Engineering Commons^™

Defining And Modeling Parameters Associated With Double-Planted Areas In Row Crop Production Fields, Brandon Michael Jernigan

Masters Theses

Automatic Section Control (ASC) utilizes current Global Positioning System (GPS) location of a planter and previously planted coverage maps to control individual planter row units, or sections of planter row units, depending on accuracy desired by equipment operators. ASC eliminates double-planting in areas of agricultural fields where planter overlap is unavoidable, such as end rows, point rows, and around internal field obstacles. Due to costs associated with purchasing ASC, farm managers are interested in rate of return on investment, which depends on several factors such as field boundary irregularity, operator response time, and crop yield response to double-planting.

Georeferenced planting …

Fate And Transport Of 17beta-Estradiol Beneath Animal Waste Holding Ponds, Lori A. Gibson

Masters Theses

Steroidal hormones, such as 17beta-estradiol (E2) and its primary metabolite, estrone (E1), are prevalent in animal waste and are a common subject of study due to potential soil, stream, and groundwater contamination. These particular hormones are labeled as Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) because of their developmental effects in reptiles and amphibians. Dairy waste at concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) is typically stored in a waste pond. Even though these waste ponds are regulated to include a soil liner with a minimal hydraulic conductivity to limit leaching, previous studies have traced stream and groundwater contamination from waste ponds. This research included …

Gis-Based Streambank Video Mapping To Determine Erosion Susceptible Areas, Brett Allen Connell

Masters Theses

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, excess sediment is a significant cause of water quality impairment for rivers (USEPA, 2009). Therefore, determining the areas of river where streambank erosion is the highest should provide valuable information. Considering the amount of funds being spent on river restoration and storm flow retention, there needs to be a more efficient method to document annual conditions, on a watershed scale. Traditional streambank survey methods are limited in total characterized area, time consuming, environmentally intrusive, and expensive. This project describes the development of a Bank Erosion Susceptibility Index (BESI) to map landscape scale, streambank …

The Effects Of Biochar Amendment To Soil On Bioenergy Crop Yield And Biomass Composition, Charles Warren Edmunds

Masters Theses

This thesis research aims to improve the understanding of how pyrolysis of native feedstocks and biochar application to soil can be utilized to improve soil fertility, crop yield, and sequester carbon in the Southeastern U.S. An emphasis was placed on understanding how the pyrolysis conditions and feedstock material influence biochar characteristics and what effects biochar amendment has on soil and plant growth and composition.

Biochars were produced from switchgrass and pine wood feedstocks via fast pyrolysis at 450, 600, and 800 ˚C with a continuous auger pyrolysis system. Switchgrass-derived biochars had higher ash content, and as observed by elemental analysis, …

Analysis Of Georeferenced Sonar-Based Thalweg And Cross-Sectional River Depth Profile Measurements, Kenneth Wray Swinson

Masters Theses

Depth is a physical river characteristic that is important for habitat classification, river health analysis, and hydrologic/hydraulic modeling. Recent studies have shown that sonar can be an accurate way of measuring river depth, when compared to traditional techniques, but more study is necessary. The main objective of this research was to evaluate the utility of the CruzPro ATU120S and the Lowrance LMS-350A sonar depth units as tools for collecting river depth measurements along longitudinal (thalweg) and cross-sectional profiles. This included analyzing and evaluating the georeferenced commercially available sonar units for accuracy, precision, and response time under controlled lab and river …

A Gps-Based Mobility Power Model For Military Vehicle Applications, George William Bozdech

Masters Theses

In recent years, military vehicles have been equipped with hybrid, diesel-electric drives to improve fuel efficiency and stealth capabilities. These vehicles require an accurate estimate of the power duty cycles during distinct operating conditions. To meet this demand, a GPS-based mobility power and duty cycle analysis is one approach to predict the power requirements of on-road and off-road vehicles. The dynamic vehicle parameters needed to estimate the forces developed during locomotion are determined from the GPS tracking data, and these forces include the following: the motion resistance, gravitational, linear inertia, rotational inertia, and aerodynamic drag. The motion resistance force generated …