Digital Commons Network^™

A Decision Model For Nurse-To-Patient Assignment, Ilgin Acar

Dissertations

A critical consequence of the current nurse shortage in the US may be an increase in the workloads on hospital nurses. Heavy workloads have been identified as a major cause of job dissatisfaction among hospital nurses and may ultimately lead to a reduction in the quality of patient care. A focus on the balancing of the workload among scheduled nurses through patient assignments can help to alleviate the chance of assigning excessive workloads to one or more nurses during a shift. Nurse-to-patient assignment, the final stage of the nurse planning was the main intention of this study. It is reasonable …

Fringe Visibility Enhanced Extrinsic Fabry-Perot Interferometer Using A Graded Index Fiber Collimator, Yinan Zhang, Yanjun Li, Tao Wei, Xinwei Lan, Ying Huang, Genda Chen, Hai Xiao

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

We report a fringe visibility-enhanced extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometer (EFPI) by fusion splicing a quarter-pitch length of a graded-index fiber (GIF) to the lead-in single mode fiber (SMF). The performance of the GIF collimator is theoretically analyzed using a ray matrix model and experimentally verified through beam divergence angle measurements. The fringe visibility of the GIF-collimated EFPI is measured as a function of the cavity length and compared with that of a regular SMF-EFPI. At the cavity length of 500 μm, the fringe visibility of the GIF-EFPI is 0.8, while that of the SMF-EFPI is only 0.2. The visibility-enhanced GIF-EFPI may …

Using The Continuous Wavelet Transform To Characterize Differences Between Impact Signals From Non-Cleated And Cleated Turf Shoes, Wayne Robert Fischer

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The continuous wavelet transform was used to characterize the time-frequency differences between impact forces from non-cleated and cleated turf shoes among male football athletes who perform cut and run activities. This research is significant because it elucidates how athletes experience different impact force and torque frequency content based on the type of shoe they are wearing. The complex Morlet mother wavelet was used to analyze all ground reaction force and vertical ground reaction moment signals to create time-frequency power spectrum plots. For each signal, a statistical confidence interval was calculated and displayed along with the cone of influence caused by …

Impact Of Ground-Level Aviation Emissions On Air Quality In The Western United States, Eric Edward Clark

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The aviation industry has experienced sustained growth since its inception result- ing in an increase in air pollutant emissions. Exposure to particulate matter less than 2.5 µm in diameter (PM_2.5) has been linked to respiratory health problems because it penetrates deepest into human lungs.

This thesis focused on the concentrations of three secondary aerosol species (i.e., sulfate, nitrate + ammonium and organic carbon) as they relate to the formation of total PM_2.5. There were three goals of this research: evaluate differences in total PM_2.5 concentration as (1) ground-level aviation emissions (i.e., up to 3,000 …

Biodegradation And Bioremediation Of Hexachlorocyclohexane Isomers, Chlorinated Ethenes, Chlorinated Benzenes And Benzene, Vijaikrishnah Elango

All Dissertations

ABSTRACT
Groundwater at an industrial site is contaminated with γ -hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) and α-HCH (i.e., lindane) (0.3-0.5 ppm). Other contaminants in the 1-15 ppm range include 1,2,4-trichlorobenezene (TCB), 1,2-dichlorobenzene (DCB), 1,3-DCB, 1,4-DCB, chlorobenzene (CB), benzene, trichloroethene (TCE) and cis-1,2-dichloroethene (cDCE). The aquifer consists of a shallow layer of soil over fractured dolomite, where most of the contaminant mass resides. The objective of this study was to compare 1) anaerobic reductive dechlorination of the polychlorinated contaminants, followed by aerobic biodegradation of the daughter products (mainly DCBs, CB, and benzene); and 2) aerobic biodegradation of α- and γ-HCH, TCB, DCBs, CB and …

Osteoclast-Mediated Cell Therapy As An Attempt To Treat Elastin-Specific Vascular Calcification, Chartrisa Simpson

All Dissertations

Vascular calcification occurs during physiological aging and is clinically recognized as a major risk factor for myocardial infarction, systolic hypertension, heart failure and coronary insufficiency caused by loss of aortic recoil. Medial arterial calcification is an active remodeling process that involves the deposition of bone-specific matrix in close association with elastic fibers. Elastin, a major structural protein in the extracellular matrix of arterial walls, provides elastic recoil to the arteries. Increasing evidence suggests that vascular calcification share features with skeletal bone formation such as bone matrix deposition and bone resorption. Bone morphogenetic proteins and bone cells have been found in …

