2021 Slatt Scholars
Zoe Barnette
Polyvinylamine-based Facilitated Transport Membranes for CO2 Capture
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Casey O'Brien
As awareness of climate change and environmental sustainability grow, reforms in energy efficiency become ever more necessary. One major area that consumes massive amounts of land and water while releasing many harmful pollutants is the agricultural industry. Today, the food and agriculture sector consumes about 10% of the world’s total energy and this number will only continue to increase as the population grows. Yet 800 million people still suffer from hunger. This disparity results from inefficiencies in the agricultural processes. The industry relies predominantly on photosynthesis which is highly inefficient and thus requires vast amounts of land and water. Additionally, the Haber-Bosh process used to make ammonia fertilizer from nitrogen in the air leads to harmful effects on the earth when the ammonia becomes nitrates and nitrites. This process offers benefits of high food production rates but is detrimental to the environment over long periods of time. The overarching goal of the O’Brien research group aims to create carbohydrates in a more efficient and sustainable way through direct air CO2 capture and conversion into viable chemicals. In this research project, the O’Brien lab is looking at the primary step in the overall carbohydrate synthesis process — CO2 capture. Specifically, the lab is testing and analyzing the use of a catalytic membrane separation process in order to extract CO2 from the air and convert it with epoxides to cyclic carbonates. These membranes should perform with high overall rates, selectivity, and stability at mild temperatures.
Madison Brooks
Water Radiolysis: Uranyl Oxy-Hydroxide Hydrates with Cation Incorporation
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering & Earth Sciences
Faculty Advisor: Peter Burns
The motivation for this research project is to gain a better understanding of the radiolytic behavior of a variety of irradiated hydrated uranium oxides. In order to meet this goal, a number of lab tasks must be performed. This includes synthesizing, characterizing, and irradiating materials. After synthesis and characterization of the materials, the materials will be irradiated in order to gather data and interpret the results.
Andrew Christy
Triplet Sensitization in Semiconductor Nanocrystals
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Faculty Advisor: Prashant Kamat
Harvesting light to drive chemical reactions, known as photocatalysis, requires the careful control of energy. Recently, lead halide perovskite nanomaterials have been demonstrated to have a wide range of beneficial properties for photocatalysis: strong light absorption, tunable optoelectronic properties, and ease of synthesis. One way to harvest the energy from perovskite nanomaterials is to store that energy in long-lived molecular states called triplets. These triplet states can be used to increase visible light absorption through photon upconversion or can be used to drive photocatalytic reactions. In this study, migration of energy from perovskite nanomaterials to triplet-accepting molecules will be studied. Cesium lead bromide (CsPbBr3) nanocrystals will be synthesized, and the model triplet acceptor thionine will be used as a probe molecule to study triplet interactions. The effect of the nanocrystal morphology on the triplet interaction will also be probed by synthesizing both nanocubes and nanoplatelets of CsPbBr3. Absorption, photoluminescence, and transient absorption spectroscopies will be taken and these measurements will be used to probe the excited state interactions between CsPbBr3 and thionine.
Thomas Coates
Probe waveform and nanosecond imaging comparative analysis for volumetric space charge waves
Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Sergey Leonov
A streamer corona electrical discharge is commonly realized in many practical devices and technologies dealing with a high-voltage electricity. In some cases, such a discharge is intentionally generated, e.g. for surfaces/materials processing, plasma medicine, electronic devices, and others. In many other cases, the corona discharge appears as a parasitic phenomenon, leading to malfunctions and failures. Knowledge of the streamer corona discharge pattern and dynamics is urgently required for development of proper control procedures. Recent studies show that surface electric charge deposited by the high-voltage pulse discharge greatly affects the discharge parameters and morphology. In addition, a similar behavior was found for a volumetric single-pin discharge. This type of discharge produces volumetric electric charge waves concomitant with a redistribution of electric field that significantly influences the discharge pattern. In general, an understanding of the effects of space charge on the discharge characteristics is one of the most important for the study of low-temperature plasmas. However, it has been largely under-explored due to the unavailability of a proper measurement tool. The particular portion of this work includes the visualization of the discharge morphology with a nanosecond resolution by means of an advanced ISSD ANDOR iStar camera. The major objective of this work is to correspond the acquired images to the electric field morphology and the pulse high-voltage generator waveform.
