Engineering Commons^™

Experimental Evaluation Of Surfactant-Based Nanofluids On Wettability Alteration And Oil Recovery, Mohammad Foad Haeri

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Economic concerns about chemical flooding could be taken as opportunities to develop new cost-effective technologies that lead to high recoveries. Application of surfactants to lower oil-water interfacial tension has never been an economically attractive EOR method due to the high amount of adsorption. However, the use of inexpensive surfactants in low concentrations or combination of diluted surfactants with other low-cost chemicals to change the wettability of the system could play a major role in reducing the residual oil saturation and consequently improving oil recovery. This experimental study aims at investigating the potential of nanoparticles to improve the ability of surfactants ...

Enhancement Of Heat Transfer Coefficient Using Fe₂O₃-Water Nanofluids, Nasser Zouli, S. A. M. Mohammed, Muthanna H. Al-Dahhan

Muthanna H. Al-Dahhan

In this work, we developed a local heat transfer probe that can measure the heat transfer coefficient to study the effect of the nanofluid with various concentrations and size of nanoparticles on the local heat transfer coefficient in a developed separate effect experimental setup.Water with iron (III) oxide (Fe₂O₃) nanoparticles were used as the nanofluids flowing through the test section. The nanoparticle sizes of the Fe₂O₃ were varying between 20 and 40nm. The concentrations for the different nanoparticle sizes were ranged between 0 and 0.09 % in volume fractions. The results show that use of aqueous Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles can ...

Efficiency Improvement Of Up-Conversion Process Of Plasmonic-Enhanced Er-Doped-Nayf4 Nanoparticles Under Ir Excitation, Sara Elrafei, Ishac Kandas, Nader Shehata, Effat Samir

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The up-conversion process is extensively studied because of its wide variety of applications such as bioimaging, energy harvesting, and optical sensors. However, the optical conversion efficiency is still relatively low and needs to be improved. Therefore, this paper introduces a detailed study of improving the up-conversion emission efficiency through adding plasmonic metallic nanostructures to the up-conversion optical centers. Our idea is to couple the optical plasmonic resonance with the visible emission of the optical centers under IR excitation. The optical centers are erbium ions hosted by fluoride low-phonon environment. Our calculations consider most possible transitions that can occur between the ...

The Effects Of Geometric And Stoichometric Change In Nanoparticles And Materials On Lattice Thermal Conductivity, W. Tanner Yorgason

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Thermal transport properties are critical for applications ranging from thermal management to energy conversion. Passive thermal management has been an area of study for over a century and has only grown as technology has advanced because it requires no additional energy to remove heat. Changing the nanostructure of the materials involved in passive heat transfer methods, either by geometric changes or stoichiometric changes, can greatly improve the effectiveness of this heat transfer method. In order to explore this further, this work employs LAMMPS molecular dynamics (MD) simulation software to calculate the lattice thermal conductivity (λ_p) of a nanoparticle (NP ...

Imaging The Three-Dimensional Orientation And Rotational Mobility Of Fluorescent Emitters Using The Tri-Spot Point Spread Function, Oumeng Zhang, Jin Lu, Tianben Ding, Matthew D. Lew

Electrical & Systems Engineering Publications and Presentations

Fluorescence photons emitted by single molecules contain rich information regarding their rotational motions, but adapting single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) to measure their orientations and rotational mobilities with high precision remains a challenge. Inspired by dipole radiation patterns, we design and implement a Tri-spot point spread function (PSF) that simultaneously measures the three-dimensional orientation and the rotational mobility of dipole-like emitters across a large field of view. We show that the orientation measurements done using the Tri-spot PSF are sufficiently accurate to correct the anisotropy-based localization bias, from 30 nm to 7 nm, in SMLM. We further characterize the emission anisotropy ...

Investigating Phase Transition Temperatures Of Size Separated Gadolinium Silicide Magnetic Nanoparticles, Shivakumar G. Hunagund, Shane M. Harstad, Ahmed A. El-Gendy, Shalbh Gupta, Vitalij K. Pecharsky, Ravi L. Hadimani

Ames Laboratory Accepted Manuscripts

Gadolinium silicide (Gd5Si4) nanoparticles (NPs) exhibit different properties compared to their parent bulk materials due to finite size, shape, and surface effects. NPs were prepared by high energy ball-milling of the as-cast Gd5Si4ingot and size separated into eight fractions using time sensitive sedimentation in an applied dc magnetic field with average particle sizes ranging from 700 nm to 82 nm. The largest Gd5Si4 NPs order ferromagnetically at 316 K. A second anomaly observed at 110 K can be ascribed to a Gd5Si3 impurity. As the particle sizes decrease, the volume fraction of Gd5Si3 phase increases at the expense of the ...

