Synthesized Polymers - Research Proposal Example

Presented by: here. of Department of Chemistry. Introduction of the Research Problem. Synthesized polymers are no doubt some of the most used products around the globe today and their use can only increase. Application of polymers is evidence in their daily utilization in packaging, electrical appliances and biomedical devices. Even with their great usage they pose a significant challenge in the form of adverse environmental effects resulting from their improper disposal. This necessitates the search for newer polymer types that are environment friendly. This can be attained through development of chemical protocols requiring less energy, procedures with lower dependency on fossil fuel, and that yield less chemical wastes. The negative effects can also be minimized through production of synthetic polymers which are biodegradable or easy to recycle. Carbon as important industrial raw material is predominantly sourced from fossil sources of energy while plastic synthesis accounts for about seven percent of oil usage in the whole world. The future of fossil energy is not promising and as such need for other routes like biorenewable energy sources and biodegradable polymers. The world is also producing around 150M tons of plastic per year, America alone carries the burden of 30M tons which in landfills or get incinerated on our soils per year. This increases need for easy to recycle and biologically degradable polymers; they are valuable as they pose less adverse environmental effects. It is thus important to study progress on development of more environment friendly polymers and more especially those from renewable sources. Thesis Statement. To protect the environment through development and application of procedures which enable production of more biologically safe polymers and reduce dependence on fossil fuels as the source of industrial carbon. Research questions. 1. Can the development and application of catalysts for the synthesis of highly functional carbons aid in reducing negative environmental effects that accompany use of fossil energy? 2. Can the development and application of catalysts for the synthesis of highly functional carbons result in production of biodegradable and easy to recycle polymers? 3. What is the potential and future of applying catalysts in the synthesis of highly functional carbons? Limitations and Delimitations of the Study. The study requires a lot of chemical reagents such as the catalysts and precursors which require a good budget and thus financial constraints might pose a challenge to the success of the research in wholesomely exploring the topic. It also requires the employment of human resources such as lab assistants which require remuneration and this could contribute to budgetary constraints apart from the fact that some of the catalysts are expensive and not easily available. Literature Review. Coates and Jeske (2009) in Hand of Green Chemistry discuss the evolution of epoxide-CO2 from carbon dioxide and propylene oxide under the catalysis of H­2O mixed with ZnEt2. This discovery led to a series of other chemical studies on catalysis with eventual fruitful developments inclusion the production of propylene carbonate. A copolymerization system was also developed involving ZnEt2 and trihydric phenols for the production of propylene carbonate as well s a catalyst involving Zn (OH)2 mixed with glutaric acid. The copolymerization of epoxide- CO­2 is studied in detail in terms of mechanism, regiochemistry, stereochemistry, polymer-cyclic selectivity and ether-dicarbonate linkages. There are also a number of metals known to actively catalytic in the synthesis of carbonates and are explained in the study. These metals include aluminum, chromium, cobalt, magnesium, manganese, lithium, zinc and copper with varying catalytic efficacies. The catalytic effects of chromium porphyrins in influencing cyclic carbonates formation from CO­2 and epoxides led to the development of a copolymerization scheme that formed polycarbonate from the combination of (TFPP)CrCL and another catalyst like DMAP. Zinc, Cobalt and other metals also have catalytic properties and have been studied extensively in terms of efficacy and application (Wang et al, 2006). One important group of carbonates is the aliphatic polyesters; they are biodegradable and highly biocompatible as well and this favors their applications medicine, formation of artificial biological tissues and also production of other commodity materials. Since very few plastics are recyclable at the moment, interest has greatly shifted to biodegradable ones such these. Their synthesis involves catalysis to bring about ROP. An example is PLA; its monomer (lactide) comes from corn which is renewable while PLA itself is biodegradable. Metals such as zinc, aluminum, germanium as well as non-metal catalysis’s have been shown to induce ROP in the synthesis of PLA. (Coates and Jeske, 2009). Polymers are important biomaterials and are actually are of high natural presence in many biological systems. They posses quite some good number of functional and structural roles which are crucial in life; as such the macromolecules are highly important in living things. This explains the wide application of both synthetic and natural polymers as biologically essential materials. In addition to their functional roles, these polymers of biological interest are utilized as vehicles for drug delivery, are crucial wear surfaces for in replacement of joints and good cements for bones. The chemistry of polymers enables synthesis of macromolecules with specific desired properties hence their application in many biological procedures. Biological abundance of polymers in life systems makes them good candidates formation of functional biomaterials that trigger certain cell responses and increase biological compatibility in their application (Mindemark, 2012). 