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Fluorinated Phthalonitriles And Phthalocyanines: Synthesis And Spectroscopic Properties, Marius Pelmus

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Since their discovery at the beginning of the 20^th century, phthalocyanines (Pc) have come a long way; today they are replacing the porphyrins (natural products) in most of their applications. The functionalization of the organic macrocycle, the use of different metals, and the change of the axial ligands resulted in Pc applications in a wide range of fields, ranging from photochemistry, paints, catalysis, to fuel cells and cosmetic products.

In Dr. Gorun’s group was developed a series of electron-deficient Pcs that benefit from a Teflon-like chemical shield, meant also to break the π-π interactions, namely the F₆₄PcM …

Investigation Of The Chemical Kinetics In An Atmospheric Cold Plasma Towards Co2 Conversion, Daniel Piatek

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Hydrogenation of carbon dioxide (CO2) to methanol (CH3OH) is a promising route for utilization of excess and residual CO2. The conversion of CO to methanol is a well-developed process but the ability to use CO2 as a feed gas still requires high pressures (30-300 atm) to attain conversion. In this work, the hydrogenation of CO2 is explored using H2O as well as H2 in an atmospheric pressure nonthermal (cold) plasma created with a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) reactor. Different gas mixtures such as argon (Ar) and helium (He) are used to understand their interactions in the process of CO2 hydrogenation. …

Characterization Of A Novel Double Cooled Electrode Dbd Reactor For Ozone Generation, Gustavo Duarte

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

The Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) is used to generate atmospheric or higher-pressure non-thermal plasmas and has found various commercial applications such as in industrial large-scale ozone generation. Ozone (O₃ ) is a powerful chemical reactant that is used to kill bacteria, to deodorize and to perform water purification. The effectiveness of the DBD reactors depends on the electrode arrangements, gap lengths, dielectric materials, operating gases and feed gas quality to name a few. However, the production of O₃ is heat sensitive. In order to prevent O₃ destruction thermal cooling of the DBD is needed. The industry approach …

D-Orbital Occupancy Of Transition Metal Oxides By X-Ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (Xanes), Eric Kurywczak

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

XANES L₂ and L₃-edge X-Ray Absorption Near Edge Spectra (XANES) for 4d and 5d row transition metals (TM) oxides are assumed to be directly reflecting unoccupied d orbitals influenced by the local symmetry of the metal ion. XANES L₂- and L₃-edge data analysis through non-linear curve fitting allows for a unique, efficient look at the structural eccentricities of transition metal oxides. In this way it is possible to determine the oxidation state of a material as well as its site symmetry. We have used non-linear least-squares fitting across the near-edge region …

Density Functional Theory Calculations Of Al Doped Hafnia For Different Crystal Symmetry Configurations, Joshua Steier

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Dogan et al.[1], investigated the causes of ferroelectricity in doped hafnia using ab initio methods. Similarly, we investigated the stability of Al doped hafnia using quantum mechanical methods.

There are many different phases of Hafnia: monoclinic, tetragonal, cubic and orthorhombic. Starting with the monoclinic phase of Hafnia, Hafnia undergoes phase transitions which result in different space groups. The temperature at which the tetragonal phase is induced is 2000 K and cubic phase is induced at 2900 K[1]. Different dielectric constants vary from phase to phase. The average dielectric constants are highest for the cubic and tetragonal phases. In order to …

Electrical And Chemical Characterization Of A Helium-Air Non-Thermal Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Jet, Adam Zandani

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Plasma is one of the most complicated, yet promising fields in physics due to its high efficiency and multitude of crucial applications such as biological sterilization, polymer modification, surface treatments, etching, agriculture, and facilitation of selective catalytic processes to name a few. With these advantages, mysteries still remain. With this in mind, in order to accurately gauge the total influence of the plasma applied in various processes, understanding what is being produced and how the production occurs is vital. To understand this, optical emission spectroscopy was used to gauge how the species generated are influenced by operation parameters such as …

Surface Chemistry And Surface Properties Of Energetic Nitrocellulose (Nc), Henry Grau

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This research describes an investigation into the wettability of nitrocellulose (NC), most importantly to nitroglycerin (NG), which are key components of formulations used to propel military ammunition. NG demonstrates complete wetting of NC and, overtime, NG sweats on the NC surface and leaks out. The leaking out of NG from the solid formulation is a known cause of fires and explosions resulting from storage. The origin of this research is inspired by the need to engineer a solution to leakage problems of energetic plasticizer in NC based propellant. While searching for a viable material for a specific application, we journeyed …