Chemical Engineering Commons^™

Nb(Ta)-Based Solid Acid Modified Pt/Cnts Catalysts For Hydrodeoxygenation Of Lignin-Derived Compounds, Weixiang Guan, Xiao Chen, Chuang Li, Jie Zhang, Chi-Wing Tsang, Haoquan Hu, Shaojie Li, Changhai Liang

Faculty of Science & Technology (THEi)

Efficient upgrading of lignin bio-oils into oxygen-free liquid alkane fuels is a challenging task owing to the incompatibility of the phenolic feedstock with conventional fuels and the availability of effective hydrotreating catalysts based on the current refinery infrastructure. In this work, a series of solid acid nanosheets (HNbWO6, HNbMoO6, HTaWO6) modified Pt/CNTs bifunctional catalysts were evaluated in hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of lignin-derived compounds. The effects of types of nanosheets and the synergistic effect between metal sites and acid sites were discussed via HDO of diphenyl ether. Pt/HNbWO6/CNTs catalyst exhibited the most efficient performance for the HDO of diphenyl ether to cyclohexane …

Anchoring Cu 1 Species Over Nanodiamond-Graphene For Semi-Hydrogenation Of Acetylene, Fei Huang, Yuchen Deng, Yunlei Chen, Xiangbin Cai, Mi Peng, Zhimin Jia, Jinglin Xie, Dequan Xiao, Xiaodong Wen, Ning Wang, Zheng Jiang, Hongyang Liu, Ding Ma

Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Faculty Publications

The design of cheap, non-toxic, and earth-abundant transition metal catalysts for selective hydrogenation of alkynes remains a challenge in both industry and academia. Here, we report a new atomically dispersed copper (Cu) catalyst supported on a defective nanodiamondgraphene (ND@G), which exhibits excellent catalytic performance for the selective conversion of acetylene to ethylene, i.e., with high conversion (95%), high selectivity (98%), and good stability (for more than 60 h). The unique structural feature of the Cu atoms anchored over graphene through Cu-C bonds ensures the effective activation of acetylene and easy desorption of ethylene, which is the key for the outstanding …

A Versatile Route To Fabricate Single Atom Catalysts With High Chemoselectivity, Xiaohui He, Qian He, Yuchen Deng, Mi Peng, Hongyu Chen, Ying Zhang, Siyu Yao, Mengtao Zhang, Dequan Xiao, Ding Ma, Binghui Ge, Hongbing Ji

Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Faculty Publications

Preparation of single atom catalysts (SACs) is of broad interest to materials scientists and chemists but remains a formidable challenge. Herein, we develop an efficient approach to synthesize SACs via a precursor-dilution strategy, in which metalloporphyrin (MTPP) with target metals are co-polymerized with diluents (tetraphenylporphyrin, TPP), followed by pyrolysis to N-doped porous carbon supported SACs (M₁/N-C). Twenty-four different SACs, including noble metals and non-noble metals, are successfully prepared. In addition, the synthesis of a series of catalysts with different surface atom densities, bi-metallic sites, and metal aggregation states are achieved. This approach shows remarkable adjustability and generality, providing …

Adsorption Induced Solid Phase Transition Of Mil-53(Al), Rushik G. Bandodkar

ETD Archive

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) are nano-porous solids with potential applications in a wide range of fields including gas separation and catalysis. A number of metal organic frameworks show structural transformation and exceptional flexibility on changing the temperature, pressure and adsorption of certain guest molecules. On the contrary, most of the porous solids like zeolites and activated carbon used in applications are rigid. The structural flexibility makes MOF materials very interesting to study and show promise in applications such as sensors, actuators, membrane separation and adsorptive separation. In this study, we examine the chemical potential difference (Δμ) of MIL-53 (Al), a …

Catalytic Waste Gasification: Water-Gas Shift & Selectivity Of Oxidation For Polyethylene, Mason J. Lang

ETD Archive

As landfills approach capacity and take up valuable land space, metropolitan areas have realized the need for waste disposal alternatives. Thus, there has been a widespread use of waste incinerators in Europe and the United States [1]; [2]. Although newer technology has made incinerators more efficient, there is an increasing interest in formulating `greener’ alternatives to incinerators. Gasification converts organic and carbonaceous materials into a combination of gaseous products known as “syngas,” or synthetic gas. This process greatly reduces the amount of hazardous emissions. The syngas produced by gasifiers has a wide range of uses, including their conversion into diesel, …

Measurement Of Red Blood Cell Oxygenation State By Magnetophoresis, Nina A. Smith

ETD Archive

Magnetophoresis of red blood cells (RBCs) at varying partial pressures of oxygen (pO2) is hypothesized to rejuvenate stored blood to be utilized beyond the FDA regulated 42-day storage time. Magnetophoresis is a particle or cells motion induced by an applied magnetic field in a viscous media. The average magnetophoretic mobility of an oxygenated RBC is -0.126x10-6 mm3-s/kg, and a deoxygenated RBC is 3.66x10-6 mm3-s/kg, presenting magnetophoresis as a resource for RBC rejuvenation in hopes of storing it longer than 42 days. The main objective of this paper was to determine if controlling the pO2 within an RBC suspension, can singly- …

