Engineering Commons^™

Synthesis Of Multi-Wall Carbon Nanotubes Using Unseeded Hydrocarbon Diffusion Flames, Kozo Saito, Forman A. Williams, Alvin S. Gordon, Liming Yuang

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Patents

A method is provided for synthesizing carbon nanotubes from unseeded methane-air diffusion flames. A novel stainless steel and Ni—Cr wire probe is also provided for collecting carbon nanotubes from those diffusion flames.

Socio-Economic Analysis Of Fatal Crash Trends (Final Report), Adam Kirk, Jerry G. Pigman, Kenneth R. Agent

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report describes the analysis of fatal crash patterns and explores the impact of socioeconomic factors and safety regulations on statewide crash rates. This analysis separated statewide crash rates between 2002 and 2004 into two samples, 1) those with crash rates 25 percent greater than the average national rate and 2) those with crash rates lower than this threshold. Safety regulations and socioeconomic factors were identified as having a significant effect on crash rates, with socioeconomic factors showing a higher potential to explain differences in crash rates between the two samples.

Today’S Dot And The Quest For More Accountable Organizational Structures, Lenahan O'Connell, Juita-Elena (Wie) Yusuf, Merl Hackbart, Donald L. Hartman, Candice Wallace, Doug Kreis

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This study investigates the impact of DOT organizational structures on effective transportation planning and performance. A review of the 50 state DOT authorizing statutes and DOT organizational charts found minimal differences in organizational structures among the states. However, 37 states have quasi-independent commissions (sometimes called boards, or councils.) A statistical analysis showed that the commission states have higher Government Performance Project (GPP) scores than the non-commission states. The analysis suggested that effective commissions avoid having members represent geographical regions and political parties and avoid giving the commission the power to select the director of the DOT. In addition the states …

Fiscal Year 2005 Fhwa-536 Report For The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Steven Douglas Kreis

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) requires state transportation agencies to submit a biennial report on local highway finances. The purpose of these reports is to provide FHWA with the data it needs to capture the financing of highway activities at the local level. Based on this information, it can identify trends in revenue, expenditures, investments, and program development, and in turn make decisions about future investments. The report, FHWA-536, asks agencies to report on four areas of local highway finance: 1) disposition of highway-user revenues; 2) revenues used for roads and streets identified by source and funding type; 3) road …

Disposal Of Bridge Paint Residue, Theodore Hopwood Ii, Sudhir Palle

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Paint residue generated by bridge maintenance painting commonly contains lead requiring the residue to be disposed of as a hazardous waste. Several alternatives are being investigated in this study, chemical stabilization and recycling as options for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) to consider in addressing the waste stream generated by bridge maintenance painting operations.

In the initial portion of this study, four chemical stabilization materials were identified as candidates for xperimental/demonstration projects entailing maintenance painting. A recycling option was also provided. An experimental bridge painting project was let by KYTC to investigate the use of two chemical stabilizers and the …

Distribution Pattern Variability Of Granular Vrt Applicators, John P. Fulton, Scott A. Shearer, Stephen F. Higgins, Dennis Wayne Hancock, Timothy S. Stombaugh

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Granular applicators equipped with variable-rate technology (VRT) have gained popularity in recent years as a result of increased interest in variable-rate application. The purpose of this investigation was to characterize distribution patterns at varying rates for different granular applicators. Uniform-rate (UR) tests were conducted to assess the accuracy of variable-rate application from four granular applicators: two spinner-disc spreaders (A and B), and two pneumatic applicators (C and D). Pattern results indicated a consistent triangular pattern for spinner spreader B and consistent patterns for the pneumatic applicators (C and D). However, applicator D produced pattern variations at the center and right …

Rate Response Assessment From Various Granular Vrt Applicators, John P. Fulton, Scott A. Shearer, Stephen F. Higgins, Matthew J. Darr, Timothy S. Stombaugh

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Variable-rate technology (VRT) adds complexity to application equipment, thereby confounding the assessment of applicator performance. The intent of this investigation was to assess the rate response of various VRT granular applicators: two spinner spreaders (A and B), and two pneumatic applicators (C and D). Variable-rate (VR) tests were conducted to quantify the rate response characteristics (delay and transition times) for the applicators. A sigmoidal function was used to model the rate response for five of the six tests. Applicator A exhibited a linear response during decreasing rate changes. Results indicated that only applicator B demonstrated consistent delay and transition times, …

An Analysis Of Fatal Traffic Crashes In Kentucky And Recommended Countermeasures, Kenneth R. Agent, Jerry G. Pigman

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The contents of this report reflect the views of the authors who are responsible for the facts and accuracy of the data presented herein. The contents do not necessarily reflect the official views or policies of the University of Kentucky. This report does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation.