Hannah Collins
Structure-Property Relationship Study of Metal Ion Transport in Ion Liquid Crystals
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Jennifer Schaefer
This project is related to the investigation of liquid crystals and solid-polymer electrolytes in lithium-ion batteries. Battery research is an important part of advancements in the fields of transportation and energy, especially for the expansion of intermittent sources of renewable energy, like wind and solar power. Energy storage with higher capacities and higher efficiencies will make these energy sources better replacements for fossil fuels that can be burned at a steady rate. Advances in the field of solid-state electrolytes for energy storage will have huge implications for battery safety, conductivity, and energy density.
Conventional battery electrolytes utilize organic solvents that are flammable and reactive with electrode materials. The goal of the research is to identify, synthesize, and analyze liquid crystal and polymer-type materials and understand structure-property relationships for non-conventional electrolytes. These molecules would support fast ion transport mechanisms, especially at room temperature, but also be stable at a wide temperature range. Polymer solid state electrolytes usually transfer ions through segmental motion, however recent research suggests metal-containing polymers are also able to form ionic aggregates with various phase percolation geometries that facilitate transport. Current investigation in the Schaefer lab is focused on molecules with polar, high dielectric moment groups on the end of a side alkyl chain, which will ideally have positive effects on conductivity and a liquid crystal geometry that supports ion transport channels.
Neila Gross
Low Frequency Ultrasound to Control Biofouling and Reduce Energy Losses
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisors: Albert Cerrone / Robert Nerenberg
This research targets a pragmatic and “green” approach to disrupting biofilms. This approach is sonicating biofilms with low frequency ultrasound (LFU). It is fairly unique in that the method (viz. LFU) can be adapted to a range of applications including therapeutics and energy. In the energy space specifically, this research could develop protocols to mitigate biofouling, thereby decreasing energy losses. This research project merges both biochemistry and mechanics to understand more fundamentally the action of ultrasound on bacteria.
David Hale
Catalyst Screening for the Plasma-Assisted Synthesis of Liquid Chemicals from Ethane
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Jason Hicks
The catalytic plasma synthesis of liquid nitrogen-containing chemicals from ethane presents an environmentally-friendly and cost-effective alternative to the conventional flaring of shale gas. In particular, low temperature (i.e. non-thermal) plasma creates a very reactive chemical environment and has been shown to create valuable compounds at near-ambient conditions. These compounds, particularly aromatic nitrogen-containing compounds such as pyrrole or pyridine, are used in a wide range of fields. Ethane is the second most abundant component of shale gas and is easier to activate than methane, so it is beneficial to understand this ethane-nitrogen coupling reaction. This project will study the Pt-ZSM-5 catalyst, which is known to be active for ethane dehydroaromatization. Coupled with non-thermal plasma that can activate nitrogen, this zeolite catalyst can be used for the synthesis of nitrogen-containing compounds. Varying the silica/alumina ratio of the ZMS-5 alters the Brønsted acidity, and can be used to determine the best ratio for high reactivity with limited coke formation. After determining this optimum ratio, modifications to the zeolite can be made by testing various weight loadings of platinum. The best catalyst will be used to study how varying the amount of catalyst and plasma power affects the rate of production of the nitrogen-containing compounds.
Peter Halloran
Investigation of the Fast Pyrolysis of Lignocellulosic Biomass to Increase Bio-Oil Yield
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Jason Hicks
Countless chemical transformations have been enabled by the discovery and development of catalysts. Catalysts have revolutionized chemical and petroleum processing because they allow the creation of desired compounds more efficiently and effectively than non-catalytic processes. In fact, nearly 90% of chemical manufacturing processes employ catalysts, including production of polymers, pharmaceuticals, plastics, bulk chemicals, and specialty chemicals. Catalysts lower process energy demands, allow access to products otherwise unattainable from given starting materials, decrease the production of undesired side products, decrease process waste/pollution, and decrease the cost of goods.
