Thesis (Ph. D.)--Auburn University, 2007. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 144-169).

Use of Nano Zero Valent Iron (nZVI) for treatment of different halogenated hydrocarbons, arsenic and various other contaminants has been proved successful. However, with so much diversified use of nZVI in the field and heighted attention to engineered nanoparticles, the environmental fate and impact of the nZVI remains unknown. The goal of this project was to evaluate the effects of different types of nZVI on Typha latifolia, a common wetland plant and hybrid poplar (Populous deltoids x Populous nigra), a woody plant used in phytoremediation. Plants grown hydroponically in a green house were dosed with different concentration of bare or bimetallic nZVI (with 10% nickel coating) for one to four weeks. The results showed that bare nZVI had toxic effects to Typha in higher concentrations but enhanced growth of plants at lower concentrations. Bare nZVI did not significantly affect the growth of poplars but bimetallic nZVI did impede the growth. Bimetallic nano particles were significantly more toxic and resulted in death of Typha within a week of dosing. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) clearly showed the adsorption of the nZVI on the plant root surface, confirmed by Energy dispersive x-ray (EDX) analysis. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) and Scanning Transmission electron microscope (STEM) confirmed the uptake of nZVI by poplar plant, but such internalization was not observed in case of Typha. However, uptake of the nanoparticles was only limited to the root and the translocation of particles to the shoot was not observed.

abstract: Zero-Valent Metals (ZVM) are highly reactive materials and have been proved to be effective in contaminant reduction in soils and groundwater remediation. In fact, zero-Valent Iron (ZVI) has proven to be very effective in removing, particularly chlorinated organics, heavy metals, and odorous sulfides. Addition of ZVI has also been proved in enhancing the methane gas generation in anaerobic digestion of activated sludge. However, no studies have been conducted regarding the effect of ZVM stimulation to Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) degradation. Therefore, a collaborative study was developed to manipulate microbial activity in the landfill bioreactors to favor methane production by adding ZVMs. This study focuses on evaluating the effects of added ZVM on the leachate generated from replicated lab scale landfill bioreactors. The specific objective was to investigate the effects of ZVMs addition on the organic and inorganic pollutants in leachate. The hypothesis here evaluated was that adding ZVM including ZVI and Zero Valent Manganese (ZVMn) will enhance the removal rates of the organic pollutants present in the leachate, likely by a putative higher rate of microbial metabolism. Test with six (4.23 gallons) bioreactors assembled with MSW collected from the Salt River Landfill and Southwest Regional Landfill showed that under 5 grams /liter of ZVI and 0.625 grams/liter of ZVMn additions, no significant difference was observed in the pH and temperature data of the leachate generated from these reactors. The conductivity data suggested the steady rise across all reactors over the period of time. The removal efficiency of sCOD was highest (27.112 mg/lit/day) for the reactors added with ZVMn at the end of 150 days for bottom layer, however the removal rate was highest (16.955 mg/lit/day) for ZVI after the end of 150 days of the middle layer. Similar trends in the results was observed in TC analysis. HPLC study indicated the dominance of the concentration of heptanoate and isovalerate were leachate generated from the bottom layer across all reactors. Heptanoate continued to dominate in the ZVMn added leachate even after middle layer injection. IC analysis concluded the chloride was dominant in the leachate generated from all the reactors and there was a steady increase in the chloride content over the period of time. Along with chloride, fluoride, bromide, nitrate, nitrite, phosphate and sulfate were also detected in considerable concentrations. In the summary, the addition of the zero valent metals has proved to be efficient in removal of the organics present in the leachate. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Environmental and Resource Management 2019

Page 39 was included twice in the thesis. / <p> This thesis describes reactions involving low valent technetium nitrosyl complexes. O-Substituted hydroxylamines were reacted with [TcOCl4]- in methanol producing [Tc(NO)Cl4]-. NMR studies have shown that two species are present besides the starting material during this reaction. One of these species was confirmed by NMR to be the corresponding alcohol of the O-substituted hydroxylamine. The other species is believed to be a hydroxylamine intermediate that is in equilibrium with the final product, [Tc(NO)Cl4]-. A plausible mechanism for this reaction was proposed that included an oxo group attack of the α-carbon of the O-substituted hydroxylamine which would lead to the formation of the corresponding alcohol. In an attempt to confirm the mechanism, O-18 labeled [TcOCl4]- was synthesized, however, there is no conclusive evidence that the label is transferred to the corresponding alcohol at the present time. Substitution reactions of [Tc(NO)Cl4]- with phenanthroline and bipyridyl ligands were also investigated. Reactions with these ligands produced [Tc^(II)(NO)Cl3phen] (4a) and [Tc^(II)(NO)Cl3bipy] (5), respectively. The crystal structures of these complexes showed that the meridonial isomer is produced with one nitrogen atom of the bidentate ligand trans to the nitrosyl moiety. EPR spectra of these compounds confirm the Tc(II) oxidation state of the metal. All of the chloride ligands of 4a and 5 can be displaced using AgBF4 in acetonitrile solvent, which, in the case of bipyridyl, produces [Tc^(I)(NO)(bipy)2(MeCN)]2+ (6). Other technetium nitrosyl containing complexes are formed in these reactions and are currently awaiting x-ray structure determination.</p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

No description available.

