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Design For Reduction Of Noise Produced By Natural Gas Regulator, Britany L. Chamberlain

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

This document describes the design of a multi-stage restrictive orifice device (MSRO) that serves to reduce the noise produced by a regulator valve. The scope of this document explains the determination of the proper design through the development of analytical models, the design of a test fixture to obtain empirical data, and the corroboration of the models with empirical data to obtain a working solution.

Use Of Direct Metal Laser Sintering For Tooling In High Volume Production, Joel W. Hendrickson

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Metal 3D printing has caught the attention of many large industries. There have been stories of great success using metal 3D printing. Some of the largest industries to successfully use metal 3D printing are aerospace and medical. These industries have succeeded with metal 3D printing because of their need for light and complex parts. These success stories lead other industries to investigate how metal 3D printing or Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) can help them. Industries that are involved in high volume production ask how they can take advantage of the complexity and customization that is available with 3D printing. …

Techno-Economic Feasibility And Life Cycle Assessment Of Dairy Effluent To Biofuel Via Hydrothermal Liquefaction, Hailey M. Summers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Delactosed whey permeate (delac) is a low valued by-product in the dairy industry with 90 million tons annually disposed of worldwide. Upgrading delac to bioproducts, specifically biofuel, has been demonstrated at laboratory scale through yeast fermentation. However, the large-scale environmental impact and economic feasibility of this process is yet to be quantified. Further research, focused on evaluating the sustainability, scalability and economic feasibility of the fermentation pathway, directs research and development to move the technology towards commercialization. The enclosed research incorporates biological experimentation with engineering systems modeling to evaluate the large-scale environmental impacts and economic feasibility of generating bioproducts from …

Systems Modeling And Economic Analysis Of Photovoltaic (Pv) Powered Water Pumping Brackish Water Desalination For Agriculture, Michael A. Jones

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The objective of this study was to determine the economic viability of solar powered water pumping and desalination systems for agriculture. Growing global demand for agricultural production has put increased pressure on limited freshwater resources in various locations around the word. Many areas have low quality groundwater resources that have not been utilized for agriculture due to limited availability to electricity, high operational costs of diesel generators and the economics associated with water pumping and processing. Reverse osmosis is a desalination technology that removes salts and other minerals from low-quality water, making it fit for drinking or irrigation. Reduced costs …

Extensions Of High-Order Flux Correction Methods To Flows With Source Terms At Low Speeds, Jonathan L. Thorne

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is an attempt to mimic the physical world of fluids around us. In general, CFD simulations are completed by first making a mesh. Meshes are made of polygons that are arranged in such a way as to create the item in question and the fluid around it. There are many difficulties associated with mesh generation, and it can take days or weeks for a trained professional to produce adequate meshes. The CFD algorithms affect the accuracy of the simulation. Using high-order methods, more accurate results can be achieved than otherwise possible. Flux correction (FC) is a …

Effect Of Manufacturing Processes On The Loss Factor And Other Mechanical Properties Of Kenaf Fiber-Reinforced Composites, Brian P. Spackman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The characteristics essential for manufacturing parts and products are not well known for natural fiber-reinforced composite materials. Natural fibers display properties similar to glass fibers, and present a more environmentally friendly option for manufacturing composite materials. This research investigates various parameters in the manufacture of kenaf fiber-reinforced composites including cure time, density, matrix hardener ratio, surface treatment, and fiber length and examines the effect they have on mechanical properties of the composite material. Several samples were created and subjected to a vibrational test. Using known relationships, mechanical properties were extracted from the test results. Samples were found to exhibit repeatable …

Electrokinetic Flow In A Nanochannel With An Overlapped Electrical Double Layer, Zhuorui Song

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research is a theoretical study aiming to improve the understanding of nanofluidic flows. Nanofluidic flows have a wide range of potential application in many fields, such as DNA analysis, drug delivery, analyte separation, power generation, and so on. The most common material used in nanofluidic flows is silica whose surfaces are charged mainly due to proton exchange with the fluids. Charges on the surfaces as well as near the surfaces in the fluid side cause a significantly different response of the fluids to the applied electric field or pressure difference compared to those at normal scale. In the previous …

Effective Properties Of Randomly Oriented Kenaf Short Fiber Reinforced Epoxy Composite, Dayakar Naik L.

