Inorganic Chemistry Commons^™

Understanding Interfacial Reactions Initiating On Electrode Materials For Energy Storage Technologies, Jingnan Li

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Since the first generation of lithium-ion batteries featured lithium cobalt oxide cathode and carbon anode commercialized in the 1990s, the high-capacity materials with lower cost are in demand to further increase the battery energy density. Lithium metal and silicon anode are promising high-capacity anode materials to achieve next-generation lithium batteries. However, both the materials actively react in electrolytes and suffer from dramatic volume change. Therefore, a reliable passivation layer at the electrolyte/electrode interphase (i.e., solid electrolyte interphase, or “SEI”) is required to support the long-term cycling of both materials. Cetrimonium hydro fluoride (CTAHF2) has been proposed and synthesized as an …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Organometallic Complexes For Biological Imaging, Emily Stumbo

Honors Theses

Luminescent transition metal complexes are of interest for biological imaging applications due to their unique photophysical properties including large Stokes shift, long fluorescence lifetimes, and tunable emission. Altering ligand structure is a useful way to manipulate the charge transfer (CT) and mixed character states that give these complexes their photophysical properties. A series of organometallic complexes containing ligands with externally facing nitrogens has been prepared and synthesized. Complexes of the form Pt (II)(tbbpy)(C2-py), Re(CO)3(N^N), Ir(C^N)2(N^N), and Ir(C^N)2(N^O) have been studied for their potential application as biological imaging agents. The goal of this project is to compare the properties of these …

Structural, Charge Transport, Gas Sensing, Magnetic, Pseudocapacitive, And Electrocatalytic Properties Of Perovskite Oxides., Surendra Bahadur Karki

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Perovskites are functional materials with the general formula ABO₃ (A = alkali, alkaline earth or lanthanoid cations and B = transition metal or main group cations). These materials are marked by a variety of crystal structures and interesting properties such as colossal magnetoresistance, ferroelectricity, multiferroicity, superconductivity, pseudocapacitance, gas sensing, charge transport, and electrocatalytic properties. The formula of perovskite can be written as AA’BB’O₆, when there is ordering between two cations over A and B-sites. Such compounds are called double perovskite oxides. Some amount of oxygen could be lost from crystal structure without decomposition of the phase. Such …

Rational Design Of Composite Nanomaterials For Water Treatment Applications, Mariana Marcos-Hernandez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Water quantity and quality have been affected in communities all around the world due to population growth, pollution, changes in land use, and climate change. In order to cope with existing and anticipated water demands and shortages, the use of treated or reclaimed water is an ongoing alternative that has helped communities all over the world address this problem. The adaptation of nanotechnology to traditional water and wastewater treatment processes offers new opportunities in technological developments. Unique size-dependent properties such as: high surface to mass ratio, high reactivity, high sorption capacities, fast dissolution, superparamagnetism, among others, provide high-tech efficient materials …

Revisiting The Chemistry Of Uranium And Rhenium Fluorides: Implication To Fuel Cycle And Nuclear Forensics Science, James Amos-Aimé Louis-Jean

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Fluorine plays a major role in the nuclear industry where F2(g) and HF(g) are critical to the preparation of UF6 and UF4. These materials are prepared for uranium enrichment to increase the isotopic concentration of 235U. During separation efforts, the isotope 99Tc (a high yield fission product, 6.1% from 235U) is extracted along with uranium and can be converted to binary technetium fluorides (i.e., TcF4, TcF6) during re-enrichment of used uranium material. This provides a route for 99Tc to reenter the reactor environment and affect the nuclear properties of fuel pellets made with reprocessed uranium. The objective of this work …

A Performance Evaluation Of Architectural Coatings To Preserve Aerosol Paint On Concrete, Riley Morris

All Theses

The growing movement of assigning cultural and heritage value to graffiti and street art is one without a preservation solution to ensure the longevity of these works in-situ in an outdoor environment. The goal of this thesis was to provide a comprehensive evaluation of six architectural topcoats’ performance when applied as a conservation treatment to outdoor aerosol graffiti and street art on concrete substrate. An artist’s quality, durable, color-fast spray-paint was applied to twenty-eight concrete test panels to mimic the application of graffiti or street art. Six topcoats, Prosoco SC-1, Prosoco Gloss n’ Guard WB, Keim Faceal Oleo HD®, Keim …

Valorization Of Biopolymers And Biomass To Produce Materials For A More Circular Economy, Moira Lauer

