Chemical Engineering Commons^™

Reconfiguration-Driven Assembly Of Inorganic Nanomembranes, Divya Jyoti Prakash

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

This thesis focuses on the guided self-assembly of metastable nanomembranes (NMs) that are either amorphous or polycrystalline. Guided self-assembly of NMs is a robust and scalable method to obtain a variety of three-dimensional structures such as helices, rolled-up tubes, and networks of interconnected channels. These 3D structures have important applications as on-chip actuators, sensors, inductors, transformers, waveguides, and antennas. Furthermore, a large amount of strain and strain gradient can be imparted in NMs by bending them to a nanoscale and microscale radius of curvature, making guided self-assembly on NMs a viable route to extreme strain engineering of amorphous and polycrystalline …

A Comprehensive Review Of Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis Processes To Produce Sustainable Diesel And Aviation Fuel, Joseph C. Steinagel

Honors College Theses

The greatest threat known to humankind today is global warming. It affects every nation on the planet and the natural order of all living things. Consequently, this ongoing crisis necessitates action to scientifically revolutionize important areas of society, including researching modern adaptations of the transportation industry. In that regard, it has been determined that an effective short-term answer to eliminating carbon emissions is to produce sustainable fuels that run cooperatively with the well-established machines of today. Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is one such topic of interest, and the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis process is an effective way of producing SAF. To that …

Investigation Of Gas Dynamics In Water And Oil-Based Muds Using Das, Dts, And Dss Measurements, Temitayo S. Adeyemi

LSU Master's Theses

Reliable prediction of gas migration velocity, void fraction, and length of gas-affected region in water and oil-based muds is essential for effective planning, control, and optimization of drilling operations. However, there is a gap in our understanding of gas behavior and dynamics in water and oil-based muds. This is a consequence of the use of experimental systems that are not representative of field-scale conditions. This study seeks to bridge the gap via the well-scale deployment of distributed fiber-optic sensors for real-time monitoring of gas behavior and dynamics in water and oil-based mud. The aforementioned parameters were estimated in real-time using …

Harnessing Nanocellulose For Sustainable Carbon Capture: Synthesis, Processing, And Performance Evaluation, Jerred C. Wassgren

Doctoral Dissertations

Scientists and governments have recognized the need for environmental remediation, most notably with the adoption of the Paris Agreement in 2016. One of the major concerns is the production of greenhouse gases (GHGs). The major GHG is carbon dioxide (CO₂) in which humans emit over 36 gigatons yearly. Atmospheric CO₂ is responsible for 60% of the heat retained by the earth – resulting in rising temperatures, melting ice caps, and increasing ocean acidification. Therefore, a major goal of the Paris Agreement was to reduce GHG emissions as well as the capture of CO₂ from the atmosphere. …

Exploring The Electrochemical Performance Of Calcium-Ion Batteries With Novel Cathodes And Electrolytes, Paul Alexis Chando

Dissertations - ALL

The development of electric vehicles and energy storage devices are part of larger international efforts to create a sustainable future. Lithium-ion batteries have become crucial components to powering these technologies. However, the growing dependence of this singular battery chemistry to power an ever expanding landscape of technologies raises sustainability issues around lithium. Exploration of alternate battery chemistries have become part of research efforts to meet global energy demands. Calcium has emerged as one such battery system that could help alleviate stresses placed on lithium with its energy density and cost. Battery chemistries are unique, and each battery possesses its own …

Design Of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients Solid States In Crystallization Processes, Weizhong Gong

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Crystallization is an important technique to obtain solid-state drugs from solutions. Physicochemical properties of the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are determined by crystallization. More than half of the active pharmaceutical ingredients exhibit polymorphism, the phenomenon of chemical species showing more than one unit-cell structure in the solid state. Controlling polymorphism is one of the most important goals during pharmaceutical manufacturing. Nevertheless, the control of polymorphism is sometimes not enough to realize the targeted physicochemical properties. Suitable additives (coformers/salt formers) are explored to generate new multi-component solid phases of poorly soluble/bioavailable active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). The design of pharmaceutical cocrystals and …

The Effect Of Steam Explosion On Lipids Extraction From Microalgae And Derivation Of Pectin Films From Waste Culture, Shahil Chhiba

