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A Feasibility Study Of A Wearable Health Monitoring Device Powered By Thermoelectric Generators, Sarah Schneider

Masters Theses

Implementation of thermoelectric generators (TEGs) as a power source for embedded systems has increased with the push toward alternative and renewable energy sources. Thermoelectric generators produce electrical energy from thermal energy through the Seebeck effect. The Seebeck effect is a phenomenon seen when a temperature difference at a joint of two different metals generates a DC current and electromotive force [1]. This has made TEGs desirable for embedded system applications because it would allow for extended wireless operation. TEGs are based on solid-state technology which means they do not consist of any moving parts which reduces wear and tear with …

Modeling Of Heat And Mass Transfer In Flat Heat Pipes, Salar Saadatian

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Phase-change phenomenon is ubiquitous in nature and widely utilized in thermal management of computer chips. Flat heat pipes have been extensively used in thermal management of microelectronic devices. However, existing research mainly concentrates on developing numerical models and lacks a systematic analytical approach to elucidate the working mechanism of flat heat pipes. We consider a horizontal flat heat pipe with an idealized porous wick. The pores in the wick are straight circular capillaries running along and across the wick and are filled with a liquid. The rest of the pipe is filled with its vapor. The mass evaporative rate at …

Mechanochemical Esterification Of Cellulose Nanofibers Lyophilized From Eutectic Water–Tert-Butanol Mixtures, Miran Mavlan, Taehoo Chang, Rudan Feng, Jake R. Wilkinson, Robert J. Nicholas, Nosa B. Idahagbon, Jeffrey Youngblood, Alexander Wei

Department of Chemistry Faculty Publications

Freeze-dried CNFs can be modified by mechanochemical (MC) processes with minimal use of auxiliary solvents, however aggregation of nanofibers during lyophilization compromises their granularity and reaction efficiency. Adding 10 wt% tert-butanol (TBA) to aqueous slurries of wood-derived CNF creates a eutectic mixture that reduces hornification during lyophilization, resulting in well-formed aerogels with minimal shrinkage in volume. CNFs lyophilized from mixtures containing at least 10 wt% TBA exhibit an order of magnitude increase in specific surface area relative to CNFs freeze-dried from water alone. The amount of TBA and input energy needed for lyophilization can be reduced considerably by dewatering …

On The Design And Power Output Response Of Hydraulic Wind Turbines, Helber Antonio Esquivel-Puentes, Andrea Vacca, Venkatesh Pulletikurthi, Ali Doosttalab, Jose Garcia-Bravo, David M. Warsinger, Leonardo P. Chamorro, Luciano Castillo

School of Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Standard horizontal axis wind turbines typically use gearboxes for large-scale applications and direct coupling for small-scale designs to connect the rotor to the generator. However, gearboxes pose challenges due to their weight, cost, and exposure to dynamic loads and vibrations within the nacelle. A promising alternative is replacing mechanical transmission with a hydrostatic counterpart, offering advantages such as reduced nacelle mass, generator placement at the tower base, and elimination of the gearbox. It can potentially lead to cost savings of up to 20% in the levelized cost of electricity for offshore wind turbines. This study compares regulated hydrostatic transmission with …

M²Brtpc: A Novel Modified Multimodal Biometric Recognition For Toddlers And Pre-School Children Approach, Mahmoud Bahzad, Labib M. Labib, Mostafa Elhosseini, Mahmoud Badawy

Mansoura Engineering Journal

A biometric system based on the characteristics of adults recently achieved an outstanding result. Over the last few decades, many applications have been developed for adults, such as fingerprint, face, iris, and hand-vein. Infant identification suffers from many problems and does not enroll all possible ages. Identifying children using one or any biometric features is the first step in ensuring that they are recognized before the law and that their rights are guaranteed. From another perspective, this prevents baby swaps in hospitals, Identifying Missing Children, and Civil ID Programs. This paper introduces an approach for Multimodal Biometric Recognition for Toddlers …

Improving Basic Cadet Training For Changing Environment: Case Study At The Korea Air Force Academy, Yoojin Kwon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Increasing uncertainty, such as Covid-19 and weather changes, threatens BCT (Basic Cadet Training) at ROKAFA (Republic of Korea Air Force Academy). In preparation for the changing and adverse environment, this study carried out the following steps to propose a system improvement utilizing LVC (Live, Virtual, Constructive) in BCT system at ROKAFA; 1) Researching the examples of BCT and LVC by advanced countries, 2) Analyzing BCT (ROKAFA) through systems approach (document analysis, survey of 140 cadets and officers, written interviews with military experts), 3) Applying LVC to BCT. BCT is a vital step in the transition from civilian to military status …

