Digital Commons Network^™

New Insights Into The Controls And Mechanisms Of Plankton Productivity Along The Us West Coast, Raphael M. Kudela, Neil S. Banas, John A. Barth, Elizabeth R. Frame, David A. Jay, John L. Largier, Evelyn J. Lessard, Tawnya D. Peterson, Andrea J. Vander Woude

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

During the lifetime of the National Science Foundation's Coastal Ocean Processes program, four experiments were conducted on the US West Coast in the northern California Current System. Although each project had a unique scientific focus, all four addressed the mechanisms causing eastern boundary current systems in general, and the California Current System in particular, to be biologically rich, from phytoplankton to apex predators. Taken together, findings from these projects provide new insights into the canonical view that upwelling systems are simple wind-driven "conveyor belts," bringing cold, nutrient-rich waters to the well-lit surface ocean where biological organisms flourish. We highlight new …

Daily Forecasts Of Columbia River Plume Circulation: A Tale Of Spring/Summer Cruises, Yinglong J. Zhang, Antonio M. Baptista, Barbara M. Hickey, Byron C. Crump, David A. Jay, Michael Wilkin, Charles Seaton

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Semi-operational daily forecasts of circulation from an observatory for the Columbia River estuary-plume-shelf system routinely support oceanographic cruises, by providing 24h-ahead estimates of plume location and structure for planning purposes and for near real-time interpretation of observations. This paper analyzes forecast skill during spring/summer cruises in 2004-2007. Assessment addresses both qualitative descriptions of major plume trends and features and quantitative representation of data from (primarily) vessel-based flow-through, cast and towed systems. Forecasts emerge as robust predictors of plume location and variability, with skill that has grown over time, at least in part due to improvements in model algorithms. When the …

Seasonal Variability And Estuary-Shelf Interactions In Circulation Dynamics Of A River-Dominated Estuary, Arun Chawla, David A. Jay, Antonio M. Baptista, Michael Wilkin, Charles Seaton

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The long-term response of circulation processes to external forcing has been quantified for the Columbia River estuary using in situ data from an existing coastal observatory. Circulation patterns were determined from four Acoustic Doppler Profilers (ADP) and several conductivity-temperature sensors placed in the two main channels. Because of the very strong river discharge, baroclinic processes play a crucial role in the circulation dynamics, and the interaction of the tidal and subtidal baroclinic pressure gradients plays a major role in structuring the velocity field. The input of river flow and the resulting low-frequency flow dynamics in the two channels are quite …

A New Method Of Synthesizing Black Birnessite Nanoparticles: From Brown To Black Birnessite With Nanostructures, Shizhi Qian, Marcos A. Cheney, Pradip K. Bhowmik, Sang W. Joo, Wensheng Hou, Joseph M. Okoh

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Research

A new method for preparing black birnessite nanoparticles is introduced. The initial synthesis process resembles the classical McKenzie method of preparing brown birnessite except for slower cooling and closing the system from the ambient air. Subsequent process, including wet-aging at 7◦C for 48 hours, overnight freezing, and lyophilization, is shown to convert the brown birnessite into black birnessite with complex nanomorphology with folded sheets and spirals. Characterization of the product is performed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and N2 adsorption (BET) techniques. Wet-aging and lyophilization times are shown to …

Performance Comparison Of Thermal Insulated Packaging Boxes, Bags And Refrigerants For Single-Parcel Shipments, S. P. Singh, Gary J. Burgess, Jay Singh

Industrial Technology and Packaging

A range of packaging solutions exists for products that must be kept within a specific temperature range throughout the supply-and-distribution chain. This report summarizes the results of studies conducted over a span of 2 years by the Consortium for Distribution Packaging at Michigan State University. Thermal insulation packaging materials such as expanded polystyrene, polyurethane, corrugated fibreboard, ThermalCor® and other composite packaging such as thermal insulating bags were studied. Phase change materials such as gel packs were also evaluated. Properties such as R-value, melting point and heat absorption were examined and are reported.