Force Field Optimization, Advanced Sampling, And Free Energy Methods With Gpu-Optimized Monte Carlo (Gomc) Software, Mohammad Soroush Barhaghi

Wayne State University Dissertations

In this work, to address the sampling problem for systems at high densities and low temperatures, a generalized identity exchange algorithm is developed for grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations. The algorithm, referred to as Molecular Exchange Monte Carlo (MEMC), is implemented in the GPU-Optimized Monte Carlo (GOMC) software and may be applied to multicomponent systems of arbitrary molecular topology, and provides significant enhancements in the sampling of phase space over a wide range of compositions and temperatures. Three different approaches are presented for the insertion/deletion of the large molecules, and the pros and cons of each method are discussed. Next, …

Self-Delivery Drug Amphiphilies In Chemotherapy And Immunotherapy, Jingchao Xi

Wayne State University Dissertations

Eliminating the need for external delivery systems, self-delivery drug amphiphiles represent a simple yet effective approach designed to overcome the various biological barriers for drug delivery. The ability to program the molecular structures and the physicochemical properties, which control the interactions between the drug amphiphiles and their biological surroundings has attracted significant research interests. In this work, we constructed several amphiphilic drugs including chemotherapeutic and immunotherapeutic agents. These amphiphiles exhibited interesting interactions with their biological surroundings. Amphiphiles self-assemble into spherical micelle structures in aqueous solution. However, in the presence of complexed biological fluids, they also possess a strong affinity toward …

Nimoal Catalysts Derived From Heptamolybdate-Intercalated Layered Double Hydroxides For Hydrodeoxygenation Of Anisole, Chuang Li, Xingzhao Zhang, Xiao Chen, Zhijian Peng, Chi-Wing Tsang, Changhai Liang

Faculty of Science & Technology (THEi)

The catalytic performance of NiMoAl catalysts derived from layered double hydroxide (LDH) precursors with molybdenum species incorporated into the interlayers was investigated for the hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of anisole as a model compound of the lignin. The results showed that high dispersion of small Ni nanoparticles with 2–5 nm due to the pinning effect of Mo from Mo7O246− intercalated the LDHs. Due to presence of the oxygen vacancy sites on the molybdenum oxide, the NiMoAl catalysts exhibit higher conversion of anisole than the corresponding NiAl catalyst. The activity for hydrodeoxygenation was enhanced with the increased content of molybdenum species, which can …

Engineering Of Gold Nanoparticles For Drug Delivery, Fangchao Liu

Wayne State University Dissertations

Due to their ease of synthesis, versatile surface chemistry, ease of imaging, and biocompatibility, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are employed as drug delivery devices in the treatment of respiratory problems associated with spinal cord injury (SCI). We have developed a method for the synthesis of a tripartite nanoconjugate comprised of an AuNP drug carrier chemically conjugated to a transporter protein (wheat germ agglutinin coupled to horseradish peroxidase or WGA-HRP) and to potent SCI drugs. The therapeutic efficacy and biodistribution were studied in a validated animal model. Our results show that a single administration of the nanoconjugate improved diaphragmatic activity at a …

Enhancement Of Macrophage Uptake Via Phosphatidylserine-Coated Acetalated Dextran Nanoparticles, Nishan K. Shah, Sweta K. Gupta, Zimeng Wang, Samantha A. Meenach

Chemical, Biomolecular, and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

Although vital to the immune system, macrophages can act as reservoirs for pathogens such as tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency virus. Limitations in the treatment of such diseases include targeting therapeutics directly to macrophages and the large systemic dosages needed. The objective of this study is to develop a nanoparticle (NP)-based drug delivery system that can provide targeted delivery into macrophages. Acetalated dextran (Ac-Dex) NP loaded with the lipophilic model compound curcumin (CUR) were synthesized and coated in 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-l-serine (DPPS), a phospholipid that induces phagocytosis in macrophages. DPPS-CUR NP were found to release 67.8% of encapsulated CUR within 24 …

Beating Clusters Created With Cardiac Extracellular Matrix From Decellularized Pig Hearts And Repopulated With Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes, Isaac Myres, Bryce Allen, Silvia Moncada, Sebastian Valencia, Beverly L. Roeder, Alonzo D. Cook

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2019

Due to the high prevalence of heart disease, scarcity of donors, and high risk of transplant rejection, we aim to engineer patient specific beating cardiac patches and whole hearts for transplant.