Les récents progrès en matière de nanotechnologies ont permis d'élaborer de nouveaux matériaux aux propriétés physico-chimiques uniques tels que les nanoparticules de fer zéro valent (NPFe0). Ces nanoparticules ont prouvé leur efficacité pour dégrader les composés organiques chlorés comme le trichloroéthylène (TCE), cependant leur transport dans les milieux poreux est souvent limité. Une solution pour pallier à ce problème est de modifier leur surface par adsorption de molécules organiques. Toutefois, cet enrobage modifie la réactivité des NPFe0 vis-à-vis du TCE, ce qui peut potentiellement affecter l'efficacité du traitement. Ainsi, le premier volet de cette thèse concerne l'étude de la réactivité de NPFe0 brutes ou modifiées par des polyélectrolytes anioniques vis-à-vis du TCE. Cette réactivité a été évaluée au travers des cinétiques de dégradation du TCE et de ses produits de transformation.D'autre part, les eaux souterraines contiennent souvent des espèces dissoutes réductibles pouvant réagir avec Fe0. Ces dernières peuvent affecter la réactivité des NPFe0 vis-à-vis du polluant ciblé et donc l'efficacité du traitement de dépollution. Le deuxième volet de cette thèse porte sur l'effet de deux accepteurs d'électrons (CrVI et NO3-) sur la réactivité des NPFe0 brutes et modifiées. Enfin, le troisième volet de cette thèse concerne l'évaluation de la réactivité des NPFe0 vis-à-vis du TCE dans un cas « réel », afin de valider la technique de dépollution. Une étude pilote et une application in situ ont ainsi été menées sur un site industriel dont l'eau souterraine est contaminée par le TCE (polluant ciblé) avec de fortes teneurs en CrVI et NO3-. / Recent advances in nanotechnology have led to the development of new materials with unique physicochemical properties such as nanoscale zero valent iron particles (nZVI). These nanoparticles proved their efficiency to degrade chlorinated organic compounds such as trichlorethylene (TCE), but their migration in porous media is often limited. To overcome this problem, a solution is to modify their surface by adsorption of organic molecules. However, this coating modifies the reactivity towards TCE, which can potentially affect the treatment efficiency.Thus, the first part of this PhD focuses on the reactivity of nZVI (bare or modified by anionic polyelectrolytes) towards TCE. This reactivity was evaluated through the TCE degradation kinetics rates and its transformation products.In addition, groundwaters often contain reducible species that can react with dissolved Fe0. These last species may affect the reactivity of nZVI towards the target pollutant and therefore the remediation efficiency. The second part of this PhD focuses on the effect of two electron acceptors (CrVI and NO3-) on the reactivity of bare and modified nZVI.Finally, the third part of this PhD presents the assessment of the reactivity of nZVI towards TCE in a "real" case, in order to validate the remediation process. A pilot study and in situ application have been carried out on an industrial site which groundwater is contaminated with TCE (targeted pollutant) with high levels of CrVI and NO3-.

