Chemical and Toxicological Analyses of Lake Calumet (Cook County, Illinois) Sediments

HWRIC Project 88-048NTIS PB90-16072

Adsorption of primary substituted hydrocarbons onto solid gallium substrates

Master of ScienceDepartment of ChemistryTakashi ItoAdsorption of a series of primarily substituted hydrocarbons (RX; C[subscript]18H[subscript]37PO(OH)[subscript]2 (ODPA), C[subscript]17H[subscript]35COOH, C[subscript]18H[subscript]37OH, C[subscript]18H[subscript]37NH[subscript]2 and C[subscript]18H[subscript]37SH) onto solid gallium substrates with and without UV/ozone treatment was studied using contact angle goniometry, spectroscopic ellipsometry and cyclic voltammetry (CV). UV/ozone treatment offered a hydrophilic surface (water contact angle ([theta][superscript]water) less than 10°), reflecting the formation of a surface oxide layer with the maximum thickness of ca. 1 nm and possibly the removal of surface contaminants. Upon immersion in a toluene solution of a RX, [theta][superscript]water increased due to adsorption of the RX onto gallium substrates. In particular, UV/ozone-treated gallium substrates (UV-Ga) immersed in an ODPA solution exhibited [theta][superscript]water close to 105°. The ellipsometric thickness of the adsorbed ODPA layer was ca. 2.4 nm and CV data measured in an acetonitrile solution showed significant inhibition of redox reaction on the substrate surface. These results indicate the formation of a densely-packed ODPA monolayer on UV-Ga. The coverage of a C[subscript]17H[subscript]35COOH layer adsorbed onto UV-Ga was lower, as shown by smaller [theta][superscript]water (ca. 99°), smaller ellipsometric thickness (ca. 1.3 nm) and smaller electrode reaction inhibition. Adsorption of the other RX onto UV-Ga was weaker, as indicated by smaller [theta][superscript]water (82-92°). ODPA did not strongly adsorb onto UV-untreated gallium substrates, suggesting that the ODPA adsorption mainly originates from hydrogen bond interaction of a phosphonate group with surface oxide. These results will provide a means for controlling the surface properties of oxide-coated gallium that play an essential role in monolayer conductivity measurements and electroanalytical applications

Carbon-13 and proton nuclear magnetic resonance analysis of shale-derived refinery products and jet fuels and of experimental referee broadened-specification jet fuels

A proton and carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) study was conducted of Ashland shale oil refinery products, experimental referee broadened-specification jet fuels, and of related isoprenoid model compounds. Supercritical fluid chromatography techniques using carbon dioxide were developed on a preparative scale, so that samples could be quantitatively separated into saturates and aromatic fractions for study by NMR. An optimized average parameter treatment was developed, and the NMR results were analyzed in terms of the resulting average parameters; formulation of model mixtures was demonstrated. Application of novel spectroscopic techniques to fuel samples was investigated

A new Rhodococcus aetherivorans strain isolated from lubricant-contaminated soil as a prospective phenol biodegrading agent

Microbe-based decontamination of phenol-polluted environments has significant advantages over physical and chemical approaches by being relatively cheaper and ensuring complete phenol degradation. There is a need to search for commercially prospective bacterial strains that are resistant to phenol and other co-pollutants, e.g. oil hydrocarbons, in contaminated environments, and able to carry out efficient phenol biodegradation at a variable range of concentrations. This research characterizes the phenol-biodegrading ability of a new actinobacteria strain isolated from a lubricant-contaminated soil environment. Phenotypic and phylogenetic analyses showed that the novel strain UCM Ac-603 belonged to the species Rhodococcus aetherivorans, and phenol degrading ability was quantitatively characterized for the first time. R. aetherivorans UCM Ac-603 tolerated and assimilated phenol (100% of supplied concentration) and various hydrocarbons (56.2–94.4%) as sole carbon sources. Additional nutrient supplementation was not required for degradation and this organism could grow at a phenol concentration of 500 mg L −1 without inhibition. Complete phenol assimilation occurred after 4 days at an initial concentration of 1750 mg L −1 for freely-suspended cells and at 2000 mg L −1 for vermiculite-immobilized cells: 99.9% assimilation of phenol was possible from a total concentration of 3000 mg L −1 supplied at daily fractional phenol additions of 750 mg L −1 over 4 days. In terms of phenol degradation rates, R. aetherivorans UCM Ac-602 showed efficient phenol degradation over a wide range of initial concentrations with the rates (e.g. 35.7 mg L −1 h −1 at 500 mg L −1 phenol, and 18.2 mg L −1 h −1 at 1750 mg L −1 phenol) significantly exceeding (1.2–5 times) reported data for almost all other phenol-assimilating bacteria. Such efficient phenol degradation ability compared to currently known strains and other beneficial characteristics of R. aetherivorans UCM Ac-602 suggest it is a promising candidate for bioremediation of phenol-contaminated environments. </p

Preparation & characterization of co/zn catalyst, SBA-15 supported for fisher tropsch synthesis

The influence of promoter (Zn) and effect of cobalt loading on the physiochemical and catalytic properties of mesaporous silica Co/SBA-15 catalysts for the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) synthesis was investigated. SBA-15 was synthesized as support. The mesoporous silica Co-Zn/SBA-15 catalysts were prepared by incipient wetness impregnation method. Cobalt nitrate and zinc nitrate were used as sources of metal that introduced onto support with same zinc loading (20wt%) and different cobalt loading (5 wt%,10wt%,15wt%).The characterization of catalysts was performed by using Fourier transform Infrared (FTIR) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The results for FTIR were identification of Si-O-Zn and Si-O-Co functional group because of the present of zinc or cobalt onto silica SBA-15 support. Besides that, the identification of metal inside SBA-15 was determined by comparing the pure SBA-15 with the incorporated metal on SBA-15. For SEM analysis, the image shows that the rope like domain aggregated to wheat like microstructure. Incorporation of Co and Zn did not change the morphology of the support. For this research, the characterization of the catalyst by selecting Zn as promoter have quiet similar characterization with noble metal that already investigate