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The objective of this study was to investigate the properties of sustainable replacements for plastics and diesel fuel, derived from microalgae (Chlorella vulgaris) subjected to steam explosion. During the process, oven temperatures of up to 500 °C were reached, with the experiments left for different times after reaching their maximum internal temperature. Lipids were extracted from algal cultures using a modified Folch method. The waste microalgae were combined with pectin and glycerol to form biodegradable films, and their solubilities and tensile strengths were measured. The highest yield was 124 mg lipids/g microalgae from 400 °C steam explosion for …

Development Of A Xenograft For Annular Repair Using Pulsed Electric Field Exposures For Enhanced Decellularization, Prince Mensah Kwaku Atsu

Theses and Dissertations

Severe back injuries and chronic pain necessitate surgical replacement of damaged intervertebral disc (IVD) cartilage in advanced disease stages. Bovine IVD tissue has been exposed to an upper threshold pulsed electric field (PEF) dose, causing cell death without thermal damage to the tissue. Subsequent PEF exposures at lower magnitudes have accelerated the removal of immunogenic biomolecules though electrokinetic extraction using optimized aqueous solutions. This approach yields a natural scaffold, ready for biocompatibility and mechanical strength assessment. The effects of microsecond pulsed electric fields (µsPEF) on primary bovine AF fibroblast-like cells have been characterized in vitro. PEFs of 10 and 100 …

Integrated Computer-Aided Design, Experimentation, And Optimization Approach For Perovskites And Petroleum Packaging Processes, Swapana Subbarao Jerpoth

Theses and Dissertations

According to the World Economic Forum report, the U.S. currently has an energy efficiency of just 30%, thus illustrating the potential scope and need for efficiency enhancement and waste minimization. In the U.S. energy sector, petroleum and solar energy are the two key pillars that have the potential to create research opportunities for transition to a cleaner, greener, and sustainable future. In this research endeavor, the focus is on two pivotal areas: (i) Computer-aided perovskite solar cell synthesis; and (ii) Optimization of flow processes through multiproduct petroleum pipelines. In the area of perovskite synthesis, the emphasis is on the enhancement …

Cancer Treatment By Targeting Hdac4 Translocation Induced By Microsecond Pulsed Electric Field Exposure: Mechanistic Insights Through Kinases And Phosphatases, Zahra Safaei

Theses and Dissertations

Epigenetic modifications, arising from sub-cellular shifts in histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity and localization, present promising strategies for diverse cancer treatments. HDACs, enzymes responsible for post-translational histone modifications, induce these epigenetic changes by removing acetyl groups from ε-N-acetyl-lysine residues on histones, thereby suppressing gene transcription. Within the HDAC group, class IIa HDACs are notable for their responsiveness to extracellular signals, bridging the gap between external stimuli, plasma membrane, and genome through nuclear-cytoplasmic translocation. This localization offers two significant mechanisms for cancer treatment: nuclear accumulation of HDACs represses oncogenic transcription factors, such as myocyte-specific enhancer factor 2C (MEF2C), triggering various cell death …

Molecular Understanding And Design Of Deep Eutectic Solvents And Proteins Using Computer Simulations And Machine Learning, Usman Lame Abbas

Theses and Dissertations--Chemical and Materials Engineering

Hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have emerged as excellent extractants. A major challenge is the lack of an efficient tool to discover DES candidates. Currently, the search relies heavily on the researchers’ intuition or a trial-and-error process, which leads to a low success rate or bypassing of promising candidates. DES performance depends on the heterogeneous hydrogen bond environment formed by multiple hydrogen bond donors and acceptors. Understanding this heterogeneous hydrogen bond environment can help develop principles for designing high performance DESs for extraction and other separation applications. This work investigates the structure and dynamics of hydrogen bonds in hydrophobic DESs …

Novel Supercritical Biodiesel Plant Design & Process Scale-Up, Ghana Shyam Paudel

Doctoral Dissertations

"Current energy prices, national energy security, and global climate change fuel our momentum to find efficient advanced fuels choices. In this study, biodiesel processing, and a novel design for next generation biodiesel plants are explored. During a National Science Foundation (NSF) I-Corps project we identified three creative and profitable improvements to the process: 1. Incorporating Energy intensive separations and reactions 2. Utilizing Low commodity glycerol and 3. Applying process intensification principles.