Development, Deployment, And Evaluation Of A Remote Monitoring System And A Virtual Weigh Station, Joseph D. Crabtree, David Q. Hunsucker, Jennifer R. Walton

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

In order to extend commercial vehicle enforcement coverage to routes that are not monitored by fixed weigh stations, Kentucky has developed and implemented a Remote Monitoring System (RMS) and a Virtual Weigh Station (VWS). The RMS captures images of passing trucks (from the side) and transmits those images to a nearby weigh station. Station personnel can view the images, read the USDOT number, and check the number against Kentucky’s Clearinghouse of motor carrier data. When a problem is detected with the carrier’s registration, taxes, or safety record, an officer can be dispatched to intercept the truck, perform the necessary checks, …

Lexington Incident Detection System Evaluation Report, Adam J. Kirk, Joseph D. Crabtree

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report describes the evaluation of an experimental incident detection system implemented within the Lexington / Fayette County area by the Lexington Fayette Urban County Government Department of Traffic Engineering. The incident detection system includes 5 different types of traffic monitors on 10 different locations throughout the county including interstate and limited access facilities and signalized urban arterials. The evaluation of the system was performed over a period of three months between June and August 2005. This report summarizes the implementation strategy and provides recommendations for future implementation and expansion of the system.

Economic Costs Of Low Safety Belt Usage In Motor Vehicle Crashes In Kentucky, Michael Singleton, Qing Xiao, Kenneth R. Agent

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

By passing legislation in 2006 to mandate primary enforcement of the Kentucky state law requiring safety belt use for motor vehicle occupants, the state could expect to realize an overall savings of at least $118 million in direct medical costs over the ten-year period from 2006 to 2015. Charges to Medicaid over that period would be about $34 million less than under the current secondary enforcement model. In addition, there would be at least $67 million saved in medical costs to commercial insurers, $2.3 million to Medicare, $3.3 million to Worker’s Compensation, and $11.2 million to other sources.

These savings …

Use Of Ultra-Lightweight Geofoam To Reduce Stresses In Highway Culvert Extensions, Liecheng Sun, Tommy C. Hopkins, Tony L. Beckham

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Culvert extension under highway embankment construction is a regular and important practice when roadway widening occurs. At some existing sites, concrete thickness and reinforcing steel of culvert tops and walls were stepped-down in sections of the culvert under the embankment slopes. The part of the culvert positioned under the embankment slopes was constructed weaker because the stresses under the portions of the slopes are much less than the stresses acting on the culvert section located under the main portion of the embankment. When additional fill is placed over the culvert due to roadway widening, much greater stresses are imposed on …

Cumberland Gap Tunnel Pavement Problem, Brad Rister

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Ground Penetrating Radar was used to verify voids beneath the concrete roadway located at the Cumberland Gap Tunnel, in Middelsboro, KY. Preliminary results indicate that several void areas reside beneath the north and southbound tunnel.

Programmable Multi-Dose Intransal Drug Delivery Device, Daniel Wermeling, Ryan Vallance, Aravind Balasubramanian, Bruce L. Walcott, John Alan Main, James E. Lumpp Jr.

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Patents

An apparatus and method for the self-administration of a plurality of doses of an intranasal liquid pharmaceutical composition, including opioid analgesics, that includes a drug delivery device containing a plurality of sealed vials, each vial containing a predetermined volume of the pharmaceutical composition, a pump assembly for conveying the liquid pharmaceutical composition from the interior of the vial and discharging it as a nasal spray in response to manual activation by the patient, and programmable means for sequentially advancing a vial to the ready position after passage of a prescribed time interval following the last activation of the delivery device.

Long-Term Maintenance Needs Planning, Doug Kreis, Lenahan O'Connell, Brian Howell

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This research contributes to Kentucky’s knowledge base of long-term maintenance needs in two parts. Part 1 presents an estimate of the average revenue needed to maintain four categories of highway in the first fifteen years after each is built or resurfaced. Total maintenance costs per mile for four types of facilities in five AADT volume categories were estimated. The results suggest that Kentucky is not resurfacing all its roads in a timely manner. Part II presents background information on preventive maintenance programs in the states. A review of the states found two recurring themes. The first was the widespread adoption …

Statewide Planning Scenario Synthesis: Transportation Congestion Measurement And Management, Doug Kreis, Brian Howell, Lenahan O'Connell

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This study is a review of current practices in 13 states to: (1) measure traffic congestion and its costs; and (2) manage congestion with programs and techniques that do not involve the building of new highway capacity. In regard to the measures of congestion, the findings suggest two broad conclusions: (a) the most popular measures are not LOS or volume to capacity ratios; but rather the direct measures of either average time to traverse the distance between two points, or the average speed of vehicles. These are sometimes used to construct estimates of delay during peak traffic periods. (b) Five …

