Engineering Commons^™

Towards A Prototype Paleo-Detector For Supernova Neutrino And Dark Matter Detection, Emilie Marie Lavoie-Ingram

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Using ancient minerals as paleo-detectors is a proposed experimental technique expected to transform supernova neutrino and dark matter detection. In this technique, minerals are processed and closely analyzed for nanometer scale damage track remnants from nuclear recoils caused by supernova neutrinos and possibly dark matter. These damage tracks present the opportunity to directly detect and characterize the core-collapse supernova rate of the Milky Way Galaxy as well as the presence of dark matter. Current literature presents theoretical estimates for these potential tracks, however, there is little research investigating the experimental feasibility of this technique. At the University of North Florida, …

Energy-Efficient Hmac For Wireless Communications, Cesar Enrique Castellon Escobar

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis introduces the Farming Lightweight Protocol (FLP) optimized for energy-restricted environments that depend upon secure communication, such as multi-robot information gathering systems within the vision of ``smart'' agriculture. FLP uses a hash-based message authentication code (HMAC) to achieve data integrity. HMAC implementations, resting upon repeated use of the SHA256 hashing operator, impose additional resource requirements and thus also impact system availability. We address this particular integrity/availability trade-off by proposing an energy-saving algorithmic engineering method on the internal SHA256 hashing operator. The energy-efficient hash is designed to maintain the original security benefits yet reduce the negative effects on system availability. …

Modified Reactive Sputter Deposition Of Titanium Nitride Thin Films Via Hipims With Kick-Pulse And Improvement Of The Structure-Zone Model, Andrew Miceli

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Direct current (DC) and radio frequency (RF) sputtering methods have been commonplace in industry for several decades and widely studied in literature. Hard films of nitrides, such as titanium nitride (TiN), have been deposited using reactive DC sputtering onto cutting tools and medical devices extensively as well. For these applications, the films require excellent adhesion, high density, and high hardness. High-Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HIPIMS) has emerged over the last several years as a method to produce films with increased density and mechanical properties. Process-structure-property relationships for reactive HIPIMS are not yet well developed. Additionally, conventional HIPIMS suffers from relatively …

Extracting Road Surface Marking Features From Aerial Images Using Deep Learning, Michael Kimollo

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The traffic and roadway safety agencies spend significant efforts each year collecting roadway data, including lane configurations and other road surface marking data, such as areas with school zone markings, sidewalks, left turns, right turns, bicycle lanes, etc., for safety analysis and planning purposes. The current manual data collection methods pose significant operational and quality control challenges as they are costly and prone to errors. In addition to that the manual data collection is labor intensive and takes too much time involving high equipment costs, questionable data accuracy guarantees, and concerns about the safety of the crew.

This study aims …

Development Of High Kinetic Inductance Superconducting Nanowire Devices On High Permittivity Strontium Titanate Substrates, Jamie Timmons

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis involves the fabrication and characterization of devices made from two different superconducting materials: yttrium barium copper oxide (YBCO), a high-TC complex oxide, and niobium nitride (NbN), a low-TC transition metal nitride. Both types of devices are fabricated on strontium titanate substrates, which provides a good lattice match to YBCO and also an extremely large permittivity at low temperature. We demonstrate that wet etching of YBCO thin films via bromine can be a viable microfrabriation technique for the material. Using approximately 35 nm thick epitaxially grown YBCO on an STO substrate, we were able to fabricate YBCO “microwires” with …

Development Of Practical Assessment Techniques For Sinkhole Potential In Florida Based On Sinkhole Vulnerability Indices, Sylvia Pesha

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sinkholes are natural geohazards prevalent in Florida's distinctive karst geology, posing risks to public safety, infrastructure, and groundwater integrity. Considering the increasing frequency of sinkhole occurrences in Florida due to land development in vulnerable soils, understanding the potential for sinkhole occurrence can aid in the identification of high-risk locations and inform effective mitigation strategies. Researchers have developed three point-based indices to be used when assessing the vulnerability a project site has to sinkhole formation based on the encountered subsurface conditions. Engineers have historically used an index based on the subsurface layer thicknesses, called the Raveling Index (RI). In recent years, …

Investigation On The Influence Of Augmented Reality Adoption And Cybersecurity In The Architecture, Engineering And Construction Industry, Kavyaa Boopathy

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Augmented Reality (AR) applications and the digitization of Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry processes, such as the online building permit process (BPP), have introduced new developments that simplifies tasks, and enhanced data accessibility for stakeholders. This created a digital landscape where sensitive information and critical processes are intertwined, making them vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Existing studies and frameworks on a) AR adoption doesn’t provide essential information (e.g., material availability and costs from different suppliers) and AR features to cater to the diverse needs of different stakeholders. b) threat modeling requires a domain and context specific need investigation, process exploration, critical …

Breast Density Classification Using Deep Learning, Conrad Thomas Testagrose

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Breast density screenings are an accepted means to determine a patient's predisposed risk of breast cancer development. Although the direct correlation is not fully understood, breast cancer risk increases with higher levels of mammographic breast density. Radiologists visually assess a patient's breast density using mammogram images and assign a density score based on four breast density categories outlined by the Breast Imaging and Reporting Data Systems (BI-RADS). There have been efforts to develop automated tools that assist radiologists with increasing workloads and to help reduce the intra- and inter-rater variability between radiologists. In this thesis, I explored two deep-learning-based approaches …

Investigation Of Microstructurally Dependent Mechanical Properties Of Cold Sprayed Copper Using Correlative Microscopy, Quintin Otto

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This project employs multi-instrument materials characterization to analyze material made with the “Cold Spray” additive manufacturing process. Cold spray is an emerging additive manufacturing technique with unique benefits resulting from its low temperature adhesion process induced by plastic deformation. Metallic powder collides at high speeds creating three dimensional materials and coatings without the need for melting. Copper cold sprayed specimens were analyzed using a series of imaging techniques to characterize the microstructure at varying levels of detail and magnification. Scanning electron microscopy and electron back scattered diffraction were paired with microhardness testing to generate a correlative comparison between microstructure and …

Assessing The Performance Of A Particle Swarm Optimization Mobility Algorithm In A Hybrid Wi-Fi/Lora Flying Ad Hoc Network, William David Paredes

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research on Flying Ad-Hoc Networks (FANETs) has increased due to the availability of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and the electronic components that control and connect them. Many applications, such as 3D mapping, construction inspection, or emergency response operations could benefit from an application and adaptation of swarm intelligence-based deployments of multiple UAVs. Such groups of cooperating UAVs, through the use of local rules, could be seen as network nodes establishing an ad-hoc network for communication purposes.

One FANET application is to provide communication coverage over an area where communication infrastructure is unavailable. A crucial part of a FANET implementation is …

A Predictive Modeling Approach To Counter Failures In Heat Seal Process Verification Methods, Charles Albanese

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Most products sold today are packaged in a protective shell that involves the design of a box or wrapper. A subset of such products also adds a second layer of protection via sterilization. For both sterilized and non-sterilized products, a procedure referred to as the heat seal process creates the protective barrier from outside influence. For sterilized products, the American Society for Testing and Materials provides standards to test or verify seal strength, and this verification is normally accomplished by using a process called a Design of Experiments (DOE). The DOE method makes systematic use of powerful data collection and …