4, 5-dianilinophthalimide or DAPH has been observed to cause reversal of reactions leading to production of neutrotoxic fibrils causing Alzheimer’s disease. For its biological importance DAPH is therefore an important molecule and its synthesis is of both industrial and academic interest. Synthetically this biopolymer can be generated by amination under the catalysis of palladium. Precursors are easily available and when they are coupled to anilines enough yields are achieved. As such many analogs of DAPH can be produced quickly for biological application. The method of synthesis is also open to modification by incorporating different nucleophiles to the molecular structure (Hennessy, 2005). Justification of the study. North Pacific Subtropical Gyre is one part of the ocean which is the found in between Hawaii and California and is equal in size to Texas. This area has accumulated approximately 6M pounds of plastic wastes in the past about half century alone. The American Chemical Society through Technology Vision 2020 proposes that the biggest goal for the 21st century on industry should be to develop alternative routes to the synthesis of polymers which are sustainable (Coates and Jeske, 2009). This will be achieved through the production of highly functional, biodegradable and compatible polymers. Significance of the Research. This research is a timely one is will be conducted at a time when the world is grappling with the problem of environmental pollution which poses significant risks to biology in every eco-system. Sustainable routes to chemical synthetic procedures are inevitable and must be embraced fast. The highly functional carbonates also have a wide range of applications particularly in the medical field and therefore this research will valuably add to the existing knowledge in terms of application of these polymers. Theoretical Framework. It is obvious that the main industrial source of carbon currently is fossil fuels which are not renewable and also cause a significant amount of environmental pollution. Plastics are widely used around the world and most of what is being used is non-biodegradable; most are also not recyclable and as such eventually end in landfills as wastes causing pollution. The research will answer questions of pollution and sustainable carbon sources as well as the potential of developing highly functional carbonates especially in terms of medical application. Methodology. In ensuring the success of this research I intend to explore available literature on the topic of application and development of catalysts in the synthesis of highly functional carbonates. It will help in deciphering what knowledge is currently available on the topic howl it is being applied and what amount of success has been recorded. More importantly I will be conducting experiments on the use of catalysts in reactions involving synthesis of highly functional carbonates. I will be looking to understand the different reaction mechanisms, modes of catalysis and end product viability in terms of how effective are procedures in yielding the desired products as well as desired functionalities. The overall chemistry of these catalytic reactions will be studied in detail in order to understand the benefits of these procedures and their future application in bettering life. Resources and Materials. This research will require resources in the form of funding for the purchase of necessary materials as well as remuneration of assistants. I will need a fully fledged chemistry laboratory with limited access to authorized persons as well as the various chemical precursors and catalysts for the study. List of References. 1. Badie, S. Girgis, Amina A. Attia and Nady A. Fathy. (2007) Modification in Adsorption Characteristics of Activated Carbon Produced b H3PO4 under Flowing Gases. 2. Cohen, C. T. et al. (2006) Dalton Transactions. 3. Christopher Beattie, et al. (2013) Influence of Temperature and Pressure on Cyclic Carbonates Synthesis Catalyzed by Bimetallic Aluminum Complexes and Application to Overall syn-Bis-hydroxylation of Alkenes. Journal of Organic Chemistry, 78(2). 4. Christopher J. Whiteoak et al. (2013) A Powerful Aluminum Catalyst for the Synthesis of Highly Functional Organic Carbonates. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 135(4), 1228-1231. 5. Edward J. Hennessy (205). The Development and Application of Metal-Catalyzed Processes for Organic Synthesis. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). 6. Geoffrey W. Coates and Ryan C. Jeske. (2005) ‘Homogeneous Catalyst Design for the Synthesis of Aliphatic Polycarbonates and Polyesters’. In: Robert H. Crabtree eds. Handbook of Green Chemistry, Volume 1: Homogeneous Catalysis. Wiley. 7. J. Langanke, et al. (2013) Carbon dioxide (CO2) as Sustainable Feedstock for Polyurethane Production. Green Chemistry. 8. Jonas Mindemark. (2012) Functional Cyclic Carbonate Monomers and Polycarbonates: Synthesis and Biomaterials Applications. Uppsala Universitet. 9. Kossev, K., Koseva, N., and Troev, K. (2003) Calcium Chloride as Co-catalyst of Onium Halides in the Cycloaddition of Carbon dioxide to Oxiranes. 10. National Research Council of the National Academies. (2005) Sustainability in the Chemical Industry: Grand Challenges and Research Needs- a Workshop Report. National Research Council of the Academies, New York. 11. Ricci, A., et al. (2010) Chitozan Aerogel: A Recyclable, Heterogeneous Organocatalyst for the Asymmetric Direct Aldol Reaction in Water. Chem. Commun. 12. Thilo Baronsky, et al. (2013) Bimetallic Aluminum (salen) Catalyzed Synthesis of Oxalolidinones from Epoxides and Isocyanates. ACS Catalysis 3(4), 790-797. 13. Viswanathan, B., Indra Neel, P., and Varadarajan, T. K. (2009). Methods of Activation and Specific Applications of Carbon Materials. National Centre for Catalysis Research. 14. Wang, J.-Q., et al (2006) Synthesis of Cyclic Carbonates from Epoxies and Carbon dioxide Over Silica-supported Quaternary Ammonium Salts under Supercritical Conditions. J. Mol. Catal. 15. Yamaguchi, M. (2011) Hemibonding of Hydroxyl Radical and Halide Anion in Aqueous Solution. Journal of Physical Chemistry. Read More