(3gn) Polymeric Foams Designed for Environmental and Medical Applications | AIChE

(3gn) Polymeric Foams Designed for Environmental and Medical Applications

Authors 

Zowada, R. - Presenter, New Mexico State University
Research Interests

My research has heavily revolved around polymeric foams with the goal to maximize economic efficiency of a material while taking advantage of porous properties (i.e. higher storage, lower density, faster permeability). My research involves porous polymers produced by emulsion and high internal phase emulsion (HIPE) templating systems and liquid foam templating methods. The application of my research has been primarily focused on environmental and medical practices. Since these methods are highly versatile, I have been able to form porous hydrogels for applications such as arsenic removal from drinking water, biodegradable water retaining additives in soil, and biocompatible hydrogels for wound healing. With the same methods I have been able to make highly permeable membranes designed for microfiltration of drinking water and as a breathable sleeve for prosthetic devices. Through these projects I have gained extensive experience in material analysis techniques such as scanning and transmission electron microscopies, rheology, and mechanical testing.

PhD Dissertation - Biodegradable Porous Hydrogels for Soil Water Retention in Arid Regions

Under supervision of Drs. Reza Foudazi and Catherine Brewer, Chemical and Materials Engineering, New Mexico State University, and Drs. April Ulery and John Idowu, Plant and Environmental Sciences, New Mexico State University.

Teaching Experience

I have guest lectured and was a teaching assistant for the undergraduate Material Science course for the Chemical and Materials Engineering Department and I have mentored undergraduate and graduate students in the department.

Publications

R.Zowada, R. Foudazi. Polyfoam: Foam-Templated Microcellular Polymers. (Submitted, March 2020).

We improved current foam production methods by reaching an average diameter range of 10 – 100 µm of interconnected voids that is difficult to reach for typical emulsion and foam based templating methods. We compared this new rapid gas dispersion method to the typical polyHIPE method to show our method reaches similar material properties with the benefit or reducing the amount of starting material up to 80%.

R. Zowada, R. Foudazi. Porous Hydrogels Embedded with Hydrated Ferric Oxide Nanoparticles for Arsenate Removal. ACS Applied Polymer Materials. 2019, 1 (5), 1006 – 1014.

We designed a supersorbent porous hydrogel (over 4000wt% water uptake) produced through high internal phase emulsion templating followed by an impregnation of hydrated ferric oxide nanoparticles. We found that this material could remove up to 60% of arsenic in a highly concentrated arsenic solution in batch removal processes.

A. Malakian, M. Zhou, R. Zowada, R. Foudazi. Synthesis and in situ functionalization of microfiltration membranes via high internal phase emulsion templating. Polymer International. 2019, 68 (7), 1378-1386.

We designed a porous membrane, using high internal phase emulsion templating, for microfiltration of drinking water with a hydrophilic surface to improve permeability of the membrane. We found through co-polymerizing a hydrophilic polymer to the surface of our membrane, the permeability increases more than two folds, while maintaining the same level of rejection as commercial microfiltration membranes.

Patents

Marks, R. Foudazi, N. Sanatkaran, R. Zowada, Prosthetic Sleeve Liners, U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/751,306, filed October 2018

We designed a porous interconnected foam elastomer material that can be used in the production of sleeve liners for prosthetic legs. Current sleeve liners made of silicone act as an insulator for heat and sweat causing discomfort and increasing risk of skin infection of the amputee. With our material the heat and sweat are wicked away from the skin reducing possible infection and providing all day comfort.

Funding

NM WRRI Water Research Grant Program, Biodegradable Porous Hydrogels Designed to Improve Irrigation Efficiency in Sandy Soils, R. Zowada, R. Foudazi (2020) (In review).

We are designing a porous biodegradable material from polysaccharides to increase the water holding capacity of sandy soils. Sandy soils have high water loss due to gravimetric drainage and evaporation. To address this challenge, the porous hydrogel will be integrated into the soil matrix near the root zone that will have higher capillary force to reduce these losses in water. Eventually the hydrogel will lose its functionality, but unlike current hydrogels on the market it will degrade over time making it eco-friendly and allowing it to be used for “organic” agricultural practices.

NM Space Grant Program, Porous hydrogels utilizing capillary action to maximize watering efficiency for vegetation growth in microgravity, R. Zowada, R. Foudazi (2020) (In review).

We are designing a porous biodegradable hydrogel from polysaccharides to increase the microgravity irrigation efficiency. Under microgravity, the diffusion of water in the soil under microgravity is not manageable. However, capillary forces, which are the dominant force under microgravity, can be exploited. In this work, capillary forces will be used as a means of directing the water to the root zone by using the inherently high capillary potential of porous polymers.