Solid state NMR of fluorine containing materials

我的研究主要涉及开发固态核磁共振（SSNMR）方法来研究含氟材料的结构和分子运动。最终目标是建立莱斯布里奇大学作为一个广泛的含氟材料的表征中心。结构和动态实验以及模拟工具将不断扩大，以应对新兴氟技术带来的新挑战。感兴趣的材料包括有机和无机含氟聚合物、高活性无机氟化物、包合化合物、生物大分子和药品，其中大多数样品材料将通过当地和国际合作者的网络获得。将不断寻求与工业和学术研究人员的合作，为他们提供有价值的表征能力和专业知识，从而帮助新技术的创新发展。具有特殊商业价值的含氟聚合物用于聚合物电解质膜燃料电池（PEMFC）的膜中，这对直接酒精燃料电池的发展至关重要。乙醇被提议作为氢的替代能源，提出了“乙醇经济”。从生物来源获得乙醇要容易得多，但从催化的角度来看，这是一个挑战。成功将带来相当大的好处，因为它很容易融入目前全球不断扩大的生物乙醇生产，提高了可持续的非化石燃料能源经济的前景。开发一种在分子水平上评估聚合物特性对PEMFC膜的高效运行至关重要的方法是最终目标。研究人员还将深入了解燃料对聚合物物理特性变化的长期影响，从而提高效率。该项目包括与法国蒙彼利埃的一位合成聚合物化学家和苏格兰圣安德鲁斯大学的两位材料科学家合作。

My research is primarily concerned with developing solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (SSNMR) methods to study the structure of, and molecular motion in, materials that contain fluorine. The ultimate objective is to establish the University of Lethbridge as a center for characterization of a wide range of fluorine containing materials.  The repertoire of structural and dynamic experiments, as well as simulations tools, will be continually expanded to meet new challenges posed by emerging fluorine technologies. Materials of interest include organic and inorganic fluoropolymers, highly reactive inorganic fluorides, inclusion compounds, biological macromolecules, and pharmaceuticals, where most sample materials will be sourced through a network of local and international collaborators. Collaborations will be continually sought with industrial and academic researchers to provide them with valuable characterization capabilities and expertise thereby aiding innovation in the development of new technologies.Fluoropolymers of particular commercial interest are used in membranes of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFC), which are essential in the development of Direct Alcohol Fuel Cells.  Ethanol is proposed as an alternative energy vector to hydrogen, suggesting an 'Ethanol Economy'.  Ethanol is much easier to obtain from biological sources, however posses a challenge from a catalysis perspective. Success would bring considerable benefit from ease of integration into the currently globally-expanding bio-ethanol production, raising the prospect of a sustainable, non-fossil fuel energy economy.The development of a methodology to assess which polymer properties, at the molecular level, are crucial to the efficient operation as PEMFC membrane is the ultimate objective.  Insights will also be sought into the role of the fuel in affecting changes, over the long term, in the polymer's physical characteristics, and hence efficiency.  This program involves collaborations with a synthetic polymer chemist in Montpellier, France, and two material scientists at University of St. Andrews, Scotland.