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From Kernel To Carbon Footprint: Using Life Cycle Analysis To Teach Sustainability In Chemical Engineering, Neal Z. Kinney

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Many chemical engineering departments in the United States are currently lacking developed sustainability coursework, leaving many students without a developed understanding of topics such as life cycle analysis (LCA). [1] Therefore, there is a need for engaging and flexible educational tools that can be easily incorporated into course frameworks. This study develops an interactive learning module, expanding upon the work from Pollution Prevention Through Popcorn, a study developed by Rowan University. [2] The module combines experimental analysis of popcorn popping methods with life cycle assessment using OpenLCA to evaluate the environmental impacts of common types of popcorn packaging. Results of …

Surface-Functionalized Silica Nanoparticles For Enhanced Bioavailability In Ophthalmic Mucoadhesive Drug Delivery Applications, Kaylee M. Drake

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study investigates the stimuli-responsive behavior of porcine gastric mucin (PGM) as a model for the conjunctival mucous membrane of the human eye to optimize mucoadhesive ophthalmic drug delivery. As a versatile biopolymer, PGM has a dynamic matrix structure that functions as a selectively permeable barrier, regulating transport across mucosal membranes. To improve drug bioavailability and retention in ocular treatments, silica nanoparticles (SiNPs) were modified with varying surface functional groups and incorporated into the mucin at different physiological pH levels to examine the resulting microstructural changes. Leveraging the amphiphilic and negatively charged characteristics of mucin, positively charged and hydrophobic SiNPs …

Design Of Aluminum-Air Battery Systems And Optimization Of Cetyltrimethylammonium Bromide And 8-Hydroxyquinoline Additives In Alkaline Electrolytes, Steve Chen

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

The first portion of this thesis focuses on the design and component optimization of aluminum-air batteries to power a car for the Chem-E-Car competition. A range of separators, cathodes, and current collectors was evaluated to determine the optimal configuration for maximizing output. The resulting system consisted of 1000 series aluminum as the anode, cellulose separators saturated in 1 M potassium hydroxide as the electrolyte, and composite PVDF and graphite as the cathode. The improved batteries achieved a power density of 2.14 x 10^-4 W/cm² and were utilized for the Chem-E-Car competition. The second portion of the thesis investigates …

Electrochemical And Mechanical Evaluation Of Cellulose Acetate Electrolyte Films As A Function Of Polyetherimide And Polyethylene Glycol Additives For Supercapacitor Applications, Chase E. Golden

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Polymer electrolytes for supercapacitor applications require a balance between mechanical robustness and electrochemical performance. In this study, cellulose acetate (CA) films were modified with additives such as polyetherimide (PEI) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) to test how compositional changes influence mechanical performance, ionic conductivity, and electrochemical charge storage. Films were cast using phase inversion, soaked in a 1 M NaCl aqueous solution, and characterized using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), cyclic voltammetry (CV), and tensile testing. Films were also evaluated based on fluid uptake for insight into electrolyte retention.

Characterizations show that the addition of PEI increased ionic …

Performance Of Zirconia-Based Catalysts For Cold Plasma-Assisted Dry Methane Reforming, Levi Pile

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study investigates the performance of zirconia-based catalysts in non-thermal plasma (NTP)–assisted dry methane reforming (DMR) for synthesis gas (syngas) production. This work explores an alternative pathway for converting carbon dioxide and methane into valuable products under milder conditions than conventional thermal processes. Experiments were conducted in a radiofrequency plasma reactor to evaluate the effects of plasma power, feed flow rate, and reactant ratios on conversion efficiency. The performance of plasma-only conditions was compared with packed-bed systems using zirconia catalysts. Results show that plasma-only systems achieved modest conversion rates (~16.5% for CH₄ and ~12.0% for CO₂), while …

Cationic Polymer-Grafted Magnetic Nanoparticles For Enhanced Removal Of Anionic Dyes From Wastewater, Joia A. Traver

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Water scarcity and pollution are escalating global challenges, with textile industry wastewater often enriched with toxic dyes posing significant risks to environmental and human health. These contaminants increase turbidity, reduce dissolved oxygen levels, and ultimately impair aquatic ecosystems. This thesis focuses on the remediation of dye-contaminated water using nanoscale polymeric adsorbents. Methyl orange, a common anionic dye widely used in textile and leather industries, was selected as the model contaminant due to its terminal sulfonate group, which enables strong electrostatic and hydrogen-bonding interactions with cationic functional materials.