Investigating Initial Interactions Between Silver Nanoparticles And Wastewater, Casey Gibson

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

The use of nanoparticles (NPs) has increased exponentially in the last 15-20 years, especially in the consumer market. NPs are currently found in over 1800 commercial products, including cosmetics, clothing, packaging, and toys. As a result, NPs can enter the environment via wastewater (WW) streams, leading to new challenges in WW treatment. This study focuses on the initial fate of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in WW. The AgNP interaction including aggregation and dissolution in both synthetic and real WW were studied. Real WW was collected from the primary-clarifier, secondary-clarifier, and effluent WW streams at two local WW treatment plants (Westside and ...

Mesoscale Computational Studies Of Thin-Film Bijels, Joseph M. Carmack

Theses and Dissertations

Bijels are a relatively new class of soft materials that have many potential applications in the technology areas of energy, medicine, and environmental sustainability. They are formed by the arrest of binary liquid spinodal decomposition by a dispersion of solid colloidal nanoparticles. This dissertation presents an in-depth simulation study of Bijels constrained to thin-film geometries and in the presence of electric fields. We validate the computational model by comparing simulation results with previous computational modeling and experimental research. In the absence of suspended particles, we demonstrate that the model accurately captures the rich kinetics associated with diffusion-based surface-directed spinodal decomposition ...

Silane Modulation Of Protein Conformation And Self-Assembly, Abul Bashar Mohammad Giasuddin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research focused on development of nanoparticle- based therapeutics against amyloid fibrils. Amyloid fibrils are associated with various diseases such as Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, mad cow disease, Alzheimer’s, and cataracts. Amyloid fibrils develop when proteins change their shape from a native form to a pathogenic “misfolded” form. The misfolded proteins have the ability to recruit more native proteins into the pathogenic forms, which self-assemble into amyloid fibrils that are hallmarks of the various protein-misfolding diseases listed above. Amyloid fibrils are highly resistant to degradation, which may contribute to the symptoms of amyloid diseases. Synthetic drugs, natural compounds, and ...

Plga-Modified Nanoparticles For The Treatment Of Hypo-Vascularized Hpv-Related Cervical Cancers., Lee B. Sims

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A major challenge associated with delivery of active agents in the female reproductive tract (FRT) is the ability of agents to efficiently diffuse through the cervicovaginal mucosa (CVM) and reach the underlying sub-epithelial immune cell layer and vasculature. A variety of drug delivery vehicles have been employed to improve the delivery of agents across the CVM and offer the capability to increase the longevity and retention of active agents to treat infections of the female reproductive tract. Nanoparticles (NPs) have been shown to improve retention, diffusion, and cell-specific targeting via specific surface modifications, relative to other delivery platforms. In particular ...

Plasmonic And Upconversion Nanoparticles For Bladder Cancer Treatment, Suehyun Katherine Cho

Electrical, Computer & Energy Engineering Graduate Theses & Dissertations

This thesis reports syntheses and surface modifications of various nanoparticles, including plasmonic, upconversion, and indium tin oxide nanoparticles for in situ bladder cancer detection and treatment.

The first part of this thesis reports a new and efficient polyethylene glycol (PEG) coating of gold nanorods (AuNRs). This coating technique is proven not only to be more stable in water compared to conventional coating methods, but also allows conjugation of an anti-epidermal growth factor receptor, C-225 antibodies. The AuNRs conjugated with C-225 antibodies (CNR) is then used in both in vitro and in vivo settings to demonstrate specific, targeted treatment capabilities by ...

Quantitative Understanding Of Nanoparticle Flocculation In Water Treatment, Sungmin Youn

Sungmin Youn

Flocculation is critical in drinking water treatment; in flocculation, the particle size distribution changes from a large number of small particles to a small number of larger particles. Larger particles are effectively removed by settling and filtration processes that follow flocculation. In recent years, manufacturing of engineered nanoparticles has skyrocketed, and these nanoparticles can enter our water supplies, but knowledge of their fate in water treatment is limited. The objective of this research was to update knowledge of flocculation by extending previous work at the microscale to the nanoscale.

Flocculation involves transport of particles to the vicinity of one another ...

