Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Method And Apparatus For Cancer Screening, Yinfa Ma, Stephen Gibbons

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

A method and apparatus for detection of pteridine levels in a biological sample using CE-LIF which is useful for early cancer screening involving fully oxidizing pteridine compounds in a sample such as a urine sample, subjecting to CE-LIF to assess compound concentration, and compare to expected levels in for healthy or cancer-bearing patients.

Biomaterial Compositions, Kathleen V. Kilway, Lynda F. Bonewald, Thomas P. Schuman

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

Biomaterial compositions comprising organosilicon monomers (such as silorane monomers) and chemical curing systems or dual chemical/light curing systems, in conjunction with optional tetraoxaspiro[5.5]undecanes (“TOSUs”) and/or fillers. The present invention is directed to biomaterial compositions, as well as methods for manufacturing the same, and methods of using the compositions. The biomaterial composition comprises one or more organosilicon monomers (such as a silorane) and a chemical curing system or dual chemicaVlight curing system for polymerizing the 10 monomer(s). The compositions may include one or more tetraoxaspiro[5.5]undecanes “TOSUs”) and/or fillers. Accelerators (such as photoacids), photosensitizers, and/or electron donors may also be included in …

Functionalized Nanodiamond Reinforced Biopolymers, Gongyao Zhou, Peter I. Lelkes, Yury Gogotsi, Vadym Mochalin

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

The present invention includes a composition for implantation in a patient, comprising surface-functionalized nanodiamonds and at least one biodegradable biocompatible polymer. The present invention also includes a surgical fixation device for use in a patient.

Real-Time Supervised Detection Of Pink Areas In Dermoscopic Images Of Melanoma: Importance Of Color Shades, Texture And Location, Ravneet Kaur, P. P. Albano, Justin G. Cole, Jason R. Hagerty, Robert W. Leander, Randy Hays Moss, William V. Stoecker

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Background/Purpose: Early detection of malignant melanoma is an important public health challenge. In the USA, dermatologists are seeing more melanomas at an early stage, before classic melanoma features have become apparent. Pink color is a feature of these early melanomas. If rapid and accurate automatic detection of pink color in these melanomas could be accomplished, there could be significant public health benefits.

Methods: Detection of three shades of pink (light pink, dark pink, and orange pink) was accomplished using color analysis techniques in five color planes (red, green, blue, hue, and saturation). Color shade analysis was performed using a logistic …

Generalized Synthesis Of Eas [E = Fe, Co, Mn, Cr] Nanostructures And Investigating Their Morphology Evolution, Prachi Desai, Nikitaa Ashokan, Manashi Nath

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

This paper illustrates a novel route for the synthesis of nanostructured transition metal arsenides including those of FeAs, CoAs, MnAs, and CrAs through a generalized protocol. The key feature of the method is the use of one-step hot-injection and the clever use of a combination of precursors which are low-melting and highly reactive such as metal carbonyls and triphenylarsine in a solventless setup. This method also facilitates the formation of one-dimensional nanostructures as we move across the periodic table from CrAs to CoAs. The chemical basis of this reaction is simple redox chemistry between the transition metals, wherein the transition …

Vibrational Energy Levels Of The Simplest Criegee Intermediate (Ch₂Oo) From Full-Dimensional Lanczos, Mctdh, And Multimode Calculations, Hua-Gen Yu, Steve Alexandre Ndengué, Jun Li, Richard Dawes, Hua Guo

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

Accurate vibrational energy levels of the simplest Criegee intermediate (CH₂OO) were determined on a recently developed ab initio based nine-dimensional potential energy surface using three quantum mechanical methods. the first is the iterative Lanczos method using a conventional basis expansion with an exact Hamiltonian. the second and more efficient method is the multi-configurational time-dependent Hartree (MCTDH) method in which the potential energy surface is refit to conform to the sums-of-products requirement of MCTDH. Finally, the energy levels were computed with a vibrational self-consistent field/virtual configuration interaction method in MULTIMODE. the low-lying levels obtained from the three methods are …

New Potential Energy Surface For The Hcs⁺-He System And Inelastic Rate Coefficients, Marie-Lise Dubernet, Ernesto Quintas-Sánchez, Philip Tuckey

