Date of Award

Spring 5-3-2024

Level of Access Assigned by Author

Open-Access Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Engineering (DEng)

Department

Chemical Engineering

Advisor

Evan Wujcik

Second Committee Member

Thomas Schwartz

Third Committee Member

Karissa Tilbury

Additional Committee Members

Yonghao Ni

William Gramlich

Abstract

Polymer science has become a well-studied field in recent years. Their tunability, functionalization, and unique intermolecular reactions make them a significant area of interest for materials science. The production and research of polymeric materials has increased ever since their invention, and does look to be slowing down currently. While polymers may be considered macromolecules, their properties can be heavily influenced by the incorporation of nanostructures. Despite their small dimensions, nanostructured materials can have substantial impacts on these systems, even at small loading percentages. Nanomaterials have also become a topic of increasingly large interest in research over the last few decades. The nanostructuring of polymeric materials can provide unique properties which can be beneficial when utilized in applied systems. With such a wide arrange of polymers as well as nanomaterials available today, it is imperative that they are studied in order to optimally select advantageous materials which can yield auspicious results in materials science and its applications. Within this work, several examples are shown of nanostructured materials aiding in the tailoring of material properties to optimize and improve advanced polymeric systems for sensing. These include two electrospun polymeric nanofiber mats utilized for the colorimetric of organic pollutants in water, both of which can detect minuscule concentrations of pollutants at environmentally relevant concentrations. Lastly, with the addition of silver nanowires added to a piezoresisitive polymer complex, the mechanical and electrical properties of the polymer complex both saw drastic improvement. The increase in sensitivity for this piezoresistive strain sensor allows for its usage in unique biosensing applications which it previously would not be apt for. Throughout this work the main advantage of nanostructured materials discussed is their high surface area to volume ratios uncommonly found in macroscale materials. The discussion of the applications of this advantage in tailoring porosity to dictate transport as well as its effects on interfacial adhesion between the nanomaterial and the polymer matrix in a composite material can be studied within.

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