Supramolecular Aptamer Nano-Constructs For Receptor-Mediated Targeting And Light-Triggered Release Of Chemotherapeutics Into Cancer Cells, Deepak K. Prusty, Volker Adam, Reza M. Zadegan, Stephan Irsen, Michael Famulok

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Platforms for targeted drug-delivery must simultaneously exhibit serum stability, efficient directed cell internalization, and triggered drug release. Here, using lipid-mediated self-assembly of aptamers, we combine multiple structural motifs into a single nanoconstruct that targets hepatocyte growth factor receptor (cMet). The nanocarrier consists of lipidated versions of a cMet-binding aptamer and a separate lipidated GC-rich DNA hairpin motif loaded with intercalated doxorubicin. Multiple 2′,6′-dimethylazobenzene moieties are incorporated into the doxorubicin-binding motif to trigger the release of the chemotherapeutics by photoisomerization. The lipidated DNA scaffolds self-assemble into spherical hybrid-nanoconstructs that specifically bind cMet. The combined features of the nanocarriers increase ...

Self-Assembly Of Liquid Crystalline And Colloidal Nanostructures, Ghadah Hadi Saud Sheetah

Materials Science & Engineering Graduate Theses & Dissertations

Nanostructure liquid crystal composites are perfect for designing novel materials with predefined properties that can be of substantial interest in many fields including materials science, electronics, optics, and energy storage. Liquid Crystals (LCs) are a good candidate to work as a host medium for nanoparticles with different properties given their low cost and facile responsive characteristic to external stimuli such as voltages as low as one volt. Concentrated dispersions of anisotropic gold, silver, and metal alloy nanoparticles in nematic hosts have been achieved and successfully controlled using low-voltage fields. However, to enable versatile designs of material behavior of these composites ...

New Wellbore-Integrity Classification For Gas Migration Problems And New Cement Formulations Using Graphene Nano Platelets To Prevent Gas Migration Through Cement, Mohammed Mousa M. Alkhamis

Masters Theses

"Gas migration, one of the primary problems related to the integrity of oil wells, is caused by cement failures. Gas migration can result in costly well repairs and may endanger personal, equipment, and result in severe operational difficulties and environmental issues. The ultimate objectives of this research were to provide a comprehensive review of the problem and to provide a solution to the problem using Graphene Nano Platelets (GNPs).

An intensive review was performed to understand the cement failures. The reasons behind these failures were analyzed and classified with respect to their locations in the wellbore. Recommendations and potential solutions ...

Engineered Nanomaterials And Human Health: Part 1. Preparation, Functionalization And Characterization (Iupac Technical Report), Vladimir Gubala, Linda J. Johnston, Harald Friedrich Krug, Colin J. Moore, Christopher K. Ober, Michael Schwenk, Michel R. Vert

Reports

Research on engineered nanomaterials (ENM) has progressed rapidly from the very early stages of studying their unique, size-dependent physicochemical properties and commercial exploration to the development of products that influence our everyday lives. We have previously reviewed various methods for synthesis, surface functionalization, and analytical characterization of ENM in a publication titled 'Engineered Nanomaterials: Preparation, Functionalization and Characterization'. In this second, inter-linked document, we first provide an overview of important applications of ENM in products relevant to human healthcare and consumer goods, such as food, textiles, and cosmetics. We then highlight the challenges for the design and development of new ...

Polyhexamethylene Biguanide Release By Chitosan-Heparin Nanoparticles, Jacob Ress

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Chitosan and heparin were used to synthesize nanoparticles using polyelectrolyte complexation. The optimal mixing ratio was determined to be 1:4 by studying the particle characteristics of zeta potential and dynamic light scattering of the ratios 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, 1:5 and 1:6 (chitosan: heparin). The particles were loaded with the antibiotic polyhexamethylene biguanide (PHMB) and the release was measured over 335 hours using the dialysis membrane incubation method and detected via ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy. Around 80% of the encapsulated PHMB was released over the measured period. The goal of this part of the study was ...

Effect Of Nanoparticle Additives On The Tribological Behavior Of Oil Under Boundary Lubrication, Yosef Jazaa

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study, three different nanoparticles (CuO, WC, WS2) of comparable nominal diameter, were added to a Polyalphaolefin (PAO) base oil to evaluate tribological response in the boundary lubrication regime. The concentration of particles was fixed at 1% by weight for this study and different surfactants (Oleic acid, polyisobutylene succinimide) and dispersion methods were employed to determine the impact on agglomeration and the observed tribological response. The results showed that of the methods studied, adding 10 % Oleic acid (OA) while sonicating the particles for 30 minutes reduced the agglomeration the most and adding 1% Oleic acid while sonicating the particles ...