Current biodiesel processes are catalyzed processes using continuous stir reactors with distillation systems to separate material constituents. We tested a lab-scale nocatalyst supercritical biodiesel process using waste cooking oil …

The Comprehensive Study Of High Viscosity Friction Reducers In High-Tds And High-Temperature Environments, Xiaojing Ge

Doctoral Dissertations

"High viscosity friction reducers (HVFRs) have been recently gaining more attention and increasing in use, not only as friction-reducing agents but also as proppant carriers. Reusing of produced water has also been driven by both environmental and economic benefits. Currently, most friction reducers on the market are anionic friction reducers, which are fully compatible with most produced water with low to medium level of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) but show a significant drop at high TDS conditions in term of their friction reduction performance in most cases. On the contrary, cationic friction reducers are believed to have better TDS tolerance …

Design And Development Of Biocompatible Mofs And Silica-Based Nanocarriers With Controlled Pharmacokinetics For Drug Delivery Applications, Neila Pederneira

Doctoral Dissertations

"In the past decade, a big interest has drawn into nanoporous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and silica-based materials as nanocarriers for drug delivery applications, owing to their exceptionally high surface area and highly structured porous network. The overall goal of this research was to optimize the pharmacokinetic behavior of several highly porous biocompatible drug carriers that have the potential to carry Ibuprofen, 5-Fluorouracil, and Curcumin to the desired tissue without creating a burst effect and minimizing the amount of dosage and size that conventional capsules require. The specific objectives of this study are to (i) assess the effect of drug solubility …

Sustainable Cementitious Materials For Building And Sorption Applications, Sukanta Kumar Mondal

Doctoral Dissertations

"Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) is the most widely used cement material, but it contributes over 8% of the global CO₂ emission and the process is energy intensive. Moreover, OPC faces durability challenges, particularly in aggressive environments. Hence, there is rapidly increasing interest in sustainable alternative cements with lower carbon footprint, lower energy consumption, and those that offer superior properties that are beneficial for specific applications. Two sustainable cementitious materials that are frequently researched as an alternative to OPC are calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) cement and alkali-activated materials (AAMs). CSA cement lowers CO₂ emission by over 40% compared to OPC, …

Investigation Of Asphaltene Instability Under Gas Injection In Unconventional Reservoirs And Its Impact On Oil Recovery Performance, Mukhtar Elturki

Doctoral Dissertations

"Unconventional reservoirs, such as shale gas and tight oil formations, have become an important source of energy in recent years. However, these reservoirs often contain high levels of asphaltenes, which can lead to deposition and blockages in production wells and reduce the flow of hydrocarbons during gas enhanced oil recovery (GEOR) techniques. This study aims to experimentally evaluate the impact of miscible and immiscible carbon dioxide (CO₂) and nitrogen (N₂) on asphaltene deposition and its impact on oil recovery performance in unconventional shale reservoirs.

This research began with a comprehensive literature review and data analysis of GEOR methods in unconventional …

Assessing The Feasibility And Mechanism Of Destructive Removal Of Per- And Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (Pfas) From Water, Kaushik Vinaykumar Londhe

Dissertations

One of the most pertinent challenges faced by the drinking water community is the widespread contamination of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). These anthropogenic chemicals have been ubiquitously used in everyday products such as carpets, stain repellents, dyes, shampoos, non-stick cookware as well as in aqueous firefighting foams. PFAS are linked with adverse health effects in humans such as thyroid disease, obesity, immunological and reproductive disorders and linked to cancer in adults and low birth weight and developmental defects in infants.