All Dissertations

With a globally increasing population and largely unchecked consumption of raw materials, human society is on track for devastating consequences. Two industries responsible for utilizing massive amounts of raw materials and generating equally gargantuan quantities of waste are the packaging and infrastructure sectors. In 2017 in Europe, for example, packaging reached a record 173 kg of packaging waste per capita. One of the largest packaging consumers is the food industry, in which 40% of packaging is made of petroleum-derived single-use plastic, leading to a massive carbon imbalance. “The Built Environment,” on the other hand, is responsible for about 50% of …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Silver Thione Complexes, Audrey V. Lawrence

Honors Theses

Coordination polymers are repeating units of a coordination complex that have applications as catalysts, conductors, and magnets. In this work, silver (I) was the metal of choice because it behaves similarly to copper (I), which has been studied much more extensively and thione ligands were chosen due to their potential for forming coordination polymers. These coordination complexes with silver were synthesized by combining silver nitrate with thioacetamide, N,N'-diphenylthiourea, and 2-mercapto-1-methylimidazole. These complexes were characterized via IR spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and X-ray crystallography. Silver thioacetamide was determined to form a coordination complex through the sulfur to form a trigonal crystal lattice …

Synthesis, Characterization And Activity Of Palladium Catalysts On The Dual Support Of Cerium And Aluminum Oxides, Jihyeon Park

Theses and Dissertations

The effects of sequence of impregnation (Pd on cerium oxides -alumina and cerium oxides on Pd-alumina) and calcination temperature (500 ℃ and 850 ℃) on the catalytic oxidation of methane under lean conditions were investigated. The catalysts were prepared by a combination of impregnation, slurry and vortexing methods. The catalysts had 4.7 wt.% Pd and 10.7 wt.% Ce based on inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) analysis. The catalysts were characterized by pulse chemisorption, temperature programmed reduction (TPD), scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The activity of the catalysts for methane combustion was measured in …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Redox-Active Multidentate Ligands For Catalytic C-H Bond Oxidation And Carbon Dioxide Reduction, Caroline Hodge

Honors Theses

This thesis focuses on two research projects. The first project reported in Chapter 1 involves the synthesis and application of a tetradentate ligand (2-(1,1-di(pyridin-2-yl)ethyl)-1,10-phenanthroline, PhenPY2Me) that is metalated with iron to give a catalyst capable of carbon-hydrogen (C-H) bond oxidation. C-H bond oxidation provides a method that may allow some transformations in organic syntheses to be streamlined. The mononuclear iron complex supported by PhenPY2Me was found to dimerize in the presence of O₂ in a non-coordinating solvent. These iron complexes and a previously reported system were assessed and compared in C-H bond oxidation with model substrates using the sacrificial …

Towards Asymmetric Mannich Reactions And Alkylation Of Indoles, Bianco Bicalho

Honors Theses

In the presence of trimethylsilyl trifluoromethanesulfonate (TMSOTf) and 2,6-lutidine, acylated thiones undergo Aldol and Mannich reactions with aldehydes and nitrones to yield complex nitrogen-containing compounds. The use of a chiral metal-ligand complex is hypothesized to accelerate the reaction and increase stereochemical control during product formation. N-Alkylindoles undergo Friedel-Crafts alkylation with acetates in the presence of TMSOTf and 2,6-lutidine to produce 3-alkyl indoles. Varying Substitution on the indole at the 5 position and removal of the alkyl group from the 1 position both show continued reactivity at the 3 position even in the presence of TMSOTf.

Corrosion Prevention Of Aluminum Alloy, Andrea Brenner

Symposium of Student Scholars

Aluminum alloy (Al-alloy) is a widely used metal in construction, aerospace, aviation, and other necessary fields due to its lightweight and tweakable properties. However, corrosion is inevitable on metals and alloys, and that causes millions of dollars of revenue loss every year. Therefore, we propose to research fabricating coating to prevent corrosion on Al-alloy. This study uses an iron-based metal-organic framework (MOF) and polyurethane (PU) based composite coating to prevent corrosion on the Al-alloy. The makeup of the composite material is changed by varying the percentage of MOF. In addition, a binder is also used to enhance the homogenization between …

Synthesis, Characterization, And Photo-Reactivity Studies On Mo(Vi) Dioxo Complexes For C-H Activation And O-Atom Transfer, Saeed Fosshat

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Metal oxos are important intermediates in various chemical transformations that include electron transfer, proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) and and O-atom transfer. Various extent of π-bonding from the oxo ligands to the central metal causes changes in nucleophilicity and overall reactivity of these species. Several factors can influence the electronic structure of the M=O bonds such as central metal oxidation state, geometry, ancillary ligands and spin state of the metal. A general strategy to increase the reactivity of metal oxos is to use electron rich metal centers that are less oxophilic. As a result of this, extensive amount of research has …

