Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering Commons^™

A Nearly Autonomous, Platform-Independent Mobile App For Manure Application Records, Matthew R. Koester

Open Access Theses

A major part of modern manure management is accurate application records; a key to their creation and maintenance is ease. This project involved the integration of existing technologies (smartphones, Bluetooth tags) in mobile web and native Android applications (apps) which enable the autogenic creation and upkeep of manure hauling records. This approach greatly improves the efficiency of the recording process which should help to improve the management of applied nutrients. Features of the app include: computation of a suggested travel speed to ensure target nutrient application (based on desired application rate and spreading width); minimized keystrokes/screen taps to accurately capture …

Improvement Of Simulating Bmps And Lid Practices In L-Thia-Lid Model, Yaoze Liu

Open Access Dissertations

Best management practices (BMPs) and low impact development (LID) practices are popular approaches used to reduce the negative impacts of urbanization on hydrology and water quality. To assist planners and decision-makers in urban development projects, user-friendly tools are needed to assess the effectiveness of BMPs and LID practices on water quantity and quality. To address this need, the Long-Term Hydrologic Impact Assessment-LID (L-THIA-LID) model was enhanced with additional commonly used BMPs and LID practices represented in the model, improved approaches to estimate hydrology and water quality, and representation of practices in series. The tool was used to evaluate the performance …

Effect Of Maleic Acid On The Selectivity Of Glucose And Fructose Dehydration And Degradation, Ximing Zhang

Open Access Dissertations

5-Hydroxymethyfurfural (HMF), a platform chemical can upgrade to a variety of fuels and polymers, can be manufactured from lignocellulose. This study focuses on the Lewis and Brønsted acid effect on hexose dehydration for HMF production. We report the positive effect of maleic acid, a dicarboxylic acid used as Brønsted acid, on the selectivity of hexose dehydration to 5-hydroxymethyfurfural (HMF), and subsequent hydrolysis to levulinic and formic acids. We also describe the kinetic analysis of a Lewis acid (AlCl ₃) alone and in combination with HCl or maleic acid to catalyze the isomerization of glucose to fructose, dehydration of fructose …

Quantiifying Stormwater Runoff Contaminant Mitigation By Bioretention Cells, Patrick J. Walsh

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

This research study has three objectives, quantify the presence and concentration of selected contaminants in urban stormwater runoff from several urban locations within Lincoln, Nebraska, quantify the effectiveness of two, 10-year old bioretention cells, for reducing concentrations of contaminants in effluent and quantify the effectiveness of six rain gardens.

The primary research sites were two bioretention cells using automated samplers collecting grab samples of stormwater runoff influent and effluent for at least six precipitation events during a two-year period. Additional research sites included samplers for two rainfall, six rain garden, two commercial rooftop, two commercial parking lot, and six residential …

Installation, Evaluation, And Modification Of Adcon Telemetry Systems, Caitlin Held

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

No abstract provided.

The Bifunctional Alcohol And Aldehyde Dehydrogenase Gene, Adhe, Is Necessary For Ethanol Production In Clostridium Thermocellum And Thermoanaerobacterium Saccharolyticum, Jonathan Lo, Tianyong Zheng, Shuen Hon, Daniel G. Olson, Lee Lynd

Dartmouth Scholarship

Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum and Clostridium thermocellum are anaerobic thermophilic bacteria being investigated for their ability to produce biofuels from plant biomass. The bifunctional alcohol and aldehyde dehydrogenase gene, adhE, is present in these bacteria and has been known to be important for ethanol formation in other anaerobic alcohol producers. This study explores the inactivation of the adhE gene in C. thermocellum and T. saccharolyticum. Deletion of adhE reduced ethanol production by >95% in both T. saccharolyticum and C. thermocellum, confirming that adhE is necessary for ethanol formation in both organisms. In both adhE deletion strains, fermentation products shifted from ethanol …

Concomitant Uptake Of Antimicrobials And Salmonella In Soil And Into Lettuce Following Wastewater Irrigation, J. Brett Sallach, Yuping Zhang, Laurie Hodges, Daniel D. Snow, Xu Li, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Faculty Publications

The use of wastewater for irrigation may introduce antimicrobials and human pathogens into the food supply through vegetative uptake. The objective of this study was to investigate the uptake of three antimicrobials and Salmonella in two lettuce cultivars. After repeated subirrigation with synthetic wastewater, lettuce leaves and soil were collected at three sequential harvests. The internalization frequency of Salmonella in lettuce was low. A soil horizon-influenced Salmonella concentration gradient was determined with concentrations in bottom soil 2 log CFU/g higher than in top soil. Lincomycin and sulfamethoxazole were recovered from lettuce leaves at concentrations as high as 822 ng/g and …