Flow Induced Vibration In Corrugated Metal Flexhoses, Patrick Tran

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

This study on flow-induced vibration provides valuable insights into the fundamental dynamics of fluid-structure interactions. The findings contribute to the development of predictive models and design guidelines for engineering systems susceptible to flow-induced vibration. By improving our understanding of this phenomenon, engineers can enhance the safety and reliability of various structures subjected to fluid flow, such as pipelines, flexhoses, and bellows. Flowinduced vibration is a phenomenon that occurs when fluid flow interacts with a structure, leading to oscillations and potentially causing mechanical damage. Understanding the underlying mechanisms and predicting the vibration characteristics is crucial for the design and safe operation …

Understanding The Mechanisms By Which Cable Sway Produces Motion Artifact In Mobile Electroencephalography, David Rojas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Mobile brain/body imaging utilizes electroencephalography (EEG) to record brain activity during human walking in dynamic environments. Motion artifact from cable sway affects the quality of EEG signals collected from the scalp, masking contributions of synchronously firing neurons. Previous studies have explored cable sway-induced motion artifact, but only during vigorous exercise or controlled sinusoidal motion. Therefore, a need remains to further understand the underlying mechanisms of this artifact, as it may help with developing real-time mitigation methods, reducing reliance on offline signal processing. In this thesis, I aimed to show that controlled cable sway could produce specific motion artifact waveforms in …

The Effects Of Microgravity On The Development Of Osteoporosis, Jackson Asiatico

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Previous research has identified a potential link between microgravity conditions and the onset of osteoporosis, a connection that stems from altered fluidic pathways crucial in nutrient dispersion and cell stimulation. Specifically, the absence of mechanical loading in space environments reduces fluid shear stress, thereby disrupting the normal flow of interstitial fluid in trabecular bone. This disruption greatly impacts the functionality of osteoblasts and osteoclasts, the vital cells responsible for maintaining healthy bones. The focus of this study aims to explore the impact of microgravity on bone loss in astronauts, establishing the connection between the lack of mechanical loading and the …

Course Experiences That Promote And Inhibit Human-Centered Design, Elizabeth A. Sanders, Molly Goldstein, Justin L. Hess

School of Engineering Education Faculty Publications

Engineers contribute to large-scale socio-technical challenges, and human-centered design offers a design thinking approach that helps engineers develop a thorough understanding of the socio-technical effects of their design work. Thus, effective strategies for assessing and teaching human-centered design are needed. This study aimed to identify course characteristics that influence how students experience human-centered design in an introductory systems engineering design course. First, we categorized open-ended written reflections to understand the degree to which students experienced human-centered design. Second, we performed a thematic analysis to characterize salient course experiences for two groups of students: (1) students who experienced human-centered design in …

Decentralized Sensor Fault-Tolerant Control Of Dc Microgrids Using The Attracting Ellipsoid Method, Ehab Bayoumi

Mechanical Engineering

System stability deterioration in microgrids commonly occurs due to unpredictable faults and equipment malfunctions. Recently, robust control techniques have been used in microgrid systems to address these difficulties. In this paper, for DC-islanded microgrids that have sensors faults, a new passive fault-tolerant control strategy is developed. The suggested approach can be used to maintain system stability in the presence of flaws, such as faulty actuators and sensors, as well as component failures. The suggested control is effective when the fault is never recognized (or when the fault is not being precisely known, and some ambiguity in the fault may be …

Design, Synthesis, And Characterization Of Peptide Amphiphile Biomaterials, Huihua Xing

Theses & Dissertations

Self-assembled peptide amphiphiles (PAs) have gained significant attention in recent years due to their ability to form various supramolecular nanostructures with unique physical and chemical properties. These amphiphilic molecules consist of a hydrophobic tail and a peptide domain, allowing for the formation of nanoscale assemblies in aqueous environments. The PA supramolecular structures have a wide range of potential applications, including drug delivery, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine.

