Digital Commons Network^™

Managing Risks Under Nuclear Power Plant Projects: A Latent Similarity-Guided Contract Customization, Mariam Elazhary, Islam H. El-Adaway

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Global energy is transforming, with nuclear power emerging as a pivotal player in achieving sustainable and low-carbon energy goals. The nature of nuclear technology introduces unique challenges, such as stringent safety and environmental requirements. Existing studies focus on general risk identification, such as supply chain delays, cost overruns, and public perception issues. However, these studies fail to address integrating these risks into tailored contractual provisions, which are critical for navigating the unique challenges of nuclear projects. The goal of this paper is to examine how standard construction contracts can be tailored to better accommodate the risks inherent in nuclear power …

Understanding The Structural Drivers Of Useful Exergy Intensity, João Santos, Tiago Domingos, Tânia Sousa, Matthew Kuperus Heun, André Serrenho

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

Energy-Economy Decomposition Analysis Across 112 Countries 1971-2020

Evolution And Prospects Of Polarization Image Simulation Technology, Gengpeng Li, Wei Cai, Zhiyong Yang, Zhili Zhang, Xiaowei Wang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Polarization image simulation technology is a key means to break through the bottleneck of polarization data acquisition and promote the development of polarization vision. This study systematically reviewed three evolutionary paradigms of this technology: Physical mechanism simulation, based on the polarization bidirectional reflectance distribution function and polarization ray tracing, strictly solves polarization light transmission, which has high interpretability and credibility, but it is computationally complex and lacks visual realism. Data-driven simulation, using models like neural radiance fields to learn polarization appearance from data, has high generation efficiency and visual fidelity but weaker physical consistency and interpretability. Physics-data fusion simulation …

Mbse Design And Approach-Phase Operational Simulation Of Bdsbas Airborne Receiver, Ruihua Liu, Tongwei Wang, Zan Ma

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: In view of the problem that traditional document-based design methods are difficult to effectively capture the dynamic characteristics and internal interactions in navigation accuracy and integrity assurance required by BeiDou satellite-based augmentation system (BDSBAS) airborne receivers during the approach phase, which easily leads to designs deviating from actual requirements and affects system performance, a model-based systems engineering(MBSE) method was introduced. A multi-dimensional system architecture model encompassing system requirement analysis, behavior description, structure design, and parameter constraints was established. Taking BDSBAS as the object, a co-simulation method of system modeling language and MATLAB for required navigation performance (RNP) was proposed, …

Optimization Of Convective Heat Transfer Parameters For Spindles Based On Finite Element Thermal Analysis, Jiali Zhang, Haiping Liu, Qinsheng Jiang, Sina Dang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: In view of the low simulation accuracy of existing finite element models for thermal characteristics of spindles caused by ignoring the influences of geometric characteristics of convective surfaces and fluid flow patterns and often adopting constant temperature loading in the setting of convective heat transfer boundary conditions, this paper proposed an optimization method for convective heat transfer parameters of spindles based on finite element thermal analysis. Combined with the geometric shapes and spatial positions of various convective surfaces of the spindle system, the calculation criterion of the convective heat transfer coefficient was determined through dimensional analysis according to the …

Distinct Regulatory Dna Methylation Signatures Across Multiple Sclerosis, Neuromyelitis Optica, And Neurological Post-Acute Sequelae Of Covid-19, Syed Ilyas Munzir, Daniel B. Hier, Michael D. Carrithers

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Background/Objectives: Our prior epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) on multiple sclerosis (MS) identified myeloid-associated methylation signatures and an association with enhancer regions. Here we compared differential DNA methylation across three central nervous system inflammatory disorders: MS, neuromyelitis optica (NMO), and neurologic post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (neuro-PASC). Methods: Whole-blood DNA was profiled on Infinium MethylationEPIC arrays. Analyses included EWAS at the CpG level, differentially methylation region (DMR) analysis, and gene regulatory-element enrichment using Locus Overlap Analysis (LOLA). Limma linear models were adjusted for race, EPIC array version, age, sex, disease-modifying treatment class, and blood cell composition. Results: All three diseases were associated …

Jme 4110: Drill-Powered Beach Umbrella Anchor, Matthew Barton, Tanin Ramnath, Marquan Bailey, Zachary Van-Horn, Kaelin Mendoza

Washington University / UMSL Mechanical Engineering Design Project JME 4110

A common and potentially hazardous situation faced by beachgoers is when standard umbrella anchors fail to hold during wind gusts, causing the umbrella to potentially go airborne and injure nearby people. Existing anchors require manual operation, leading to inconsistent grip and no resistance to different wind directions. Our project is a motorized three anchor system that drives augers into the sand to ensure a consistent grip and security against the wind.

