Engineering Commons^™

Kitchen 2.0: Investigation Of The Effect Of Ventilation On Indoor Air Quality, Kelli Marie Whelan

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Even in today’s technology-filled world, nearly half of the global population still relies on some form of biomass to meet their daily energy requirement. Currently, improved combustion technologies (improved cookstoves) are the most common intervention to reduce fuel usage and to reduce human exposure to harmful products of incomplete combustion. This report explores an alternative option to cookstove replacement: ventilation as a low-cost, low-impact solution for health risk reduction.

Calibration, Verification, And Diagnosis Of A Season-Ahead Drought Prediction Model: Limits To Predictability In Central Texas, Jonathan Witham

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) land surface hydrology model was calibrated and verified for prediction of naturalized flows into the Highland Lakes system in central Texas. Using seasonal climate forecasts downscaled to daily precipitation, maximum and minimum temperatures, and wind speeds, the VIC model was run to generate ensemble inflow hindcasts for two seasons – March through June and July through October – corresponding to the period of 1960 through 2010. A diagnosis of the seasonal hindcast results determined that inflows are not as heavily influenced by the physical soil moisture state as expected, and that variability in statistical precipitation …

A Technical And Cultural Feasibility Assessment Of Household Microbial Fuel Cells For Use In Hanan'g District, Tanzania, Erinn Kunik

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are an emerging electricity generation technology that has the potential for use in developing countries. This study assessed the feasibility of using MFCs in Tanzania through technical analysis of a MFC prototype alongside with interviews with Tanzanians for a cultural feasibility assessment of MFCs. For the technical analysis, this study evaluated the inputs needed for a household MFC to operate and produce electricity with cattle manure as a fuel and evaluated the electrochemical and chemical performance as well as the fecal coliform reduction of the manure during MFC operation. For this study, a MFC was built …

An Assessment Of Polychlorinated Biphenyl Contamination In Fish From The Inland And Great Lakes Of Michigan, Emily Sokol

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Fish within the Great Lakes region of North America are an invaluable resource with economic and cultural significance. While these fish are vital, they contain chemical pollutants that are hazardous to human health. One such man-made group of chemicals, polychlorinated biphenyl compounds (PCBs), continue to be a problem long after the ban on production (1979).

The objective of this research thesis was to assess PCB contamination in fish within the Great Lakes Region. This objective was completed by determining the sources of PCB contamination, defining the ecosystem characteristics that significantly affect fish contamination, predicting when it will be safe to …

Perspectives On Environmental Management System Requirements, Raquel Taveras

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This report offers perspectives on effective environmental management procedures gained through field experience with the Peace Corps in Peru and with the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in Copenhagen, Denmark. The work in Peru focused on case studies of rural water supply management within the context of local legislation and development strategies and environmental management principles. The objective of this study was to lay out a framework for future development workers and governmental agencies aiming to improve the administration and operation of rural water system. UNOPS on the other hand, as the operational arm of the UN for …