Les monooxygénases à cuivre sont des systèmes enzymatiques capables de transférer un atome d'oxygène à leur substrat de manière hautement régio et stéréo-spécifique. Les complexes modèles de monooxygénases à cuivre ont fourni de précieuses informations sur la structure et la réactivité des espèces «cuivre-dioxygène» impliquées dans une telle réactivité. Cependant, la découverte récente de deux nouveaux systèmes enzymatiques (LPMO et pMMO) capables d'effectuer l'activation des liaisons C-H très énergétiques a réouvert le débat sur les espèces cuivre--oxygène capables d'une telle réactivité. Dans ce travail, nous avons choisi de préparer des complexes bio-inspirés de Cu(I) et Cu(II) avec un ligand contenant un substrat interne. Ces complexes ont été exposés à différents oxydants ou donneurs d'atome d'oxygène et nous avons étudié la régio- et stéréo-sélectivité de la réaction d'oxydation du substrat interne. De plus, nous avons évalue la capacité de ces systèmes à utiliser l'eau comme donneur d'atome d'oxygène. Pour cela, nous avons l'oxydation ou l'activation de l'eau par voie électrochimique afin de générer des intermédiaires cuivre-oxygène conduisant éventuellement à la production de dioxygène ou à l'oxydation sélective du ligand. Enfin, nous nous sommes intéressés aux propriétés d'espèces hétérobimétalliques à haute valence. Par conséquent, deux nouveaux complexes hétérobimétalliques à haute valence contenant du nickel et du cuivre ont été synthétisés. Nous avons étudié leurs propriétés électroniques et leur réactivité envers des substrats externes et internes (ligands) a été évaluée et comparée à la réactivité de leurs homologues homobimétalliques. / Copper-containing monooxygenases are enzymatic systems capable of transferring an oxygen atom to their subtrates in highly regio or stereo-specific modes. Model complexes for copper-containing monooxygenases have provided valuable information on the structure and reactivity of several copper-dioxygen adducts. However, the recent discovery of two new enzymatic systems (LPMO and pMMO) able to perform activation of very strong C-H bonds has re-opened the debate on the catalytically relevant copper-dioxygen species. The use of model systems that mimic an enzyme is a simple approach to obtain a better knowledge of how nature works. For this study, Cu(I) and Cu(II) complexes containing ligand-substrate were prepared. After reaction with different oxidants or O-atom donors, we investigated the regio- and stereo-selectivity of the oxidation of the internal substrate. Based on the relatively well-known chemistry of Cu(I) with dioxygen, we, were also interested in investigating the water as an O-atom donor in C-H bond activation reactions. We have therefore investigated electrochemical water oxidation or activation to generate dioxygen and selective oxygen-insertion into the substrate-bound moiety. Finally, we explored the properties of mixed-metal dioxygen species as compared to their homometalic counter-parts. Indeed heterobimetallic active sites are found in various metalloenzymes such as cytochrome c oxidase. Therefore, two new high-valent Cu-Ni heterobimetallic complexes were synthesized. We investigated their electronic properties using various spectroscopic methods and their reactivity was evaluated towards external and internal substrates (indane).

