Biological Engineering Commons^™

Analysis Of Site-Specific Adjustment Applied To On-The-Go Soil Sensing Data For Agronomic Use, Allison K. Jonjak

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Successful variable-rate applications of agricultural inputs such as lime rely on the quality of input data. Systematic grid soil sampling is the most common method used for creating variable rate prescription maps. The insufficient number of point measurements usually obtained using this method has been primarily responsible for the typical inaccuracies seen in lime prescription maps. To increase sampling density, on-the-go sensing technology was developed for the mapping of soil pH and other relevant attributes. In this study, five fields in eastern Nebraska were mapped using both on-thego sensing technology and systematic grid sampling. Ten calibration points per field were …

Nutrient Runoff Following Manure Application, Chance Thayer

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A field study was completed to measure the effects of varying flow rate on nutrient transport following the application of varying amounts of beef cattle manure to plots containing either no-residue or a wheat residue cover.  Beef cattle manure was applied and incorporated into the soil in May 2010 to meet zero, one, two, four or eight year corn phosphorus requirements. Simulated rainfall events were applied in June and July 2010. The presence of a crop residue cover significantly increased the transport of dissolved phosphorus, total phosphorus, NO₃-N, NH₄-N, and total nitrogen in runoff but decreased …

Combating Antibiotic Resistance Through Development Of A Novel Antimicrobial Delivery Vehicle, Alex Hatch

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

A thermoreversible gel for antimicrobial agent delivery would provide a novel platform suitable for medical applications from persistent infections arising from localized biofilms. Thermoreversible gels could be used to coat medical implants, to inject for subdermal treatments, or to implement in topical applications. FDA approved Pluronics® form thermoreversible gels and certain Pluronics® display inherent varying degrees of antimicrobial activity. Pluronics® have been shown to affect efflux pumps, and reduce ATP levels within the bacterial cell. In combination with antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals, Pluronics® have been used to sequester drugs and act as a delivery vehicle. With advances in nanomedicine, nanoparticles …

Characterization Of Potential Health Promoting Lipids In The Co-Products Of De-Flossed Milkweed, Vicki Schlegel, Richard Zbasnik, Tammy Gries, Bo Hyun Lee, Timothy Carr, Ji-Young Lee, Curtis Weller, Susan Cuppett

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

The floss and oil of the common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca L.) seeds are currently used to produce comforters/pillows and skin care products, respectively. As an outcome of these products, copious quantities co-products (pressed seed meal and pod biomass) are disposed of each year despite the presence of potential health benefiting lipids. The objective of this project was to determine the feasibility of developing the lipid fraction from of these co-products for the fast growing dietary human health market. Although certain types of lipids were affected by the extraction solvent used (hexane and diethyl ether) as were overall amounts, analysis …

The Effect Of Maternal Diet On Fetal Development, Catherine Wilcox

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

Using mice as a model system, this study aimed to compare the effect of a high fat diet (HFD), high sugar diet (HSD) and a control diet (CD) on fetal growth and development at the time of birth (post-natal day 0 or PND 0), post-natal day 7 (PND 7) and post-natal day 14 (PND 14). Published literature has documented the effects of a negative in-utero environment on fetal development, but currently there is limited research regarding the continued effects on development after birth. Mouse pups were harvested and then imaged in 3-D using a high-resolution micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) system. Total …

Life Cycle Assessment Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Ethanol And Biopolymers, Adam J. Liska, Xiao Xue Fang

Adam Liska Papers

Conclusions

• Regulatory LCA is not likely to be used for non‐fuel chemicals alone in the near future

• Significant GHG emission credits for corn‐ethanol can be obtained by using only roughly 6‐9% of initial starch for production of biopolymers based on previous LCA theory

• Pay close attention to values in calculating credits per kg—these have to stand up in litigation to ensure the credit

• Credits are proportional to the mass of polymer produced

• Many theoretical issues are uncertain and credits will only be determined in conjunction with EPA

• Indirect emissions are uncertain and are a …

Department Of Biological Systems Engineering Newsletter, Volume 7, Number 1, March 2011

BSE Department Magazine

No abstract provided.

