This project presents research and educational activities designed to elucidate important aspects about nanoporous materials and disseminate knowledge in cutting-edge adsorption-based separations, respectively. The research efforts are divided in two main tasks. The first one focuses in the understanding, development, and preparation of sorbents based on thermally unstable nanostructures. This will be accomplished by using experimental characterization techniques and molecular dynamics calculations, to expose the effect that protonated structure directing agents (SDAs) have on the coordination of tetrahedral atoms in high transition metal content specific framework environments. SDA removal to expose the unique adsorption properties will be accomplished through solvent extraction, ion exchange, and/or chemical cleavage techniques. The new sorbent materials will be characterized for potential adsorption separation applications. The second research task in this proposal aims at the development of complexation and oxidation sorbents for the selective, high capacity removal of pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) from water streams. These contaminants are present at the parts-per-million and per-billion levels, which are difficult to trim down using existent water-purification technologies. The sorbent materials to be considered here will offer adsorption interactions sufficiently strong to remove PPCPs at such concentration levels while allowing regeneration cycles by using simple engineering means. The sorbent materials will be screened through dynamic adsorption tests and using density functional theory calculations. The educational efforts will involve students from the K-12 to the graduate level. At the graduate level, it is proposed to create a graduate course entitled Adsorption in Nanostructured Materials. The course will cover state-of-the-art methods in material science in chemical engineering, including sorbents synthesis, material adsorption performance analysis, and molecular dynamics simulation, a combination that is not typically found in advanced single graduate courses. At the undergraduate level, the tasks aim at the inclusion of topics related to nanoporous materials and cutting-edge adsorption methods to an existing mass transport course. In addition, the education activities include the development and implementation of adsorption related modules for advanced multimedia presentation techniques in the classroom. This and other ongoing departmental activities will help to revise the Chemical Engineering curriculum and address several future challenges, including the increased understanding and appreciation of the potential for nanoscale science and engineering needed to create an informed citizenry and a competitive workforce. At the K-12 level, this proposal includes activities that will be implemented through the Science on Wheels program. These activities include development of K-5 and junior/high school Hispanic students level adsorption learning modules, respectively, and the use of pre-engineering workshops for early recruitment.
The research work in this project is aimed at developing techniques to expose thermally unstable porous materials surface area and pore volume for adsorption applications and to design sorbents with high selectivity and capacity towards PPCPs. The former will shed light into SDA removal dynamics in nanostructured environments were frame charge compensation limits the stability of the structure. Although the proposed work aims specifically at high transition metal content SBE materials, the outcome should impact other structures that exhibit a similar quandary. The second part of the proposed work is the first known attempt to address PPCPs mitigation via non-traditional sorbents. Therefore, its impact will be immediate and will provide new ways of functionalizing hydrophobic surfaces for water purification methods. Educational activities for the creation of a graduate course in nanostructured sorbent materials, addition of cutting-edge adsorption related topics into an undergraduate course, development of advanced multimedia adsorption modules, development of K-12 adsorption education modules and participation in early students recruitment for engineering careers will help to address future challenges in Chemical Engineering and other Nanoscale Sciences.
One of the main goals of this proposal is to teach and train underrepresented students in topics related to nanoscale adsorption sciences and engineering. The research and educational activities presented in this proposal were designed with the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguezs (UPRM) strategic plan in mind. According to NSF definitions, the UPRM is a non-PhD institution, but several ongoing research and educational activities, including this proposal, are poised to change that status. The efforts will also help the UPRMs Chemical Engineering program, the largest Hispanic chemical engineers producer in the Nation, to implement research and education initiatives in nanotechnology, engineering materials, environmental and energy sciences. The results obtained from the research and education tasks will be disseminated through peer review journals as well as national meetings.
