Carr, Teagan A

This thesis presents the design, synthesis, and evaluation of activated carbon polyacrylamide (AC-PAM) composites for oil sands tailings remediation, integrating flocculation and adsorption functionalities. Surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP) was employed to graft high molecular weight PAM brushes onto petroleum coke and commercial activated carbon, with SARA-ATRP yielding the most uniform architecture (Mn ≈ 5.2 kg/mol, Đ ≈ 1.25). Flocculation tests using mature fine tailings (MFT) revealed superior sedimentation and dewatering with SARA-ATRP composites, outperforming conventional PAM at lower dosages. Adsorption studies using benzoic acid and model naphthenic acids showed selective uptake governed by polymer brush morphology and molecular structure, with Dubinin–Radushkevich isotherms best capturing the behavior of ARGET-ATRP composites. Post-flocculation assays confirmed reduced metal and polymer contamination, validating dual-function efficacy. These findings underscore petcoke's viability as a sustainable substrate and highlight controlled polymerization as a critical driver for tuning composite performance in industrial water treatment.

Author Keywords: Activated Carbon, Adsorption, Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization, Dubinin–Radushkevich, Isotherm, Polyacrylamide