<p>The expanded production of shale gas has increased the desire for developing methods for converting light alkanes, especially propane and ethane, into aromatic species (i.e., benzene, toluene, and xylene). A multi-step process for conversion of light alkanes to aromatics may be developed, where the first stage converts light alkanes into olefins and hydrogen, and the second stage converts olefins to aromatics. However, to determine the viability of this process, better understanding of the performance of olefin aromatization in the presence of equimolar hydrogen is necessary. </p> <p><br></p> <p>Previous studies on the conversion of olefins to aromatics with bifunctional ZSM-5 catalysts have concluded that benzene, toluene, and xylenes (BTX) yields are significantly higher than for ZSM-5 alone. These results were attributed to the presence of a dehydrogenation function of Ga or Zn leading to higher rates of aromatics formation. In this study, a highly active, bifunctional PtZn/SiO2 (1.3 wt% Pt, 2.6 wt% Zn) with H-ZSM-5 (Si/Al = 40) catalyst is investigated for propene aromatization at 723 K and 823 K. At low to moderate propene conversions, in addition to BTX, light alkanes and olefins are produced. Many of these may also be converted to aromatics at higher propene conversion while others are not, for example, light alkanes. When compared at equivalent space velocity and propylene conversion, the bifunctional catalyst has a much higher selectivity to aromatics than ZSM-5; however, when compared at equivalent conversion of all reactive intermediates, the bifunctional catalyst exhibits very similar BTX selectivity. At 723 K, for both ZSM-5 and the bifunctional catalyst, the primary non-reactive by-products are propane and butane. At 823 K, both ZSM-5 and the bifunctional catalyst convert propane and butane to aromatics increasing the aromatic yields, and the by-products are methane and ethane.</p> <p><br></p> <p>Additionally, previous studies have investigated the H-ZSM-5 and Ga/H-ZSM-5 in the absence of H2, which is necessary to understand in order to develop a process for the conversion of light alkanes to aromatics. Herein, proton-form ZSM-5 and Ga modified H-ZSM-5 are compared for propylene aromatization in the presence and absence of equimolar hydrogen at 1.9 kPa and 50 kPa partial pressures. At 1.9 kPa, the presence of H2 is shown to have no impact on the product distribution on H-ZSM-5 or Ga/H-ZSM-5. At 50 kPa, H2 is shown to have no significant impact on H-ZSM-5 and has no impact on Ga/H-ZSM-5 at conversions <80%. Additionally, the addition of Ga to H-ZSM-5 is shown to have no impact on the product distribution in the presence or absence of H2, contrary to previous reports. The disagreement with previous literature stems from previous literature comparing H-ZSM-5 and Ga/H-ZSM-5 at equivalent space velocity rather than equivalent propylene conversion despite previous studies showing that the presence of Ga increases the conversion at equivalent space velocity for olefin aromatization. </p>

Access to safe water is a basic human right recognized by the United Nations General Assembly in 2010 (WHO, 2020). However, a least 2.2 billion people globally still are without safely managed water services meaning they use a drinking water source that can be contaminated with faeces (WHO, 2020). With such a pressing global health issue, it is clear that improvement to water systems is important and required in the Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, to improve water systems and prove they are safe water sources, water quality testing must occur. A solution to this issue is the development of rapid detection sensors for pathogens in water. The first chapter of this thesis aims to create an informed list of rapid detection sensors that should be focused on for future development. This is achieved by using multicriteria decision analysis techniques based on using two consecutive processes. The first is the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), which was used to develop weightings for criteria being measured for different sensor alternatives. The second process is the Technique of Order Preference Similarity to the Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), which was used to perform the ranking of the sensors being reviewed based on the weighted criteria. The outcome of the multicriteria decision analysis was identifying the top 5 rapid detection nanosensors for future development. They can be further improved to include field scale applications while also achieving lower detection limits and shorter detection times. The cost for these sensors could possibly be reduced by changing the nanoparticles that the sensor is composed of. Through improved methods, the goal of creating a cost effective, rapid-detection nanosensor for bacteria (e.g., Shiga-toxin producing E. coli) in drinking water can be achieved by prioritization of research on these promising nanosensors. The second chapter of the thesis focuses on optimizing a gold nanosensor developed in 2015 by Raweewab T. and Rawiwan L, hereafter called the “Original Method.” The goal was to reduce the cost and improve the reusability of their indirect colorimetric gold nanosensor without compromising the simplicity of the detection platform. With a reusable and more cost-effective sensor, field applications for water quality testing in water system projects in impoverished areas can be more obtainable. The nanoparticle itself was the target of optimization in this study. The hypothesis was that the polyethylenimine (PEI) coating on the gold nanoparticle surface is the governing factor of how the sensor functions, meaning the core nanomaterial does not affect the function of the sensor. In this study, the results showed that sensor still maintained its function after replacing the PEI coated gold nanoparticle used in the Original Method with PEI coated silver nanoparticles. These findings indicated that with further development and future research, it will be possible to use less expensive nanoparticles for making the nanosensor. It will also be possible to make this sensor reusable through the development of PEI coated magnetite nanoparticles. Their magnetic quality could allow for recovering the nanosensors from the test media, then re-conditioned and used again.