Understanding Early Amyloid-ß Aggregation To Engineer Polyacid-Functionalized Nanoparticles As An Inhibitor Design Platform, Nicholas Vander Munnik

Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is characterized by the presence of amyloid-ß (Aß) protein aggregates in the brains of those afflicted. This protein aggregates via a complex pathway to progress from monomers to soluble oligomers and ultimately insoluble fibrils. Due to the dynamic nature of aggregation, it has proven exceedingly difficult to determine the precise interactions that lead to the formation of transient oligomers. A statistical thermodynamic model has been developed to elucidate these interactions. Aß was simulated using fully-atomistic replica exchange molecular dynamics. We use an ensemble of 5 × 105 configurations taken from these simulations as input for a self-consistent ...

Behavior Of Copper Oxide Nanoparticles In Soil Pore Waters As Influenced By Soil Characteristics, Bacteria, And Wheat Roots, Joshua Hortin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this project was to study the behavior of copper oxide nanoparticles in soil environments. Copper oxide nanoparticles have antimicrobial properties and may also be used in agricultural settings to provide a source of copper for plant health, but accidental or misapplication of these nanoparticles to soil may be damaging to the plant and its associated bacteria.

Dissolved soil organic matter that is present in soil pore waters dissolved nanoparticles, but did not dissolve the expected amounts from a geochemical model because the geochemical model did not take into account surface chemistry or coating of the nanoparticles by ...

Technobiology Paradigm In Nanomedicine: Treating Cancer With Magnetoelectric Nanoparticles, Emmanuel Stimphil

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Today, cancer is the world’s deadliest disease. Despite significant progress to find a cure, especially over the last decade, with immunotherapy rapidly becoming the state of the art, major open questions remain. Each successful therapy is not only limited to a few cancers but also has relatively low specificity to target cancer cells; although cancer cells can indeed be eradicated, many normal cells are sacrificed as collateral damage. To fill this gap, we have developed a class of multiferroic nanostructures known as magnetoelectric nanoparticles (MENs) that can be used to enable externally controlled high-specificity targeted delivery and release of ...

Silver Nanoparticle Removal From Drinking Water: Flocculation/Sedimentation Or Filtration?, Desmond F. Lawler, Anne M. Mikelonis, Ijung Kim, Boris L.T. Lau, Sungmin Youn

Sungmin Youn

Silver nanoparticles are used in a wide variety of consumer products and are therefore rapidly becoming ubiquitous in the natural environment; they can be expected to be found in the natural waters used as drinking water supplies. This research investigated whether such particles could be expected to be removed in conventional water treatment plants such as flocculation and filtration. Both flocculation and granular media filtration experiments with citrate-capped silver nanoparticles were performed at different ionic strengths and in the presence and absence of natural organic matter. The results were generally consistent with theories of particle destabilization that have been developed ...

The Design, Fabrication, And Characterization Of Nanoparticle-Protein Interactions For Theranostic Applications, Wai Hei Tse

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Theranostics, a combination of therapeutics and diagnostics, spans a spectrum of research areas to provide new opportunities in developing new healthcare technologies and medicine at affordable prices. Through employing a personalized medicine approach, biotechnology can be tailored to the needs of an individual. Applications of theranostics include drug delivery carriers capable of sustained drug release and targeted delivery, biosensors with high sensitivity and selectivity, and diagnostic relevant entities that can be incorporated into the former technologies. Nanotechnology provides a suitable foundation for theranostics to build upon due to material-based properties; magnetism, biocompatibility, and quantum effects to name a few. Purpose ...

Novel Synthesis Of Cigs Nanoparticles For Scalable, Benign Inks For Solution Processed Solar Cells, Jacob Fields, Ryan Ellis, Rakesh Agrawal

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

One potential production route to high efficiency, low cost, photovoltaics (PVs) which was explored is Copper Indium Gallium Sulfide (CIGS) nanocrystal inks for solution processed PVs. A common CIGS nanocrystal ink synthesis utilizes ligands—molecules attached to the particle surface—for colloidal stability, size control, and shape control. It is desirable to devise a novel synthesis which will incorporate a ligand that allows suspensions in more benign solvents than current methods—a desirable characteristic for large scale production. In order to develop the aforementioned synthesis of CIGS nanoparticles, an optimization study of synthesis parameters was performed. Selection of an appropriate ...

