

Research Terms
Life Sciences Biochemistry Physical Sciences Chemistry
Research Interest
?Our team currently has three research thrusts globally aimed at designing new polymeric systems towards current societal needs. These include: 1) Advanced elastomeric and super-soft materials with enhanced recyclability and applications in adhesion, lubrication, impact dampening, and potential replacement for articular cartilage. 2) Sustainable plastics comprised of chiral biomass-based feedstock and their stereochemical effects on material properties. 3) Functional diblock and multiblock copolymers geared towards autonomous nanostructured assemblies and use in templates for nanotechnology, ion conduction, and selective membranes for transport and filtration. Our research is highly interdisciplinary and relies on organic synthesis, polymer synthesis, organometallic catalysis, analysis of macromolecular structure, and polymer physics / engineering principles to probe material function.
Researchers at Florida State University have developed a method of converting a-pinene, sourced from forestry biomass, into an isomeric form that renders it suitable for polymerization. The resulting material is predicted to have ballistic, barrier, and mechano-responsive properties. This presents a cheap and new plastic material based on a feedstock that is available on an industrial scale. The conversion method utilizes commercially available catalyst systems and can be performed at scale.
Applications
Replacement for commonly used petroleum-based plastics, including:
Advantages
News article: https://news.fsu.edu/news/2021/07/27/fsu-researchers-discover-pine-sap-based-plastic-a-potential-change-for-future-of-sustainable-materials/
Research Article: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsmacrolett.1c00284
The present invention is a blend of a low molecular weight polymer with polyelectrolyte polymer having a precisely fixed anionic motif. This material can be used as to create efficient, highly conductive solid-state batteries with low internal resistance. Solid Polymer Electrolytes (SPEs) are materials that can be used to replace the reactive organic solvents used in lithium-ion batteries. SPEs have drawbacks which prevent its wide adoption, such as low comparative conductivities and propensity to develop shorts. Single Ion Conductors (SICs) can overcome these issues by anchoring the negatively charge ion and allowing only the positively charged ion – typically Lithium ions – the mobility to carry the charge. The present material precisely controls the spacing of the negative ions on the polymer background. This material shows excellent ionic conductivity and has transference near unity.
Key Words : Polymers, Energy Storage, Li-ion battery, solid-state conductor, single-ion conductor