Understanding the impact of polymer functionalized electrode fabrication and cycling conditions on stability and selective separation of micropollutants

Abstract

The main focus of this thesis is on selectively separating target contaminants present in an aqueous environment via electrochemically-mediated capture at polymer interfaces in order to improve water security. Heavy metal pollutants such as arsenic have diverse physico-chemical properties which renders them intractable in current treatment technologies such as wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). These pollutants are able to pass through WWTPs and end up in the aquatic environment becoming a threat to ecosystems or end up in drinking water. Electrochemically mediated selective capture of the heavy metal pollutants is a promising technology but current methods lack molecular selectivity are unstable and have difficulty separating the target ion without producing toxic byproducts. Polymer coated electrodes comprised of poly(vinyl) ferrocne (PVF) and 3-ferrocenylpropyl acrylamide (PFPMAm) have been developed to selectively separate arsenic due to their electronic tunability, fast electron transfer, redox processes at moderate potentials below that of water splitting, and molecular level recognition of target pollutants of concern. Properties of the resulting redox polymer electrode were also investigated using various analytical instruments.