Conventional water treatment technologies have proven to be largely ineffective in PFAS remediation, due to their extreme stability and …

A Systems Approach To Process Design And Sustainability - Synergy Via Pollution Prevention, Control, And Source Reduction, Emmanuel Apau Aboagye

Theses and Dissertations

Historically, process design prioritized efficiency and profitability, often overlooking environmental and societal implications. However, given the global challenges like climate change and resource scarcity, there is a growing emphasis on embedding sustainability into process design. Adopting a systems-oriented approach provides a comprehensive view, spanning from raw material acquisition to end-of-life product management. Such an approach not only identifies potential sustainability challenges but ensures that solutions foster both environmental responsibility and economic viability. In this study, a comprehensive framework for designing industrial systems is introduced, aiming to encompass the entire lifecycle impacts of chemical processes. The research initially delves into two …

Microplate-Like Metal Pyrophosphate Engineered On Ni-Foam Towards Multifunctional Electrode Material For Energy Conversion And Storage, Rishabh Srivastava

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

High clean energy demand, dire need for sustainable development, and low carbon footprints are the few intuitive challenges, leading researchers to aim for research and development for high-performance energy devices. The development of materials used in energy devices is currently focused on enhancing the performance, electronic properties, and durability of devices. Tunning the attributes of transition metals using pyrophosphate (P₂O₇) ligand moieties can be a promising approach to meet the requirements of energy devices such as water electrolyzers and supercapacitors, although such a material’s configuration is rarely exposed for this purpose of study.

Herein, we grow …

The Development Of An Advanced Biorefinery To Produce Cellulosic Sugars And Bionanomaterials, Carlaile Fernanda De Oliveira Nogueira

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Market trends show growing interest in cellulose nanomaterials due to their low environmental impact. However, current nanocellulose isolation technologies face technoeconomic and life cycle limitations. Previous research has shown that enzymatic treatments effectively reduce the energy input for mechanical nanocellulose isolation. Simultaneously, there is potential to improve the viability of cellulosic ethanol facilities by coproducing nanocelluloses as high-value product obtained from agricultural feedstock. Here, our goal was to study the mass balance of enzymatic-mechanical processes that coproduces cellulosic sugars and nanocelluloses, evaluating the technical feasibility of converting lignified and non-lignified materials.

First, we have determined a feasible 50:50 mass ratio …

Advances In Cellulose Nanomaterial-Based Foams For Environmental Applications, Md Musfiqur Rahman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The use of metal-oxide nanoparticles adsorbents is limited to fixed-bed columns in industrial-scale water treatment applications. This limitation is commonly attributed to the tendency of nanoparticles to aggregate, the use of non-sustainable and inefficient polymeric resins as supporting materials, or a lack of adsorption capacity. Foams and aerogels derived from cellulose nanomaterials have unique characteristics, such as high porosity and low density, which enables their use in a variety of environmental applications, including water treatment. However, the overall use of cellulose nanomaterial-based foams in various environmental sectors is limited due to the high cost of production associated with time- and …

Estimation Of Wood Pulp Fiber Species Composition From Microscopy Images Using Computer Vision, Tyler Seekins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pulp mills and papermakers require careful control of input raw materials. The paper pulp composition, consisting of blends of different wood fiber types, affects multiple final product properties in interacting ways and impacts process operating conditions. Manual estimation of composition by classification and counting using microscopy is time consuming, repetitive, error-prone, and fibers are not always identifiable. Using a dataset of 359,840 fibers from 12,690 images of either hardwood or softwood fibers from 423 microscopy slides with data partitioned into 60% training, 20% validation, and 20% testing splits by slide, and a sequence of principal components analysis, Gaussian mixture, image …

Optimal Control Of Ion Exchange Process For Chromate Removal And Protein A Chromatography For Antibody Extraction, Fadi Ghanem

Theses and Dissertations

Ion exchange resins are widely used in the extraction of hazardous chemicals as well as the recovery of precious molecules. Therefore, an early breakthrough from the resin system can lead to toxic compounds affecting the drinking water quality or inefficient use of costly resins. Hence, accurate modeling of the ion exchange process and control strategy can enable decisions that assist in avoiding leakage when facing fluctuations in the inlet contaminant concentrations. In this work, the ion exchange process is modeled via the method of moments where the system uncertainties are captured via stochastic modeling using Ito processes. The flow rate …

Commercial Adsorbents For Co2 Removal For Biogas Upgradation: An Experimental Study, Aakriti Bagla

McKelvey School of Engineering Theses & Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Clean Energy & Sustainable Environment By Carbon Dioxide Mitigation Strategies, Md Fahim Shahriar