Lextran Support Project: Strategic Planning Support For Lextran Visioning, Lenahan O'Connell, Ted Grossardt

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

In October 2003, LexTran, the City of Lexington’s public transportation provider, was undergoing a management transition. It sought the assistance of the Kentucky Transportation Center for strategic planning and visioning. This project produced four deliverables: (1) a series of public meetings facilitated by the Kentucky Transportation Center on rider and other stakeholder attitudes toward LexTran and its general performance; (2) an environmental scan comparing LexTran to similar transit providers on operating efficiency, ridership, funding sources, and other characteristics; (3) A GIS database containing census data and other information useable for the analysis of proposed routes; and (4) a PowerPoint presentation …

Corrosion Evaluation Of Mechanically Stabilized Earth Walls, Tony L. Beckham, Liecheng Sun, Tommy C. Hopkins

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Numerous reinforced walls and slopes have been built over the past four decades in Kentucky, the United States, as well as worldwide. Tensile elements used in constructing low-cost reinforcing walls and slopes consist of metal polymer strips or grids. Although reinforced structures have been used extensively, the effects of corrosion on the metal tensile elements are unknown. Mechanically stabilized earth walls are expected to remain stable for many decades. An examination of the effects of corrosion of metal tensile elements used to construct these walls can provide invaluable data regarding the longevity of reinforced walls and slopes. Four mechanically stabilized …

2005 Safety Belt Usage Survey In Kentucky, Kenneth R. Agent, Eric R. Green

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The objective of this study was to establish 2005 safety belt and child safety seat usage rates in Kentucky. The 2005 survey continues to document the results after enactment of a statewide mandatory safety belt law in 1994 and safety belt enforcement campaign. Data were collected at 200 randomly selected sites spread across Kentucky. Data from the individual sites were combined into a statewide percentage considering roadway functional classification, geographic region, and vehicle miles traveled. The data show that the usage rate in 2005 (66.7 percent) was slightly higher than that in 2004 (66.0 percent). This compares to 65.5 percent …

Analysis Of Traffic Crash Data In Kentucky (2000 – 2004), Eric R. Green, Kenneth R. Agent, Jerry G. Pigman, Monica L. Barrett

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report documents an analysis of traffic crash data in Kentucky for the years of 2000 through 2004. A primary objective of this study was to determine average crash statistics for Kentucky highways. Average and critical numbers and rates of crashes were calculated for various types of highways in rural and urban areas. These data can be used in Kentucky’s procedure to identify locations that have abnormal rates or numbers of crashes. The other primary objective of this study was to provide data that can be used in the preparation of the problem identification portion of Kentucky’s Annual Highway Safety …

Effect Of Warning Devices On Curve Operating Speeds, Adam Vest, Nikiforos Stamatiadis, Adam Clayton, Jerry G. Pigman

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The objective of this study is to evaluate the use of several warning signs and warning methods to identify those that have the greatest impact on reducing vehicle speeds when traversing a horizontal curve. Three sites were selected from a list of proposed sites for the testing of the various warning methods. Each warning treatment was installed and a five-day waiting period was allowed before operating speeds for the treatments were measured. The results of the various warning methods were mixed, however, some warning treatments were able to reduce operating speeds on a consistent basis. The most effective of these …

Meeting Kentucky’S Transportation Needs And Priorities: Citizens’ Perceptions And Recommendations, Donald L. Hartman, Merl Hackbart, Juita-Elena (Wie) Yusuf, Candice Y. Wallace

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This study was designed to (1) consider the role of public input in the transportation planning process; (2) obtain citizen perceptions of system needs and develop priorities in the state of Kentucky; and (3) use that experience (and the experiences of other states) to provide recommendations for ways to enhance the role of public input in Kentucky’s transportation planning. Telephone survey of Kentucky adults and focus groups of community leaders were utilized to gauge the public’s attitudes and perceptions regarding Kentucky’s transportation needs, issues and priorities, and system satisfaction. The findings from the survey and the focus groups were compared …

The Global Positioning System, Timothy S. Stombaugh, Doug Mclaren, Benjamin K. Koostra

Agricultural Engineering Extension Publications

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is quickly becoming part of the fabric of everyday life. Beyond recreational activities such as boating and backpacking, GPS receivers are becoming a very important tool to such industries as agriculture, transportation, and surveying. Very soon, every cell phone will incorporate GPS technology to aid first responders in answering emergency calls.