Studies Related To Chemical Changes In Biochar. I. Polyacrylonitrile Internal Standard To Assess Chemical Changes In Graphene Oxide. Ii. Ultrasonic Effects On Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons As Models For Biochar, Kaci B. Crawford

Honors Theses

Biochar has become an increasing area of research due to its reactive edges from stacks of graphene clusters. One particular area of interest in biochar is because it is a potent soil amendment which reduces soil acidity and can reduce greenhouse gas emissions from plants. Also, chemically-modified biochar is being studied as a carbon storage method to potentially mitigate climate change. In order to understand the chemistry that takes place on biochar’s reactive edges during modification, a standard is essential. This research attempted to identify an internal standard that could be added to biochar samples to quantify chemical changes by …

Insights Into Well Performance And Completion Optimization Using A Coupled Fracfocus And Drillinginfo Database, Mustafa A. Al-Alwani

Doctoral Dissertations

“The hydraulic fracturing designs, drilling, and completion trends are undergoing continuous change as the oil and gas industry pushing the boundaries of the traditional designs to increase wells productivity and meet the energy demand. The lateral length in addition to the amount of proppant and water used in well stimulation have witnessed a paradigm shift over the past few years. The motivation for this work began with a desire to better understand well performance as a function of the type of fracturing fluid treatment applied. An early objective was to compare whether East Texas Cotton Valley wells stimulated with water …

Development Of Functional Ionic Liquids For Separation And Recovery Of Rare Earth Elements, Mostafa Khodakarami

Doctoral Dissertations

“This research focused on the design and synthesis of task-specific ionic liquids for enhanced extraction and separation of rare earth elements (REEs). Two novel ammonium-based functional ionic liquids (FILs) with oxygen donating groups: trioctyl(2-ethoxy-2-oxoethyl)ammonium dihexyl diglycolamate, [OcGBOEt][DHDGA], and tricaprylmethylammonium dihexyl diglycolamate, [A336][DHDGA] were synthesized and tested for the recovery and separation of selected REEs from aqueous solutions. Functionalities with different denticities were incorporated into both anionic and cationic parts of ionic liquids, which are solely composed of incinerable atoms including C, H, O, and N. The structural, physical, and chemical properties of the synthesized FILs were studied using nuclear magnetic …

Intelligent Data-Driven Decision-Making To Mitigate Or Stop Lost Circulation, Husam Hasan Alkinani

Doctoral Dissertations

”Lost circulation is a challenging problem in the oil and gas industry. Each year, millions of dollars are spent to mitigate or stop this problem. The aim of this work is to utilize machine learning and other intelligent solutions to help to make better decision to mitigate or stop lost circulation. A detailed literature review on the applications of decision tree analysis, expected monetary value, and artificial neural networks in the oil and gas industry was provided. Data for more than 3000 wells were gathered from many sources around the world. Detailed economics and probability analyses for lost circulation treatments’ …

Plenum-To-Plenum Heat Transfer Characteristics Under Natural Circulation In A Scaled-Down Prismatic Modular Reactor, Salman Mohammed Alshehri

Doctoral Dissertations

“Gas-cooled reactor (GCR) is being developed under the Next Generation Nuclear Plant Program (NGNP) in nuclear engineering studies. As the world searches for an energy source with high energy density, clean, abundant, and storable nature to avoid global warming issues, GCR seems to be a promising solution, particularly the possibility of producing hydrogen. Studying and developing the safety analysis and GCR technologies are required for the optimum design and safety of GCR system. Multiphase Reactors Engineering and Applications Laboratory (mReal) at Missouri University of Science and Technology (S&T) has developed a natural convection heat transfer test facility with one riser …

Computational Fluid Dynamics Modeling And Comparison Of Advanced Techniques For Heat Transfer Augmentation For Nuclear Applications, Salman Mohammed Alzahrani

Doctoral Dissertations

“Passive safety is the most important feature of NuScale’s reactor designs. Twist tape is one passive heat enhance heat technique. The present research investigated thermo-hydraulic characteristics of natural and forced convection of water under different configurations of twisted tape inserted in tube as well as NuScale rod bundles for uniform wall heat flux using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) using ANSYS Fluent 18.1. Results for twist tape inserted in tube under natural circulation showed that heat transfer enhanced and pressure drop increased to 28% and 102.8% over the plain tube respectively. Regularly spaced tapes, and different widths of the twisted tapes …

Characterization Of Aerosols In An Underground Mine, Arash A. Habibi

Doctoral Dissertations

“Diesel-powered engines are a common source of submicron carbon-rich particles. Characterizing morphological and physical attributes of diesel agglomerates is therefore of great importance to be able to identify the source and improve removal technology. Size-segregated sampling was conducted in two phases of underground experiments. Scanning transmission electron microscopy and fast mobility particle sizers were used to determine the size distribution of agglomerates based on particle mobility and projected area diameter. Controlled zone sampling test results were used to determine the morphological characteristics of agglomerates for specific types of diesel equipment both with and without removal strategies. Changes in fractal dimension, …

Transient Multiphase Flow Simulation For Unloading Of Frac Hit Gas Wells, Miguel Angel Cedeno Moreno

Doctoral Dissertations

"This work seeks to develop a fully step-by-step transient multiphase flow simulation valid for unloading gas wells using nitrogen. It studies the behavior of nitrogen for unloading horizontal gas wells with gas injection in the annulus. The work investigates unloading non-Newtonian fluids such as those which invade offset wells when a frac hit occurs during hydraulic fracturing operations in unconventional wells. The effect of varying tubing depth and injection pressure are included in the study.

Results show that as the plastic viscosity increases, the nitrogen volume and time to unload will be increased. As tubing depth increases, the nitrogen volume …