Jme 4110: Drill Powered Pressure Washer, Kathryn Keele, Ashley Givance, Reagan Grass, Andrew Ellis, Jacob Thebeau

Washington University / UMSL Mechanical Engineering Design Project JME 4110

This project focuses on developing a drill-powered pressure washer attachment that connects to a standard cordless drill and garden hose. The device uses the drill as its only power source to pressurize water for cleaning applications. This portable design provides a convenient, low-cost alternative to traditional electric or gas-powered pressure washers.

Study Of Onshore And Offshore Upwind And Downwind Wind Turbine Configurations: Performance Differences And Aerodynamic Characteristics, Ahmed Ismail

Mechanical Engineering Theses

The aerodynamic performance and loading behavior of large- scale wind turbines depend heavily on atmospheric inflow conditions and rotor orientation. While upwind turbines remain the most common design in the industry, recent progress in materials, aeroelastic modeling, and control systems has sparked renewed interest in downwind configurations. This study aims to assess how ABL characteristics and rotor orientation affect the aerodynamic performance of a utility- scale wind turbine. A CFD framework was built in ANSYS Fluent to model the NREL 5 MW Reference Wind Turbine. Transient simulations employed the SST k–ε turbulence model under various inflow conditions: uniform, onshore, and …

Numerical Investigation Of Shock-Induced Deformation Of Bubble-Laden Droplets, Juan Roldan

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Rain impact can be a source of surface erosion on hypersonic vehicles, and the severity of each impact depends on droplet velocity, mass, and final shape, all of which are set by how the droplet breaks up under shock loading. Real droplets are expected to carry entrained non-condensable gas (NCG) nuclei from their formation. This dissertation investigates whether the purely mechanical, pressure-driven response of these nuclei, independent of vaporization, is large enough to measurably alter the internal pressure field and early deformation of a shock-loaded droplet.

The droplet and surrounding gas are modeled with a compressible, diffuse-interface, axisymmetric Eulerian framework …

Adaptive Solar Energy Collection Fenestration Systems; Measured Performance On Test Cell Under Real Weather Conditions., Noel O’Neill

Doctoral

Buildings account for a significant share of global energy use, and improving façade performance is critical to achieving nearly zero-energy building targets. This research addresses the challenge of integrating multiple adaptive functions into a single façade system to reduce heat loss, harness solar energy, and provide dynamic environmental control. The aim was to design, construct, and evaluate an adaptive Multi-Functional Façade (MFF) that integrates vacuum glazing, switchable opacity glazing, and a ventilated cavity with active airflow control to provide façade insulation, heated fresh air, recirculated air, or exhaust ventilation.

A Solar Thermal Test Cell (STTC) designed to Passive House standard, …

Thermal Transport Tuning Via Nanoscale Hierarchical Frameworks For Fe2val Thermoelectric Materials, Apoorva Pradip Joshi

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

Waste heat represents a vast, untapped energy resource. Thermoelectric materials offer a promising route to harvest this energy by directly converting thermal gradients into electricity. The Heusler alloy Fe2VAl is a prime candidate for such applications because it is non-toxic and cost-effective. However, its intrinsically-high thermal conductivity severely limits performance. A detailed understanding of thermal transport mechanisms is therefore essential for improving its thermoelectric efficiency. This work examines the effect of atomic disorder on the thermal transport behaviour of Fe2VAl. We use germanium doping to introduce atomic-scale disorder and demonstrate a substantial reduction in thermal conductivity, from 28 W/m-K in …

Robot Remote Control Utility, Jeremy Cantu, Paul Uhlig

Systems Manuals - 2026

The purpose of this document is to describe the Robot Control Management Utility developed in the course of this graduate project. Information included in this document will include the background of the developed product, as well as the functional requirements, data structures, software modules, interface design, installation guide, and sample and troubleshooting guides.

