CBE Seminar: David Harper
Development of Carbon Materials from Lignin
Abstract
Lignin’s carbon-dense aromatic structure and abundance hold promise to be a replacement for carbon derived from fossil or mined sources. However, lignin’s heterogeneous, amorphous structure and difficulty isolating it in high purity from woody feedstocks make predicting processing performance and carbon structure difficult. In this presentation, he will address strategies for using multiple lignin feedstocks from organosolv, kraft, and other fractionation technologies to convert lignin into new carbon materials. He will compare lignin materials’ with the current state of the art by addressing the relative advantages/disadvantages. Further, the influence of processing and lignin sources on carbon structure will be presented. Models developed for lignin-based carbon materials will be used to demonstrate process-structure-property performance relationships in energy storage, carbon capture, structural materials, and biomedical applications.
Bio
David Harper received a BA in Physics from West Virginia University and his MS and PhD in Civil Engineering from Washington State University, studying structural natural fiber composite materials. He was a postdoctoral fellow in the Composite Materials Group at the USDA Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, WI. He joined the faculty of the Department of Forestry, Wildlife, and Fisheries at UT in 2004. Since that time, his research has focused on making new, high-value materials from renewable, plant-based sources. Harper’s group works on applied and basic research questions to develop new materials to discover solutions to emerging issues in transportation, built infrastructure, energy storage, CO2 capture, adhesion, end-of-life, and biomaterials.
Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at 4:00pm to 5:00pm
Dougherty Engineering Building, 416
1512 Middle Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996
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