Yes

Design and synthesis of porous organic polymers have attracted considerable attentions during the past decade due to their wide range of applications in gas storage, gas separation, energy conversion, and catalysis. Porous organic polymers can be pre-synthetically and post-synthetically functionalized with a wide variety of functionalities for desirable applications. Along these pursuits, we introduced new synthetic strategies for preparation of porous organic polymers for selective CO2 capture. Porous azo-linked polymers (ALPs) were synthesized by an oxidative reaction of amine-based monomers using copper(I) as a catalyst which leads to azo-linkage formation. ALPs exhibit high surface areas of up to 1200 m2 g-1 and have high chemical and thermal stabilities. The nitrogen atoms of the azo group can act as Lewis bases and the carbon atom of CO2 can act as a Lewis acid. Therefore, ALPs show high CO2 uptake capacities due to this Lewis acid-based interaction. The potential applications of ALPs for selective CO2 capture from flue gas, natural gas, and landfill gas under pressure-swing and vacuum swing separation settings were studied. Due to their high CO2 uptake capacity, selectivity, regenerability, and working capacity, ALPs are among the best porous organic frameworks for selective CO2 capture. In our second project, a new bis(imino)pyridine-linked porous polymer (BIPLP-1) was synthesized and post-synthetically functionalized with Cu(BF4)2 for highly selective CO2 capture. BIPLP-1 was synthesized via a condensation reaction between 2,6-pyridinedicarboxaldehyde and 1,3,5-tris(4-aminophenyl)benzene, wherein the bis(imino)pyridine linkages are formed in-situ during polymerization. The functionalization of the polymer with Cu(BF4)2 was achieved by treatment of the polymer with a solution of Cu(BF4)2 via complexation of copper cations with bis(imino)pyridine moieties of the polymer. BF4- ions can act Lewis base and CO2 can act as a Lewis acid; and therefore, the functionalized polymer shows high binding affinity for CO2 due to this Lewis acid-based interaction. The functionalization of the pores with Cu(BF4)2 resulted in a significant enhancement in CO2 binding energy, CO2 uptake capacity, and CO2 selectivity values. Due to high reactivity of bis(imino)pyridines toward transitions metals, BIPLP-1 can be post-synthetically functionalized with a wide variety of inorganic species for CO2 separation and catalytic applications.

Electrocatalysis is key to both sensitive electrochemical sensing and efficient electrochemical energy conversion. Despite high catalytic activity, traditional metal catalysts have poor stability, low selectivity, and high cost. Metal-free, carbon-based materials are emerging as alternatives to metal-based catalysts because of their attractive features including natural abundance, environmental friendliness, high electrical conductivity, and large surface area. Altering surface functionalities and heteroatom doping are effective ways to promote catalytic performance of carbon-based catalysts. The first chapter of this dissertation focuses on developing electrode modification methods for electrochemical sensing of biomolecules. After electrochemical pretreatment, glassy carbon demonstrates impressive figures-of-merit in detecting small, redox-active biomolecules such as DNA bases and neurotransmitters. The results highlight a simplified surface modification procedure for producing efficient and highly selective electrocatalysts. The next four chapters focus on evaluating nitrogen-doped carbon nano-onions (𝑛-CNOs) as electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction and CO2 reduction. 𝑛-CNOs exhibit excellent electrocatalytic performance toward O2 to H2O reduction, which is a pivotal process in fuel cells. 𝑛-CNOs demonstrate excellent resistance against CO poisoning and long-term stability compared to state-of-the-art Pt/C catalysts. In CO2 electrochemical conversion, 𝑛-CNOs demonstrate significant improvement in catalytic performance toward reduction of CO2 to CO with a low overpotential and high selectivity. The outstanding catalytic performance of 𝑛-CNOs originates from the asymmetric charge distribution and creation of catalytic sites during incorporation of nitrogen atoms. High contents of pyridinic and graphitic N are critical for high catalytic performance. This work suggests that carbon-based materials can be outstanding alternatives to traditional metal-based electrocatalysts when their microstructures and surface chemistries are properly tailored.

Iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) have been widely studied for a variety of applications, from biomedical applications (e.g., cell separation, drug delivery, contrast agent for magnetic resonance imaging and magnetically mediated energy delivery for cancer treatment) to environmental remediations (e.g., heavy metal removal and organic pollutants degradation). It has been demonstrated that IONPs can induce the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) via Fenton/Haber-Weiss reactions which has been shown to be one of the key underlying mechanisms of nanoparticles toxicity. This inherent toxicity of nanoparticles has been shown to enhance the efficacy of traditional cancer therapies such as chemotherapy and radiation. In addition, the generation of ROS induced by IONPs has been also studied as advanced oxidation processes (AOP) for wastewater treatment. Recent research has also shown that exposure to an alternating magnetic field can significantly enhance the generation of ROS induced by IONPs. Moreover, the coatings of IONPs play an important role on the surface reactivity of nanoparticles since it can prevent the generation of ROS via Fenton chemistries at the surface of the nanoparticles. In this work, co-precipitated IONPs were functionalized with small molecules including citric acid, sodium phosphate, amino silane and dopamine. The impact of coating on surface reactivity of the as-synthesized particles was studied using methylene blue dye degradation assay under AMF exposure. With the coatings of these small molecules, the IONPs induced ROS generation was significantly decreased because of the dense surface coverage. To study the effect of polymeric coatings, a degradable poly (beta amino ester) (PBAE) polymer coating was synthesized with dopamine as an anchor to bind to nanoparticles. The surface reactivity of the particles was expected to be recovered once the polymer coating was degraded. Furthermore, the impact of non-degradable PEG-based polymer coating on surface reactivity via ROS generation was also investigated using methylene blue decolorization assay with the presence of AMF. The retention of surface reactivity of PEG-based polymer coated IONPs shows promise for cancer treatment. The application of IONPs as heterogeneous catalyst for organic contaminant degradation was investigated. Bisphenol A (BPA) was used as a model compound, and Fenton reactions were induced by IONPs with the presence of hydrogen peroxide and hydroxylamine as well as alternating magnetic field exposure. The kinetics of BPA degradation under water bath and AMF exposure at 37oC was also studied, and the results showed potential applications of IONPs for organic pollutants remediation.