By manipulating the driving forces (e.g., hydrophobic interactions, hydrogen bonds, and electrostatic interactions) involved in the self-assembly, researchers can tune the self- assembly properties (size, shape, stability, and surface character) and, consequently, the …

Influence Of Ultrasound Machine Settings On Quantitative Measures Derived From Spatial Frequency Analysis Of Muscle Tissue, Scott K. Crawford, Stephanie A. Kliethermes, Bryan C. Heiderscheit, Greg Bashford

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Background Ultrasound is a powerful tool for diagnostic purposes and provides insight into both normal and pathologic tissue structure. Spatial frequency analysis (SFA) methods characterize musculoskeletal tissue organization from ultrasound images. Both sonographers in clinical imaging and researchers may alter a minimized range of ultrasound settings to optimize image quality, and it is important to know how these small adjustments of these settings affect SFA parameters. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of making small adjustments in a typical default ultrasound machine setting on extracted spatial frequency parameters (peak spatial frequency radius (PSFR), Mmax, Mmax%, and …

The Effects Of Mechanical Strain On Vascular Calcification And The Canonical Wnt Pathway, Hannah E. Douglas

Theses and Dissertations

Cardiovascular disease is a significant health crisis, representing 32% of deaths worldwide in 2019. Vascular calcification (VC), a major contributor to cardiovascular disease, is a regulated biomineralization process whose exact mechanisms are unknown. Additionally, vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) significantly contribute to VC by undergoing a phenotypic switch and differentiating into osteoblast-like cells. When factors like hypertension cause disturbed laminar flow in the body’s vasculature, the mechanical stress promotes the phenotypic switch and calcification of VSMCs via mechanotransduction. VC is also induced by the Wnt pathway, which is activated via mineral imbalance and mechanical stimulation. However, the exact mechanisms behind …

Effect Of Environmental And Geometrical Factors On Microstructure, Desiccation Cracking, And Carbon Dioxide Flux In Clays, Charles Clayton Goodman

Theses and Dissertations

Studying the effects of extreme conditions, such as high temperatures and low humidity, on soil properties is important to various disciplines, including geotechnical engineering, soil science, waste management, crop management, and ceramics. The goal of this research is to investigate the effect of environmental and geometrical factors on microstructure, desiccation cracking, and CO₂ flux in clays. The objectives of this research are threefold. (1) Understand the effects of temperature on the microstructure of clay soils; (2) develop a standardized procedure for studying desiccation cracking in a laboratory setting with reliable and repeatable results; and (3) develop an environmental chamber …

Multi-Objective Design Optimization Of Two Configurations Of Ventricular Shunts For Hydrocephalus, Will Kirkpatrick

Theses and Dissertations

Hydrocephalus is developed when the flow of cerebrospinal fluid is obstructed in the ventricles and a pressure build-up is generated within the brain. Ventricular shunts are used to remove excess fluid from the brain, but these shunts have a common problem of failure due to the shunt being obstructed by the build-up of astrocytes. To address this, two sets of 27 designs of ventricular shunts were identified and analyzed with parameters that could potentially reduce obstruction risks. The performance of these designs was examined using fluid simulations on these two sets of 27 designs. One set explored close-tipped shunt designs, …

Ruggedness Test Of A New Standardized Test Method For Abrasion Resistance Of E-Textiles, Erin Parker

Theses and Dissertations

Standard test methods provide product developers with information regarding materials' suitability for different purposes. Typically, current standards are suitable for determining the mechanical properties of new materials. However, in the case of electronic textiles (E-Textiles) and wearable technology (wearables), adding conductive components with added functionality makes utilizing textile standards difficult, and these standards will not provide information on mechanical and electrical properties of conductive elements. New standards for E-Textile and wearables testing are needed to ensure product developers can obtain the information necessary to make informed decisions about new products. Standards organizations such as the American Society for Testing and …

Re(Engineering) Student Success: Constructing Knowledge On Students’ Experiences In Engineering Education Programs To Encourage Holistic Student Success, Shaylin Williams

Theses and Dissertations

If a group of engineering deans were asked whether students at their institutions were successful and why, what information might they immediately or subconsciously use to measure or gauge the engineering students’ success? If only academic performance outcomes like GPA, individual course grades, or graduation rate race to their minds, then their rationale aligns with the majority of researchers. My research seeks to shift the mindset that frames engineering student success mainly within the boundaries of academic performance measures. By measuring students’ perceived autonomy, competence, social integration and relatedness within their programs, and aspirations after graduation, one can more accurately …