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

A new high quality potential energy surface is calculated at a coupled-cluster single double triple level with an aug-cc-pV5Z basis set for the HCS⁺-He system. This potential energy surface is used in low energy quantum scattering calculations to provide a set of (de)-excitation cross sections and rate coefficients among the first 20 rotational levels of HCS⁺ by He in the range of temperature from 5 K to 100 K. The paper discusses the impact of the new ab initio potential energy surface on the cross sections at low energy and provides a comparison with the HCO^{+ …}

Acoustic Attenuators Based On Porous Nanostructured Materials, Hongbing Lu, Ning Xiang, Nicholas Leventis, Chariklia Sotiriou-Leventis

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

The invention is directed to a porous, acoustic attenuating composition, wherein the composition comprises a nanostructured material and wherein the composition exhibits acoustic transmission loss ranging from 20 to 60 dB/cm thickness of the composition.

Towards A Global Model Of Spin-Orbit Coupling In The Halocarbenes, Silver Nyambo, Cyrus Karshenas, Scott A. Reid, Phalgun Lolur, Richard Dawes

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

We report a global analysis of spin-orbit coupling in the mono-halocarbenes, CH(D)X, where X = Cl, Br, and I. These are model systems for examining carbene singlet-triplet energy gaps and spin-orbit coupling. Over the past decade, rich data sets collected using single vibronic level emission spectroscopy and stimulated emission pumping spectroscopy have yielded much information on the ground vibrational level structure and clearly demonstrated the presence of perturbations involving the low-lying triplet state. To model these interactions globally, we compare two approaches. First, we employ a diabatic treatment of the spin-orbit coupling, where the coupling matrix elements are written in …

Kinetic Isotope Effect Of The ¹⁶O+³⁶O₂ And ¹⁸O+³²O₂ Isotope Exchange Reactions: Dominant Role Of Reactive Resonances Revealed By An Accurate Time-Dependent Quantum Wavepacket Study, Zhigang Sun, Dequan Yu, Wenbo Xie, Jiayi Hou, Richard Dawes, Hua Guo

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

The O + O₂ isotope exchange reactions play an important role in determining the oxygen isotopic composition of a number of trace gases in the atmosphere, and their temperature dependence and kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) provide important constraints on our understanding of the origin and mechanism of these and other unusual oxygen KIEs important in the atmosphere. This work reports a quantum dynamics study of the title reactions on the newly constructed Dawes-Lolur-Li-Jiang-Guo (DLLJG) potential energy surface (PES). The thermal reaction rate coefficients of both the 18O + 32O₂ and 16O + 36O₂ reactions obtained using the …

Growth Of Ordered Nanostructure Arrays Including Nanotubes And Nanorods For High Efficiency Solar Cells, Wipula P. Liyanage, Manashi Nath

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

A simple and straightforward approach has been described for the fabrication of CdTe nanotube and nanorod arrays with a high degree of precision through confined electrodeposition on lithographically patterned nanoelectrodes. This technique has the potential of growing these nanotube/nanowire arrays with extreme uniformity over a significantly large area. the desired nanoelectrode pattern was defined through electron beam lithography on indium tin oxide coated glass, and electrodeposition of the semiconducting material of interest (CdTe) on the nanoelecrodes produced the nanotubes/nanowires. It is interesting to note that the measured photocurrent density of nanotube device created by this protocol exceeds that obtained from …

Purine-Based Triazoles, Prakash Reddy, Nanditha G. Nair, Mark A. Smith, Wataru Kudo

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

A pharmaceutical composition for inhibiting at least protein kinase in a cell of a subject includes a purine based triazole.

