Certain ionic liquids are good at breaking hydrogen bonds and can dissolve native cellulose and chitin, the two most abundant polymer natural resources on Earth. For many years humans have chemically modified cellulose to make it soluble for fiber spinning and coating. By dissolving native cellulose in ionic liquids, all the hydrogen bonding in wood allows higher modulus fibers and since the ionic liquids can be easily recovered, this new processing of native cellulose is very green and sustainable. Our group studies rheology (flow properties) of ionic liquid solutions of polysaccharides that currently include cellulose, chitin , pullulan and xanthan.
We ask that undergraduates commit to 10 hours/week in the lab. Interested students from all majors are welcome. Many students join as Freshmen - the earlier you get started the more you can do!
knowledge of cellulose structure and hydrogen bonding
Please e-mail Prof. Colby with a statement of interest and be sure to send your CV.