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Natural fibers have drawn attention of researchers as an environmentally-friendly alternative to synthetic fibers. Developing natural fiber reinforced bio-composites are a viable alternative to the problems of non-degrading and energy consuming synthetic composites. This study focuses on (i) the application of kenaf fiber as a potential reinforcement and, (ii) determining the tensile properties of the randomly oriented short kenaf fiber composite both experimentally and numerically. Kenaf fiber micro-structure and its Young's modulus with varying gage length (10, 15, 20, and 25.4 mm) were investigated. The variation in tensile strength of kenaf fibers was analyzed using the Weibull probability distribution function. …

Experimental Validation Data For Cfd Of Steady And Transient Mixed Convection On A Vertical Flat Plate, Blake W. Lance

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In this computer age, simulations are becoming common in science and engineering. One category of simulation, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), begins with physical equations but adds approximations and calibrations in order to complete solutions. Translating these equations into computer languages may cause unintended errors. If simulation results are to be used for decision making, their accuracy needs to be assessed. This accuracy assessment is the theory behind the field of Verification & Validation.

Verification involves confirming the translation of physical equations to computer language was per- formed correctly. It also features methods to detect many types of code errors. Validation …

Mechanical Properties Of Kenaf Composites Using Dynamic Mechanical Analysis, Thomas A. Loveless

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Natural fibers show potential to replace glass fibers in thermoset and thermoplastic composites. Kenaf is a bast-type fiber with high specific strength and great potential to compete with glass fibers.

In this research kenaf/epoxy composites were analyzed using Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA). A three-point bend apparatus was used in the DMA testing. The samples were tested at 1 hertz, at a displacement of 10 μm, and at room temperature.

The fiber volume content of the kenaf was varied from 20%-40% in 5% increments. Ten samples of each fiber volume fraction were manufactured and tested. The flexural storage modulus, the flexural …

Methods Of Processing Kenaf Chopped Strand Mats For Manufacturing Test Specimens And Composite Structures, Joshua W. Heil

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Every year in the United States, 10 to 11 million vehicles reach the end of their life cycle. Nearly all of these go to a recycling facility. After the recycling process is complete an average of 25% of each vehicle, by weight, goes to waste. This demonstrates the need to use natural fibers in parts that could be recycled, like parts that can be made from kenaf. There are many reasons to consider using natural/bio-fiber composites (bio-composites). These reasons include human health and environmental factors as well as advantages that natural fibers have over fiberglass, such as: lower costs and …

Parameterized Least-Squares Attitude History Estimation And Magnetic Field Observations Of The Auroral Spatial Structures Probe, Ryan J. Martineau

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As charged particles from the Sun enter the Earth’s atmosphere and create the aurora borealis (Northern lights) and aurora australis (Southern lights), energy is transferred to the atmosphere. In order to better understand the energy transfer processes, the Auroral Spatial Structures Probe rocket was launched to make measurements in the active aurora. Several payloads were deployed by the rocket, each with sensors to measure the magnetic field and the electric field so that the way they change over time and in different positions could be observed. The measurements require accurate knowledge of the spacecraft orientation, and to that end this …

Binding Innovation Technologies, Restoring Freedom To The World Of Snowboard Bindings, Matthew Lee Munsee

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Snowboarding technology has progressed by leaps and bounds since the sport's inception in the 1980's. However, there is one area that has gotten progressively worse. That area is flexibility and freedom of expression. In order to make the sport safer, the industry responded by making stiffer boots and bindings. Our goal is to bring back the high level of flexibility that built the sport while maintaining or exceeding current safety standards. We also need to reduce heel side shock so as to increase the comfort of the rider. Our design consists of three major systems that drastically increase flexibility, safety, …