Design And Scale-Up Of Production Scale Stirred Tank Fermentors, Ryan Z. Davis

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In the bio/pharmaceutical industry, fermentation is extremely important in pharmaceutical development, and in microbial research. However, new fermentor designs are needed to improve production and reduce costs of complex systems such as cultivation of mammalian cells and genetically engineered micro-organisms. Traditionally, stirred tank design is driven by the oxygen transfer capability needed to achieve cell growth. However, design methodologies available for stirred tank fermentors are insufficient and many times contain errors. The aim of this research is to improve the design of production scale stirred tank fermentors through the development of dimensionless correlations and by providing information on aspects of …

The Utah Pilot Bridge, Live Load And Dynamic Testing, Modeling And Monitoring For The Long-Term Bridge Performance Program, Steven M. Petroff

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As part of the Federal Highway Administration's Long-Term Bridge Performance Program, Live Load and Dynamic tests were conducted. A long-term monitoring plan was developed and presented for the Utah Pilot Bridge based on Live Load and Dynamic tests. As one of seven pilot bridges, the Utah Pilot Bridge is one of the first bridges used to initiate the LTBP Program. A formal permit approval process, with the Utah Department of Transportation, was followed to gain permission to conduct the tests and install long-term instrumentation. Analysis provided good results for each test completed, with a summary of test results presented. A …

A Sustainable Business Proposition For Selling Irrigation Pumps In Ndola, Zambia, Robert Hosbach

Biomedical Engineering

Robert Hosbach is proposing a sustainable business plan to bring a small‐scale irrigation pump to rural Ndola, Zambia. With hundreds of thousands of citizens living in poverty and semi‐annual starvation, Ndola is in need of a means to grow crops effectively in the rainy season. Their current agricultural practices rely solely on the inconsistent rainfall during this time. My pump will be constructed from locally‐available aluminum cans, epoxy, glue, and fasteners (refer to Appendix B for technical drawings of the pump). The business will employ only a small number of Zambians, but will bring a means of food and income …

Equilibrium Studies And Kinetics Mechanism For The Removal Of Basic And Reactive Dyes In Both Single And Binary Systems Using Edta Modified Rice Husk, Siew-Teng Ong, Weng-Nam Lee, Pei-Sin Keng, Yung-Tse Hung, Sie-Tiong Ha

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

The potential of using ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid modified rice husk (ERH) to remove different types of dyes, namely basic and reactive dyes were studied. Sorption characteristic of ERH showed that it was pH dependent. The kinetics of sorption for both dyes was rapid within the first 60 min regardless of its initial concentration. Using the pseudo-second order kinetics model, the predicted uptakes of Methylene Blue (MB) and Reactive Orange 16 (RO16) agreed closely with experimental values obtained. Three isotherm models were used to fit with equilibrium data, namely Langmuir, Freundlich and BET models. It was found that the equilibrium fitted …

Thermal Analysis Of Railroad Bearings: Effect Of Wheel Heating, Lariza A. Navarro

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Catastrophic bearing failure is a major concern for the railroad industry because it can lead to costly train stoppages. Excessive heat buildup within the bearing is one of the main factors that can warn of impending failure. The work presented in this thesis is motivated by the need to understand the heat transfer paths to the bearing when wheel heating occurs. A series of experiments and finite element analyses were conducted in order to quantify the different heat transfer mechanisms, with emphasis on radiation. The results indicate that the effect of thermal radiation is minimal when the wheel tread temperature …

Security Vulnerability Evaluation Of Popular Personal Firewalls And Operating Systems, Sirisha Surisetty

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

In this thesis, experimental evaluation of security vulnerabilities has been performed under DoS attacks for popular personal firewalls from McAfee, Norton and Kaspersky; and for operating systems namely Apple’s Leopard and SnowLeopard, and Microsoft’s Windows XP and Windows 7. Our experimental results show that the firewalls and operating systems behave differently under a given DoS attack. Some of the firewalls crashed under certain DoS attacks especially when they were configured to prevent and block packets belonging to such attacks. Operating systems evaluated in this thesis were also found to have different built-in security capabilities, and some of them even crashed …

Assessment Of Impacts To Hydroclimatology And River Operations Due To Climate Change Over The Colorado River Basin, William Paul Miller

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation investigated the impacts of climate change to the hydroclimatology and river and reservoir management operations within the Colorado River Basin. Preliminary research indicated observed warming trends throughout the Colorado River Basin and corresponding seasonal trends to the magnitude and timing of runoff in the Colorado River Basin. Subsequent research investigated the changing character of precipitation and corresponding impacts to streamflow over the Colorado River Basin. Analysis of snowpack telemetry (SNOTEL) stations over the American West and Colorado River Basin indicated decreasing trends in annual snowpack, often at least at the 95% confidence interval. A shorter snowpack season was …