Travel Time Prediction Using Machine Learning, Vignaan Vardhan Nampalli

Theses and Dissertations

With the rapid growth of urban populations and increasing vehicular traffic, congestion has become a major challenge for transportation systems worldwide. Accurate estimation of travel time plays a crucial role in mitigating congestion and enhancing traffic management. This research focuses on developing a novel methodology that utilizes machine learning models to estimate travel time using real-time traffic data collected through Bluetooth sensors deployed at traffic intersections. The research compares five different prediction systems for replicating travel time estimation, evaluating their performance and accuracy. The results highlight the effectiveness of the machine learning models in accurately predicting travel time. Lastly, the …

Nanoscale Modeling Of Membrane Systems Under Mechanical Deformation In Traumatic Brain Injury Using Molecular Dynamics, Anh Thi Ngoc Vo

Theses and Dissertations

Neuronal membrane disruption and mechanoporation are nanoscale damage mechanisms that critically affect brain cell viability during traumatic brain injury (TBI). These nanoscale cellular impairments are elusive in experiments and necessitate in silico approaches such as molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Implementing MD, this research aims to investigate the effects of different key factors related to membrane deformation and damage, including force field resolutions, lipid compositions, and loading conditions.

To examine the impact of force field resolution, MD deformation simulations were conducted on 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine (POPC) lipid bilayer membranes, using all-atom (AA), united-atom (UA), and coarse-grained Martini (CG-M) force fields. The mechanical responses …

Non-Destructive Evaluation Of White Striping And Microbial Spoilage Of Broiler Breast Meat Using Structured-Illumination Reflectance Imaging, Ebenezer O. Olaniyi

Theses and Dissertations

Manual inspection is a prevailing practice for quality assessment of poultry meat, but it is labor-intensive, tedious, and subjective. This thesis aims to assess the efficacy of an emerging structured illumination reflectance imaging (SIRI) technique with machine learning approaches for assessing WS and microbial spoilage in broiler breast meat. Broiler breast meat samples were imaged by an in house-assembled SIRI platform under sinusoidal illumination. In first experiment, handcrafted texture features were extracted from direct component (DC, corresponding to conventional uniform illumination) and amplitude component (AC, unique to the use of sinusoidal illumination) images retrieved from raw SIRI pattern images build …

Designing Bioinspired Materials With Tunable Structures And Properties From Natural And Synthetic Polymers, Anandavalli Varadarajan

Theses and Dissertations

Biological systems are composed of complex materials which are responsible for performing various functions, such as providing structural support, mobility, functional adaptation to the environment, damage repair, and self-healing. These complex materials display excellent mechanical properties and can rapidly adapt to external stimuli. Thus, nature inspires in terms of source materials, functions, and designs to develop new-generation structural and functional materials. Polymers (natural or synthetic) are excellent sources of developing materials to mimic the functions of soft segments in biological systems. This dissertation focuses on synthesizing and characterizing two different materials with tunable structures and properties: complexes from natural polysaccharides …

Development Of Preservative-Treated Cross-Laminated Timber And Lignin-Reinforced Polyurethane-Adhesive For Glued Laminated Timber, Samuel Oluwafemi Ayanleye

Theses and Dissertations

Interest in the use of mass timber in building and construction is growing worldwide, this is due to the structural integrity and reduced environmental footprint of timber-based structures. Concerns associated with the biological and environmental degradation of mass timber necessitate the development of adequate protection strategies to ensure the durability of these products. Preservative treatment is a proven technique that increases the durability and performance of wood in-service and can also be applied to large-sized timber panels such as cross-laminated timber (CLT). Therefore, this study focused on investigating the feasibility of treating prefabricated 3- and 5-layer CLT panels with Copper-azole …

Inéire: An Interpretable Nlp Pipeline Summarizing Inclusive Policy Making Concerning Migrants In Ireland, Arefeh Kazem, Arjumand Younus, Mingyeong Jeon, Muhammad Atif Qureshi, Simon Caton

Articles

Reaching marginal and other migrant communities to elicit their political views and opinions is a well-known challenge. Social media has enabled a certain amount of online activism and participation, especially in societies with abundant multicultural identities. However, it can be quite challenging to isolate the voice of the migrant in English-speaking countries, especially with an abundance of content in English on social media. In this paper, we pursue a case study of Ireland’s Twitter landscape, specifically migrant and native activists. We present a methodology that can accurately ( >80% ) isolate the Irish migrant voice with as little as 25 …

