Learning to use the FTIR

Author: Collin Larsen | Major: Chemical Engineering | Semester: Summer 2022

Over the course of the 2022 summer grant term, I worked alongside my honors research mentor, Dr. Keisha Walters of the Department of Chemical Engineering, and graduate research mentor, David Chem, on modifying Lignin structures to be more suitable for copolymerization. The overall goal of this research project is to examine the use of lignin as a copolymer component to form a green (bio-based and biodegradable) plastic to serve as a commercially viable alternative to commonly used petroleum based, non-degradable plastics, such as those used for single-use packaging films. Lignin is a waste product generated from agricultural processes which has little to no value. Lignin will be utilized in conjunction with recycled plastics to form a new biodegradable copolymer—reducing the amount of waste and virgin feedstock and producing a method for reducing environmental contamination from plastics. Not only are there massive potential environmental advantages to this research but it can reinforce the economic strength of plastic upcycling and agricultural processes that produce lignin, economically incentivizing environmentally friendly practices.

I chose my topic because, if successful, the research could lead to a new generation of plastics that are safer for the environment and improve the financial motivation to participate in green practices. My main goal in life is to become a material engineer that creates novel materials (with additional focus on polymers) that increase our overall sustainability. I am also heavily interested in nanotechnology — specifically material analysis and nanoparticles. This is why not only is my research project perfect for me but my mentor as well. My mentor’s research lab, Polymer and Nanomaterial Engineering Lab (or PolyNEL), perfectly mergers these two passions and I’ve gotten to learn a lot about material science from this opportunity.  I found my mentor while searching for research projects that also fell into my nanotechnology minor. After meeting with Dr. Leftwich from material science, He pointed me in the direction of Dr. Walters because of my interests in chemical engineering and nanotechnology.

In the first phase of the project, we investigated purifying and functionalizing Lignin from multiple sources. Along the way, I’ve learned how to perform multiple reactions to functionalize Lignin such as phenylation, amination, and esterification. David Chem was instrumental in teaching me the laboratory techniques. One of the challenges of working with lignin is the differences between the sources of the Lignin, The alkali lignin exhibits a much more basic pH than the organosolv and typically creates a much darker solution than the organosolv.

However, the most exciting phase is yet to come. During the 2022 Fall grant period, we plan to use a selected modified Lignin for use as a macroinitiator for a copolymerization with an α-Olefin to create a Lignin-Olefin copolymer. The mechanical, chemical, thermal properties of the resultant material will then be analyzed with Differential Mechanical Analysis (DMA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The modification of the Lignin-Olefin copolymer will be focused on creating a linear structure.