Ion-Exchange (Ix): Arsenic And Chromium Removal From Brines And Removal Of Inorganic Contaminants By Specialty Resins, Behrang Pakzadeh

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Although ion exchange is highly efficient in removing inorganic contaminants, similar to other water treatment technologies, ion exchange has some drawbacks that need to be studied further. Three issues related to drawbacks of ion-exchange resins in water treatment were addressed in this research. The first issue was the influence of anionic inorganic co-contaminants including nitrate, Cr(VI), Se(VI), and As(V) on the performances of nitrate and perchlorate specialty (selective) resins in water treatment. It was found that nitrate can be removed from waters using perchlorate specialty resins, but the resin is poorly regenerated. Perchlorate was not easily removed from either nitrate …

Use Of Passive Samplers To Evaluate Pharmaceutical Fate In Surface Waters, Delshawn L. Brown

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Emerging contaminants have been of importance in recent water research. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have proved ineffective at handling present-day antibiotic loads from hospital and municipal sources. Kolpin et al. (2002) performed a study that identified pharmaceuticals in numerous waters downstream from effluent discharge. Though present in trace levels, concern has been raised regarding pharmaceutical persistence in natural environments. In the present study, uptake rates were quantified in the laboratory for 25 pharmaceutical compounds using Polar Organic Chemical Integrative Samplers (POCIS). Twenty new uptake rates were determined for compounds that have no previously reported literature values. POCIS was also used …

Bs News May/June

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

An Evaluation Of Low Cost Fpga-Based Software Defined Radios For Education And Research, Abhilash M. Purani

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to evaluate a low-cost Software Defined Radio (SDR) platform for educational and research purposes. An evaluation of existing SDR platforms and design techniques was performed, identifying low cost hardware and software suitable for a laboratory environment. The idea behind the project is to provide undergraduate students with a generic hardware platform so that they can perform simple radio communication experiments. This paper compares and evaluates the existing research projects and educational lab experiments done for SDR. Basic AM and FM radios are created and simulated on the hardware. The detailed procedure to create a …

Characterization And Modification Of Helmet Padding System To Improve Shockwave Dissipation, Katelyn Howay

All Theses

Currently soldiers are being exposed a much higher number of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and the resulting shockwaves. These shockwaves can cause traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) even without the occurrence of ballistic impact. The focus of this research was to reduce the amount of shockwaves soldiers are exposed to by inserting fibers and woven fabrics into a foam padding system. These fibers and fabrics facilitate the dissipation of the shockwave energy before it is able to penetrate the padding and cause TBIs.
The sound velocity of high-performance fibers, commodity fibers and woven fabric was measured using a Dynamic Modulus Tester. …

College Of Engineering Senior Design Competition Spring 2010, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Fred and Harriet Cox Senior Design Competition Projects

Each student in his or her senior year chooses, plans, designs, and prototypes a product in this required element of the curriculum. The senior design project encourages the student to use everything learned in the engineering program to create a practical, real-world solution to an engineering challenge.

A highlight of the year-long senior design project is the senior design competition. This competition, which usually takes place the week before finals each semester, helps focus the senior students on increasing the quality and potential for commercial application for their design projects.

Judges from local industry evaluate the projects on innovation, commercial …

Computer Program And Method For Detecting And Predicting Valve Failure In A Reciprocating Compressor, Ming-Chuan Leu, Jagannathan Sarangapani, Raghuram Puthall Ramesh

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Embodiments of the present invention provide a method implemented by a computer program for detecting and identifying valve failure in a reciprocating compressor and further for predicting valve failure in the compressor. Embodiments of the present invention detect and predict the valve failure using wavelet analysis, logistic regression, and neural networks. A pressure signal from the valve of the reciprocating compressor presents a non-stationary waveform from which features can be extracted using wavelet packet decomposition. The extracted features, along with temperature data for the valve, are used to train a logistic regression model to classify defective and normal operation of …

2010 - The Fifteenth Annual Symposium Of Student Scholars

Symposium of Student Scholars Program Books

The full program book from the Fifteenth Annual Symposium of Student Scholars, held on April 27, 2010. Includes abstracts from the presentations and posters.

Women In The Aviation Industry, Maureen N. Mutisya

Senior Honors Theses

The Aviation industry has developed extensively since its establishment by the Wright Brothers in 1903. Over time, the highly male-dominated industry experienced significant changes to incorporate female aviators. Determined women initiated this process through participating in the aircraft engineering sector and pursuing careers as pilots. However, these women faced various challenges, which resulted in setbacks to their effective growth in the industry. In fact, vital issues encountered in the past are still present and often overlooked in today’s aviation industry. Therefore, identifying these problems and proposing solutions with effective corrective measures is necessary to increase and motivate female pilots globally.