Despite the discovery and increased production of shale gas, development of renewable energy technologies to mitigate various long-term issues associated with fossil fuel use must continue in order to achieve a stable, sustainable energy future. Biomass is the only renewable resource capable of directly providing liquid carbon compounds for conversion into transportation fuels or chemicals. The Hicks group has been particularly interested in synthesizing new, stable catalysts for the C-C bond coupling of aldehydes and carboxylic acids (e.g. aldol condensation and ketonization) as a means to enhance the stability of biomass derived oils and the selective hydrogenation of biomass derived compounds to valuable fuels/chemicals. This project will directly work on the synthesis, characterization, and evaluation of new catalysts for biomass conversion reactions, providing an alternative route to fuels and chemicals.
Brendan Kane
The Development of Luminescent Ice for Environmental and Energy Applications
Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Hirotaka Sakaue
This research project concerns luminescent imaging, which is an analysis technique capable of capturing spatiotemporal changes in temperature. This technique functions through the use of luminophores. Luminophores are a type of chemical compound that illuminates when exposed to various kinds of external phenomena. The Sakaue group seeks to utilize this functionality of luminophores in a novel ice sensor to measure 3D temporally and spatially resolved information for environmental and energy applications. Sensors capable of producing such three-dimensional information are difficult to accurately produce, and therein lies the use of luminescent ice. It can be easily shaped into any desired form and thus will be able to provide a map of the temperature change across a wide variety of model 3D bodies. This project is a continuation of a research project started last semester (Fall 2020) that received funding from the Slatt Fellowship program. The objective of that Fall 2020 project was to identify and characterize luminophores useful for the production of luminescent ice. The project was a success – many luminophores – including Pyranine, Acid Red 52, tris-(Bathophenanthroline) Ruthenium (II) Chloride, and Tris(2, 2’-bipyridyl) ruthenium (II) chloride hexahydrate – were characterized and identified as either useful or not useful for the production of luminescent ice. Extensive luminophore characterization and testing is required for the manufacture of effective luminescent ice. Luminophores are, generally, an invaluable tool in the analysis of various energy-related processes. Luminophores, in their capacity as a sensor of temperature change, can be used to conduct an experimental analysis of the temperature change on the inner surfaces of an engine, to analyze transient heat transfer processes in power plants, and to gather experimental data on many other traditionally difficult to analyze facets of energy production and usage. In characterizing luminophores, special attention must be paid to the sensitivity of the luminophore to various phenomena, the excitation wavelength at which the luminophore exhibits its highest emission peak, and the wavelength of the luminophore’s highest emission peak. Luminophores with properties likely to be favorable in a frozen medium will be used in this project to develop luminescent ice, a variant of luminescent paint with a more unique, and arguably more powerful, breadth of applications.
During the coming semester, the work begun in Fall 2020 on characterizing luminophores and combining them into ideal luminophore mixtures can, with funding from the Slatt Fellowship, be continued and used to make increasingly effective luminescent ice samples. These samples will be more advanced, more able to accurately indicate the temperature in a 3D body through minute changes in illumination intensity. The energy applications of such advanced luminescent ice are the motivations for this research project. Success will result in the creation of luminescent ice capable of cataloguing the warming of the planet through the tracking of “multiyear ice” in the Arctic ocean and, in its capacity as a sensor, capable of experimentally determining how and where ice forms on wind turbines in hazardous, frigid weather. This first application of luminescent ice will provide the engineering and scientific communities with yet more incentives to pursue methods of clean energy production. The second application will provide critical data on the effectiveness of one method of clean energy production in adverse climate conditions. As the project continues, the goal is to pursue valuable outreach opportunities with other institutions already affiliated with Sakaue Lab (such as the Kanagawa Institute of Technology and Fraunhofer IFAM Bremen). Specifically, the icing wind tunnel at the Kanagawa Institute of Technology would be useful for testing the luminescent ice’s ability to indicate the locations of ice development on wind turbine blades.
Brian Kang
Gradient Film with Cation Migration
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Prashant Kamat
Previous work on phase segregation in mixed halide perovskites was done over the 2020-21 Winter Session. FAPbI3 films were created, which took a lot of trial and error. This was used, with CsPbI3 films, to heat them together and observe cation migrations across the films (although with a lot of testing with iodine and bromine). However, with a lot of experimenting, there was too much blue-shifting. With a standard procedure for synthesis of the FAPbI3 films, these films will be used to chemically treat them in order to form a gradient cation film.