Analyzing Pseudomonas Aeruginosa With Bacteriophage Tags Using Photoacoustic Flow Cytometry, Jennifer C. Schinke

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The number of daily bacterial infections is climbing and the CDC explains that this is due to the antibiotic-resistant threat in the United States. Finding a faster way of bacterial identification is necessary as it currently takes 1-4 days for a medical lab to culture and identify bacteria. Photoacoustic flow cytometry (PAFC) can be used as an alternative method resulting in swift identification within an hour (Edgar, 2019). Pseudomonas aeruginosa, cell line PA01, will be coated in up to a few hundred red dyed phages making it detectible by the photoacoustic flow cytometry system. Bacteriophages (phages) are viruses that …

Polyethylene Glycol-Mediated Directional Conjugation Of Biological Molecules For Enhanced Immunoassays At The Point-Of-Care, Dheerendranath Battalapalli, Purbali Chakraborty, Disha Jain, Umut A. Gurkan, Robert A. Bonomo, Mohamed S. Draz

Faculty Scholarship

Rapid and reliable point-of-care (POC) diagnostic tests can have a significant impact on global health. One of the most common approaches for developing POC systems is the use of target-specific biomolecules. However, the conjugation of biomolecules can result in decreased activity, which may compromise the analytical performance and accuracy of the developed systems. To overcome this challenge, we present a polymer-based cross-linking protocol for controlled and directed conjugation of biological molecules. Our protocol utilizes a bifunctional thiol-polyethylene glycol (PEG)-hydrazide polymer to enable site-directed conjugation of IgG antibodies to the surface of screen-printed metal electrodes. The metal surface of the electrodes …

Design Of Stormwater Bmps For Surface And Groundwater Protection Based On Site-Scale Soil Properties: Phase I, Kelly Kibler, Lisa Chambers, Melanie Beazley

Florida DOT

Much of Earth’s nutrient cycling takes place in soils. Characteristics of soils control physical, chemical, and biological processes that determine rates of nutrient fluxes, storage, or transformation. As remediation of excess nutrients in stormwater runoff is one function of stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs), the soil profile constitutes one of the most important factors of BMP design. Variation observed in BMP effectiveness (e.g., why one BMP design works effectively in one place and not another) can often be explained by variations in the soil profile, either through direct means or by a soil’s influence on hydraulics of stormwater flow through …

Development Of Air-Jetting System For Bioprinting Of Alginate Micro-Droplets, Nathan Lingenfelter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Transplantation of organoids has been demonstrated to be a promising cure to many diseases including Type-1 diabetes. However, achieving consistent and robust derivations of mature organoids from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) is challenging. Cellular mechano-transduction, where mechanical stimuli is sensed and converted to biochemical signaling, has been proposed to overcome this challenge. This pathway relies on encapsulating hPSCs in a small volume of a biomaterial such as alginate, which has been widely used as cell encapsulation materials due to its biocompatibility and selective permeability. In this project, we focused on developing an air-jetting based technique to generate small and …

Discovering The Kinetic Behaviors Of Zeolites Of Mordenite, Ferrierite, Faujasite, Beta, Weixuan Huang

Theses - ALL

Fossil fuels have played a significant role in the development of nations. However, they have also given rise to various societal problems. In this context, Gamma-Valerolactone (GVL) emerges as a potential solution as a fuel additive and feedstock for the production of gasoline, jet fuel, and other products. GVL can undergo decarboxylation reactions facilitated by zeolite catalysts. Surprisingly, it has been observed that reactions taking place on different zeolites, despite having similar Brønsted acid site densities, exhibit distinct simulated initial rates. This research aims to compare the initial rate trends of mordenite and its poisoned derivatives with those of the …

Discovering The Kinetic Behaviors Of Zeolites Of Mordenite, Ferrierite, Faujasite, Beta, Weixuan Huang

Theses - ALL

Fossil fuels have played a significant role in the development of nations. However, they have also given rise to various societal problems. In this context, Gamma-Valerolactone (GVL) emerges as a potential solution as a fuel additive and feedstock for the production of gasoline, jet fuel, and other products. GVL can undergo decarboxylation reactions facilitated by zeolite catalysts. Surprisingly, it has been observed that reactions taking place on different zeolites, despite having similar Brønsted acid site densities, exhibit distinct simulated initial rates. This research aims to compare the initial rate trends of mordenite and its poisoned derivatives with those of the …