In dieser Arbeit wird die partielle Autoxidation von Cyclohexan zu Cyclohexanol und Cyclohexanon mit Luftsauerstoff in einem Kapillarrohrreaktor untersucht. Gegenüber dem konventionellen Verfahren wurde die Temperatur auf 180-250°C und der Druck auf 20-80 bar angehoben. Auf diese Weise konnte eine Steigerung der Raum-Zeit-Ausbeute um etwa den Faktor 200 (von 25 kg/m³*h auf ca. 6000 kg/m³*h) erreicht werden. Die Umsätze sind dabei denen der industriellen Anlage vergleichbar. Die Selektivität der partiellen Oxidation zu den Wertprodukten cyclohexanol, Cyclohexanon und Cyclohexylhydroperoxid liegt im Kapillarrohrreaktor mit 80-90 % etwas unter den in der industriellen Anlage erreichbaren Selektivität von ca. 90-95 %. Die Reaktion im Kapillarrohrreaktor wurde auch aus sicherheitstechnischer Perspektive untersucht. Cyclohexan ist in die Explosionsgruppe IIA eingeordnet. Um das System in konservativer Weise zu betrachten, wurde als Stoffsystem Ethen (Referenzgas der Explosionsgruppe IIB) im Gemisch mit Sauerstoff bzw. Lachgas ausgewählt. Es wurde ein Versuchsaufbau konstruiert, mit dem ex möglich war stabile Detonationen zu erzeugen, diese in die Mikrostruktur einzuleiten und deren Ausbreitung und ggf. Austritt aus der Mikrostruktur zu beobachten. Im Versuchsprogramm wurde der Anfangsdruck im Bereich von 0,1 bis 10 bar und der Rohrdruchmesser der eingesetzten Kapillarrohr im Bereich von 0,13 - 1 mm variiert. Es zeigt sich, dass sich stabile Detonationen von stöchiometrischen Ethen/Sauerstoff-Gemischen bei einem Anfangsdruck von 1 bar abs gerade noch durch eine Kapillare mit einem Innendurchmesser von 0,13 mm ausbreiten können. Es wurde aus den Messdaten und theoretischen Betrachtungen eine Kennzahl für die Bewertung von Mikrostrukturierten Bauteilen entwickelt und diskutiert: der maximale sichere Rohrdurchmesser. / In this thesis a process is described for the uncatalyzed selective oxidation of cyclohexane with air at high-p, T-conditions in a micro capillary reactor. At 533 K a spacetime-yield of about 6000 kg/(m3 ? h) is reached, which corresponds to a size of 2 m x 2 m x 2 m(8 m3) of the microstructured reactor assuming a capacity of 100000 t/a compared to 500 m3 total reactor volume realized with a cascade of bubble columns of each about 100 m3. Unfortunately, selectivity drops at this temperature below 80 % which is significantly lower than the selectivity in the conventional process. With the help of the Hatta number, mass transfer limitations can be excluded for the micro capillary reactor, whereas the bubble column reactor is weakly limited by the gas/liquid mass transfer of the molecular oxygen. Thus, process intensification by enhancing mass transfer using a microstructured reactor for cyclohexane oxidation with air is quite low. Furthermore a method and its corresponding results are presented for the determination of maximum safe capillary diameters, which may be used to describe the extended range of safe operation conditions for gas phase oxidation reactions in microstructured reactor devices. Sections of stainless steel micro capillaries of different inner diameters are mounted between a primary and a secondary chamber. An explosion is ignited in the primary chamber, where also a deflagration to detonation transition occurs. The propagation of the detonation through the stainless steel micro capillaries is monitored by pressure transducers located between the sections of the micro capillaries. This setup is used in order to determine explosion velocities inside the capillaries, maximum safe initial pressures and corresponding maximum safe capillary diameters. Initial investigations are performed with an ideal stoichiometric mixture necessary for complete combustion of ethene with oxygen respectively ethene and nitrous oxide at room temperature. The measured maximum safe capillary diameters obey an indirect proportionality to the initial pressures. The maximum safe capillary diameter can be estimated on the basis of the lambda/3-rule.

Copper is an essential metal in today’s economy, due to its superior electrical and thermal conductivities, alloying properties, and chemical uses. Most copper is produced viamining and refining, and most copper is found in the earth’s crust as chalcopyrite, CuFeS2. Typically, chalcopyrite is concentrated and fed to a high temperature pyrometallurgical process which produces >99.99% purity copper cathodes. Recently, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has implemented a hydrometallurgical autoclave-leaching process that takes chalcopyrite concentrate and produces copper cathodes. It is imperative that these pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical processes be modeled and compared so that the extraction industry can best decide which technology to apply in the future. This work presents transient, reduced-order models for the comparison of the two processes using exergy balances. Exergy is typically thought of as the maximum work extractable from a system as it spontaneously reacts to the state of the surrounding environment; for extractive processes, it is also helpful to think of exergy as the minimum work required to effect a concentration, e.g. of copper. Exergy balances are thus similar to first law balances, but they comment on the location and magnitude of usefulenergy flows, instead of energy flows in general. For the baseline case, this work found that the pyrometallurgical process up to 99.5% copper anode stored 54% of the fed exergy in product, lost 20% of the fed exergy, and destroyed the remaining 26%. In contrast, the hydrometallurgical process up to 30 grams-per-liter copper pregnant-leach-solution stored 5% of the fed exergy in product, lost 9% of the fed exergy, and destroyed the remaining 86%. The effects of process variations are also looked at. It is recommended that this work be incorporated in whole-plant exergy balances to more precisely examine the tradeoffs between the pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical routes of copper extraction from chalcopyrite concentrates.

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