Instrumentation and Structure-Specific Detection Methods
Students working in my laboratory are developing new chemical analysis methods and instrumentation required to study problems that are relevant to present-day society. Research efforts focus on novel applications of chromatography, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and mass spectrometry. Emphasis is placed on combining complementary analysis methods to produce “hyphenated” analytical systems. These new analytical tools have been found to be very useful in material science and forensic analysis. Previous applications have focused on probing surface reactions in heterogeneous catalysis, polymer structure characterizations, in particular studies of the influence of metal substrates on the accelerated degradation of paint binders, elucidation of non-oxidative ceramic sintering processes used in the microelectronics industry, development of new approaches for recycling waste plastics that result in valuable hydrocarbon solvents, and evaluations of new biomass-to-fuel conversion processes.
