[CCoE Notice] Cullen College Dissertation Defense Announcement - Riya Ann Mathew

[Hutchinson, Inez A]

[Dissertation Defense Announcement at the Cullen College of Engineering]

Doctoral Dissertation Defense Announcement



Effects of Heterogeneous Foulant Layers on the Photoreactivity and Aggregation of Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles


Riya Ann Mathew
July 20, 2023; 2 PM – 4 PM (CST)

Hybrid
Room: Civil and Environmental Engineering Conference Room, Eng. Bldg. 1 (N137)
Zoom: Click here to join online<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://uh-edu-cougarnet.zoom.us/j/96508915262?pwd=ZnE0dTNjbjlSUzZta0JUR2xBRjdaUT09__;!!LkSTlj0I!FGF76aQF17hkkOR7ncJhdpdbMyNTNnz8oyQX9BwLcWKyk74FglYEFlFYgkBEjwQ-mLxN7_ehUFZ80Y5WhJVtCTwvvQI$ >


Committee Chair: Stacey M. Louie, Ph.D.



Committee Members:

Devin L. Shaffer, Ph.D.| Mim Rahimi, Ph.D.| Cumaraswamy Vipulanandan, Ph.D.|

Yan Yao, Ph.D.|



Abstract
Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles (NPs) are commonly investigated as photocatalysts for the removal of recalcitrant pollutants in water treatment. However, predicting the phororeactivity and aggregation behavior of the NPs can be challenging because of the adsorption of foulants, such as natural organic matter (NOM) and proteins. This dissertation contributes to investigate and predict the reactivity and aggregation behavior of TiO2 NPs exposed to complex matrices with heterogeneous foulants. The first study identified that the background water chemistry strongly impacts the adsorption of NOM onto the TiO2 surface, the displacement of the NOM by phosphate treatment as an antifouling approach, and the subsequent promotion or suppression of the degradation of a model pollutant, phenol, and its reaction byproducts. The second study developed an improved approach to predict photoreactivity in complex media containing mixtures of NOM and bovine serum albumin (BSA), a model protein, by utilizing kinetic competitive adsorption models that more accurately predict layer compositions than Langmuir equilibrium models. Finally, the last study identified the importance of both electrostatic and steric forces on the colloidal stability of TiO2 NPs and developed an empirical model to predict NP stability in mixtures of NOM and BSA. Overall, this research developed novel tools to predict the behavior of TiO2 NPs in complex matrices by integrating fundamental insights on the adsorbed foulant layer composition into models for photoreactivity and colloidal stability

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