Adriana Aristizábal
Postdoctoral Researcher 2012-2013
• Ph.D. Universitat Rovira I Virgili (Spain) 2012
Thesis: “Catalytic Denitration of Drinking Water: Use of Hydrotalcite-derived and Activated Carbon Based Catalysts”
• M.S. Universitat Rovira i Virgili (Spain) 2008
• B.S. Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (Colombia) 2007
Thesis: “Evaluation of an Electrocoagulation System for the Treatment of Textile Wastewater Effluents for reuse”
Research Topic: Propylene epoxidation using molecular oxygen on Ag-based catalysts to produce Propylene Oxide
Research Description: The project consists on the synthesis and characterization of Ag/α-Al2O3 foam monolith for the selective epoxidation of propylene to propylene oxide, an important precursor for a variety of industrial products. The main goal of the project is to study the role of different promoters including: vinyl chloride and butadiene as gas additives and the addition of Cs or Cu as metal promoters. The interaction between the promoters is studied, as well as their variation with temperature, feed composition and flow. The reactions are performed in a continuous tubular reactor. Samples are characterized by SEM, stereo-microscope, XRD and ICP. The project is funded by the US Department of Energy, Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Chemical Sciences grant FG02-03ER15468.