Digital Commons Network^™

Soft X-Ray And Susceptibility Based Magnetic Resonance Imaging To Map Iron Distribution In Apples: Initial Results To Model Iron Storage In Water-Deficient Or Dehydrated Biological Tissue, Subhendra Sarkar, Eric Lobel, Evans Lespinasse, Zoya Vinokur, Analia Basilicata, Sonia Orellana, Maria Orellana, Aaliyah Salmon, Joanna Syska, Aravis Mcbroom, Jian Wang, Anam Riaz, Jody-Ann Douglas

Publications and Research

Radiology departments have contributed significantly to greenhouse gases including release of toxic imaging contrast media to environment. We feel Radiology also has several spectroscopy and imaging tools that may apply to monitor and support cleaner environmental goals. The current manuscript is one of the firsts to prompt Radiology to move in that direction by non-invasive imaging of bio metals that are less abundant in biological tissues but play key roles as co-factors in tissue structure and function. Conventional analytical tools are mostly invasive and cannot characterize the native oxidation states of bio metals. We chose carbohydrate matrix of metal-rich fruits …

Biocybersecurity And Deterrence: Hypothetical Rwandan Considerations, Issah Samori, Gbadebo Odularu, Lucas Potter, Xavier-Lewis Palmer

Community & Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Digitalization and sustainability are popular words within modern disciplines as practitioners each look toward the future of their respective fields. Specifically for the African continent, which is making great strides in developmental targets, those two terms are central to core aspects of policy initiatives that may foster cooperation across its varied lands and nations. One of the underlying challenges that confront Africa is a lack of strong regional integration across socioeconomic and political programs; there is value in African regions having more regional connectedness. We assess the rate of regional integration and development in Africa and discuss how to alleviate …

Social Media-Based Crisis Communication: Analysis Of Twitter Data From Local Agencies During Hurricane Irma, Naiyara Noor

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

As social media platforms have become vital means of communications, it has become imperative for emergency managers and policy makers to understand how people are interacting with different agencies on these platforms for enhancing community response coordination during disasters. Although many public agencies have already adopted social media platforms for crisis communication purposes, empirical evidence on whether and how these agencies are effectively engaged on these platforms is lacking. This research aims to examine crisis communication activities of a variety of agencies on Twitter in response to Hurricane Irma in 2017. In this study, we analyzed 13,353 hurricane-related tweets posted …

A Process Intensification Approach To Improve Volatile Fatty Acids Production, Extraction, And Valorization, Can Liu

Theses and Dissertations--Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a widely used biowaste conversion method. Recent studies have explored arrested methanogenesis as an alternative approach to leverage existing AD facilities and produce volatile fatty acids (VFAs) instead of biogas. VFAs have been recognized as precursors for a range of value-added chemicals and bioproducts. Arrested methanogenesis involves inducing acidic fermentation by halting the AD process before methanogenesis. It has been found that higher organic loading and thermophilic conditions enhance VFA accumulation and stabilize the acidic fermentation (AF) system.

Brewer's spent grain (BSG), a significant by-product of the brewing industry, was employed as the feedstock for VFA …

Swosu Research And Scholarly Activity Fair 2023, Swosu Office Of Sponsored Programs

SWOSU Research and Scholarly Activity Fair Programs

On behalf of the members of the University Research and Scholarly Activity Committee (USRAC) and the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) at Southwestern Oklahoma State University (SWOSU) - Welcome to the Thirtieth SWOSU Research and Scholarly Activity Fair! There are 77poster presentations and 2 oral presentations involving over 130 student and faculty researchers, writers, presenters, artists, collaborators, and faculty sponsors encompassing activities from the SWOSU College of Pharmacy; SWOSU School of Nursing & Allied Health Sciences; and SWOSU Departments of Allied Health Sciences; Art, Communication & Theatre; Biological Sciences; Business; Computer Science; Chemistry & Physics; Engineering Technology; Language & Literature; …

A Critical Approach To Engineering Mathematics Activities For Sustainable Development, Matheus Oliveira De Andrade, Mariam Makramalla

Practice Papers

Engineering projects are frequently experienced through the complexity of knowledge co-production between experts and local communities. This involves an ability to work critically and creatively within unfamiliar epistemologies, drawing from quantitative, social and scientific methods to realise high-impact solutions. In this work-in-progress paper, we put forward a prototype for a case-control study aiming to evaluate student buy-in and learning outcomes for a cross-cultural implementation of critical mathematics approaches contextualised by sustainability challenges. We outline and discuss aspects of mathematical modelling activities that can scaffold an environment where human subjectivity amplifies the quality and relevance of quantitative arguments. As proof-of-concept, we …