In this work, magnetic nanoparticles grafted with cationic polymers were synthesized and evaluated …

Demonstration Of The Relationship Between Irwin Spire Quantity And Boundary Layer Depth In The Chemical Hazards Research Center Wind Tunnel, Jace D. Beckwith

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Atmospheric Dispersion Models (ADMs) are computer-based simulations used to model gas releases for enforcing regulatory compliance, designing facilities, and responding to emergencies. Because ADMs rely on complex mathematical models, they require experimental validation to ensure accuracy. Wind tunnels offer a controlled, repeatable method for gathering validation data. The Chemical Hazards Research Center (CHRC) at the University of Arkansas operates an ultra-low speed wind tunnel for this purpose. A key feature of this tunnel is its simulated Atmospheric Boundary Layer (ABL). The simulated ABL is a turbulent layer in which wind speed increases logarithmically with height from near zero at the …

Spatial And Temporal Patterns Of Bike-Share Use In A Small City: A Case Study Of Fort Smith, Arkansas, Brianna L. Buenger

Civil Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Many small and mid-sized cities in the United States face ongoing transportation challenges due to limited public transit options. This can prevent residents from being able to reach essential destinations. While bikeshare systems have been widely studied in large metropolitan areas, there is limited understanding of how usage patterns vary across space, time, and trip characteristics in small-city contexts. This study addresses this gap by examining spatial and temporal patterns of bikeshare use in a small U.S. city through a case study of the Fort Smith, Arkansas, SMILIES bikeshare program. Using approximately 10,000 trips over three years, the analysis examines …

Design, Simulation, And Experimentation Of A Box Barge Model Under Asymmetrical Conditions, Kylie Sink

Senior Honors Theses

This study investigates the ability of numerical simulations to predict vessel motion responses under asymmetrical loading conditions. A raked barge model was designed, constructed, and tested in a towing tank to evaluate the response amplitude operators (RAOs) for heave, roll, and pitch under various wave conditions. The model included six internal compartments that allowed different flooding scenarios to be simulated in order to create asymmetric loading conditions. Experimental testing was conducted under head seas (0 degrees) and beam seas (90 degrees) with multiple wave periods.

A numerical model of the vessel was developed using GHS to generate predicted RAOs for …

Process Optimization Of Directed Energy Deposition Via Dmaic Methodology And Lean Manufacturing Principles, Erick Gerardo Molina Castaneda

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Additive Manufacturing (AM), particularly Direct Energy Deposition (DED), has gained increasing relevance in industrial and research environments due to its capability to manufacture complex geometries and repair high-value components. However, despite its technological advantages, DED processes often lack standardization, clear documentation, and structured workflows, especially in academic laboratories. This research aims to optimize and standardize DED processes through the application of Lean Manufacturing principles using the DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) methodology. The study was conducted at the Keck Center for 3D Innovation, focusing on pre-printing and printing activities. Key issues were identified. Improvement actions included the implementation of …

Mitigating Clay Contamination In Field Sands To Prevent Early Age Failure In Asphalt Mixtures, Suhail Rashid Vaid

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Field sands are commonly incorporated into hot mix asphalt (HMA) pavements due to their availability and cost-effectiveness compared to crushed aggregates, primarily to enhance workability. Their usage, however, is generally restricted to no more than 10% of the total aggregate content because of concerns regarding their potential negative influence on pavement performance. A major concern is the presence of deleterious clay particles, which can substantially affect the behavior of asphalt concrete (AC). This research explored how clay minerals influence AC performance by examining Superpave mixtures and characterizing both clay and sand properties. The methylene blue value (MBV) was employed to …

Effective Prediction Of Martensite Start Temperature By Hybrid Machine Learning And Ethical A.I. In Materials Science, Agniprava Banerjee

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The martensite start temperature Ms governs heat treatment design and mechanical property development in martensitic steel alloys. Accurate prediction of Ms from chemical composition alone would accelerate alloy development, yet existing empirical equations lack accuracy for multi-component steels and purely data-driven models provide no physically principled behavior outside their training domain. This dissertation develops a hybrid machine learning-physics framework for predicting Ms in steel alloys from composition. The MAP Cambridge dataset (1,020 cleaned records, 15 alloying elements) is processed through a five-stage cleaning pipeline and a 21-feature physics augmented representation, including the Ghosh-Olson Ms thermodynamic prediction as an explicit feature. …

