Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Spatiotemporal Analysis Of Lake Water Quality Indicators On Small Lakes, Lake Bloomington And Evergreen Lake In Central Illinois, Using Satellite Remote Sensing, Gare Ambrose-Igho

Theses and Dissertations

This research explores the use of Sentinel-2 satellite to determine the spatiotemporal patterns of lake water quality indicators (e.g. chlorophyll a) in Lake Bloomington and Evergreen Lake. Lake water quality issues related to algal blooms is a serious problem in basins with abundant agricultural lands causing harmful effects to freshwater ecosystems such as pollution of beaches, taste and odor problems in drinking water, depletion of oxygen levels causing fish kills and the issue of water exceeding safe drinking water standards. Developing monitoring techniques using various water quality indicators of algal blooms is crucial. In this project, remote sensing and field …

Syntheses, Characterization, And Preliminary Evaluation Of Potential Ruthenium Anticancer Complexes Containing Schiff Base Ligands, Stephen Mensah

Theses and Dissertations

Platinum-based drugs have over the years been administered in the treatment of tumours.

Unfortunately, platinum resistance and the severe side effects associated with the treatments has necessitated the research for new anti-cancer drugs. Ruthenium(II) and Ruthenium(III) complexes have shown promise as useful alternative anticancer agents. The lead candidates include the Ru(II) complex RAPTA-C, a ruthenium(II)-arene complex [Ru(η6-p-cymene)Cl2(1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane)] and the Ru(III) complex NAMI-A [imidazoleH][trans-Ru(imidazole) (dimethyl sulfoxide)Cl4]. Both compounds have shown potent cytotoxic activity in several primary human tumor models. Unfortunately, NAMI-A could not advance in clinical evaluations due to limited efficacy in vivo, while the clinical evaluation of RAPTA-C is unknown. …

Potential For On-Site, Prosecutorial Evidence From Drug Residues Collected On Plasmonic Paper: A Pilot Study For Sers-Psi-Ms, Daniel S. Burr

Theses and Dissertations

Given the potential impact of improvements to on-site drug testing, as well as recent, successful displays of paper spray ionization mass spectrometry (PSI-MS) in this regard, this thesis pilots the implementation of Raman spectroscopy as a compliment to MS for field-based confirmatory drug testing. Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is utilized for applications to trace detection. Two-tiered analysis of individual drug samples is enabled using triangularly-cut plasmonic papers, from which both SERS and PS-MS analysis may be performed. Several drug compounds, representative of traditional and emerging drug types, are examined by these techniques, both separately and as a fully integrated, …

Using Satellite-Based Hydro-Climate Variables And Machine Learning For Streamflow Modeling At Various Scales In The Upper Mississippi River Basin, Dongjae Kwon

Theses and Dissertations

Streamflow data are essential to study the hydrologic cycle and to attain appropriate water resource management policies. However, the availability of gauge data is limited due to various reasons such as economic, political, instrumental malfunctioning, and poor spatial distribution. Although streamflow can be simulated by process-based and machine learning approaches, applicability is limited due to intensive modeling effort, or its black-box nature, respectively. Here, we introduce a machine learning (Boosted Regression Tree (BRT)) approach based on remote sensing data to simulate monthly streamflow for three of varying sizes watersheds in the Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMRB). By integrating spatial land …

Chloride Signature And Transport In An Urban-Agricultural Watershed, Andrew Oberhelman

Theses and Dissertations

Manual and high frequency observations (n = 535) of chloride (Cl-), bromide (Br-), nitrate (NO3-N), sodium (Na+), calcium (Ca2+), and potassium (K+) of stream and tile-drain waters were conducted in an urban-agricultural watershed (8% urban, 87% agriculture) to investigate the importance of stormflow to Cl- transport and to explore potential differences in the signature of Cl- originating from an urban source as compared to an agricultural source. The study was conducted in Evergreen Lake Watershed (ELW) located in central Illinois. Manual samplings were conducted on a weekly interval from February 2018 to February 2019 at three station along Six Mile …

Capture Zone Analysis Of A Wellfield To Assess Contaminant Transport, Prince Kojo Oware

Theses and Dissertations

Radium is a common contaminant to the deep Cambrian- Ordovician aquifer in northern Illinois. Deep groundwater aquifers are used as fresh water resource in many parts of the world. Due to overuse, increase in salinity, natural and human-driven contamination, sustainability of these aquifer systems is uncertain. The purpose of this study is to better understand the groundwater flow system in deep bedrock aquifers in northern Illinois, and its control on the radium contamination in Rochelle’s Public Water Supply Wells (PWSW). We have tested two hypotheses: (1) the Radium (Ra) transport is driven by large pumping centers that interrupt groundwater flow …

