Engineering Commons^™

Synergistic Interactions Of H2 And N2 With Molten Gallium In The Presence Of Plasma, Maria L. Carreon, Daniel F. Jaramillo-Cabanzo, Indira Chaudhuri, Madhu Menon, Mahendra K. Sunkara

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

The present study examines the interaction of hydrogen and nitrogen plasmas with gallium in an effort to gain insights into the mechanisms behind the synergetic effect of plasma and a catalytic metal. Absorption/desorption experiments were performed, accompanied by theoretical-computational calculations. Experiments were carried out in a plasma-enhanced, Ga-packed, batch reactor and entailed monitoring the change in pressure at different temperatures. The results indicated a rapid adsorption/dissolution of the gas into the molten metal when gallium was exposed to plasma, even at a low temperature of 100 °C. The experimental observations, when hydrogen was used, indicate that gallium acts as a …

Hydrothermal Decarboxylation Of Fatty Acids And Their Derivatives For Liquid Transportation Fuels, Md Zakir Hossain

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Due to the depletion of fossil fuel reserves, renewable resources are required to produce tomorrow’s fuel range hydrocarbons. This thesis focuses on the hydrothermal decarboxylation of fatty acids and their derivatives derived from renewable sources. These are required for liquid transportation fuels which have similar properties to conventional fuels. Detailed catalytic studies were performed for the decarboxylation of oleic acid as a model compound and corn distiller’s oil (CDO) as a real feedstock. Commercial activated carbon and laboratory prepared Ni-Al₂O₃, MgO-Al₂O₃, Mo-Al₂O₃ catalysts were also examined as catalysts. Fatty …

Creating Renewable Tunable Polymers From Hydroxymethylfurfural, Meredith C. Allen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The research here deals with the conversion of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) into a tunable polymer. HMF is a known derivative that can be acquired from biomass via hydrolysis of cellulose followed by isomerization and finally selective dehydration. The process considered here is being developed to create tunable polymers from HMF and involves several different steps, three of which are covered here. The first step, an etherification, is the reaction of HMF with an alcohol. This step is significant because in this step the R-group from the alcohol is added to HMF and the branching portion formed is carried over to the …

Nanoporous Solid Acid Materials For Biomass Conversion Into Value-Added Chemicals: Synthesis, Catalysis, And Chemistry, Hong Je Cho

Doctoral Dissertations

Growing environmental concerns associated with diminishing reserves of fossil fuels has led to accelerated research efforts towards the discovery of new catalytic processes for converting renewable lignocellulosic biomass into value-added chemicals. For this conversion, nanoporous solid acid materials have been widely used because of their excellent hydrothermal stability and molecular sieving capability. In the thesis, hierarchical Lewis acid zeolites with ordered mesoporosity and MFI topology (three dimensionally ordered mesoporous imprinted (3DOm-i) Sn-MFI) were successfully synthesized within the confined space of three dimensionally ordered mesoporous (3DOm) carbon by a seeded growth method. The obtained 3DOm-i Sn-MFI showed at least 3 times …

A Study Of Iron-Nitrogen-Carbon Fuel Cell Catalysts: Chemistry – Nanostructure – Performance, Michael J. Workman

Nanoscience and Microsystems ETDs

Fuel cells have the potential to be a pollution-free, low-cost, and energy efficient alternative to the internal combustion engine for transportation and small-scale stationary power applications. The current state of fuel cell technology has already achieved two of these three lofty goals. The remaining barrier to wide-scale deployment is the high cost, which is primarily caused by dependence on large amounts of platinum to catalyze the energy conversion reactions. To overcome this barrier and facilitate the integration of fuel cells into mainstream applications, research into a new class of catalyst materials that do not require platinum is needed.

There has …

Catalytic Hydrotreatment For The Development Of Renewable Transportation Fuels, Lilu Funkenbusch

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Biologically-derived feedstocks are a highly desirable source of renewable transportation fuel. They can be grown renewably and can produce fuels similar in composition to conventional fossil fuels. They are also versatile and wide-ranging. Plant oils can produce renewable diesel and wood-based pyrolysis oils can be made into renewable gasoline. Catalytic hydrotreatment can be used to reduce the oxygen content of the oils and increase their viability as a “drop-in” transportation fuel, since they can then easily be blended with existing petroleum-based fuels. However, product distribution depends strongly on feedstock composition and processing parameters, especially temperature and type of catalyst. Current …