Additive Manufacturing Of Spatially Variant Actuating Structures From Shape Memory Polymers., Katia Lizbeth Delgado Ramos

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation studies the structure-processing-function relationships of additively manufactured shape memory polymer blends, with emphasis on mechanical anisotropy. Chemical exposure, thermally activated recovery, self-healing behavior, and 4D printed functional response. Two polyester-based blends were studied: a binary blend composed of polycaprolactone and thermoplastic polyurethane (PCL/TPU) blend, and a ternary blend composed of polycaprolactone/thermoplastic polyurethane/ polylactic acid (PCL/TPU/PLA) blend. The materials were melt-compounded using a twin-extruder to produce filament for fused filament fabrication (FFF). Specimens were fabricated using four different raster orientations, 0°,90°, 0/90°, and 45°, to investigate the influence of processing architecture and composition on the mechanical performance, recovery behavior, …

Development Of A Simulation-Driven Evaluation System For Foreign Objects In Aircraft Structures, Daniela Garcia

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis investigates the use of simulation-driven methods to evaluate the behavior and potential impact of foreign objects within aircraft structures. Foreign Object Damage (FOD) remains a major concern in aerospace safety, as small components unintentionally left inside aircraft compartments can create uncertainty regarding their effect during flight. Although current inspection methods can detect the presence of foreign objects (FOs), they often cannot determine whether these objects pose a significant structural risk, leading to conservative maintenance decisions. To address this limitation, this work develops a simulation-based framework that integrates Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to evaluate …

An Approach To Incorporate Skid Resistance Into Balanced Asphalt Mix Design Framework, Sandeep Reddy Gottam

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The Balanced Mix Design (BMD) process aims to achieve an economical blend of aggregates, binder, and additives for satisfactory performance against rutting and cracking-related distresses, compared to volumetric design methods. Although the BMD process improves the structural performance of pavements, functional performance is essential for the comfort and safety of road users. Road user comfort is influenced by pavement distresses, while road user safety is largely determined by the skid resistance (frictional resistance) of the pavement. The aim of this dissertation was to incorporate skid resistance into the BMD framework through an approach. To develop an approach that integrates with …

Influence Of Nickel Content On Microstructural Evolution And Densification Of Tungsten Fabricated Via Vat Photopolymerization, Jose Miguel Gonzalez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Hybrid additive manufacturing of tungsten-nickel alloys, combining vat photopolymerization (VPP) for patterning with custom thermo-hydrogen post-processing for reduction and densification, has emerged as a promising route for fabricating complex, high-resolution tungsten architectures. However, fabrication of tungsten via this hybrid AM technique remains challenging due to poor densification and significant defect formation during debinding and sintering. In this work, these limitations were addressed using nickel as a sintering aid in combination with controlled thermal processing conditions. Existing studies on activated sintering of tungsten typically focus on a single composition or sintering condition, limiting understanding of the combined effects of composition and …

First-Principles Study Of Uranium Mononitride, Roy Noe Herrera Navarro

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis presents a first-principles investigation of uranium mononitride (UN), withemphasis on the connection between uranium 5f electron correlation and defect stability. Electronic-structure calculations were performed within density functional theory using the Vienna Ab initio Simulation Package. Exchange-correlation effects were treated within the generalized gradient approximation, and a Hubbard correction was applied to the uranium 5f manifold. The adopted Hubbard parameter was motivated by first-principles linear-response analysis and considered in the broader context of DFT+DMFT descriptions of correlated uranium systems, including recent interpretations of UN as a Hund-metal system. Bulk UN was studied in unit-cell and 2 x 2 x …

Additive Manufacturing Of Roman Concrete-Inspired Self-Healing Polyvinyl Alcohol-Polylactic Acid Blends: Influence Of Composition, Processing Temperature, And Raster Pattern On Print Quality And Mechanical Performance, Stephanie Moreno

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study investigates development of Roman concrete-inspired self-healing polymer blends based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and polylactic acid (PLA) for the additive manufacturing (AM) process of fused filament fabrication (FFF). The motivation for this work stems from the need to enhance durability and functionality of biodegradable polymers while addressing environmental concerns associated with plastic waste. Inspired by the multifunctional and hierarchical architecture of Roman concrete. PVA is integrated as a hydrophilic, sacrificial phase similar to lime clasts, embedded inside a PLA-rich structural matrix to promote physical interaction and water-activated self-healing behavior. Binary PVA:PLA blends with ratios of 5:95, 10:90, 20:80 …