Hydrogeologic Characteristics And Groundwater Sustainability Of A Deep Bedrock Aquifer System In Illinois, Luis Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

Population growth and climate change has made groundwater an increasingly important freshwater resource. This study uses MODFLOW to estimate sustainable yield of a deep St. Peter Aquifer in Bloomington, IL. The city of Bloomington has installed two high capacity wells into the St. Peter Sandstone to meet its growing water demands. The St. Peter Aquifer is confined, receiving almost no modern recharge and is experiencing overexploitation in parts of Northern Illinois. I hypothesize that existing fast depletion of the deep St. Peter occurs due to lower-than-expected aquifer parameters of the aquifer. Further, current pumping of groundwater from the St. Peter, …

Effects Of Electrical Stimulation On Glioma Cells In Vitro With Implications For Treating Chronic Pain: Development Of A Model System, David C. Platt

Theses and Dissertations

Glial cells comprise over 70% of the central nervous system cells and exhibit diverse functions including regulation of synaptic transmission, neuron protection/repair, maintenance of neuronal metabolism, and are implicated in the development of persistent neuropathic pain. In addition, a perturbation in the concentration of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) has likewise been associated with the development of a chronic pain state. This perturbation in ROS/RNS creates an environment of oxidative stress. However, the mechanism by which the pain signal transmission is modulated, and the roles ROS play in the perpetuation of the pain state are …

Synthesis And Metalation Of Internally Alkylated Porphyrinoids, Alissa Nicole Latham

Theses and Dissertations

The mechanism behind alkyl migration in palladium(II) benzocarbaporphyrins was investigated through the synthesis of a 23-methylcarbaporphyrin. It was found that palladium insertion led to methyl group migration to C21 and it is proposed that this occurs through an oxidative addition onto the palladium metal center, followed by a reductive elimination to transfer the methyl to the internal carbon. A similar rearrangement was observed when 23-methylcarbaporphyrin was reacted with [Rh(CO)2Cl]2 and resulted in the formation of a rhodium(III) complex containing a three-membered rhodacycle. The syntheses of rhodium(I) and rhodium(III) derivatives of other carbaporphyrins, including 21- and 22-methylbenzo-carbaporphyrins, were probed and four …

Nitrogen And Phosphorus Uptake In An Urban Stream Ecosystem, Nicolette A. Sheffield

Theses and Dissertations

Urban stream ecosystems are faced with high input levels of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from anthropogenic activities. N and P are important to plant growth and stream health; however, high levels can lead to algal blooms and eutrophication, a harmful effect to both aquatic life and water quality. Common urban sources of N and P include fertilizer, atmospheric deposition, stormwater outfall, and leaf-litter decomposition. Common urban stream features such as a flashier hydrograph, altered channel stability and morphology, increase in nutrient output (such as N and P), and heat retention, have been shown to result in an overall decrease …

Nature, Identity, And Pastoralism: Changing Landscapes And Shifting Paradigms In The Mongolian Taiga, Jessica Vinson

Theses and Dissertations

The traditional environment of pastoralism is under assault from land degradation, rangeland conservation, and development paradigms that alter the everyday lives of Tsataan Dukha reindeer herders in the Mongolian taiga. This paper seeks to analyze the ways in which identity is shaped through experiences of or relationships with particular nonhuman places and beings, and how the Tsataan Dukha renegotiate their individual and collective identities with changing local landscapes that exert considerable pressures upon the social, political, and economic organization of Dukha life. Senses of place and of space are intimately tied to a sense of self, so disruption in environmental …

Nitrate Concentrations In Streams As A Function Of Crop Cover In Midwestern Agricultural Watersheds: Assessing The Role Of Corn And Soybeans, Jacob Tyler Piske

Theses and Dissertations

Increased availability and reduced cost of synthetic-nitrogen fertilizers have led to excess nitrogen being deposited in reservoirs. The accumulation of nitrogen (N) in reservoirs has negative effects, generating algal blooms, hypoxic zones, and poor drinking water quality. Corn and soybean utilize nitrogen at different rates, resulting in higher nitrogen fertilizer application to fields for corn than for soybean. This work examines whether the nitrate concentration in a stream may be correlated to the percentage of land devoted to growing corn or soybeans in the watershed. To investigate potential relationships, discharge (Q) and nitrate concentration data from ten USGS gauging stations …