Adsorption modeling of thin-film molecularly imprinted polymers to measure pyrene in marine environments

This thesis characterizes the adsorption properties of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for pyrene. MIPs are applied for monitoring organic pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and can be deployed in freshwater and marine (saline) water for detection of anthropogenic impacts. Exploiting a simple, low-tech method is of high priority as the fast detection of oil spill sources has become a challenge to analytical chemists and environmental scientists. Kinetic tests were conducted employing the developed MIPs in our group using an Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) for the measurement of pyrene, PAHs, in both small and large volume studies. Discussed will be the results obtained from kinetic and equilibrium adsorption experiments conducted using these films for measuring pyrene in distilled, tap water, and saline water. To gain an insight into the effects of temperature, pH, and salinity, the same experiments were conducted at varying temperature, pH, and salinity employing the standard batch equilibrium method. This research evaluates the adsorption capacity of the obtained polymers as a means to use MIPs for onsite detection without elaborate calibration making them suitable for use in early warning systems for oil spills