Development of Fluorescent Organic Nanoparticles for Detection and Degradation of Environmental Pollutants

About the Project

Rapid increase in population and release of contaminants from human activities lead to increased pollutant levels, which is responsible for climate change. Even agenda like “clean water and sanitation” and “climate action” fall under the United Nation sustainable development goals 2030. Most of the natural pollutants are harmful, toxic, or extremely poisonous; they can destroy the natural balance and cause severe diseases. Therefore, detection and degradation of such pollutants are of extreme importance. However, the protocols available for this purpose are costly, time-consuming, and complicated. Advanced oxidation procedure (AOP), utilizing reactive oxygen species generated from Fenton’s reagent in presence of H2O2, is a handy and cost-effective method in this regard. We focus on developing small organic nanoparticles, which can release singlet oxygen upon light exposure to avoid using harmful metal-based reagents or unstable peroxide materials. Thus, we aim to develop small-organic-molecule-based nanoparticles for simultaneous detection and degradation of environmental pollutants.

Department and Campus

Department of Chemistry, School of Physical Sciences, Amritapuri

Skillsets Preferred from Applicants

• Basic knowledge of photochemistry,
• Analytical knowledge of basic spectroscopic analysis e.g. UV, IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR,
• Knowledge of fluorescence spectroscopy