06/03/2022
By Sokny Long

The Francis College of Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, invites you to attend a doctoral dissertation defense by James Ogilvie-Battersby on “Microencapsulation to Impart Multifunctionality to Membranes and Fabrics.”

Ph.D. Candidate Name: James Ogilvie-Battersby
Defense Date: Monday, June 13, 2022
Time: 2:30 - 4 p.m.
Location: The defense will be conducted in hybrid mode.
The in-person meeting location is Southwick, Room 240. The meeting will also be accessible via zoom. Those interested in attending either in person or virtually (by zoom) should contact James_OgilvieBattersby@uml.edu and the thesis advisor, Nese_Orbey@uml.edu, at least 24 hours prior to the defense to request access to the meeting.

Committee Chair (Advisor): Nese Orbey, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Chemical Engineering, UMass Lowell.

Committee Members:

  • Alfred Donatelli, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Chemical Engineering, UMass Lowell
  • Ravi Mosurkal, Ph.D., Research Chemist, Protection Materials Division, Soldier Protection Directorate, DEVCOM - Soldier Center
  • Ram, Nagarajan, Ph.D., Professor, Plastics Engineering, UMass Lowell
  • Zhiyong Gu, Ph.D., Professor, Chemical Engineering, UMass Lowell

Brief Abstract:
Plant-based insect repellents, such as geraniol, offer a renewable and safer method of preventing vector-borne diseases; however, they evaporate quickly, resulting in relatively short protection times and frequent reapplication. In this work, the evaporation rate of geraniol is controlled using gelatin/gum arabic microcapsules. Microcapsules are a class of advanced functional material in which an active ingredient is encased in and protected by an outer shell. These formulations have seen applications in pharmaceutical, perfumatory, and other industries due to their protective and controlled release properties. Unfortunately, these properties require the polymer shells to be crosslinked using toxic chemicals such as glutaraldehyde or formaldehyde, and often require long curing times of several hours or more. The use of these hazardous chemicals hinders their application in food and pharmaceutical products and causes environmental and waste disposal complications during processing. In this work, geraniol’s release properties are controlled by encapsulation in gelatin/gum arabic microcapsules. Subsequently, the encapsulation method is adapted to develop novel gelatin methacrylate/gum arabic microcapsules that can be rapidly crosslinked using UV curing, eliminating the use of toxic crosslinkers. Finally, the application of microencapsulated geraniol as a fabric coating is demonstrated.

All interested students and faculty members are invited to attend in person or the online defense via remote access.