This research will continue with an altered procedure. The new films are rich in cesium on one side and rich in formamidiniuim on the other side. In this case, more focus will be given to the reaction between cesium and formamidiniuim, instead of how temperature plays as a factor between the reaction, which narrows the scope of the experiment. Creating a cesium solution and dipping the formamidiniuim slides will create a shift in the film, creating a gradient with a high concentration of cesium on one end, high concentration of formamidiniuim in one end, and the gradient in between. The Journal of the American Chemical Society provides a lot of insight in several articles about the absorbance over time and specific wavelengths.
Thomas Kasl
3D-Printing Hierarchical Nanostructure Absorbance for Contaminant Removal and Resource Recovery
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisor: William Phillip
Further effort in the Phillip Group has proven that a custom 3D-printing system can create well-defined polymer membranes with finely-tuned hierarchical structures. The non-Newtonian flow of the polymer solvent system allows for desirable printing properties. Having constructed membranes made from a tri-co-polymer solvent system with integral carbon nano-tubes, the efficacy of metal ion adsorption needs to be evaluated. Previous research has shown that similar tri-co-polymer membranes fabricated by a surface-segregation and vapor-induced phase separation (SVIPS) process have produced membranes with high permeability and binding affinity for heavy metal ions. 3D-printing these types of membranes will allow us to have even higher permeability and therefore high energy efficiency-contaminant removal and resource recovery. Successful ion uptake experiments will also serve as proof of concept for the 3D-printing technique and provide confidence for developing other novel materials with the system. Applications include: nitrate recovery from fertilizer runoff; lead removal from contaminated water in areas such as Flint, MI; and heavy-metal ion recovery from industrial chemical processes.
Thomas Maloney
Boosting Transportation Efficiency: The effect of lowpass filtering the speed trajectory
Department of Electrical Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Peter Bauer
As electric vehicles with some level of autonomy begin to take over the automobile market, optimizing the energy consumption of these vehicles is becoming increasingly important. One promising approach is called “pulse-and-coast,” which involves a steep acceleration, then a coasting deceleration during which the vehicle does not consume energy. This idea has been largely discarded due to passenger discomfort. However, a low-pass-filtered version of this sawtooth-like velocity curve can reduce acceleration, and create a more comfortable ride while maintaining significant energy efficiency. The purpose of this project is to identify the filters and subsequent waveforms that optimize the balance of comfort and efficiency.
Andrew Scott Manning
Using Molecular Simulations to Understand Behavior and Structure of Liquid Electrolyte Systems
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Jonathan Whitmer
Clean energy is a promising technology, but widespread adoption requires the development of more effective and efficient battery storage technologies so that electricity can be stored and then accurately discharged when needed. Prof. Jennifer Schaefer at the University of Notre Dame is researching new battery technologies. Specifically, the Schaefer group is researching polymer layers that can be placed between the anode and the cathode of a battery to diminish destructive and unwanted ion transport, facilitate desired ion transport, and improve overall battery performance. Liquid crystal electrolytes are one class of conducting polymer electrolytes used in batteries. Liquid crystal electrolytes are named after the surprising degree of crystal-like structure and organization that these liquid electrolytes exhibit. This organizational property provides a potential opportunity to enhance battery performance because specific structures of the electrolytes may facilitate ion transport and greater conductivity. Unfortunately, these liquid electrolytes are complex systems that exhibit multiple phases depending on the conditions of the system. The high degree of structural diversity makes it difficult to predict the structure and the electrochemical properties of a specific system. In recent years molecular simulations using computer-driven calculations have become a promising technique for better understanding molecular interactions in complex systems. Prof. Jonathan Whitmer works with molecular simulations using the GROMACS software package to understand the behavior of complex systems.
This project in the Whitmer lab proposes to use GROMACS molecular simulations to understand the phase behavior of liquid crystal electrolytes. Prof. Schaefer’s research demonstrates that the CnTfSI-Li+ liquid crystal electrolyte offers electrochemical benefits in battery chemistry, this project aims to simulate the CnTfSI-Li+ system using molecular simulation. Previous work developed the computing and molecular modeling foundation necessary to model simple molecular systems. For this project, Prof. Whitmer will advise on molecular simulation work and coordinate efforts with Prof. Schaefer to help model and simulate the molecules that her lab group uses in developing battery technologies.