Ce projet de recherche porte sur l’étude de complexes de nickel à différents degrés d’oxydation (de 0 à +IV) dans le but de promouvoir la formation de liaisons C–C et C–CF3. Dans une première partie, l’étude porte sur l’utilisation de complexes de nickel à basse valence en tant que catalyseurs pour les réactions de couplage croisé de Negishi et de Suzuki-Miyaura. Si la formation de liaisons C–C est une réaction parfaitement maîtrisée au palladium, l’emploi de complexes de nickel comme catalyseurs est plus difficile à appréhender d’un point de vue mécanistique. Dans ce travail, l’utilisation d’un ligand bis-phosphine a permis de synthétiser et d’isoler des complexes de nickel(0). Une étude mécanistique complète alliant expériences et calculs DFT démontre que la réaction de Negishi fonctionne uniquement sur un régime Ni(0)/Ni(II). Des études préliminaires montrent en revanche que le mécanisme est tout autre lorsqu’on s’intéresse à la réaction de Suzuki-Miyaura. Dans une deuxième partie, l’objectif est la formation de liaisons C–CF3 en utilisant des complexes de nickel à haute valence. La formation de ces liaisons à partir de métaux de transition reste un défi puisque les méthodologies utilisées à ce jour au niveau industriel nécessitent l’utilisation de conditions drastiques et conduisent à la formation de composés nocifs pour l’environnement. Ce n’est que très récemment que des travaux de recherche ont porté sur l’utilisation du nickel comme support à la formation de liaisons C–CF3. Ce projet décrit la synthèse de complexe de nickel(III) portant deux groupements CF3 et l’utilisation d’un complexe dimérique de nickel(III) comme plateforme pour l’accès à d’autres complexes [NiIII(CF3)2]. Si ces complexes ne permettent pas de former de liaisons C–CF3, une espèce de nickel(IV) permet la formation de telles liaisons. Il s’agit de plus du premier complexe de nickel(IV) portant deux atomes de fluor et deux groupements CF3 capable de promouvoir l’activation de liaisons C–H. / This research project aims at the study of nickel complexes in different oxidation states (from 0 to +IV) in order to promote C–C and C–CF3 bond formation. In a first part, low-valent nickel complexes are used as catalysts to perform Negishi and Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions. If the C–C bond formation is a well-known reaction using palladium catalysts, the use of nickel complexes as catalysts is more complicated to understand in the mechanistic aspect. In this work, the key point is the use of a bis-phosphine ligand which allows the synthesis and isolation of nickel(0) complexes. A full mechanistic study via stoichiometric reactions as well as DFT calculations confirms that the Negishi cross-coupling works only on a Ni(0)/Ni(II) catalytic cycle. Surprisingly, preliminary studies on the Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions show that the mechanism pathway is completely different. In a second part, our interest is focused on the C–CF3 bond formation using high-valent nickel complexes. In chemical industries, the C–CF3 bond formation requires harsh conditions and also produces toxic waste for the environment. This mainly explains why the use of transition metals is still challenging in this topic. However in the last few years, the interest for the use of nickel complexes as coupling agent for C–CF3 bond formation has grown. This work deals with the synthesis of nickel(III) complexes bearing two CF3 substituents and the use of a dimeric nickel(III) complex as a building block for the formation [NiIII(CF3)2] type complexes. If these species do not promote the C–CF3 cross coupling, a nickel(IV) complex shows its ability to create this bond. Moreover, this is the first nickel(IV) species bearing both fluorine and CF3 substituents at the same metal center and promoting C–H bond activation.

La synthèse de nanoparticules de fer zéro-valent, par le couplage des procédés d'ultrasonication et d'électrodéposition, est étudiée selon deux approches. La première partie de l'étude s'intéresse à l'influence du substrat, utilisé pour l'électrodéposition, sur la croissance des dépôts de fer et sur leur dispersion par ultrasonication. L'énergie interfaciale ainsi que l'énergie d'adhésion du dépôt sur le substrat (Y_(Fe/substrat) et W_(Fe/substrat) respectivement) étant reliées à l'énergie de surface et à la rugosité du substrat, un intérêt particulier a été porté à ces deux propriétés. Ainsi, deux matériaux présentant des énergies de surface différentes, l'or (Au) et le carbone vitreux (VC), ainsi que des rugosités différentes ont été testés. Un développement théorique basé sur les interactions de Van der Waals a permis de démontrer que Y_(Fe/VC)>Y_(Fe/Au) ce qui suggère une meilleure affinité du dépôt de fer avec l'or qu'avec le VC. Cette différence influence la morphologie (croissance 2D sur or et 3D sur le VC) mais aussi l'adhésion des dépôts. En effet, les expériences réalisées pour étudier l'effet des ultrasons sur le dépôt de fer révèlent une dispersion du dépôt progressive et complète pour le cas du VC