State-To-State Reaction Dynamics Of ¹⁸O+³²O₂ Studied By A Time-Dependent Quantum Wavepacket Method, Wenbo Xie, Lan Liu, Zhigang Sun, Hua Guo, Richard Dawes

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

The title isotope exchange reaction was studied by converged time-dependent wave packet calculations, where an efficient 4th order split operator was applied to propagate the initial wave packet. State-to-state differential and integral cross sections up to the collision energy of 0.35 eV were obtained with ³²O₂ in the hypothetical j₀ = 0 state. It is discovered that the differential cross sections are largely forward biased in the studied collision energy range, due to the fact that there is a considerable part of the reaction occurring with large impact parameter and short lifetime relative to the rotational period …

Synthesis Of Different Sizes & Functions Nanoparticles, Jiaming Geng

Masters Theses

"Nanogels, whose size range from 1 to 100nm, have been interested in many research areas: cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, catalysts, photochemistry, and in optical switches or sensors. In Petroleum Engineering area, nanogels can be used as conformance control agent and emulsion stabilizer. And after grafting functional groups or hybrid, nanogels can be used as tracer for the visual modeling.

Though nanoparticles have been studied for more than 20 years, few of them are about nanogels. In the thesis, stirring rate, surfactant type and concentration were found have a large impact on the synthesis of nanogels. And cationic nanogels have salt and acid …

Boron Nitride Colloidal Solutions, Ultralight Aerogels And Freestanding Membranes Through One-Step Exfoliation And Functionalization, Weiwei Lei, Vadym Mochalin, Dan Liu, Si Qin, Yury G. Gogotsi, Ying Chen

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

Manufacturing of aerogels and membranes from hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) is much more difficult than from graphene or graphene oxides because of the poor dispersibility of h-BN in water, which limits its exfoliation and preparation of colloidal solutions. Here, a simple, one-step mechano-chemical process to exfoliate and functionalize h-BN into highly water-dispersible, few-layer h-BN containing amino groups is presented. The colloidal solutions of few-layer h-BN can have unprecedentedly high concentrations, up to 30 mg ml^-1, and are stable for up to several months. They can be used to produce ultralight aerogels with a density of 1.4 mg cm …

Mitochondria- Targeted Antioxidant Skq1 Reverses Glaucomatous Lesions In Rabbits, Elena N. Iomdina, Inna P. Khoroshilova-Maslova, Olga V. Robustova, Olga A. Averina, Nadezhda A. Kovaleva, Gjumrakch Aliev, V. Prakash Reddy, Andrey A. Zamyatnin, Maxim V. Skulachev, Ivan I. Senin, Vladimir P. Skulachev

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

Glaucoma is the main cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. This disease is characterized by apoptosis of retinal ganglion cells (RGC) and visual field loss that seems to be related to elevated intraocular pressure (IOP). Several lines of evidences have implicated the crucial role of mitochondrial dysfunction in the pathogenesis of glaucoma. Increased mitochondrial oxidative stress in RGC may underlie or contribute to susceptibility of RGC to apoptosis. In our work we (i) designed a rabbit model of chronic, moderately elevated IOP for studying glaucoma and (ii) demonstrated efficacy of mitochondria- Targeted antioxidant SkQ1 as a tool to reverse several traits …

Occurrence, Monitoring And Removal Of Drinking Water Contaminants By Advanced Technologies, Danielle Marie West

Doctoral Dissertations

"In order to maintain drinking water primary standards compliance under the USEPA Stage 2 Disinfectant Disinfection Byproducts Rule, drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) are switching from free chlorine (FC) to chloramines (MCA). Concerns are raised as MCA disinfection has been linked N-nitrosamine formation. N-nitrosamines are a group of nitrogenous DBPs (N-DBPs) which are highly carcinogenic in comparison to regulated DBPs (THMs and HAAs, generated by FC disinfection). Also in the forefront of drinking water concerns are other emerging drinking water contaminants such as perchlorate. Perchlorate is a contaminant which can enter drinking water from natural deposits or through introduction by …

Synthesis And Electrochemical Studies Of Novel Ionic Liquid Based Electrolytes, Avinash Raju Vadapalli

Doctoral Dissertations

"Room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) have received substantial interest as nonaqueous electrolytes in lithium ion- and metal-air batteries in recent years due to their low volatility, non-flammability, wide liquid range, and thermal stability characteristics. Towards developing a new generation of high specific energy lithium ion batteries, a series of imidazolium and pyrrolidinium based ionic liquids were synthesized and explored as nonaqueous electrolytes in lithium-, lithium ion-, and lithium-air batteries. Pyrrolidinium-TFSI based ionic liquids have wide electrochemical stability (5.7 - 6.2 V vs Li/Li⁺); however, they show limited thermal stabilities and lithium cell discharge characteristics. TFSI-based ionic liquids are …