The Neuropsychological Analysis Of The Effect Of Shame And Traumatic Memories In Paranoia: A Network Analysis, Anwesha Maitra

Clinical Psychology Dissertations

Paranoia is increasingly recognized as a multidimensional psychological phenomenon influenced by trauma-related distress, shame, maladaptive interpersonal experiences, and emotional functioning. Although these factors have been extensively associated with paranoia, their relationships with neurocognitive functioning, social cognition, and global functioning remain less well understood. The present study examined these relationships using traditional statistical analyses, network analysis, and machine-learning approaches in a non-clinical sample of 42 adults.

Participants completed self-report measures assessing trauma-related distress, childhood interpersonal experiences, shame, paranoia, depressive symptoms, fear of negative evaluation, self-esteem, and hostile attribution bias, in addition to a comprehensive neurocognitive battery, an emotion recognition task, and …

Advancing Social Media Analytics And Personalized Generation Via Transfer Learning, Discourse-Aware Modeling, And Collaborative Modeling, Gibson Nkhata

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Social media platforms have become central to information exchange, shaping public opinion across social, political, and economic domains. However, the massive volume of user-generated content, combined with its informal, nuanced, and often noisy nature, presents significant challenges for automated analysis and generation. Tasks such as stance detection, rumor verification, and personalized content generation are further complicated by sarcasm, evolving discourse structures, and diverse user preferences. Addressing these challenges requires models that can effectively leverage linguistic nuance, conversational dynamics, and collaborative user signals. Transfer learning has emerged as a powerful paradigm for improving performance in low-resource and complex language understanding tasks. …

Design, Fabrication, And Testing Of A Pdms-Based Nanochannel Using Nano Embossing, Cooper James Haskamp

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

DNA sequencing has become increasingly important in the field of biomedical research and clinical applications. Currently, the most well-established sequencing technique is ‘Sequencing by Synthesis’ with accuracy in the range of 99.2% to 99.74% and sequencing lengths of only 300 base pairs. Sequencing by Synthesis is a lab-based method that requires expensive equipment and fast parallel computing. It is not suitable for portable, on-site applications. A new technique known as ‘nanopore’ was developed to meet these requirements. Nanopore is an electrical sequencing method that relies on the translocation of a DNA molecule through a nanoscale pore, where the blockage current …

Sputtered Transport Layers Enabling Ambient-Air Processed Cspbi3 Perovskite Solar Cells, Shamik Datta, Md Abdul Kuddus Sheikh, Md Shazarul Islam, Mohammed Jasim Uddin, Hasina Huq

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Perovskite solar cells offer promising efficiency compared to traditional technologies. In this study, NiOx and ZnO were employed as charge transport layers using a magnetron sputtering process within a p-i-n architecture (ITO/NiOx/CsPbI3/ZnO/Au). This approach produced uniform, low-defect interfaces and supports low-temperature, scalable fabrication suitable for flexible substrates. Our investigation, using techniques such as X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), UV-Visible spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Atomic Force Microscope (AFM), revealed the formation of uniform layers deposited by the magnetron sputtering process. The photoactive CsPbI3 layer was deposited via a spin coating solution process. UV-Visible spectroscopy revealed strong absorbance in the wavelength range …

Design And Evaluation Of A Distributed Ticket Booking System Using Cqrs And Hybrid Consistency Models, Tai Nguyen Vo, Sangwhan Cha

Harrisburg University Other Works

This paper presents the design and evaluation of a Distributed Ticket Booking System (DTBS) built to handle extreme concurrency in high-traffic digital environments. Motivated by real-world failures such as the 2022 Taylor Swift Eras Tour sale—where 14 million simultaneous requests overwhelmed Ticketmaster—the system addresses the fundamental conflict between strong consistency and high availability under massive demand. The proposed solution adopts the Command Query Responsibility Segregation (CQRS) pattern to decouple read and write operations, and applies a hybrid consistency model grounded in the CAP theorem: a CP-oriented booking subsystem with Redis-based distributed locking, and an AP-oriented search subsystem using Elasticsearch for …

Advancing Sensing And Structural Health Monitoring Of Non-Conventional Space Structures, Scott Bender

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Future lunar and deep-space missions will require new structural concepts that reduce mass while maintaining reliability. Two technologies that have received significant attention are inflatable habitats and additively manufactured structures; however, challenges remain in their characterization, validation, and long-term monitoring. This dissertation investigates methods to improve the testing and sensing of these non-conventional aerospace structures through the use of advanced photogrammetry and embedded distributed fiber-optic sensors. A color-filtering digital image correlation technique was developed to isolate orthogonal strain directions in woven inflatable structures, providing improved characterization of biaxially loaded softgoods. In addition, methods were developed to embed distributed fiber-optic sensors …