Andrew Scott Manning Final Report
Stephanie Mueller
Zinc (II) Carbene Synthesis and Reactivity
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Faculty Advisor: Vlad Iluc
The Iluc group has synthesized the (bis[2-(di-iso-propylphosphino)phenyl]methane (PCH2P) ligand and used it to make Fe, Pd, and Pt carbene complexes. These molecules have proved to be useful in activating different substrates. The goal is to synthesize a Zn (II) carbene with PCH2P. If this is successful, then the carbene’s structure and reactivity can be determined, focusing on carbene insertion into C-H bonds. Zinc is a cheap and earth-abundant mental that also has unique chemical properties. Zn (II)’s reactivity comes from the fact that that Zn has completely filled 3d orbitals, which gives it only one attainable oxidation state. Zn (II) is a redox-stable ion that can function as a Lewis acid–type catalyst whereby it stabilizes negative charge and activates substrates (Butler 1998). Zn (II) complexes also have ligand-field stabilization energies of zero (Huheey et al. 1993) in all geometries, allowing Zn (II) complexes to access multiple coordination geometries within a catalytic cycle. This would be especially useful to catalyze chemical transformations accompanied by changes in the metal coordination geometry. It is apparent that a Zn (II) catalyst would be useful because the human body uses Zn (II) in all six classes of enzymes (Maret W 2013). Creating this novel molecule could allow biochemists to perform biological reactions in vitro, or it could allow organic chemists to synthesize important organic molecules with an energy efficient catalyst.
Buter, A. (1998) Acquisition and utilization of transition metal ions by marine organisms. Science (Washington, DC) 281: 207–209.
Huheey, J. E., Keiter, E. A. & Keiter, R. L. (1993) Inorganic Chemistry: Principles of Structure and Reactivity, 4th ed., vol. 1. Harper Collins College Publishers, New York.
Maret W. (2013). Zinc biochemistry: from a single zinc enzyme to a key element of life. Advances in nutrition
(Bethesda, Md.), 4(1), 82–91. https://doi.org/10.3945/an.112.003038
Stephanie Mueller Final Report
Jacob Novitch
Effect of Hydroxylamine on the Structure and Function of Nitrifying Biofilms
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering & Earth Sciences
Faculty Advisor: Rob Nerenberg
This project is in the process of studying a novel, biofilm-based treatment technology for wastewater treatment. Funding for the project has been provided from a Slatt Fellowship for Fall 2020, and continued funding will support further research and later stages of the project, detailed below. Wastewater treatment is a major energy sink, accounting for 2 - 4% of electrical energy consumption in the United States. The proposed treatment could greatly reduce these energy demands, or even make wastewater treatment energy positive. The Nerenberg group proposes a new biofilm process combining gas-permeable membranes with water- permeable membranes. The gas-permeable membranes supply O2 with nearly 100% efficiency. The water-permeable membranes supply a chemical to alter the microbial community of the biofilm growing on the membrane assembly. Specifically, it is proposed that supplying hydroxylamine, which the group hypothesizes can alter the biofilm community in ways that reduce the O2 requirements and allow more wastewater organic matter to be directed to the anaerobic digesters. These anaerobic digesters produce methane, an energy carrier that can be used to fuel cars, produce electricity, or provide heat.
Initially, the project is examining delivery of chlorate through a hollow fiber membrane in order to select for perchlorate reducing bacteria in the biofilm community. This approach has proven effective in other applications, and will provide insight into the effectiveness of chemical delivery through a membrane as proposed in this project. Currently, a baseline microbial community has been established and chlorate addition has begun. Resulting changes in the microbial community after chlorate addition will be observed to determine the effects of chlorate delivery through the membrane on the microbial community. Following the conclusion of this phase of the project, a similar approach will be taken to evaluate the effects of hydroxylamine addition on the microbial community of the biofilm, growing a baseline biofilm and monitoring changes to the biofilm upon addition of hydroxylamine. The information gathered from this research has the potential to significantly reduce energy demand in wastewater treatment, thus lowering costs and improving environmental conditions.