Ethanol Yields And Cell Wall Properties In Divergently Bred Switchgrass Genotypes, Gautam Sarath, Bruce S. Dien, Aaron J. Saathoff, Kenneth P. Vogel, Robert B. Mitchell, Han Chen

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Genetic modification of herbaceous plant cell walls to increase biofuels yields is a primary bioenergy research goal. Using two switchgrass populations developed by divergent breeding for ruminant digestibility, the contributions of several wall-related factors to ethanol yields was evaluated. Field grown low lignin plants significantly out yielded high lignin plants for conversion to ethanol by 39.1% and extraction of xylans by 12%. However, across all plants analyzed, greater than 50% of the variation in ethanol yields was attributable to changes in tissue and cell wall architecture, and responses of stem biomass to diluteacid pretreatment. Although lignin levels were lower in …

Evaluation Of A Stream‐Aquifer Analysis Test For Deriving Reach‐Scale Streambed Conductance, Garey A. Fox, Derek M. Heeren, Michael A. Kizer

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Extracting groundwater from pumping wells located adjacent to streams can reduce streamflow, a result that is known as alluvial well depletion. Numerous analytical solutions have been developed for alluvial well depletion that vary in their mathematical complexity. Predicted drawdown by the analytical solutions can be matched to observed drawdown from a stream–aquifer analysis (SAA) test (i.e., a pumping test adjacent to a stream) to simultaneously estimate aquifer and streambed hydrologic parameters. However, only a few SAA tests have been documented in the literature and compared to field–measured streambed parameters. Therefore, the objective of this research was to perform an SAA …

The Feasibility Of Using Bifidobacteria Bifidum (Atcc 700541) For The Production Of Prebiotic Oligosaccharides, Candice Marie Luehrs

Masters Theses

"Galactooligosaccharides (GOS) are prebiotics that are being used to influence intestinal microbiota towards health promoting, beneficial bacteria like bifidobacteria. Natural sources of GOS are not found in suitable levels to achieve the desired health effects so economically viable commercial production methods are important. Enzymatic conversion of lactose to GOS through transgalactosylation is a preferred method since the starting material is inexpensive and readily available. Enzymes used in batch production are purified from fungal or bacterial sources or remain in whole cells cultured for GOS production. Purified or unbound enzymes are single use whereas enzymes retained within whole cells can potentially …

Modeling And Quantitative Analysis Of White Matter Fiber Tracts In Diffusion Tensor Imaging, Xuwei Liang

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique to record incoherent motion of water molecules and has been used to detect micro structural white matter alterations in clinical studies to explore certain brain disorders. A variety of DTI based techniques for detecting brain disorders and facilitating clinical group analysis have been developed in the past few years. However, there are two crucial issues that have great impacts on the performance of those algorithms. One is that brain neural pathways appear in complicated 3D structures which are inappropriate and inaccurate to be approximated by simple 2D structures, …

Influence Of Tissue Absorption And Scattering On Diffuse Correlation Spectroscopy Blood Flow Measurements, Daniel Irwin

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

This investigation evaluates the influences of optical property assumptions on nearinfrared diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) flow index measurements. Independent variation is induced in optical properties, absorption coefficient (μ_a) and reduced scattering coefficient (μ_s’), of liquid phantoms with concurrent measurements of flow indices. A hybrid instrument is incorporated consisting of a dual-wavelength (785 and 830 nm) DCS flow device to obtain flow indices and a frequency-domain tissue-oximeter for optical properties. Flow indices are calculated with measured μ_a and μ_s’ or assumed constant μ_a and μ_s’. Inaccurate μ_s’ assumptions produced …

Biocomposites Developed Using Water-Plasticized Wheat Gluten As Matrix And Jute Fibers As Reinforcement, Narendra Reddy, Yiqi Yang

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Biocomposites developed from wheat gluten using water without any chemicals as plasticizer and jute fibers as reinforcement have much better flexural and tensile properties than similar polypropylene composites reinforced with jute fibers. Wheat gluten is an inexpensive and abundant co-product derived from renewable resources and is biodegradable but non-thermoplastic. Previous attempts at developing biocomposites from wheat gluten have used plasticizers such as glycerol or chemical modifications to make gluten thermoplastic. However, plasticizers have a considerably negative effect on the mechanical properties of the composites and chemical modifications make wheat gluten less biodegradable, expensive and/or environmentally unfriendly. In the research reported, …

Corn Seed Spacing Uniformity As Affected By Seed Tube Condition, Michael F. Kocher, John M. Coleman, John A. Smith, Stephen D. Kachman

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Variation in corn seed spacing from a John Deere MaxEmerge^TM Plus Vacumeter planter was evaluated on the University of Nebraska Planter Test Stand in a laboratory setting for two seed tube conditions (new or worn) with two examples of corn seed shape (round or flat). Seed spacing uniformity was measured using three seed spacing uniformity parameters: Coefficient of Precision (CP3), ISO Multiples index, and ISO Miss index.