Bead-Weaved Layered Prints For Improved Interlayer Adhesion In Additive Manufacturing, Arianna Isabel Villegas

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Additive manufacturing (AM) with polymer materials has widespread adoption across industries due to its numerous benefits: rapid prototyping, material variety, cost efficiency, manufacturing complexity, on-demand production, and sustainability. AM enables fast prototyping, diverse material choices, and cost savings by eliminating tooling and reducing waste. It excels at producing intricate, lightweight designs. On-demand production reduces inventory and lead times. Polymer AM contributes to sustainability by minimizing material waste. These advantages make polymer AM popular in aerospace, automotive, healthcare, and consumer products industries. Despite these advantages, interlayer adhesion has been a reoccurring issue with AM of polymer materials. With polymer printing, there …

Bridging Industry And Academia In Engineering Leadership Education: Using Q Methodology To Identify The Viewpoints Of Engineering Professionals On Effective Engineering Leadership, Pamela Edith Campos Valles

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Background: Engineering leadership has been recognized as a key professional skill by the U.S National Academy of Engineering, leading to increased attention and integration in engineering education research and development. The perception and recognition of leadership within the engineering field remains limited by the widespread definitions of leadership and limited characterization of engineering leaders. The Contextual Engineering Leadership Development framework is grounded on a discipline specific definition of engineering leadership and approaches to leadership development derived from engineering undergraduate programs. The use of this framework provides the opportunity to describe what engineering leaders prioritize, enabling the identification and characterization of …

Mitigating Inertial Measurement Unit Drift In Quadcopter Trajectory Tracking Using Kalman Filter Sensor Fusion With Global Positioning Measurements, Juan Sandro Caballero Aguilar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) like quadcopters are widely used in civilian and military applications such as farming, photography, search and rescue missions, and autonomous navigation and motion. The performance and stability of these systems depend on accurate state estimation, which provides real-time information about the vehicle’s position, velocity, and orientation. However, achieving reliable state estimation is challenging due to sensor noise, measurement uncertainty, and inaccurate modeling. Common navigation sensors such as the Global Positioning System (GPS) and Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) exhibit complementary characteristics. GPS provides absolute position measurements but suffers from noise, multipath effects, and low update rates, while …

Asynchronous Polymorphic Logic Locking, Kelby Haulmark

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This work presents Asynchronous Polymorphic Logic Locking (APLL), a logic locking methodology that integrates polymorphic logic within the Multi-Threshold NULL Convention Logic (MTNCL) paradigm. APLL achieves Boolean satisfiability-attack resilience through a fault-based logic stripping approach followed by logic restoration, while leveraging the analog, dual-functionality of polymorphic gates to impede reverse engineering and removal attacks. In contrast to comparable SAT-resistant logic locking techniques, APLL provides inherent resistance to reverse engineering, reducing the viability of a broad class of attacks that rely on access to the locked netlist. A complete automated design flow is developed, enabling the transformation of combinational circuits into …

Development And Characterization Of 1200v And 1700v Sic Schottky Barrier Diode For Power Electronics Applications, Nur-E-Afra Anika

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The growing demand for energy-efficient, high performance power electronics in applications such as renewable energy systems, electric vehicles, industrial motor drives, and aerospace has accelerated the development of wide bandgap semiconductors like Silicon Carbide (SiC). This thesis focuses on the development and characterization of 1200V and 1700V SiC Schottky Barrier Diodes (SBDs), focusing on their performance optimization for power electronics applications. The key parameters and figure of merits for SiC Schottky barrier diode (SBD) is discussed. Commercially available 1200V and 1700V SBDs are characterized and key design parameters like drift region length, active area, and carrier concentration are extracted. The …

Electrical Resilience In Water Treatment Plants: An Extreme Weather And Lightning Protection Study, Genesis Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

Water treatment plants (WTPs) are vital infrastructure systems that depend on sensitive electrical, electronic, and control equipment to ensure the continuous supply of safe drinking water and effective wastewater treatment. As global temperatures rise and climate change accelerates, the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events—such as hurricanes, flooding, and increased lightning activity—are becoming more pronounced. These events pose significant risks to the electrical resilience of water treatment facilities, often leading to power outages, equipment failures, grid instability, and prolonged service disruptions. This report explores the impacts of extreme weather, with a particular focus on lightning and electrical surges, on …