Melanie Perez
Fabrication of Arrays of Gold Hexagonal Nanoplates on Sapphire using Brij-700 Surfactant
Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Svetlana Neretina
This project will focus on the synthesis of Au nanoplates. Such nanoplates are well-recognized for their catalytic properties as well as a strong localized surface plasmon resonance in the visible and near-infrared spectrum which gives rise to enhanced near-fields at their tips. Using a dip catalyst modality, the catalytic and photocatalytic properties of highly faceted substrate-immobilized Au nanoplates will be assessed. They will be synthesized using a nanoimprint lithography combined with wet chemistry. This project will give insights on the inner workings of the future of solar cell technology which will one day improve efficiency, hence increasing demand, of reliable systems that yield high electrical power. The project aims to improve uniform hexagonal nano-plate arrays, which will act as energy catalysts that will be implemented in solar cell technology. Thus, the research aims to develop these energy catalysts in a consistent way with a structured procedure.
Salmady Ramos Valentín
Using Molecular Modeling Simulations to Study and Understand the Role of Flexible Porous Materials to Maximize Energy Storage
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez
Faculty Advisor: Yamil J. Colón
Energy storage is one of the leading technological challenges of this generation. Porous materials have been studied for their great potential, especially in gas storage. A new class of flexible porous materials, soft porous coordination polymers (SPCPs), presents new unique opportunities to exploit their flexibility to maximize storage and delivery of gases. The student in this project will use molecular modeling simulations to study and understand the role that flexibility in porous materials can play in energy storage applications.
Salmady Ramos Valentín Final Report
Christina Tan
Automated Detection of Defects in Porous Materials with Machine Learning
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Faculty Advisor: Yamil J Colón
It is understood that the presence of defects can be a determining factor for a multitude of energy-related applications including catalysis, gas storage, separations, etc. Determining the presence and quantity of defects in a material can be a challenging endeavor requiring advanced characterization techniques. This project seeks to identify and quantify defects in porous materials with standard characterization techniques like a simple adsorption isotherm using machine learning algorithms. The Colón group trains anomaly detection algorithms to determine if a material has a defect and how many are present. The group is currently testing algorithms on the data set of Zr-based structures with known quantities of defects and will be moving on to finalizing a paper to be published. By the end of this project, the algorithms will be tested on data from molecular simulations and experimental systems. It is expected that the results will be of great value to the porous materials and energy communities.
William Tjaden
Long Term Performance of Wind Turbine Foundation through Numerical Modeling
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering & Earth Sciences
Faculty Advisor: Yazen Khasawneh
The project will utilize dynamic finite element modeling to capture the response of the wind turbine foundations to a large number of cyclic loading. The accumulation of small plastic strains will result in stiffness degradation of the foundation soils. The degradation of the foundation soils stiffness will result in a shift of the wind turbine natural frequency, bringing it closer to the operating loads frequency, which may lead to amplification of the dynamic loading and will result in excessive vibrations.
The Numerical modelling will model the foundation elements and foundation soils and track the degradation of stiffness with the number of cyclic loading. An advanced soil constitutive model that is capable of capturing the accumulation of the plastic strains and the foundation soils stiffness degradation will be utilized. The advanced soil constitutive model will be calibrated using a cyclic tri-axial laboratory data on clayey soils. The data for the calibration will be provided by Dr. Muhannad T. Suleiman from Lehigh University.
Once a soil model is calibrated, the finite element simulations will be conducted to “quantify” the foundation stiffness reduction with the number of cycles. The correlation will be used for future development in this research area. The funding for continuing the research will be seeked from the Department of Energy (DOE) and National Science Foundation (NSF.) The ultimate objective of this research is to provide guidelines for the wind turbine foundation designers to estimate the foundation stiffness during the operation design life of the wind turbines, which in turns will allow for safe operations of the wind turbine and will provide a robust technical method to evaluate wind turbine foundations for re-powering.
