témavezető: Kupai József
helyszín (magyar oldal): BME Szerves Kémia és Technológia Tanszék helyszín rövidítés: BME
A kutatási téma leírása:
The prospective doctoral student's research topic would be a continuation of the themes of Dr. Kupai József's current two graduating doctoral students, activities planned to be financed from the OTKA-FK source.
One of Dr Jozsef Kupai's graduating doctoral students, who has already completed her doctoral defence, has developed methods for the organocatalytic degradation of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and BPA-polycarbonate for wide-ranging optimization, which can be particularly advantageous in terms of economics. They investigated the solvolytic applicability and robustness of organocatalysts immobilized on solid supports during PET and polycarbonate chemical degradation (solvolysis). The results were published in the Green Chemistry [Fehér, Z., Kiss, J., Kisszékelyi, P.; Molnár, J.; Huszthy, P.; Kárpáti, L.; Kupai, J.: Optimisation of PET glycolysis by applying recyclable heterogeneous organocatalysts, Green Chem. 2022, 24, 8447–8459. IF: 9.8 (D1)] and Chemical Engineering Journal [Fehér, Z.; Németh, R.; Kiss, J.; Balterer, B.; Verebélyi, K.; Iván, B.; Kupai, J.: A silica-supported organocatalyst for polycarbonate methanolysis under mild and economic conditions, Chem. Eng. J. 2024, 485, 149832. IF: 15.1 (D1)] journals. The developed methods have the potential to contribute to the sustainability of plastic waste management in industry, even though the catalysts degrade at high temperatures during scaled-up PET depolymerization, resulting in a decrease in activity after 4-5 reaction cycles. Finding a solution to reduce the required reaction temperature could potentially extend the catalysts' lifespan. In polycarbonate methanolysis, the Si-TBD catalyst developed in the research group could be an exceptionally cost-effective catalyst, particularly suitable for industrial implementation due to its applicability at room temperature without stirring.
Another doctoral student of the supervisor, currently preparing for their doctoral defence, has produced and developed a new alternative solvent and examined its applicability. The results were published in the Chemical Engineering Journal [Dargó, G.; Kis, D.; Gede, M.; Kumar, S.; Kupai, J.; Szekely, G.: MeSesamol, a bio-based and versatile polar aprotic solvent for organic synthesis and depolymerization, Chem. Eng. J. 2023, 471, 144365. IF: 15.1 (D1)]. This topic is of great significance because as chemical engineers, it is our moral obligation to strive to reduce harmful environmental effects. One possible way to achieve this is by mitigating the effects of solvents, as approximately 80-90% of the total mass of materials used in the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries came from solvents in 2007. These harmful effects can be reduced by properly cleaning and recycling used solvents and by selecting solvents with inherently lower potential health and environmental impacts. A good example of the transformation in solvent selection is that while toluene, tetrahydrofuran, and dichloromethane were the three most widely used solvents at the GSK pharmaceutical company in the 1990s, by 2005, isopropyl alcohol, ethyl acetate, and methanol had become the most common solvents in the experimental plant. In their research, the prospective doctoral student would continue our previously published research, during which a new alternative solvent, methyl sesamol, was applied in palladium-catalyzed Sonogashira and Cacchi coupling reactions relevant to the pharmaceutical industry. Methyl sesamol was synthesized from sesamol, which can be found naturally in sesame seeds, through methylation, making it a natural-based solvent with numerous advantageous properties, making it a viable alternative to solvents such as dichloromethane or N,N-dimethylformamide.
We welcome applications from interested students!
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