Impact Of Covid-19 Nationwide Lockdowns And Unlock Phases In India On River Water Quality Of Upper Part Of The Ganga River, Dhara Kakwani, Abha Kumari, Kumar Suranjit Prasad, Bablu Prasad

Applied Environmental Research

The river water quality index (RWQI) of the upper Ganga canal has been computed to assess the effect of lockdown and unlock phases lead down by COVID-19 in India. Geospatial distribution of RWQI from January 2019 to December 2021 in the study area revealed significant impacts of lockdown on water quality. However, unlock phases (post lockdown) have deteriorated water quality since August 2020 and reached to actual conditions of the river by August 2021. To evaluate the lockdown as a management strategy to clean the river, other factors were reviewed including rainfall data, migration, and other activities. The results revealed …

Emotions In Engineering Education (Chapter 8), James L. Huff Ph.D., Johanna Lonngren, Ines Dirieto, Roland Tormey

Faculty Research and Publications

Contrary to common stereotypes, engineering education and practice are not purely rational activities. Emotions, just like cognition, play important roles in teaching, learning, and professional practice. Today, there is a nascent body of research exploring emotions in engineering education (EEE). However, much of the existing research does not adequately theorize emotions, and the range of theories and methods used is still relatively narrow. With this chapter, we hope to inspire more investigators to conduct EEE research and to explore currently underutilized theories, methods, and research foci. This chapter introduces the reader to the multidisciplinary field of emotion research, then focus …

Developing Cost-Effective Specialty Adsorbents To Meet The Emerging Challenges Of Pollutant Removal In Surface Water Systems, Diana Ordonez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The production of clean water is emphasized under the United Nations goals for sustainable development (SDGs), enlightening the acute need of developing new sustainable technologies in all disciplines. SDGs have urged all engineers in the 21st century to mitigate pollution of drinking water sources and prevent all receiving waterbodies from the impact of agriculture discharge, wastewater effluent, and stormwater runoff. Current water matrix constituents of concern include traditional pollutants (i.e., total nitrogen and total phosphate), natural organic matters (i.e., total organic carbon (TOC), tannic acid), heavy metals (i.e., copper, calcium), and harmful algae toxins (i.e., microcystin), as well as contaminants …

Fundraiser, Yasmeen Begum

All Capstone Projects

We are thinking of creating a website that allows individuals to raise money for a variety of occasions, including life milestones like graduations and celebrations as well as difficult situations like accidents and diseases. Users must create an account in order to request money from website subscribers since many of them will assist those in need. The site has to be pushed more on social media platforms such Advertisement Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook Pages so that our website may reach more people online. Admin will handle the users and campaigns and receive a fee of 10% for each transaction.

To …

Radiation Shielding Effectiveness Of Hafnium Diboride (Hfb2) Reinforced Epoxy Composites For Enhanced Radiation Protection And Safety, Furkan Erdogan

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates the radiation shielding effectiveness of hafnium diboride (HfB2) reinforced epoxy composites, with the aim of enhancing radiation protection and safety in various applications. The study focuses on the development and characterization of HfB2-epoxy composites with varying weight percentages of HfB2 nanoparticles, as well as on the evaluation of their shielding effectiveness against gamma rays and thermal neutrons. The radiation shielding performance of the composites is assessed using gamma-ray spectroscopy and neutron counting, and the neutron attenuation efficacy is compared with that of 5% borated high-dense polyethylene. The results indicate that the HfB2-epoxy composites exhibit promising radiation shielding …

Eugenol, Menthol And Other Flavour Chemicals In Kreteks And ‘White’ Cigarettes Purchased In Indonesia, Joanna Cohen, Beladenta Amalia, Wentai Luo, Kevin J. Mcwhirter, James F. Pankow

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background Flavoured tobacco products are not restricted in Indonesia, a country with about 68 million adults who smoke. Most use clove-mixed tobacco cigarettes (‘kreteks’); non-clove (‘white’) cigarettes are also available. Although the use of flavour chemicals has been identified by WHO as promoting tobacco use, little has been reported for Indonesia about the levels of flavourants in either kreteks or ‘white cigarettes’.