Mechanical Engineering Theses

Dissolution trapping is one of the most dominant mechanisms for secure storage of CO₂ injected in porous subsurface formations saturated with brine. This study uses a 2D visual Hele-Shaw cell to investigate and visualize the impact of CO₂ injection locations, reservoir dipping angle, permeability heterogeneity, and brine with different initial ionic concentrations on the density-driven convection during CO₂ dissolution (Chapter 2). Also, the role of complex heterogeneity, i.e., irregular permeability distribution in CO₂ dissolution, is investigated using a novel experimental approach to create medium permeability heterogeneity in Hele-Shaw cells (Chapter 3). We observed that the presence …

Using Afm-Ir To Study Nanoscopic Phase Behavior Of Polymer Blends And Photovoltaic Bulk Heterojunctions, Nathaniel L. Prine

Dissertations

Conjugated polymers (CPs) and polymer blends harbor the potential for high-performance organic solar cells (OSCs) due to their short energy payback time, low cost, solution processability, lightweight attributes, and flexibility. However, OSCs suffer from poor thermal stability compared to their inorganic equivalents. This study explores the thermal instability of OSCs, focusing on phase separation of the photoactive layer under heat, resulting in morphology changes and degradation of power conversion efficiency (PCE). Utilizing atomic-force microscopy coupled with infrared spectroscopy (AFM-IR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), we delve into thermal stability-morphology relationships to devise strategies to improve OSC blend durability under thermal …

Characterization Of Lignin Structural Variability And The Associated Application In Genome Wide Association Studies, Nathan D. Bryant

Doctoral Dissertations

Poplar (Populus sp.) is a promising biofuel feedstock due to advantageous features such as fast growth, the ability to grow on marginal land, and relatively low lignin content. However, there is tremendous variability associated with the composition of biomass. Understanding this variability, especially in lignin, is crucial to developing and implementing financially viable, integrated biorefineries. Although lignin is typically described as being comprised of three primary monolignols (syringyl, guaiacyl, p-hydroxyphenyl), it is a highly irregular biopolymer that can incorporate non-canonical monolignols. It is also connected by a variety of interunit linkages, adding to its complexity. Secondary cell wall …

Exploring Modalities Of Productivity And Critical Quality Attributes In Fed-Batch Chinese Hamster Ovary Cell Cultures, Stephanie Klaubert

All Dissertations

Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are among the most commonly used mammalian cell lines for the production of recombinant therapeutic proteins due to ease of culturing and humanlike post-translational modification capabilities. However, when compared to microbial systems, CHO cell line growth and productivity is relatively low. As the demand for monoclonal antibody (mAb) treatments continues to rise, it is critical to explore modalities for improved growth and productivity in CHO cell cultures, with the goal of increased protein concentrations and maintained product quality. Though some mechanisms for improved productivity, including temperature and cell culture media formulations, are relatively well understood; …

Synthesis Of Glucomannan-Xylan Composite Biofilms: Characterization And Applications For Food Packaging, Kholoud Al-Ajlouni

Dissertations

Scientists are most concerned about the need for green alternatives for efficient food packaging polymers to replace petroleum-based packaging products. The waste of corn cobs and the roots of the konjac plant contain hemicellulose, xylan and glucomannan respectively, and can be used to produce biofilms for food packaging.

The aim of these studies is to formulate biofilms from glucomannan-xylan blends that compete with petroleum-based plastic wrap. The biofilms must be strong, smooth, transparent, have a water vapor barrier, have the required mechanical properties and be cheap. Biofilms from glucomannan were stiff, lacked mechanical properties, and absorbed moisture. Therefore, it reacts …

Development Of Lignin-Based Copolymers And Polymer Blends, David Chem

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Increasing industrial interest in reducing fossil fuels in virgin polymer production and incorporating bio-based polymeric materials has led researchers to explore the potential of utilizing plant-based polymers such as lignin. Chapter 1 of this thesis presents a comprehensive overview of copolymerization and blending techniques for lignin and synthetic polymers, emphasizing different types of modifications and copolymerization techniques as well as key parameters such as temperature, reaction time, pH level, and solution compositions. These valorization methods are directed towards the development of high-value lignin-based materials with properties well-suited for various commercial applications. Chapter 2 offers a fundamental exploration into the amination …