Biomimetic Self -Assembled Nanomatrix For Bone Tissue Regeneration, Joel M. Anderson

All ETDs from UAB

Bone is a dense, connective tissue with an extracellular matrix (ECM) comprised of biological and organic/inorganic biphasic matrices. For this study, novel peptide amphiphile (PA) nanomatrices were synthesized to mimic the native bone ECM and evaluated with human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) isolated from bone marrow. The ability of this nanoscale, biomimetic scaffold composed of PAs that are inscribed with cellular adhesive ligands to direct hMSC osteogenic differentiation without supplements, along with other cellular behaviors, was investigated. Typical osteogenic supplements include dexamethasone, β-glycerol phosphate, and ascorbic acid. The synthesized PA sequences were evaluated as two-dimensional nanomatrix coatings without the inorganic …

A Finite Element Study Of Piezoelectric Thin Films On Substrates, Bo Liu

Theses and Dissertations

The overall goal of this work has been mainly to advance the understanding of the degradation in the response of piezoelectric thin films after they are deposited on substrates. To have better understanding of the difference in the response between free standing piezoelectric films and those deposited on a substrate, we calculated the normalized "effective" piezoelectric coefficients for BT/MgO, PZT/STO and ZnO/STO respectively. We also studied the impact on the effective coefficients due to the components of the bulk material's piezoelectric coefficients. After studying the clamping effects of the substrate, lattice mismatch, stiffness of the films and the substrates, we …

Analytical Modeling With Decoupled Optimal Control Of Biomechanical Sit -To -Stand Movement, Asif Mahmood Mughal

Theses and Dissertations

Biomechanical movements with multiple degrees of freedom exhibit complex coordination and control mechanisms in the presence of physiological constraints. A human body biomechanical model which can mimic diverse 3D physiological movements is a challenging task. In this study, we develop a mathematical framework to study human sit-to-stand (STS) movement using 2D biomechanical models. This analytical framework models the physiological system for feedback controller design. A 2D 4-segment biomechanical model with optimal feedback controller design provides a motivation to extend this scheme for analytical 3D bipedal modeling. We used a newly developed mathematical modeling toolbox (Maple’s DynaFlexPro) to generate 3D 8-segment …

Integrated Optical Spr (Surface Plasmon Resonance) Sensor Based On Optoelectronic Platform, Hyungseok Bang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Current major demands in SPR sensor development are system miniaturization and throughput improvement. Structuring an array of integrated optical SPR sensor heads on a semiconductor based optoelectronic platform could be a promising solution for those issues, since integrated optical waveguides have highly miniaturized dimension and the optoelectronic platform enables on-chip optical-to-electrical signal conversion. Utilizing a semiconductor based platform to achieve optoelectronic functionality poses requirements to the senor head; the sensor head needs to have reasonably small size while it should have reasonable sensitivity and fabrication tolerance. This research proposes a novel type of SPR sensor head and demonstrates a fabricated …

Extended Focus Range High Resolution Endoscopic Optical Coherence Tomography, Kye-Sung Lee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Today, medical imaging is playing an important role in medicine as it provides the techniques and processes used to create images of the human body or parts thereof for clinical purposes (medical procedures seeking to reveal, diagnose or examine disease) or medical science (including the study of normal anatomy and function). Modalities are developing over time to achieve the highest possible resolution, speed of image acquisition, sensitivity, and specificity. In the past decade, advances in optics, fiber, as well as laser technology have enabled the development of noninvasive optical biomedical imaging technology that can also be applied to endoscopy to …

Electrical And Computer Engineering Research Report 2008, Department Of Electrical And Computer Engineering, Michigan Technological University

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Annual Reports

• Department
• Research
• New Chair
• Publications
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Pyrene Fate Affected By Humic Acid Amendment In Soil Slurry Systems, Y. Liang, D. Sorensen, Ronald C. Sims, Joan Mclean

Biological Engineering Faculty Publications

Background

Humic acid (HA) has been found to affect the solubility, mineralization, and bound residue formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). However, most of the studies on the interaction between HA and PAH concentrated on one or two of the three phases. Few studies have provided a simple protocol to demonstrate the overall effects of HA on PAH distribution in soil systems for all three phases.