Methods 22 kretek brand variants and nine ‘white’ cigarette brand variants were purchased in Indonesia during 2021/2022; one of the kretek packs contained three colour-coded variants, giving a total sample number of 24 for the kreteks. Chemical analyses …

Closing The Modern Irish Municipal Wastewater Phosphorus Cycle, Ciaran O’Donnell

Theses

Phosphorus (P) is an essential life-supporting nutrient for which there is no substitute. P naturally cycles within nature. Modern farming practice and food production have altered the natural P cycle. Successive crop harvests remove P from the soil as crops and transport them to urban areas to feed the population. To replace P removed from the soil through these crop harvests, mineral P fertilisers are applied to the soil to sustain crop production. Mineral P fertilisers are derived from finite phosphate rock. The European Union does not have an indigenous supply of phosphorus rock, which poses a significant issue for …

Exposure To Pcb126 During The Nursing Period Reversibly Impacts Early-Life Glucose Tolerance, Brittany B. Rice, Keegan W. Sammons, Sara Y. Ngo Tenlep, Madeline T. Weltzer, Leryn J. Reynolds, Cetewayo S. Rashid, Hollie I. Swanson, Kevin J. Pearson

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent environmental organic pollutants known to have detrimental health effects. Using a mouse model, we previously demonstrated that PCB126 exposure before and during pregnancy and throughout the perinatal period adversely affected offspring glucose tolerance and/or body composition profiles. The purpose of this study was to investigate the glucose tolerance and body composition of offspring born to dams exposed to PCB126 during the nursing period only. Female ICR mice were bred, and half of the dams were exposed to either vehicle (safflower oil) or 1 µmole PCB126 per kg of body weight via oral gavage on postnatal …

Investigation Of Endothelial Mechanics On Primary Cell Functions: Endothelium Permeability And Wound Healing, Sean Beverung

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The endothelium composes the inner lining of blood vessels, the heart, and lymphatic vessels. Within the cardiovascular system, it is an extremely important structure, aiding in the regulation of blood pressure with the vascular tone, recruiting immune response, regulating the transfer of material in and out of the bloodstream, and the creation of new blood vessels through angiogenesis. The endothelium is composed entirely of endothelial cells. These cells lay in a flat squamous formation and are in direct contact with blood and aid in the regulation and transfer of material in and out of the bloodstream via active and passive …

Electroanalytical Investigations Of Microrna-Conjugated Cerium Oxide Based Nanomaterials For Biomedical Applications, Chaimae El Ghzaoui

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Diabetes patients are increasingly suffering from wound-healing impairments coupled with other severe medical conditions. High levels of oxidative stress and proinflammatory cytokines are predominant pathologic characteristics of diabetic wounds. Applying microRNA (miRNA) in gene therapy often successfully treats various disorders by generating highly specific bio-responses. Studies revealed that microRNA146a (miR146a), a regulator of inflammation, is downregulated in diabetic wounds. However, miR203 is found to be highly-expressed in diabetic foot ulcers in positive correlation with disease severity. We have synthesized Cerium oxide nanoparticles (CNPs) since they are used in various biomedical applications due to their high enzyme-mimetic activities and reactive oxygen …

Extracellular Vesticles In Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: Understanding Protective And Harmful Signaling For The Development Of New Therapeutics, Matthew Bavuso, Noel Miller, Joshua M. Sill, Anca Dobrian, Ruben M. L. Colunga Biancatelli

Bioelectrics Publications

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a severe respiratory condition characterized by increased lung permeability, hyper-inflammatory state, and fluid leak into the alveolar spaces. ARDS is a heterogeneous disease, with multiple direct and indirect causes that result in a mortality of up to 40%. Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, its incidence has increased up to ten-fold. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are small liposome-like particles that mediate intercellular communication and play a major role in ARDS pathophysiology. Indeed, they participate in endothelial barrier dysfunction and permeability, neutrophil, and macrophage activation, and also in the development of a hypercoagulable state. A more …

Interactions Of Carboxylated Nanodiamonds With Mouse Macrophages Cell Line And Primary Cells, Maisoun Bani-Hani, Stephen J. Beebe, Michael W. Stacey, Christopher Osgood

Bioelectrics Publications

Nanodiamonds (ND) have attracted significant interest for their use in several biomedical applications. These applications can be very useful if the safety and compatibility of ND are proven. We assessed the effects of ND (100 nm, Carboxylated) on primary macrophages and a macrophage-like cell line and found that these particles are not toxic to these cells at lower concentrations but may interfere with cell functions and differentiation. Internalization of ND by these cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner was mostly via phagocytosis and clathrin-dependent endocytosis and localized to the cytoplasm but not into the nucleus. No significant induction of …