Christian Trujillo Salas
Design and Optimization of Nanostructured Membrane Sorbents in a Fit-for-Purpose Treatment Framework
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez
Faculty Advisor: William A. Phillip
Significant advances in water treatment processes promised by nanotechnology have been slow to manifest because the connections between fundamental scientific research and technology development are often overlooked. Thus, there is a critical need to develop systematic frameworks for identifying the most promising applications of novel nanostructured materials and overcoming the gaps in knowledge that inhibit the translation of these materials from the laboratory scale to effective water treatment technologies. This project aims to develop systematic frameworks that integrate fundamental nanoscale knowledge of block polymer-based membrane sorbents with systems-scale mathematical modeling and analysis of adsorptive processes to enable the deployment of the tailor-made membranes in a fit-for-purpose water paradigm. The research objectives are to: (1.) identify quantitative processing-nanostructure-property relationships between block polymer architecture,processing conditions, and pore wall chemistry and the throughput, saturation capacity, and separation selectivity of adsorptive block polymer membranes by analyzing the separation efficacy in testbed systems; (2.) develop a detailed process model for membrane-based sorbents; and (3.) execute a thermodynamic analysis of the governing process model. If successful, this research plan will establish new methods to systematically optimize membrane nanostructure, functionality, and fabrication in concert with separation system design, resulting in the delivery of a transformative technology platform to guide membrane designs for a variety of water treatment applications, such as heavy metal removal, nutrient recovery, and industrial wastewater reuse.
Alex Tullman
Can coating power transmission lines with graphene increase conduction efficiency?
Department of Finance
Faculty Advisor: Ian Lightcap
This current research project is looking primarily to discover whether decreases in absorptivity, increases in emissivity, and increases in conductive efficiency can be achieved by utilization of a graphene-based coating on aluminum wires. During the 2020-21 Winter Session, experimental design was completed and coating aluminum strips began. After coating the strip, some preliminary experiments were completed to test emissivity and had promising early results, even without an ideal coating and testing environment. The current goal is to discover the best parameters for coating (polish of the aluminum, voltage for EPD, length of EPD, number of electrodes, electrolyte solution). The long-term goal is to create intellectual property surrounding the conductive properties, method of application, and emissivity and absorptivity.
Katelyn Wendt
Task Specific Ionic Liquids Increase Efficiency in Water Desalination Processes
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Faculty Advisor: Brandon Ashfeld
This work in the Ashfeld lab focuses on the design and synthesis of new heterocycle-based ionic liquids (ILs) as environmentally benign, non-toxic fluids in an energy efficient directional solvent extraction (DSE) process for the desalination of industrial and residential water resources. The ability to desalinate high salinity water is critical to addressing the ongoing global water shortage crisis. To be able to do this through the use of minimal energy on a production level scale is necessary for impacting industrial waste streams and rendering current polluted water to potable levels of saline content. While current methods for saltwater purification (e.g., reverse osmosis, etc.) are effective at treating hypersaline on small scale, these techniques are inefficient due to the need for a large enough membrane and high temperatures. A recent study by the Ashfeld lab, in collaboration with Prof. Tengfei Luo, has demonstrated that task-specific ILs can improve the energy efficiency of current desalination techniques by eliminating the need for a membrane and overcoming the temperature barrier, which also allows for improved operational capabilities (Guo, J.; Tucker, Z. D.; Wang, Y.; Ashfeld, B. L.; Luo, T. “Ionic liquid enables highly efficient low temperature desalination by directional solvent extraction.” Nat. Commun. 2021, 12 (437), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-20706-y). The use of ILs for DSE have the potential to substantially reduce the operating costs relative to current water purification methods. However, it is difficult to identify and synthesize new and more efficient ILs due to the slight differences in their solubilities. When an effective ionic liquid solvent is discovered, it often has the potential to increase freshwater yields by 10x in comparison to current solvents used for directional solvent extraction while also allowing for a decrease in cost and energy.
The acceptable amount of NaCl in drinking water is 500 ppm according to the Secondary Drinking Water Standards developed by the EPA, and one of the ILs reported by Ashfeld and Luo was able to produce a higher yield of freshwater below that met this standard (NaCl concentration < 500 ppm). This project will design and synthesize a collection of ILs aimed at enabling the energy efficient desalination of hyper salinity water. By employing the synthetic methods for heterocycle construction, a diverse array of architecturally variable IL candidates for evaluation as DSE solvents will be assessed. The objective is to identify a specific fluid that will improve upon the existing salt rejection rate and freshwater yield exhibiting by the IL identified by Ashfeld and Luo in a DSE system. Additionally, there will be focus on those IL frameworks derived from naturally occurring substances, such as amino acid and sugar scaffolds, to address potential issues of environmental toxicity.