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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

Estimating Streambank Erosion Using Gps-Based Watershed-Scale Video Mapping And Usepa Bancs For The Development Of Sediment Tmdls, Kelsey Jo Hensley Dec 2014

Estimating Streambank Erosion Using Gps-Based Watershed-Scale Video Mapping And Usepa Bancs For The Development Of Sediment Tmdls, Kelsey Jo Hensley

Masters Theses

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), sediment is one of the most common water pollutants in the nation’s rivers. Consequently, the identification of streambank locations with high erosion potential is important in reducing sediment input via management and monitoring practices. Furthermore, the estimation of erosion rates and sediment loads can assist in the development of Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs). The objective of this study was to integrate two USEPA-recommended approaches with the Streambank Video Mapping System (SVMS) in order to predict site-specific Total Daily Sediment Loads (TDSLs) and calculate sediment TMDLs for streambank erosion over several …


Biodegradation And Photodegradation Of Polylactic Acid And Polylactic Acid/ Polyhydroxyalkanoate Blends Nonwoven Agricultural Mulches In Ambient Soil Conditions, Sathiskumar Dharmalingam May 2014

Biodegradation And Photodegradation Of Polylactic Acid And Polylactic Acid/ Polyhydroxyalkanoate Blends Nonwoven Agricultural Mulches In Ambient Soil Conditions, Sathiskumar Dharmalingam

Doctoral Dissertations

Agricultural mulch films, typically made of petroleum-based polyethylene, improve crop productivity by controlling weeds and providing microclimate. Extreme fragmentation of films imposes labor and disposal costs, not to mention environmental problems during and after service life. Although mulches made of biodegradable polymers such as cellulose, (nonbiobased) poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) and polybutylene succinate are employed in the field, the fate of biodegradation of additives in mulches is still questionable in addition to service life until the harvesting. Nonwovens, made of biobased polymers such as poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and PLA-polyhydroxy alkanoate (PHA) blends, have been developed using nonwovens textile technology to …


A Hydrological Analysis Of Switchgrass Land Cover In East Tennessee, Jordan Avery Hayes May 2014

A Hydrological Analysis Of Switchgrass Land Cover In East Tennessee, Jordan Avery Hayes

Masters Theses

Energy needs and the recent installation of a cellulosic biofuel plant in Vonore, TN have created a demand for switchgrass in East Tennessee. Switchgrass has many strengths such as erosion protection, nutrient removal, and runoff mitigation. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was selected to model the impact of transitioning traditional crops into switchgrass land cover. Field data was needed to properly calibrate the SWAT model for East Tennessee. The National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) curve number (CN) was needed for runoff calibrations. This value was determined by both standard NRCS methods as well as an asymptotic method. The …