Comparing And Contrasting Therapeutic Drugs Vs. Lifestyle Changes That Combattype-Ii Diabetes, Alexander Cline Helmuth

Chemistry & Biochemistry Student Projects

In this thesis, I will be presenting various preventive approaches to combat type-II diabetes. The focus of this paper will be comparing and contrasting therapeutic drug targets such as Metformin and Sulfonylureas that are prescribed for type-II diabetic patients versus taking preventative steps such as making lifestyle changes including weight management, physical activity, and having a balanced diet that prevents onset of type-II diabetes or helps patients manage type-II diabetes. From this paper, one will gain insight on how there are multiple approaches to combat type-II diabetes that are not in the form of the pill.

Microfluidic Paper Analytical Devices, Madison Page

Chemistry & Biochemistry Student Projects

Microfluidic paper analytical devices (µPADs) are small, paper-based matrices similar to Lab-on-a-Chip (LOC). They are capable of semi-quantitative analysis, with applications ranging from medical to environmental to food and beverage testing. Important to improving point-of-care devices (POCs), various techniques have been integrated into µPADs to customize analysis and fit different clinical situations.

The Application Of Biological Processes To Increase Energy Potential In Landfills, Ashlyn Eisenhart

Chemistry & Biochemistry Student Projects

There has been a dramatic increase in the amount of waste that we humans have created. This has been due to population growth, an increase in industrial manufacturing, along with urbanization and modernization.⁸ The number of tons of municipal solid waste entering landfills has increased from 82.5 million tons in 1960 to 146.1 million tons in 2018.¹⁷ However, thanks to recycling, composting, and energy recovery from combustion, the percentage of solid waste going to landfills has dramatically decreased, from around 93.6 to about 65.4 percent.¹⁷

Chemistry Of Toothpaste, Kayla Blanche Kirtley

Chemistry & Biochemistry Student Projects

The chemistry of toothpaste is explained, with a description of the chemical components and their mode of action in the role of toothpaste.

Synthetic, Photophysical, And Catalytic Studies Of Light-Harvesting Macrocyclic Complexes, Fox Bratcher

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Chromophores are an important class of compounds in Nature and industry, with several hundred thousand tons produced annually as dyes and pigments. Alone, these compounds absorb light unto themselves; however, several of these compounds can be combined to produce a beneficial cascading transfer of energy to a core chromophore.

In this study, photophysical properties of several covalent and axially borondipyrromethene (BODIPY)-conjugated complexes of porphyrin and salphen scaffolds have been evaluated in a series of emission and catalytic studies. In the porphyrin systems, a beneficial excited energy transfer (EET) from the BODIPY moieties to the porphyrin core was observed; however, only …

A Comparative Study Of Two Nickel-Based Suzuki-Miyaura Hybrid Molecular Catalysts, Mollie Morrow

Senior Theses

Two molecular nickel-based catalysts, (2,2’bipyridine-4,4’-carboxylic acid)nickel(II) chloride and (2,2'-bipyridine-4,4'-diamidopropylsilatrane)nickel(II) chloride, were synthesized and subsequently attached to a solid support in the form of amorphous silicon dioxide to create two hybrid molecular/heterogeneous catalysts. Characterization using ICP-MS and ATR-FTIR confirms that both catalysts are bonded to the SiO₂ support. The catalysts were both able to catalyze a Suzuki-Miyarua cross-coupling which their molecular counterparts were unable to; the carboxylate catalyst was able to achieve yields of 10% and the silatrane catalyst achieved yields of up to 50%. Post-reaction analysis indicated that while some catalyst desorption occurred in both complexes, active catalytic species …

Synthesis Of Phosphonate-Based Diimide Ligands, Kenya V. Medina

Honors Program Theses and Research Projects

There has been a resurged interest in the synthesis of metal-organic frameworks because of their potential applications in energy production and drug delivery. Although diimides are insoluble in aqueous solutions, the addition of phosphonic acid allows the complex to be water soluble, which greatly increases their application. Therefore, the creation of a hybrid metal-organic complex by the addition of phosphonic groups to diimide ligands can result in a polar porous compound. In this project the ligand design included the use of dianhydrides including pyromellitic dianhydride, naphthalenetetracarboxylic dianhydride, perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride, and biphenyl-tetracarboxylic acid dianhydride. These dianhydride precursors were refluxed under argon …