alors qu'aucun détachement du dépôt n'est obtenu en utilisant l'or. La seconde partie de l'étude est consacrée à la synthèse de nanoparticules de fer par une nouvelle approche : l'électrodéposition de dépôts de fer ramifiés est étudiée dans une cellule de Hele-Shaw intégrant un élément vibrant (diaphragme piézoélectrique) permettant à la fois la formation de dépôts de fer et leur fragmentation. Les expériences menées révèlent que les bulles d'hydrogène, formées lors de la co-réduction des protons libres durant l'électrodéposition du fer, influencent fortement le processus de fragmentation. En utilisant des hautes fréquences et amplitudes de vibration du PZT, les bulles d'hydrogène oscillent avec des déformations de surface. Celles-ci génèrent des vitesses d'interface suffisamment hautes (˜ 4 m/s) pour permettre aux bulles de fragmenter des dépôts ramifiés en particules de fer, de tailles comprises entre 1 µm et 100 nm, et présentant une grande surface spécifique due à leur morphologie dendritique. Cette deuxième partie de l'étude permet d'ouvrir la voie à une nouvelle technologie de fabrication des nanoparticules. / This study concerns the coupling of the ultrasounds with the electrodeposition process for the synthesis of zero-valent iron nanoparticles; it is structured in two sections. The first focuses on the electrode substrate used for the iron electrodeposition and aims to determine its influence on both the deposit growth and its dispersion by ultrasonication. The interfacial and the adhesion energies of the deposit on the substrate (Y_(Fe/substrate) and W_(Fe/substrate) respectively) being related to the surface energy and the roughness of the substrate, a particular focus is put on the influence of these two properties. Thus, two materials of different surface energies, gold (Au) and vitreous carbon (VC), as well as various roughnesses, are tested. Considering only the Van der Waals interactions, a theoretical development has enabled to determine that Y_(Fe/VC)>Y_(Fe/Au) which suggests a better affinity of the iron deposit with the gold than with the VC substrate. This difference impacts the deposit morphology (2D growth on the gold and 3D growth on the VC substrate) but also the deposit adhesion. Indeed, experiments performed to study the effect of ultrasounds on the iron electrodeposit reveal its progressive and complete dispersion for the vitreous carbon case while no dispersion (no removal of the deposit from the electrode) is obtained with the gold substrate. The second section of the present study deals with the synthesis of iron nanoparticles; to this end, the electrodeposition of branched deposits has been investigated in a Hele-Shaw cell integrating a vibrating element (piezoelectric diaphragm), expected to allow both the deposit formation and its fragmentation. Experiments reveal that the hydrogen bubbles, formed by the co-reduction of free protons during the iron electrodeposition, strongly influence the fragmentation process. Using high vibration frequencies and high amplitudes, the bubbles oscillate with surface deformations, inducing interface velocity sufficiently high (˜ 4 m/s) to allow the fragmentation of the deposit into particles of sizes ranging between 1 µm and 100 nm and showing a high specific surface due to their dendritic morphology. Thus this work opens the way for a new particles manufacturing technology.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are very tenacious wastewater contaminants with negative impact on the ecosystem. The two major sources of POPs are wastewater from textile industries and pharmaceutical industries. They are known for their recalcitrance and circumvention of nearly all the known wastewater treatment procedures. However, the wastewater treatment methods which applied advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are documented for their successful remediation of POPs. AOPs are a group of water treatment technologies which is centered on the generation of OH radicals for the purpose of oxidizing recalcitrant organic contaminants content of wastewater to their inert end products. Circumvention of the reported demerits of AOPs such as low degradation efficiency, generation of toxic intermediates, massive sludge production, high energy expenditure and operational cost can be done through the application of the combined AOPs in the wastewater treatment procedure. The resultant mineralisation of the POPs content of wastewater is due to the synergistic effect of the OH radicals produced in the combined AOPs. Hydrodynamic cavitation is the application of the pressure variation in a liquid flowing through the venturi or orifice plates. This results in generation, growth, implosion and subsequent production of OH radicals in the liquid matrix. The generated OH radical in the jet loop hydrodynamic cavitation was applied as a form of advanced oxidation process in combination with hydrogen peroxide, iron (II) oxides or the synthesized green nano zero valent iron (gnZVI) for the treatment of simulated textile and pharmaceutical wastewater.