Evapotranspiration From Natural Vegetation In The Central Valley Of California: Monthly Grass Reference-Based Vegetation Coefficients And The Dual Crop Coefficient Approach, Daniel J. Howes, Phyllis Fox, Paul H. Hutton

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Restoration activities in the Central Valley of California and elsewhere require accurate evapotranspiration information, which can then be used for a wide variety of surface and subsurface hydrologic evaluations. However, directly measuring evapotranspiration can be difficult or impossible depending on the evaluation’s time frame. Transferability of measured evapotranspiration in time and space is also necessary but typically requires a weather-based reference. For nonagricultural vegetation, there is at present time no standard reference, which makes the evaluation of a variety of vegetation types from different sources difficult and time-consuming. This paper examines several methods used to estimate evapotranspiration from native vegetation, …

2015 Nebraska Groundwater Quality Monitoring Report

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality: Reports

The 2001 Nebraska Legislature passed LB329 (Neb. Rev. Stat. §46-1304) which, in part, directed the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) to report on groundwater quality monitoring in Nebraska. Reports have been issued annually since December 2001. The text of the statute applicable to this report follows: “The Department of Environmental Quality shall prepare a report outlining the extent of ground water quality monitoring conducted by natural resources districts during the preceding calendar year. The department shall analyze the data collected for the purpose of determining whether or not ground water quality is degrading or improving and shall present the …

Eight Principles Of Uncertainty For Life Cycle Assessment Of Biofuel Systems, Adam J. Liska

Adam Liska Papers

New environmental regulations in the USA and Europe require a reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from transportation fuels as a component of climate change mitigation policy. The US Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) requires GHG emission reductions from the life cycles of biofuels compared to gasoline, by 20% for ethanol from maize grain (maize-ethanol), 60% for cellulosic ethanol, and 50% for other advanced biofuels. To determine these reductions, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employs life cycle assessment (LCA) methods which were not used previously in national environmental regulations. These regulations, entitled the “Renewable Fuel Standard …

2015 Nebraska Water Monitoring Programs Report, Marty Link, Ryan Chapman

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality: Reports

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) is charged with monitoring, assessing, and to the extent possible, managing the state’s water resources. The purpose of this work is to protect and maintain high quality water and encourage or execute activities to improve poor water quality. Monitoring is done on nearly 17,000 miles of flowing rivers and streams, more than 134,000 acres of surface water in lakes and reservoirs, as well as the vast storage of groundwater in Nebraska’s aquifers.

Multistage Concentration Of Cenospheres In Fly Ash Using The Inverted Reflux Classifier, A. Kiani, J. Zhou, K.P. Galvin

Coal Combustion and Gasification Products Journal Archive

Cenospheres are one of the most valuable components found in the fly ash waste of coal-fired power stations, consisting of hollow, aluminosilicate spherical shells and offering very low bulk density, high strength, and high thermal resistance. Although wet processing methods offer the best prospect for achieving recovery and concentration of the cenospheres, significant impediments remain for achieving satisfactory economics. This work was concerned with the recovery and concentration of cenospheres from fly ash using a novel system, the inverted reflux classifier (IRC), covering single and multistage processing. The system consists of a series of parallel inclined channels mounted underneath an …

Practical Guide For Metergates, Charles M. Burt, Daniel J. Howes

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

This document contains brief instructions on the use of special round canal gates called “metergates” for flow measurement.

Voc Emissions From Beef Feedlot Pen Surfaces As Affected By Within-Pen Location, Moisture And Temperature, Bryan L. Woodbury, John E. Gilley, David B. Parker, David B. Marx, Roger A. Eigenberg

Department of Statistics: Faculty Publications

A laboratory study was conducted to evaluate the effects of pen location, moisture, and temperature on emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOC) from surface materials obtained from feedlot pens where beef cattle were fed a diet containing 30% wet distillers grain plus solubles. Surface materials were collected from the feed trough (bunk), drainage, and raised areas (mounds) within three feedlot pens. The surface materials were mixed with water to represent dry, wet, or saturated conditions and then incubated at temperatures of 5, 15, 25 and 35 C. A wind tunnel and gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer were used to collect and quantify …