Design And Modeling Of A Robotic Manipulator For Agricultural Explorations, Trent Thomas Powell

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis focuses on the modeling, design, and early testing of a spherical revolute revolute prismatic (RRP) robotic manipulator for probe based applications. The system is motivated by agricultural grain probing, where a probe is positioned over a truck bed and inserted into the grain to collect samples as trucks enter storage facilities, ports, hubs, or transfer points. A spherical RRP configuration is useful for this type of task because it provides a large accessible workspace while maintaining a relatively simple mechanical structure. A model based design approach is used to develop the system, beginning with forward and inverse kinematics …

Analysis Of Inhibitor Supply Control Systems To Prevent Hydrate Formation In A Low-Temperature Gas Separation Unit And A Method For Solving The Problem, Shakhzod Nurmuhammadovich Amirov Mr, Erkin Xxx Uljayev

Technical science and innovation

The article examines and analyzs patents, published scientific works, and currently used scientific and practical methods and devices for regulating the parameters of the low-temperature separation process in production. However, the conducted analysis showed that one of the main causes of hydrate formation in the device is the lack of continuous comprehensive control over parameters such as the pressure of the inhibitors supplied to the injectors at each stage and the moisture content of the total gas, i.e., the moisture content of the total gas at the system inlet, the gas temperature at the device outlet, and the pressure and …

Veribrief: A Multi-Agent Retrieval-Augmented Generation System For Policy Decision Support, Imane Bahji

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

VeriBrief is a multi-agent retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) system for evidence-grounded economic policy analysis. The system orchestrates a five-stage LangGraph pipeline, retrieval, research, analysis, synthesis, and critique, to produce cited, structured responses while detecting out-of-scope queries. An empirical evaluation on eight questions drawn from official U.S. macroeconomic releases compared VeriBrief against a single-pass RAG baseline. The multi-agent system achieved 100% refusal precision on unanswerable analytical queries versus 0% for the baseline. Unsupported claims fell substantially on answerable factual questions. A context-propagation defect discovered during evaluation was diagnosed and corrected. Limitations include failure of the evidence gate on policy-counterfactual queries and a …

Development Of Medical Device For Hypovolemic Assessment Using Peripheral Venous Pressure, Connor J. Breshears

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Accurate assessment of intravascular volume status remains challenging because traditional measurements such as heart rate, blood pressure, physical examination findings, and laboratory values may be subjective, delayed, or insensitive to early volume loss. Peripheral venous pressure (PVP) waveform analysis provides a potential approach for minimally invasive volume-status monitoring because PVP waveforms can be acquired from peripheral venous access and may contain frequency-domain information related to cardiac activity, respiratory modulation, vascular coupling, and intravascular filling. This thesis presents the development and evaluation of a proof-of-concept embedded prototype for PVP waveform acquisition and volume-status classification. The system integrates a Millar MEMS pressure …

Online Planning Of Power Flows For Power Systems Against Bushfires Using Spatial Context, Jianyu Xu, Qiuzhuang Sun, Yang Yang, Huadong Mo, Daoyi Dong

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

A power station or transmission line can be affected due to bushfires, increasing operation costs. We study a fundamental but challenging problem of planning the optimal power flow (OPF) for power systems under bushfires. We develop a model to capture the stochastic nature of bushfire spread based on Moore’s neighborhood model and propose an online optimization modeling framework to sequentially plan power flows in the electricity network. Our framework assumes that bushfire spread is non-stationary over time and that the spread and containment probabilities are unknown. To address these challenges, we develop a contextual online learning algorithm that treats the …

Coupled Effects Of Sub-Atmospheric Pressure And Surface Structures On Pool Boiling Performance And Hysteresis Pathways, Mohammad Ishraq Hossain

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The increasing power density of microelectronics has created a need for cooling technologies capable of maintaining low operating temperatures. Sub-atmospheric pool boiling of water is promising because reducing saturation pressure lowers the boiling temperature, enabling two phase cooling within electronics-relevant temperature limits. However, reduced pressure also affects CHF, HTC, and post-CHF recovery. In this work, pool boiling experiments were conducted on flat copper, microchannel copper, and micro-pin-fin copper surfaces over 10–100 kPa to examine the coupled effects of pressure and surface structure. CHF and HTC increased with pressure, while structured surfaces enhanced both relative to flat copper. Surface structure dominated …