Newsletter 41 Issue 1 - Spring 2010 - Nuts And Bolts, Larsen Tractor Museum

Friends of the Larsen Tractor Museum

No abstract provided.

Development Of Mechanical Cardiovascular Assist Devices For Fontan Patients: Two Novel Approaches, Sonya Bhavsar

Theses and Dissertations

Few therapeutic alternatives exist for patients with a failing single ventricle physiology. To address this need, this thesis project investigated two new therapeutic alternatives, which sought to positively augment the Fontan hemodynamics. The first modality introduced a non-invasive method of external pressure application to the lower extremities. A clinical study (n=2) was conducted, and results indicated an increase in flow as a consequence to an increase in transmural pressure in the lower extremities. The second modality investigated a minimally invasive blood pump. Numerical analyses of the pump were performed to examine hydraulic performance under physiologic conditions. The pump produced pressure …

Particle Image Velocimetry Measurements Of The Total Cavopulmonary Connection With Circulatory Flow Augmentation, Steven Chopski

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis project examined the interactive fluid dynamics between a blood pump and the univentricular Fontan circulation. 2-D particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements were conducted on an idealized total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) with an axial pump prototype in the inferior vena cava (IVC). Fluid velocity profiles were examined under various physiologic conditions for Fontan patients. The velocity profiles for all cases demonstrated the shunting of flow from the IVC toward the right pulmonary artery. A rotational component in the pump outflow was observed forcing flow to the periphery as compared to the flow profile without a pump present in the …

Maintenance Optimization For Substations With Aging Equipment, Haifeng Ge

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Today’s electric utilities are confronted with a myriad of challenges that include aging infrastructure, enhanced expectation of reliability, reduced cost, and coping effectively with uncertainties and changing regulation requirements. Utilities rely on Asset Management programs to manage inspections and maintenance activities in order to control equipment conditions. However, development of strategies to make sound decisions in order to effectively improve equipment and system reliability while meeting constraints such as a maintenance budget is a challenge.

The primary objective of this dissertation is to develop models and algorithms to study the impact of maintenance toward equipment/system reliability and economic cost, and …

Optimization And Evaluation Of A Proportional Derivative Controller For Planar Arm Movement, Kathleen M. Jagodnik, Antonie J. Van Den Bogert

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

In most clinical applications of functional electrical stimulation (FES), the timing and amplitude of electrical stimuli have been controlled by open-loop pattern generators. The control of upper extremity reaching movements, however, will require feedback control to achieve the required precision. Here we present three controllers using proportional derivative (PD) feedback to stimulate six arm muscles, using two joint angle sensors. Controllers were first optimized and then evaluated on a computational arm model that includes musculoskeletal dynamics. Feedback gains were optimized by minimizing a weighted sum of position errors and muscle forces. Generalizability of the controllers was evaluated by performing movements …

Synthesis Of An Endothelial Cell Mimicking Surface Containing Thrombomodulin And Endothelial Protein C Receptor, Karl E. Kador

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Synthetic materials for use in blood contacting applications have been studied for many years with limited success. One of the main areas of need for these materials is the design of synthetic vascular grafts for use in the hundreds of thousands of patients who have coronary artery bypass grafting, many without suitable veins for autologous grafts. The design of these grafts is constrained by two common modes of failure, the formation of intimal hyperplasia (IH) and thrombosis. IH formation has been previously linked to a mismatching of the mechanical properties of the graft and has been overcome by creating grafts …

Wright State University Celebration Of Research, Scholarship And Creative Activities 2010 Book Of Abstracts, Wright State University Office Of Undergraduate Research And Stemm Activities

Celebration of Undergraduate & Graduate Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activities Materials

The student abstract booklet is a compilation of abstracts from students' oral and poster presentations at Wright State University's inaugural Celebration of Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities on April 16, 2010.

Channel Characterization For Wireless Underground Sensor Networks, Agnelo Rocha Da Silva

School of Computing: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Wireless Underground Sensor Networks (WUSNs) are natural extensions of the established Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) phenomenon and consist of sensors buried underground which communicate through soil. WUSNs have the potential to impact a wide variety of applications including precision agriculture, environmental monitoring, border patrol, and infrastructure monitoring. The main difference between WUSNs and traditional wireless networks is the communication medium. However, a comprehensive wireless underground channel model for WUSNs has not been developed so far. In this thesis, the Soil Subsurface Wireless Communication (SSWC) channel model is developed based on an extensive empirical study in a large agriculture field. The …