Characterization Of Dimethyl Sulfoxide-Treated Wool And Enhancement Of Reactive Wool Dyeing In Non-Aqueous Medium, Luyi Chen, Bijia Wang, Jiangang Chen, Xinhui Ruan, Yiqi Yang

Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design: Faculty Publications

Wool pretreated with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) was characterized and its dyeing behavior in non-aqueous green solvents was investigated. Reactive dyeing of wool in deep shades is challenging because the mandatory alkaline aftertreatment to match the fastness of mordant dyes inevitably causes damage to wool keratin. The current study showed that the colorfastness-integrity dilemma could be solved by replacing water with organic solvents as the dyeing medium. Covalent fixation is predominantly favored in solvent dyeing so that excellent colorfastness is achievable at any given shade without alkali aftertreatment. Compared with aqueous dyeing, solvent dyeing was found to give 30% higher covalent …

The Myth And The Meaning Of Science As A Vocation, Adam Liska

Adam Liska Papers

Many natural scientists of the past and the present have imagined that they pursued their activity according to its own inherent rules in a realm distinctly separate from the business world, or at least in a realm where business tended to interfere with science from time to time, but was not ultimately an essential component, ‘because one thought that in science one possessed and loved something unselfish, harmless, self-sufficient, and truly innocent, in which man’s evil impulses had no part whatever’, as Nietzsche once commented (Nietzsche 1974, p.106). With the extreme technological changes that have occurred in the last fifty …

Flow, Spray Pattern, And Droplet Spectra Characteristics Of An Electronically Actuated Variable-Orifice Nozzle, Joe D. Luck, Santosh Pitla, M. P. Sama, S. A. Shearer

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate the flow rate, spray pattern, and droplet spectra characteristics of an actively controlled variable-orifice nozzle at constant carrier pressures. A commercially available variable- orifice nozzle (VariTarget) was modified to allow for direct electromechanical control of the metering stem. The modified system was tested at five carrier pressures ranging from 138 to 414 kPa and five metering stem (and thus orifice) positions. The metering stem position range was chosen because it provided a linear response in flow rate at each carrier pressure. Flow rate testing indicated a turndown ratio of 2.4:1 …

Strengthening Black Cotton Soil With Fly Ash And Moorum: An Investigation Of The Role Of Subgrade And Subbase Layers, Gourav Saxena, Nikhlesh Chaurasia

Coal Combustion and Gasification Products Journal Archive

One of the most effective and economical methods to strengthen clayey soils is addition of stabilizing agents such as fly ash to the soil. In this study, highly plastic clay was stabilized using fly ash. Geotechnical properties such as Atterberg limits, unconfined compressive strength (UCS), and the California bearing ratio (CBR) value of virgin black cotton soil and soil treated with fly ash were evaluated. Soil was stabilized with various proportions of fly ash, i.e., at 0%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 30%. The UCS of black cotton soil–fly ash mixes is found to be at its maximum at 20% fly …

Using Coal Fly Ash In Agriculture: Combination Of Fly Ash And Poultry Litter As Soil Amendments For Bioenergy Feedstock Production, E. Kudjo Dzantor, Ekundayo Adeleke, Vanaha Kankarla, Oluwatosin Ogunmayowa, Dafeng Hui

Coal Combustion and Gasification Products Journal Archive

Increasing fiscal, human, and environmental costs of coal fly ash (FA) management are leading to advocacy for greater beneficial uses of the by-products as soil amendments in agriculture. Greenhouse experiments were conducted in Armour silt loam (ASL) soil that was amended with FA (10%, wt/wt) with and without poultry litter (PL 5 75 mg N/kg). Biomass productivity of eastern gamagrass (GG), a warm-season perennial grass, was measured to serve as complementary biofuel feedstock to switchgrass (SG). FA was obtained from a site at the 2008 ash spill in Kingston, TN. GG and SG were grown individually in 15-cm-wide 3 41-cm-high …

Sediment Organic Carbon Fate And Transport In A Fluviokarst Watershed In The Bluegrass Region, Admin Husic

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Mature karst topography is well recognized within the hydrology and geology communities to include subterranean fluid pathways that act as turbulent conduits conveying fluid from surface stream sinks called swallets to sources called springs. However, we find that little knowledge has been reported with regards to the transport and fate of terrestrially-derived sediment organic carbon (SOC) within karst watersheds. This study investigated the hypothesis that karst pathways could act as biologically active conveyors of SOC that temporarily store sediment, turnover carbon at higher rates than otherwise considered, and recharge depleted SOC back to the surface stream within the fluvial system. …