Synthesis, Characterization And Application Of Acrylic Colloidal Unimolecular Polymer (Cup), Ameya Manohar Natu

Doctoral Dissertations

"Colloidal Unimolecular Polymer (CUP) particles were prepared by the process of water reduction on amphiphilic acrylic copolymers prepared via free radical polymerization technique. The formation of CUP particles was driven by the polymer-polymer interaction being greater than the polymer-solvent interaction and entropically favored by release of the water. It was demonstrated by Dynamic Light Scattering technique that CUP particles based on copolymers below 13,000 MW were unstable and the particles aggregated to a higher particle size. For the polymers with molecular weight (MW) above 13,000, a good correlation between the theoretical and experimental CUP particle size was observed. The rheology …

Effects Of N-Acetylcysteine Amide In Preventing/Treating Cataracts, Sri Krishna Yasaswi Maddirala

Doctoral Dissertations

"Cataract, the opacification of an eye lens, is a common pathological abnormality of the lens accounting for approximately 50% of all blindness. The only effective treatment currently available for a cataract is the surgical removal of the affected lens and replacement with an artificial lens for the restoration of vision. Although, cataract surgery is considered to be a very successful procedure in terms of visual outcome, the cost of surgery, need for trained personnel and surgeons, and postsurgical complications, limit the worldwide availability and accessibility of this procedure. Hence, alternative preventive and treatment procedures are worthy of investigation. The lens …

Constitutive Activity In Orphan G Protein Coupled Receptors, Adam Lee Martin

Doctoral Dissertations

"The goal of this research was to use a distal signaling pathway analysis to evaluate the extent of agonist independent constitutive signaling among orphan class-A G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). These receptors translate extracellular signals via conformational change into intracellular activation of different G proteins and subsequent second messenger synthesis. These small molecules regulate cellular biochemistry, eventually leading to nuclear signaling that results in changes in gene expression. Some GPCRs are capable of signaling in the absence of an activating ligand, a phenomenon called constitutive activity that is inhibited via an "inverse-agonist". The use of cAMP dependent Luciferase expression is …

Nmr T₁ Studies Of Colloidal Unimolecular Polymer (Cup) Surface Water, Yousef Abobaker Dawib

Doctoral Dissertations

"This dissertation is subdivided into three topics: Experimental study of colloidal unimolecular polymer (CUP) hydration; probing of polymer chain dynamics by ¹³C solid state NMR technique; and the anticorrosive effect of 5-mercapto-1, 3, 4-thiadiazole-2(3H)-thione (MTT) derivatives.

The states of water in colloidal unimolecular polymer system were investigated by low field proton NMR. Bound and free water fractions were determined using spin-lattice relaxation measurements. A model equation was used to analyze the inversion recovery data.

The proton cross polarization and the pulse sequence for total spinning sideband suppression CP-TOSS NMR method were developed to determine the chain mobility of polymers …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Vanadium Oxide Nanomaterials, Tyler M. Fears

Doctoral Dissertations

"This dissertation focuses on the synthesis and characterization of vanadium oxide nanomaterials and neutron-transparent Li-ion battery electrolytes.

Vanadium oxide gels were synthesized via the epoxide-assisted gelation of VOCl₃ using epichlorohydrin in ethanol. This represents the first epoxide-assisted gelation developed for vanadium oxide gels and serves as a potential economical replacement for the fabrication of vanadium oxide gels via the hydrolysis of vanadium alkoxides. Though epoxide-assisted gelation has been demonstrated for a number of transition metal oxides, the gelation mechanism observed here for VOCl₃ appears to be unique.