Pulsed Electric Field Ablation Of Esophageal Malignancies And Mitigating Damage To Smooth Muscle: An In Vitro Study, Emily Gudvangen, Uma Mangalanathan, Iurii Semenov, Allen S. Kiester, Mark A. Keppler, Bennett L. Ibey, Joel N. Bixler, Andrei G. Pakhomov

Bioelectrics Publications

Cancer ablation therapies aim to be efficient while minimizing damage to healthy tissues. Nanosecond pulsed electric field (nsPEF) is a promising ablation modality because of its selectivity against certain cell types and reduced neuromuscular effects. We compared cell killing efficiency by PEF (100 pulses, 200 ns–10 µs duration, 10 Hz) in a panel of human esophageal cells (normal and pre-malignant epithelial and smooth muscle). Normal epithelial cells were less sensitive than the pre-malignant ones to unipolar PEF (15–20% higher LD50, p < 0.05). Smooth muscle cells (SMC) oriented randomly in the electric field were more sensitive, with 30–40% lower LD50 (p < 0.01). Trains of ten, 300-ns pulses at 10 kV/cm caused twofold weaker electroporative uptake of YO-PRO-1 dye in normal epithelial cells than in either pre-malignant cells or in SMC oriented perpendicularly to the field. Aligning SMC with the field reduced the dye uptake fourfold, along with a twofold reduction in Ca²⁺ transients. A 300-ns pulse induced a twofold smaller transmembrane potential in cells aligned with the field, making them …

Repeatability Of Alkanolamines In Carbon Dioxide Capture After Mineralization, Titiwut Sirima

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The mineralization reaction between alkanolamines solution loaded with CO2 and calcium ions (Ca2+) produced calcium carbonate precipitate under an ambient condition, which reduced energy for thermal regeneration of alkanolamines solution. This work represented alkanolamines as monoethanolamine (MEA), diethanolamine (DEA), and triethanolamine (TEA). In addition, calcium chloride (CaCl2), calcium sulphate (CaSO4) and calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) were used as calcium sources. Utilization of calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) as a calcium source in the mineralization reaction resulted in the supernatant retaining its ability to capture carbon dioxide over 89%, which is similar to thermal regeneration. The mineral regeneration and the thermal regeneration can regenerate …

Small Objects Detection In Aerial Imagery For System-On-Chip Fpgas, Wimonthip Saenprasert

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) offer significant advantages in accessing remote or high-risk locations. Yet, they also present challenges concerning privacy and safety. Effective air traffic management is crucial for ensuring compliance with security regulations. The primary objective is to monitor the flight trajectories of target objects in the airspace, necessitating efficient object detection, especially for distant objects, to facilitate surveillance and preparedness for addressing potential threats. However, the current performance of existing models in detecting small objects is inadequate for real-time surveillance applications. This study advocates prioritizing object detection over precise prediction of object bounding box sizes. We propose a …

Influence Of Tidal Current On Heavy Metal Dynamics In The Chao Phraya River Estuary, Kansiri Silrat

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The Chao Phraya River estuary, a vital ecological and economic region in Thailand, faces significant contamination challenges due to anthropogenic activities. This study aims to investigate the influence of tidal currents on the dynamics of heavy metals (HMs) in the estuarine ecosystem, focusing on cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn). A sampling was conducted over two tidal periods on April 29-30, 2021, including both surface and vertical water samples and surface sediment collected at multiple tidal currents. The results reveal notable variations in HMs concentrations influenced by tidal cycles. For water samples, cadmium concentrations ranged …

The Production Of Encapsulated Holy Basil Oil Powder Via Different Scales Of Spray Drying Process., Chanakarn Chungmarisakul

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The spray drying process is widely utilized in food manufacturing and pharmaceuticals for products like seasoning powder, milk powder, and medicine. This research investigates the scale-up of the spray drying process from laboratory to commercial scale with maintaining the product characteristic. A key aspect of the study is the encapsulation technique applied to prolong the release of essential oils from holy basil, encapsulating the essential substances (liquid, suspension, or emulsion) in nanoparticle form with hot air flow. The study utilizes the Aspen program, incorporating mass and energy balance calculations for simulation. The results, assuming similar particle size, water evaporation per …

