John L. Falconer
Mel and Virginia Clark Professor and Department Chair
University of Colorado President's Teaching Scholar
NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program Co-Director
ECCH 132
(303) 492-8005
john.falconer@colorado.edu
Curriculum Vitae
Falconer Research Group
Education:
Ph.D. (Chemical Engineering), Stanford University (1974)
B.E.S. (Chemical Engineering), The Johns Hopkins University (1967)
Awards:
•2008 University of Colorado Hazel Barnes Prize
•College of Engineering Max S. Peters Outstanding Service Award (2008)
•University of Colorado CRCW Faculty Fellowship (2004-05, 1997-98, 1980-81)
•2005 ASEE Annual Conference Best Zone Paper Award
•University of Colorado President's Teaching Scholar Scholar (the University’s highest teaching recognition, a lifetime appointment, 2000-present)
•Boulder Faculty Assembly Excellence in Research, Scholarly, and Creative Work Award (1999)
•Chemical Manufacturers Association National Catalyst Award for Excellence in Teaching (1997)
•ASEE Rocky Mountain Section Outstanding Teaching Award (1997)
•Departmental Outstanding Teaching Awards (1988, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2000)
•James & Catherine Patten Professor (1992-1996)
•ACS Colorado Section Award in Chemistry (1992)
•College of Engineering Outstanding Advisor Award (1992)
•College of Engineering Research Award (1991)
•Hutchinson Memorial Teaching Award, College of Engineering (1990)
Selected Publications:
•A. Avila, Y. Zhang, H.H. Funke, J.L. Falconer, R.D. Noble,“Concentration polarization in SAPO-34 membranes at high pressures” J. Membrane Science, in press (2009).
•B. Tokay, J.L. Falconer, R.D. Noble,“Alcohol/Water Separations in MFI Zeolite Membranes due to Crystal Expansion” J. Membrane Science, in press (2009).
•M. Yu, H. Funke, J.L. Falconer, and R.D. Noble,“Dense, Carbon Nanotube Membranes with High Gas Permeations” ACS Nano 9, 225-229 (2009).
•S.G. Sorenson, J.R. Smyth, M. Kocirik, A. Zikanova, J.B. Lee, J.L. Falconer, and R.D. Noble,“Adsorbate-Induced Expansion of Silicalite-1 Crystals” Ind. Eng. Chem. Research 47, 9611-9616 (2008).
•K.D. Hammond, M. Hong, G.A. Tompsett, S.M. Auerbach, J.L. Falconer, W.C. Conner, Jr.,“High Resolution Physical Adsorption on Supported Borosilicate MFI Zeolites: Comparison with Powdered Samples”J. Membrane Science 325, 413-419 (2008).
•H. Funke, A. Derk, J.L. Falconer,“Converting Methane to Liquid Fuels with UV Irradiation” Ind. Eng. Chem. Research 47, 6568- 6572 (2008).
•J.B. Lee, H.H. Funke, R.D. Noble, J.L. Falconer, “High Selectivities in Defective MFI Membranes” J. Membrane Science 321, 309-315 (2008).
•M. Yu, J.L. Falconer, R.D. Noble, “Characterizing Non-Zeolitic Pores in MFI Zeolite Membranes” Ind. Eng. Chem. Research 47, 3943-3948 (2008).
•M. Yu, J.L. Falconer, R.D. Noble, “Characterizing non-zeolitic pore volume of MFI membranes by temperature-programmed desorption” Microporous Mesoporous Materials 113, 224-230 (2008).
Research Interests:
Professor Falconer's research focuses on inorganic membranes and heterogeneous catalysis. Our laboratory has published more than 200 papers in referred journals and these papers have been cited more than 6,300 times.
Inorganic membranes
Professor Rich Noble and Professor John Falconer collaborate on the preparation, characterization, and application of inorganic membranes for liquid and gas separations. This research falls into two areas: zeolite membranes and carbon nanotube membranes.
They have prepared a number of different types of zeolite membranes, which are thin layers of intergrown zeolite crystals on porous tubular supports. These include MFI, MEL, FAU, LTA, beta, SAPO-34, and SSZ-13 zeolites. In addition to membrane synthesis,
they have modified membranes by isomorphous substitution, ion exchange, surface reactions, atomic layer deposition, and deposition and various species into defects. These membranes have been used for separations of CO2/CH4, CO2/N2, H2/light gases, hydrocarbon isomers, and water/organic mixtures. Our SAPO-34 membranes are able to separation CO2/CH4 mixtures with high selectivities at 70 bar pressure.
They characterize membranes by gas and vapor permeation, pervaporation, permporsimetry, separations, temperature-programmed desorption, adsorption isotherm measurements, transient gas permeation, and transient isotopic pervaporation.
They characterize zeolite crystals by static adsorption, SEM, and x-ray diffraction. The XRD measurements are being done in collaboration with Oak Ridge National Laboratories.
They have discovered that MFI crystals are flexible and the crystal sizes can change enough to shrink the sizes of intercrystalline
defects so that flow through them is dramatically decreased. Professor Noble and
Professor Falconer are also studying the properties of carbon nanotube membranes by preparing vertically-aligned carbon nanotubes using a catalytic process and then collapsing these nanotubes into dense membranes. Because the surface of the nanotubes is smooth, fluxes through them are high-orders of magnitude higher than expected for Knudsen diffusion.
They are studying gas and liquid transport and separations in these membranes and are characterizing the carbon nanotubes
by SEM, TEM, adsorption, and temperature-programmed desorption. They are also studying ion transport across these membranes.
Heterogeneous catalysis
Professor Will Medlin and Professor Falconer are studying photocatalytic oxidation and decomposition on TiO2 and Pt/TiO2 catalysts. The photocatalytic oxidation of volatile organics on these surfaces has an advantage over other catalysts: the reaction takes place at room temperature.
They are studying photocatalytic decomposition to better understand the surface processes, and in particular we are studying the significant increase in decomposition rate in the presence of weakly-adsorbed water.
They use infrared spectroscopy, temperature-programmed desorption and oxidation, static adsorption, transient isothermal reaction, and density functional theory to study photocatalytic processes.
Educational Interests:
Undergraduate courses: Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics, Reaction Kinetics
Graduate course: Reaction Engineering
Emphasis in classroom teaching is on conceptual understanding and active learning. ConcepTests and peer instruction are used in class with clickers. Professor Will Medlin, Dr. Janet deGrazia, and Professor John Falconer are developing a library of ConcepTests and screencasts for six core chemical and biological engineering courses with funding from the National Science Foundation.
Co-director of the National Science Foundation - Research Experience for Undergraduates for the past 16 years.
