THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES MECHANOCHEMICAL DEGRADATION OF A SEMI-FLEXIBLE POLYMER By

The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank Dr. André M. Striegel for serving as my major professor, academic advisor, and mentor for the past three years. His advice, guidance, and patience never wavered as he kept me pointing towards the final goal I will hopefully soon attain. I'm proud to be his first graduate student, and hopefully there will soon be a long line of graduates from his group. Also, I can't forget to thank Dr. Striegel and the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry for allowing me to simultaneously pursue entry into the USAF while working on my degree requirements. 7. Elution profile of PBLG demonstrating change in polymer size distribution over higher ultrasonication times (3-10 hours); 0 sonication time shown in black as reference .