Advancing Imbalanced Classification Through Representation Learning, Morteza Mohammady Gharasuie

Computer Science Theses & Dissertations

Real-world datasets frequently exhibit severe class imbalance, where certain categories are significantly underrepresented relative to others, leading standard empirical risk minimization to bias learning toward majority classes and degrade performance on minority categories. This dissertation addresses imbalanced classification across both structured tabular data and long-tailed visual recognition by developing methods that improve representation learning and decision reliability under skewed distributions. For tabular data, it introduces Conditional Probability Representation (CPR), a target-based encoding framework that embeds feature–label relationships directly into the representation space, enhanced by a progressive feature upgrading mechanism for semi-supervised settings and a class-frequency–aware extension that improves robustness to …

Sliding Mode Control In Grid-Tied Inverters: Techniques, Applications, And Future Directions, Taimoor Muzaffar Gondal, Asma Aziz, Daryoush Habibi, Iftekhar Ahmad

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Sliding mode control (SMC) has emerged as a robust and adaptive strategy for grid-tied inverters. It has unique attributes which make it an appropriate control choice under increasingly complex power systems. However, there are a limited number of review articles which comprehensively explore the true potential of SMC for grid-tied inverter applications. This systematic review has been structured to explore SMC techniques with respect to certain challenges, i.e., stability challenges, unbalanced conditions, low inertia scenarios, and harmonics distortion. The classification of various SMC techniques is presented with respect to their control law and sliding surfaces design. The comparative analysis indicates …

Hsv-1 Us3 Hijacks Conserved Actin Regulatory Complexes To Drive F-Actin Remodeling, Md Imran Hossain, Md Arifuzzaman, Md Mehedi Hasan, Seung Jong Park, Leila Rahimian, Ojasvi Dutta, Vladimir Chouljenko, Harikrishnan Mohan, Reza Ghavimi, Konstantin G. Kousoulas

Computer Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

The herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) US3 is a multifunctional serine/threonine kinase that promotes HSV-1 replication and spread. But its role and the mechanisms by which US3 regulates actin cytoskeletal remodeling remain poorly defined. We combined flow cytometry, confocal microscopy, immunoprecipitation-mass spectrometry (IP-MS), protein complex mapping, and machine learning to characterize US3-mediated F-actin dynamics. Flow cytometry and confocal microscopy showed that wild-type HSV-1 induces significant F-actin remodeling, while the ΔUS3 mutant displays F-actin levels comparable to uninfected cells, identifying US3 as a key regulator. IP-MS identified 47 high-confidence US3 interactors enriched in conserved actin regulatory complexes, including Arp2/3 nucleation machinery, …

Subspace Decomposition For Spatial Parameter Estimation, Arthur Grik

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Passive emitter localization is an important capability for wireless sensing, interference detection, and spectrum awareness. Classical timing-based localization methods estimate emitter position from differences in signal arrival time across distributed sensor platforms, but their performance depends on precise receiver synchronization and favorable signal bandwidth characteristics. This thesis investigates subspace-decomposition-based spatial parameter estimation as an alternative approach in which directional information is extracted from coherent antenna-array measurements. This work develops the theoretical foundation and signal-processing framework for angle-of-arrival estimation. Various spatial parameter estimators are presented as supporting array-processing methods before focusing on a well-known subspace-decomposition-based approach called the Multiple SIgnal Classification …

Anomaly Management In Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: A Systematic Literature Review, Ivan Tan Wei Han, Christopher M. Poskitt, Lingxiao Jiang, Lwin Khin Shar

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are increasingly deployed in safety-critical applications such as logistics, surveillance, disaster response, and urban air mobility. While their autonomy enables powerful capabilities, it also introduces vulnerabilities due to hardware faults, software defects, communication failures, and adversarial interference. This survey presents a comprehensive review of research studies closely related to UAV anomalies published between 2015 and 2025, covering 111 papers from academic and industrial sources. We introduce a unified five-pillar taxonomy—anomaly generation, prevention, detection, recovery, and analysis—that organizes existing work across the full anomaly management lifecycle. In contrast to prior surveys that focus primarily on detection algorithms, …