Methods

In this study, three doses of standard Elliott soil HA (ESHA), 15, 187.5, and 1,875 μg ESHA/g soil slurry, were amended to soil slurry systems. ¹⁴C-pyrene was added to the systems along …

The Power Of Soil: Using It To Our Advantage, Judith L. Sims, R. Otis

Biological Engineering Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Biomedical Circuits And Systems Dedicated For Sensing And Neurostimulation: Case Study On Urinary Bladder Dysfunctions, Mohamad Sawan, Aguibou Ba, Faycal Mounaim, Jacques Corcos, Mostafa Elhilali

Turkish Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences

This paper covers circuits and systems techniques for the construction of high reliability biosensing and neurostimulation smart medical devices. Such microsystems are dedicated for interconnections through the peripheral neural systems. Case study related to applications such as bladder control is discussed. Available electrical neurostimulation techniques for the rehabilitation of urinary bladder functions do not allow an adequate voiding due to dyssynergia between the bladder and the sphincter. A new implantable stimulator, built with commercially available electronic components, was designed to overcome these difficulties. The proposed system performs two types of stimulations: Selective Stimulation for bladder voiding and Permanent Stimulation to …

Lipid Productivity Of Algae Grown On Dairy Wastewater As A Possible Feedstock For Biodiesel, Ian C. Woertz

Master's Theses

The objective of this thesis is to develop a biological wastewater treatment system that utilizes algal growth to simultaneously create renewable energy in the form of biodiesel and digester biogas, remove polluting nutrients, and abate greenhouse gases. Research under the Department of Energy Aquatic Species Program during 1978-1996 concluded that cultivating algae for biofuels was cost prohibitive at that time and that an integrated approach should be studied that combined wastewater treatment with algal biofuel production. Nutrient removal, in particular nitrogen and phosphorus, from wastewater is a growing regulatory need and the use of algae cultivation could create a unique …

Mesenchymal Stem Cell Interaction With Nanostructured Biomaterials For Orthopaedic Applications, William Charles Clem

All ETDs from UAB

Orthopaedic implants fail when bone loss around the anchoring region of the prosthesis causes the components to loosen. A revision surgery is needed to replace worn components, and bone grafting is often required to fill the void caused by osteolysis. A solution for the problem of osteolysis may be the improvement of wear resistance at the articulating surfaces by substituting materials with greater hardness. This dissertation describes two strategies for increasing the surface hardness of titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V) implants, without increasing surface roughness or compromising osseointegration. The first strategy utilizes microwave plasma to induce titanium nitride formation by nitrogen diffusion. …

Monte Carlo Modeling Of Spatial Coherence: Free-Space Diffraction, Donald D. Duncan, David G. Fischer, Scott A. Prahl

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

We present a Monte Carlo method for propagating partially coherent fields through complex deterministic optical systems. A Gaussian copula is used to synthesize a random source with an arbitrary spatial coherence function. Physical optics and Monte Carlo predictions of the first- and second-order statistics of the field are shown for coherent and partially coherent sources for free-space propagation, imaging using a binary Fresnel zone plate, and propagation through a limiting aperture. Excellent agreement between the physical optics and Monte Carlo predictions is demonstrated in all cases. Convergence criteria are presented for judging the quality of the Monte Carlo predictions.

Final Report For Irrigation Water Quality Monitoring Of The Jordan River, 2008, Richard C. Peralta, Bassel Timani

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

The goal of the Jordan River Water Quality Project is to assess the quality of irrigation water removed from the Jordan River at three diversion locations: Jordan Narrows (JN), Cahoon and Maxfield (CM), and Jordan & Salt Lake Canal (JSLC). During 2008, Salt Lake City Corporation personnel took water samples on 12 dates from April 18 to September 25, 2008. Utah State University Analytical Laboratories (USUAL), an EPAcertified laboratory, performed water analyses on the samples. USUAL is located at Utah State University (USU) in Logan, Utah.

