength has to be increased to make fabric-like nonwoven materials applicable on the same level as existing textiles. Even so, it is still evident that there is a potentiality in the use of paper machines in the development and creation of new fabric-like materials.