System And Device For Characterizing Shape Memory Alloy Wires, Robert Ryan Vallance, Bruce L. Walcott, James E. Lumpp, Sumanth Chikkamaranahalli, Osamah A. Rawashdeh, Eric Wolsing

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Patents

Instruments and methods for measuring a property of a shape memory alloy are provided. The instrument includes a base plate, a non-contact movable mass, a force gauge, an actuator, a biasing spring, a heater for heating the shape memory alloy, and a non-contact displacement detector. The biasing spring and the shape memory alloy are disposed whereby a force applied thereby is applied substantially through a center of stiffness of the movable mass. The displacement detector measures a displacement of the movable mass in a colinear direction with a direction of movement of the movable mass and with a direction of …

Spatial Variation Of Protein, Oil, And Starch In Corn, Samuel G. Mcneill, Michael D. Montross, Scott A. Shearer

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Significant spatial yield variations are known to exist in cornfields with different soil types, topsoil depth, and other variables. Similarly, variations might also be found among the highly valued chemical components (oil, protein, and starch) in corn kernels due to local differences in soil type, fertility, acidity/pH, organic matter, etc. This study quantified the spatial variability of protein, oil, and starch content of corn from two conventional cornfields and two high-oil cornfields. Whole ears were harvested by hand from 20 to 40 randomly selected locations within each field. A differential global positioning system (DGPS) receiver recorded the location of each …

Evaluation Of Kentucky’S “Buckle Up Kentucky: It’S The Law & It’S Enforced” 2005 Campaign, Kenneth R. Agent, Eric R. Green, Ronald E. Langley

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The objective of this report was to document the results of the “Buckle Up Kentucky: It’s the Law & It’s Enforced” 2005 campaign in Kentucky. The campaign involved a combination of earned media, paid media, and enforcement. The earned media started two weeks prior to Memorial Day 2005and continued through the enforcement period. Two separate paid media campaigns were conducted.One dealt specifically with pickups while the other was a general campaign for all drivers. The pickup campaign started four weeks prior to Memorial Day and lasted two weeks. The general campaign was for the two weeks prior to Memorial Day. …

Baseline Modeling Of The Maysville Cable-Stayed Bridge Over The Ohio River, Issam E. Harik, Jindong Hu, Suzanne Weaver Smith, Wei-Xin Ren, Tong Zhao, Jennie E. Campbell, Clark Graves

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report presents the baseline modeling of the Maysville cable-stayed bridge which connects Maysville, Kentucky and Aberdeen, Ohio over the Ohio River. The objective of this study is to establish the bridge baseline model via the dynamics-based technique and finite element method. The scope of research includes finite element modeling and modal analysis, field free vibration testing, finite element model calibration using field test results, and cable dynamic testing and modeling. It is demonstrated that a cable-stayed bridge is a highly pre-stressed structure. The stress stiffening of cable elements plays an important role in both static and dynamic analysis. The …

Innovative Rapid Construction/Reconstruction Methods, Paul M. Goodrum, Yinggang Wang, Chris N. Jones, Philippe C. Fenouil, Donn E. Hancher

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Innovative construction and reconstruction methods provide the opportunity to significantly reduce the time of roadway projects while maintaining the necessary quality of workmanship. The need for these “rapid” methods stems from the increase in traffic on Kentucky roadways coupled with the rise in conventional road and bridge construction methods. Conventional construction methods cannot maintain the demand for progress necessitated by the future needs of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, especially the current philosophy of “Get In, Get Out, and Stay Out.” This research documents a series of case studies that examined past projects which used innovative rapid construction methods. This document …

The Impact Of State Road Fund Debt Limits: An Empirical Analysis, Michael Moody, Merl Hackbart

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

States have been gradually increasing their reliance on debt financing to meet their transportation funding needs. Increased reliance on debt financing has been driven by the slow growth of highway and Road Fund revenue sources, resistance to tax expenditures, and restrictions placed on the use of General Fund revenue, in many states, for transportation projects. In light of states’ increasing reliance on debt financing for transportation, state officials and policy makers have shown greater interest debt management practices. One dominant practice across the states is the use of debt limitations. Debt limit policies vary widely from state to state. There …

Mixing And Dispersion Of Nanotubes By Gas Or Vapor Expansion, Francis J. Derbyshire, Rosemary Derbyshire, Rodney Andrews, Bouchra Safadi

Center for Applied Energy Research Faculty Patents

Novel methods and compositions for coating target surfaces with non-entangled multi-wall carbon nanotubes are disclosed. In one aspect, the methods and compositions of the invention comprise dispersion of non-entangled multi-wall carbon nanotubes in solvent, and application of the non-entangled multi-wall carbon nanotube/solvent mixture to a surface by spraying. In another aspect, the methods and compositions of the invention comprise dispersion of non-entangled multi-wall carbon nanotubes in solvent, and applying the nanotube/solvent mixture to a suitable matrix by spraying to form a surface coating which is substantially contiguous with the surface of the matrix. The compositions of the invention are substantially …