Differences were detected in all three seed spacing uniformity parameters due to the seed tube condition. The new seed tubes had better seed spacing uniformity than the worn seed tubes, within each …

Spatial Variability Of Field Machinery Use And Efficiency, Viacheslav I. Adamchuk, Robert Grisso, Michael F. Kocher

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

In site-specific crop management, It is a common practice to log the geographic coordinates of agricultural machinery measured using a global satellite navigation system (GNSS) such as the global positioning system (GPS). Yield, fertilizer application, and seed placement maps provide useful data for making agronomic decisions. However, the travel path itself reveals valuable information about machinery performance. Often, during field operations, odd field shapes, obstacles, or contour farming will require operators to increase the complexity of the machinery maneuvering. This usually reduces field efficiency. This chapter presents a methodology to parameterize the spatially variable characteristics of traffic patterns, and to …

Completely Biodegradable Soyprotein–Jute Biocomposites Developed Using Water Without Any Chemicals As Plasticizer, Narendra Reddy, Yiqi Yang

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Soyprotein–jute fiber composites developed using water without any chemicals as the plasticizer show much better flexural and tensile properties than polypropylene–jute composites. Co-products of soybean processing such as soy oil, soyprotein concentrate and soy protein isolates are inexpensive, abundantly available and are renewable resources that have been extensively studied as potential matrix materials to develop biodegradable composites. However, previous attempts on developing soy-based composites have either chemically modified the co-products or used plasticizers such as glycerol. Chemical modifications make the composites expensive and less environmentally friendly and plasticizers decrease the properties of the composites. In this research, soyprotein composites reinforced …

Verifying Power Claims Of High‐Power Agricultural Tractors Without A Pto To Sell In Nebraska, Michael F. Kocher, Viacheslav Adamchuk, John A. Smith, Roger M. Hoy

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Nebraska law requires the Nebraska Tractor Test Board of Engineers to compare results of the tests of an agricultural tractor model with the manufacturer's claims regarding power, fuel use, and other performance ratings in order to recommend a permit to sell that tractor model in the state. PTO tests are conducted to verify the manufacturer's PTO power and fuel claims for tractor models. In recent years, several tractor manufacturers have been producing models of large tractors either without a PTO or with a PTO not capable of transmitting the full engine power and, therefore, have chosen to advertise engine power. …

Evaluation Of Soil Salinity Leaching Requirement Guidelines, John Letey, Glenn J. Hoffman, Jan W. Hopmans, Stephen R. Grattan, Donald Louis Suarez, Dennis L. Corwin, Jim D. Oster, Laosheng Wu, Christopher Amrhein

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Water for irrigation is a major limitation to agricultural production in many parts of the world. Use of waters with elevated levels of salinity is one likely option to meet the supply of increased demands. The sources of these waters include drainage water generated by irrigated agriculture, municipal wastewater, and poor quality groundwater. Soil salinity leaching requirements that were established several decades ago were based on steady-state conditions. Recently transient-state models have been developed that potentially can more correctly predict the dynamics of the chemical–physical–biological interactions in an agricultural system. The University of California Center for Water Resources appointed a …

Comparison Of Subsurface And Surface Runoff Phosphorus Transport Rates In Alluvial Floodplains, Aaron R. Mittelstet, Derek M. Heeren, Garey A. Fox, Daniel E. Storm, Michael J. White, Ronald B. Miller

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Phosphorus (P) loading to streams can occur by both surface runoff and subsurface transport, with subsurface P transport often assumed negligible. Groundwater P concentrations in alluvial aquifers can be significant, especially in preferential flow paths (PFPs). The objectives of this research were to quantify subsurface P transport rates at two sites in northeastern Oklahoma and to compare them with surface runoff P transport rates derived from a hydrologic model, the Pasture Phosphorus Management Calculator (PPM Plus). Ozark ecoregion study sites were adjacent to the Barren Fork Creek and Honey Creek in northeastern OK, USA. Each site, instrumented with 24 observation …

Development Of Deficit Irrigation Strategies For Corn Using A Yield Ratio Model, Derek M. Heeren, Todd P. Trooien, Hal D. Werner, Norman L. Klocke

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Competition for water is increasing while a growing world population requires more food production. It is critical to develop and implement efficient deficit irrigation strategies and to predict the impacts of deficit irrigation on yield. South Dakota State University (SDSU) Management Software, which simulates evapotranspiration and soil water contents, was originally designed as an on-farm decision support system capable of fully automating center pivot irrigation. A simple yield model was developed for the software in order to extend its use for evaluating deficit irrigation strategies. Yield ratio (i.e., actual yield/potential yield) was predicted based on a normalized transpiration ratio (i.e., …