From Reactive To Predictive: A Hybrid Trust-Mediated Adoption Framework For Data-Driven Maintenance In Distributed-Authority Aviation Environments, Dustin J. Foote

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Modern aviation maintenance operates within increasingly data-intensive technological environments, yet the operational integration of predictive maintenance into routine decision-making remains inconsistent across sectors. Contemporary aircraft incorporate centralized maintenance computers and condition monitoring architectures capable of fault aggregation, exceedance capture, and trend-based data collection. Although prognostics and health management research continues to advance detection and prediction methods, implementation outcomes often depend on factors beyond analytical performance alone.

This paper examines predictive maintenance adoption in distributed-authority aviation environments and argues that constraints emerge less from sensing capability than from organizational structure, decision authority dispersion, and institutional trust dynamics. For purposes of analysis, …

Digital Twin–Oriented Certification Architecture For Advanced Air Mobility, Daniel Pleffken

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) systems introduce certification challenges associated with distributed propulsion, increasing software reliance, and tightly coupled architectures. These characteristics evolve within regulatory environments that are still adapting to emerging vehicle concepts. While digital engineering practices are increasingly adopted during system development, certification workflows remain largely document-centric, limiting lifecycle traceability and consistent reasoning about change impacts as designs and regulatory interpretations evolve. This paper proposes a Digital Twin–oriented certification architecture that integrates regulatory knowledge, system representations, Means of Compliance (MoCs), and verification artifacts within a unified model-based environment. The architecture is organized around four elements: regulatory structuring, Model-Based Systems …

Design And Development Of A Passive Dust Protection System For Lunar Docking Operations, Simon Thengvall

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Lunar docking systems face a unique set of environmental conditions that can create significant challenges for mechanical design. Among these, the abrasive nature of lunar regolith can impair the kinematic function of traditional terrestrial mechanisms as well as contaminate critical spacecraft components such as environmental seals, causing them to fail. For crew-rated docking systems, failure of these systems not only threatens mission success, but also crew safety, so dust protection is crucial for docking components. To address the concerns of regolith intrusion, the Simple External Attachment for Lunar Openings (SEALO) is developed as a key architecture for mechanism evaluation when …

Investigation Of Low-Pressure Mercury Lamp System Configurations And Xenon Excimer Lamp System Development As Vacuum Ultraviolet Sources For Optimal Photolytic Degradation Of Poly-/Perfluoroalkyl Substances, Eman Zuhair Alhamdan

All Dissertations

PFAS are persistent synthetic chemicals, with unique properties that enable them to easily enter and accumulate in water sources. Their public health impacts have raised concern and highlighted the need for effective treatment. Numerous techniques for PFAS removal from water have been studied, few have proven the ability of breaking down PFAS rather than separating and concentrating it. Many of these methods are chain-length dependent, showing slower degradation rate of short-chain PFAS and requiring substantial amounts of energy, and chemical agents that may produce byproducts.

Among available PFAS destruction methods, direct photolysis by high-energy UV with wavelength below 200 nm …

Learning Global Context For Sparse Activity Recognition In Lengthy Recordings With Limited Dataset Size, Zeyu Tang

All Dissertations

This dissertation describes methods to analyze lengthy recordings of data in order to detect sparsely occurring activities. The narrative below describes the progression of research that led to the development of these methods and their generalization into a unified framework. My research started with designing models for dietary monitoring, including detecting meals from day-long recordings and detecting intake gestures from meal-length recordings. Both tasks share some common characteristics: (a) the target event takes only a small portion of data recordings, and (b) there is global context within full-length data recordings that can help a model make better decisions. After finishing …

Experimental And Computational Investigation Of The Effects Of Neck Musculature During Head Impacts In American Football, Anthony P. Marino

All Dissertations

Anthropometric test devices (ATDs) are human surrogate models used to represent the human body response in the context of compliance and safety testing. These devices are used in multiple industries, including automotive and aerospace, and have recently been incorporated into impact testing for the evaluation of helmet performance in American football. The Hybrid III 50^th percentile male ATD head and neck assembly is the most commonly used surrogate for these tests, although it was developed for automotive frontal crash scenarios that induce an inertial force on the body, leading to head and neck motion primarily in the sagittal plane. …