Optimal In-Situ Bioremediation System Design Using Simulated Annealing, H. J. Shieh, Richard C. Peralta

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

The presented procedure combines continuous simulated annealing (CSA) heuristic optimization with BIOPLUME II simulation for optimizing in-situ bioremediation system design. The design goal is to minimize the total cost of facility installation and operation needed to achieve contaminant plume containment and cleanup. System design elements include pumping rates and well locations. During optimization, pumping rates are treated as continuous variables, differing from previously reported simulated annealing combinatorial optimization for groundwater management. To improve computation efficiency, CSA annealing schedules employing four different temperature update functions (TUF) are contrasted. Each yields somewhat different optimal designs and requires different computation effort. An adaptive …

Treatment Of Aqueous Waste Streams At Eli Lilly - Alternatives To Incineration, Barry Hennessy

Theses

The aim of this project was to investigate the potential to treat liquid waste (secondary) from production processes at Eli Lilly with the emphasis on minimising the volume of waste sent for thermal oxidation. In addition, the project aimed to investigate if the chosen technology was diverse and potentially capable of handling waste streams from different processes. Membrane technology was identified as one of the most suitable technologies and trials were carried out on secondary waste from three production processes. The literature review and practical thrials aswell as assessment of trial results ran from October 2003 to June 2005.

All …

Generalized Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman Formulation-Based Neural Network Control Of Affine Nonlinear Discrete-Time Systems, Zheng Chen, Jagannathan Sarangapani

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this paper, we consider the use of nonlinear networks towards obtaining nearly optimal solutions to the control of nonlinear discrete-time (DT) systems. The method is based on least squares successive approximation solution of the generalized Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (GHJB) equation which appears in optimization problems. Successive approximation using the GHJB has not been applied for nonlinear DT systems. The proposed recursive method solves the GHJB equation in DT on a well-defined region of attraction. The definition of GHJB, pre-Hamiltonian function, HJB equation, and method of updating the control function for the affine nonlinear DT systems under small perturbation assumption are proposed. …

Object Detection And Classification With Applications To Skin Cancer Screening, Jonathan Blackledge, Dmitryi Dubovitskiy

Articles

This paper discusses a new approach to the processes of object detection, recognition and classification in a digital image. The classification method is based on the application of a set of features which include fractal parameters such as the Lacunarity and Fractal Dimension. Thus, the approach used, incorporates the characterisation of an object in terms of its texture.

The principal issues associated with object recognition are presented which includes two novel fast segmentation algorithms for which C++ code is provided. The self-learning procedure for designing a decision making engine using fuzzy logic and membership function theory is also presented and …

A Process Plan For Consensus Building In The Evaluation Of Nsgc & Epscor Native American Outreach Program, Jocelyn S. Nickerson, Brent D. Bowen, Henry R. Lehrer

Publications

The NASA Nebraska Space Grant (NSGC) & EPSCoR Programs at the University of Nebraska at Omaha have embarked on a unique educational journey known as the Nebraska Native American Outreach program (NNAOP). The NNAOP’s main objective is to encourage and motivate Native American students to be more competitive in mathematics and science. This program has allowed for a variety of educational and public outreach activities to take place. However, in order to continually provide effective support to Nebraska’s Native American community, NSGC & EPSCoR sought an evaluation technique for the NNAOP. To execute such an evaluation, NSGC organized the first …

Animal Microrna Target Prediction By Incorporating Diverse Sequence-Specific Determinants, Yun Zheng, Weixiong Zhang

All Computer Science and Engineering Research

More recent evidence has shown that access of animal microRNAs (miRNAs) to their complementary sites in target mRNAs is determined by more sequence-specific determinants than the seed regions in the 5' end of miRNAs. Although these factors have been shown to be related to the repressive power of miRNAs and used, in separate programs, to predict the efficacy of miRNA complementary sites, it remains unclear whether these factors can help to improve miRNA target prediction. We develop a new miRNA target prediction algorithm, called Hitsensor, by incorporating more sequence-specific features that determine complementarities between miRNAs and their targets, in addition …

Formation And Removal Of Pesticides And Pesticide Transformation Products During Water Treatment, Evelyn F. Chamberlain