While investigating the electrochemical and structural properties of lithium vanadates, it …

Application Of Colloidal Unimolecular Polymer (Cup) Particles In Coatings, Sagar Vijay Gade

Doctoral Dissertations

"Colloidal unimolecular polymer (CUP) particles were prepared by the process of water reduction on copolymers containing hydrophobic and hydrophilic monomers at definite ratio using free radical polymerization. The CUPs are formed by the effect of hydrophilic /hydrophobic interactions of the polymer with a change in the solvent environment around them. Once formed these colloidal particles are thermodynamically stable with collapsed hydrophobic groups forming a spheroidal core and hydrophilic charges on the surface stabilizing the particle by the charge repulsion. CUPs contain only the charged CUP particles, water and counterions with all the functionality on the surface for further chemistry. CUP …

Mechanical Characteristics Of Organically Modified Fly Ash-Kaolinite Mixtures, Xin Kang

Doctoral Dissertations

"Fly ash is a hazardous waste material to the environment. Beneficial reuse of fly ash, however, brings economic and environmental benefits, i.e., decreases the cost of disposal, reduces greenhouse gas emission, and improves mechanical properties of construction materials. Due to the lack of pozzolanic properties, the reuse rate of Class F fly ash in geotechnical engineering is relatively low (ACAA 2013). In order to promote the effectiveness and sustainability of high volume reuse of class F fly ash in geotechnical engineering, biopolymers (Chitosan, and Xanthan gum) and synthetic polymers (Polyethylene Oxide, PEO) were used instead of the traditional stabilizers to …

The Synthesis And Characterization Of Water-Reducible Nanoscale Colloidal Unimolecular Polymer (Cup) Particles, Cynthia J. Riddles

Doctoral Dissertations

"The coatings industry has adapted to more stringent guidelines in paint formulations. Current VOC (volatile organic compound) limits placed by the federal government have pushed the industry toward the development of paint formulations which have very little to no VOC's. The development of Colloidal Unimolecular Polymer (CUP) particles is a step in the direction of providing a resin system which exists in zero VOC aqueous dispersion.

The CUP particles are a part of the polymer field of Single Chain Nano Particles (SCNP) and ranged in diameters of 3-9 nm. The research presented in this dissertation describes the synthesis and design …

Detection And Removal Of Emerging Environmental Contaminants, Ruipu Mu

Doctoral Dissertations

"Water is a very crucial natural resource for human. The increasing number of contaminants detected in water bodies has drawn considerable increasing attention over the last decade. There are numerous emerging environmental contaminants which may cause serious health issues. The recent occurrence studies of these contaminants show both industrial and household activity introduction of chemicals into water resources. These various sources result in a large variety of chemicals such as explosives, pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) and disinfection byproducts detected in water worldwide. Due to the relatively low contaminant concentrations, development of new and improved detection methods along with …

Cappack Devices For Enhanced Qnmr Measurements In 1H Nmr Spectroscopy, Lingyu Chi

Masters Theses

"Quantitative NMR analyses can be improved by adding well-defined external references for measuring sample properties on absolute scales. Special Capillary-tube Package (CapPack) devices were invented that provide in situ information (e.g., temperature, pH, pressure, integration, chemical shift, lock, etc.) about a sample with spectral imprimaturs. A new microscale glass-sealing technique produced CapPack devices that can survive high temperatures and pressures in harsh environments. Two CapPack devices are discussed: (1) Gradient CapPack-- a device for examining the irradiation bandwidth of solvent-suppression pulse sequences; (2) T₁ CapPack - a device for examining the T₁ robustness of solvent-suppression pulse sequences. A …

In Vitro Study Of Wound-Healing Capabilities Of Bioactive Glass Fibers Under Various Culture Conditions, Sisi Chen

Masters Theses

"Bioactive borate glass has been recognized to have both hard and soft tissue repair and regeneration capabilities through stimulating both osteogenesis and angiogenesis. However, the underlying physiological and cellular mechanism behind this function remains unclear. In this study, in vitro dynamic flow modules were designed to mimic the micro-environment near the vascular depletion and hyperplasia area in wound-healing regions, and were used to investigate the biocompatibility and functionality of borate glass nano-/micro-fibers. Glass-cell interactions were investigated either by dosing fibers to the upstream of or co-cultured with cells, and two types of borate glasses (with or without CuO/ZnO doped were …