Process Design And Evaluation Of Value-Added Chemical Production From Crude Glycerol Obtained From Biodiesel Industry, Piyawan Thanahiranya

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Excessive glycerol, a major by-product of biodiesel industry, has been increasingly utilized as a platform chemical feedstock for production of value-added chemicals. Accordingly, this study aims to simulate the productions of propionic acid (PA), succinic acid (SA), and dihydroxyacetone (DHA) from glycerol via fermentation. For PA production, diluents and extractants as well as techniques in the back-extraction are investigated, whereas the techniques of reactive extraction and direct crystallization, as well as the use of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as an electron acceptor for SA production are investigated. Meanwhile, the effects of carbon source types and glycerol types on the DHA productivity …

Advanced Modeling And Innovative Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Coil Designs For The Treatment Of Neurological Disorders, Mohannad Tashli

Theses and Dissertations

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a safe, effective and non-invasive treatment for several mental and psychiatric disorders. TMS is an FDA approved treatment and is commonly applied to patients who do not respond to medications for the treatment of clinical depression, smoking cessation, obsessive-compulsive disorder and migraine. Recently, there has been an increase in the development of electromagnetic neuromodulation techniques targeted at enhancing the effectiveness of TMS devices for the treatment of mental diseases. In TMS stimulation, focality is an important factor which determines the specificity of the pulses induced in different brain tissues. The electromagnetic pulses must be confined …

Characterization And Decoding Of Speech Activity From Intracranial Signals, Pedram Zanganeh Soroush

Theses and Dissertations

Speech is the first and foremost means of human communication. Millions of people worldwide suffer from severe speech disorders due to neurological diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), brain stem stroke, and severe paralysis. A speech neuroprosthesis that decodes speech directly from neural signals could dramatically improve life for these individuals. Recent studies have demonstrated that it is possible to decode and synthesize various aspects of acoustic speech directly from intracranial measurements of electrophysiological brain activity. For those who have completely lost the ability to speak, the objective is to synthesize acoustic speech directly from brain activity during imagined …

A Label-Free Fiber Ring Laser Biosensor For Ultrahigh Sensitivity Detection Of Salmonella Typhimurium, Shi Qiu, Bin Liu, Yuankui Leng, Edward Fox, Xian Zhou, Binbin Yan, Xinzhu Sang, Long Long, Xingdao He, Jinhui Yuan, Gerald Farrell, Qiang Wu

Articles

The rapid detection of low concentrations of Salmonella Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium) is an essential preventive measure for food safety and prevention of foodborne illness. The study presented in this paper addresses this critical issue by proposing a single mode-tapered seven core-single mode (STSS) fiber ring laser (FRL) biosensor for S. Typhimurium detection. The experimental results show that the specific detection time of S. Typhimurium is less than 20 min and the wavelength shift can achieve -0.906 nm for an S. Typhimurium solution (10 cells/mL). Furthermore, at a lower concentration of 1 cell/mL applied to the biosensor, a result of -0.183 …

Pronostic Of Colo-Rectal Cancer (Crc) Using Machine Learning Models On Organoids Derived Of Patient, Claudia Andrea Leiva Acevedo

ICT

Colorectal Cancer (CRC) is a globally prevalent and deadly carcinoma, necessitating advanced treatment approaches. Despite ongoing advancements, the mortality rate remains high. Various biological models, including animal studies, cell lines, and the emerging organoid model, contribute to understanding molecular mechanisms. Organoids, 3D cultures derived from tumor epithelial cells, offer advantages such as enhanced diversity, genetic modification, and extended culture capabilities. Recent applications of machine learning (ML) in predicting CRC treatment responses using organoids and tissue data indicate a promising avenue for advancing personalized therapies.

Novel Nickel-Loaded Activated Carbon Cathodes For Hydrogen Production In Microbial Electrolysis Cells, Daniel Alejandro Moreno Jimenez

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) can electrochemically produce green hydrogen from waste streams. Although MECs are excellent options for implementing an energy recovery process while treating wastewater, the cathode side still hinders practical applications. Platinum (Pt) has been the top reference for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in MECs, however, Pt is not practical due to the high capital cost. Inexpensive nickel-loaded activated carbon (Ni/AC) cathodes were recently developed for replacing Pt in MECs and have shown comparable performance to Pt. This dissertation aims to breakthrough the current cathode challenges regarding the catalytic activity, manufacturing, and operational concept toward a cost-competitive scaling-up …

Business Meeting Report (Secretary's And Treasurer's Report), Academy Editors

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.