Doctoral Dissertations

"A comprehensive suite of over 60 pesticides (herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides) representing a variety of classes at environmentally relevant concentrations (low µg/L) were screened for reactivity under typical drinking water conditions and dosages. The most common oxidants/transformation agents in water treatment systems were examined for reactivity including free and combined chlorine, chlorine dioxide, permanganate, ozone, hydrogen peroxide, ultraviolet radiation, and high pH (alkaline hydrolysis). Due to the broad nature of the study, pesticide compounds were analyzed as multiple mixes broken into two groups based on analytical methods, those analyzed by GC/ECD and those by LC/MS. Combinations of reactive disinfectant/oxidant and …

Seasonal Adaptation Of Vegetation Color In Satellite Images, Srinivas Jakkula, Vamsi K.R. Mantena, Ramu Pedada, Yuzhong Shen, Jiang Li, Hamid R. Arabnia (Ed.)

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Remote sensing techniques like NDVI (Normal Difference vegetative Index) when applied to phenological variations in aerial images, ascertained the seasonal rise and decline of photosynthetic activity in different seasons, resulting in different color tones of vegetation. The rise and fall of NDVI values decide the biological response, either the green up or brown down [1]. Vegetation in green up period appears with more vegetative vigor and during brown down period it has a dry appearance. This paper proposes a novel method that identifies vegetative patterns in satellite images and then alters vegetation color to simulate seasonal changes based on training …

Il-21 Limits Peripheral Lymphocyte Numbers Through T Cell Homeostatic Mechanisms., Shrimati Datta, Nora E. Sarvetnick

Journal Articles: Regenerative Medicine

BACKGROUND: IL-21, a member of the common gamma-chain utilizing family of cytokines, participates in immune and inflammatory processes. In addition, the cytokine has been linked to autoimmunity in humans and rodents.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To investigate the mechanism whereby IL-21 affects the immune system, we investigated its role in T cell homeostasis and autoimmunity in both non-autoimmune C57BL/6 and autoimmune NOD mice. Our data indicate that IL-21R knockout C57BL/6 and NOD mice show increased size of their lymphocyte population and decreased homeostatic proliferation. In addition, our experimental results demonstrate that IL-21 inhibits T cell survival. These data suggest that IL-21 acts …

Low Power Energy Harvesting And Storage Techniques From Ambient Human Powered Energy Sources, Faruk Yildiz

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Conventional electrochemical batteries power most of the portable and wireless electronic devices that are operated by electric power. In the past few years, electrochemical batteries and energy storage devices have improved significantly. However, this progress has not been able to keep up with the development of microprocessors, memory storage, and sensors of electronic applications. Battery weight, lifespan and reliability often limit the abilities and the range of such applications of battery powered devices. These conventional devices were designed to be powered with batteries as required, but did not allow scavenging of ambient energy as a power source. In contrast, development …

Matrix Decomposition For Data Disclosure Control And Data Mining Applications, Jie Wang

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Access to huge amounts of various data with private information brings out a dual demand for preservation of data privacy and correctness of knowledge discovery, which are two apparently contradictory tasks. Low-rank approximations generated by matrix decompositions are a fundamental element in this dissertation for the privacy preserving data mining (PPDM) applications. Two categories of PPDM are studied: data value hiding (DVH) and data pattern hiding (DPH). A matrix-decomposition-based framework is designed to incorporate matrix decomposition techniques into data preprocessing to distort original data sets. With respect to the challenge in the DVH, how to protect sensitive/confidential attribute values without …

The Annotation Of Traditional Irish Dance Music Using Matt2 And Tansey, Bryan Duggan, Brendan O'Shea, Mikel Gainza

Conference papers

Currents estimates put the canon of traditional Irish dance tunes at least 7,000 compositions. Given this diversity, a common problem faced by musicians and ethnomusicologists is identifying tunes from recordings. This is evident even in the number of commercial recordings whose title is gan ainm (without name). This work attempts to solve this problem by developing a Content Based Music Information Retrieval (CBMIR) System adapted to the characteristics of traditional Irish music. A system is presented called MATT2 (Machine Annotation of Traditional Tunes) whose primary goal is to annotate recordings of traditional Irish dance music with useful meta-data including tune …