Carbon Removal And Optoelectronic Property Tuning In Copper Arsenic Sulfide Thin Films Through Ligand Exchange And Alloying, Louis R. Schroeder, Scott Mcclary, Rakesh Agrawal

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Solution processed thin film solar cells are attractive alternatives to conventional energy sources due to low waste generation, flexibility in substrate choice, and scalability. The novel semiconductor Cu3AsS4 in the enargite phase has a near ideal band gap of 1.4 eV and has earth abundant constituent elements; yet single-junction solar cells have yielded low efficiencies due to a secondary carbonaceous phase present, among other issues. This carbonaceous phase may be eliminated by exchanging the carbonaceous ligands with molecular metal chalcogenides. To characterize the ligand exchanged particles, UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy ...

Crafting Nanostructured Neural Interfaces With Hydrogel Particles, Emily Ann Morin

Doctoral Dissertations

Central nervous system neural device functionality hinges on effective communication with surrounding neurons. This depends on both the permissiveness of the device material to promote neuron integration and the ability of the device to avoid a chronic inflammatory response. Here, a facile approach has been developed exploring the multiple functionalities of hydrogel particles to provide cues to impart neural integration for such materials. Three distinct, yet interconnected tasks were undertaken: investigating hydrogel particle-modified substrate neuron integration and central nervous system inflammatory response, investigating guided hydrogel particle adsorption, and investigating hydrogel particles as local reservoirs for counteracting adverse effects from oxidative ...

Polymeric Nanoparticles For Targeted Combination Treatment Of Temozolomide Resistant Glioblastoma Multiforme (Gbm), Praveena Velpurisiva, Brandon Piel, Jack Lepine, Prakash Rai

UMass Center for Clinical and Translational Science Research Retreat

Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) is an aggressive cancer that originates from astrocytes and spreads to spinal cord and other parts of the brain. Increase in replication of glial cells leads to advantageous mutations in the tumor. According to the cancer statistics from 2015 about 15,320 deaths were reported due to GBM. Five-year survival is less than 5% making GBM a dreadful form of cancer. Current treatment involves complex invasive surgery, followed by chemotherapy and radiation. The goal of this study is to develop a combination therapy to treat GBM using Poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles encapsulated with two drugs namely ...

Real-Time Atomistic Observation Of Structural Phase Transformations In Individual Hafnia Nanorods, Bethany M. Hudak, Sean W. Depner, Gregory R. Waetzig, Anjana Talapatra, Raymundo Arroyave, Sarbajit Banerjee, Beth S. Guiton

Chemistry Faculty Publications

High-temperature phases of hafnium dioxide have exceptionally high dielectric constants and large bandgaps, but quenching them to room temperature remains a challenge. Scaling the bulk form to nanocrystals, while successful in stabilizing the tetragonal phase of isomorphous ZrO₂, has produced nanorods with a twinned version of the room temperature monoclinic phase in HfO₂. Here we use in situ heating in a scanning transmission electron microscope to observe the transformation of an HfO₂ nanorod from monoclinic to tetragonal, with a transformation temperature suppressed by over 1000°C from bulk. When the nanorod is annealed, we observe with atomic-scale ...

The Bovine Serum Albumin Protein Corona On Nanoparticles: Investigating The Effects Of Changing Ph, Substrates, And Ions, Brittany Estelle Givens

Theses and Dissertations

Nanoparticles are currently used in a wide range of applications including industrially processes, consumer products, and as drug delivery vehicles. The potential toxicity of these nanoparticles in living organisms is concerning due to their ever-expanding applications and accumulation in the environment. The effects of properties of the human body on the potential harmful nature of these nanoparticles must be understood in order to ensure safety in workplaces and at-home products.

In this thesis, the interactions between nanoparticles and the most abundant blood protein, serum albumin, were investigated. The effects of changing the aqueous environment was investigated over a range of ...

Controlled Synthesis And Utilization Of Metal And Oxide Hybrid Nanoparticles, Cameron Cowgur Crane

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation reports the development of synthetic methods concerning rationally-designed, hybrid, and multifunctional nanomaterials. These methods are based on a wet chemical, solution phase approach that utilizes the knowledge of synthetic organic and inorganic chemistry to generate building blocks in solution for the growth of nanocrystals and hybrid nanostructures. This work builds on the prior knowledge of shape-controlled synthesis of noble metal nanocrystals and expands into the challenging realm of the more reactive first row transition metals. Specifically, a microemulsion sol-gel method was developed to synthesize Au-SiO2 dimers as precursors for the synthesis of segmented heterostructures of noble metals that ...