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- All Subjects: Electrospinning
- All Subjects: Organic Chemistry
- Creators: Green, Matthew
- Creators: Ackerman-Biegasiewicz, Laura
- Member of: Theses and Dissertations
- Status: Published
Targeting Tumors: Inclusion of Functional Groups on Ion-Containing Block Copolymers to Combat Cancer
This thesis is about how Fe catalysts can be degraded using photocatalysis and how Fe catalysts can degrade small molecules in conjunction with light. The goal of this paper is to look further into more sustainable methods of organic chemistry. Many current organic chemistry practices involve the use of precious metals. Iron is a more sustainable catalyst because it is abundant and inexpensive which is important for preserving the earth and making the organic chemistry more accessible. Along the same lines, light is a renewable energy source and has demonstrated its ability to aid in reactions. Overall, the goal of this paper is to explore the more sustainable alternatives to harsh and toxic organic chemistry practices through the use of Iron and light.
We utilized biomaterial scaffolds created from an electrospinning apparatus to create fibrous scaffolds with controllable morphology. To create consistent stable fibers, norbornene-modified cellulose acetate (nor-CA) was used as the polymer in solvent solutions of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) and acetone/N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc). Solution rheology was used to determine a baseline for the nor-CA concentration used within each solvent system for electrospinning. The fibrous scaffolds were analyzed for morphology and fiber size using scanning electron microscopy. Increased fiber stability and decreased beading was found with higher concentrations of nor-CA for each solvent system. TFA appeared to be the most versatile as it was able to form fibers without beads at concentrations of 15%, 18%, and 21% nor-CA, with the most stable and uniform fibers at 21% nor-CA. This solvent had a conductivity measurement of 0.98 mS. DMAc/acetone had a much higher conductivity measurement and increased beading at lower concentrations of nor-CA.