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Effects Of Patch Size And Matrix Type On Bird Assemblages Within Central Florida Cypress Domes, Julia Noran Jan 2006

Effects Of Patch Size And Matrix Type On Bird Assemblages Within Central Florida Cypress Domes, Julia Noran

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The numerous studies on the effects of patch size on bird assemblages have produced varied results. I studied the effects of patch size and surrounding matrix on bird assemblages within central Florida cypress domes. My null hypothesis was that bird assemblages within cypress domes are unaffected by dome size or development in the matrix around the dome. My alternative hypothesis was that differences in bird assemblages are correlated with size and the degree of development within the matrix. I classified a pool of over a thousand domes according to three size categories and four matrix types. Three representatives for each …

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Identifying Factors That Influence Gender Disparities In Physician Income: Implications For Public Policy, Wendy Bolyard Jan 2006

Identifying Factors That Influence Gender Disparities In Physician Income: Implications For Public Policy, Wendy Bolyard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research has shown that female physicians continue to earn less than their male counterparts. From both social justice and feminist perspectives, laws requiring equal pay should provide just income for females as compared to males. However, the literature continues to indicate that in general females earn less than males, a trend that is also true for physicians. Theoretically informed postulates are measured here with structural equation modeling to test the influence of the unique latent construct "specialization" on the income gap while controlling for demographic and contextual variables. The analysis tests the assumption that the influence of specialization is the …

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Phospholipase A2mechanism Of Interfacial Activation,An Interdiscliplinary Approach, Kathleen N. Nemec Jan 2006

Phospholipase A2mechanism Of Interfacial Activation,An Interdiscliplinary Approach, Kathleen N. Nemec

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) is an enzyme that hydrolyzes the sn-2-ester bond of membrane phospholipids and liberates arachidonic acid, which is converted to eicosanoids that act as potent mediators of inflammation and allergy. As such this enzyme plays a crucial role in many homeostatic physiological and immunologic processes and disease progression. PLA2s undergo substantial increase in activity upon binding to cellular membranes. This effect of interfacial activation is well recognized, yet its structural and physical aspects are poorly understood. In this work, we have employed the interdisciplinary methods of molecular biology, biochemistry, biophysics, bioinformatics and computational biology, in order to elucidate …

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Wikipdf - A Tool To Help Scientists Understand The Literature Of The Biological, Health, And Life Sciences, David Calloway Jan 2006

Wikipdf - A Tool To Help Scientists Understand The Literature Of The Biological, Health, And Life Sciences, David Calloway

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Biological sciences literature can be extraordinarily difficult to understand. Papers are commonly filled with terminology unique to a particular sub-discipline. Readers with expertise outside that sub-discipline often have difficulty understanding information the author is trying to convey. The WikiPDF project that is the subject of this thesis helps readers understand the biological sciences literature by automatically generating a customized glossary for each page of any technical paper available in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) format. WikiPDF relies on the Wikipedia®, an on-line encyclopedia created and supported by a host of volunteers, as a source of definitions used in its glossaries. …

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The Sociopolitical Construction Of Race And Literary Representations Of The Biracial Subject, Kara Fontenot Jan 2006

The Sociopolitical Construction Of Race And Literary Representations Of The Biracial Subject, Kara Fontenot

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Twentieth-century American literature incorporates interracial and biracial themes that bring to light the often unnamed and unrecognized biracial identities of many Americans. Unfortunately, despite the potential value for a deeper understanding of the construction of race, these themes have seldom been seriously considered in the context of reevaluating the nature of the system that creates racial labels and categories until the recent emergence of postmodern critical theories. This thesis examines the black-white interracial themes and biracial protagonists in Nella Larsen's Quicksand (1928) and Danzy Senna's Caucasia (1998) in order to explore the texts' representations of systems of hegemonic power that …

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Interprofessional Collaboration Between Criminal Justice And Mental Health Practitioners Regarding Mentally Ill Offenders: Perception Of Collaboration, Christopher Sharp Jan 2006

Interprofessional Collaboration Between Criminal Justice And Mental Health Practitioners Regarding Mentally Ill Offenders: Perception Of Collaboration, Christopher Sharp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The federal program of deinstitutionalizing psychiatric facilities has resulted in a well documented, ever-increasing mentally ill population in the nation's prisons and jails. Historically, the criminal justice system has maintained a laissez-faire attitude toward the mentally ill, and only became involved with the mentally ill when a crime had been committed. As such, the President's Mental Health and Criminal Justice Consensus Project was developed to explore ways that the two systems could work together to address the growing problem of the mentally ill offender. However, challenges arise because the criminal justice system has typically been viewed as a loosely coupled, …

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Notopleural Mutations Enhance Defects In Imaginal Disc Epithelial Morphogenesis And Macrochete Elongation Associated With Mutations In The Stubble-Stubbloid Locus, Robert Ruggiero Jan 2006

Notopleural Mutations Enhance Defects In Imaginal Disc Epithelial Morphogenesis And Macrochete Elongation Associated With Mutations In The Stubble-Stubbloid Locus, Robert Ruggiero

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Stubble-stubbloid locus encodes a transmembrane serine protease (Stubble) necessary for the proper formation of sensory bristles, and the morphogenesis of leg and wing epithelia. Genetic and cell biological analysis indicate a role for Stubble in actin cytoskeletal dynamics and cell shape changes in developing epithelia and bristles. Previously reported genetic interactions between Stubble and the Rho1 signaling pathway suggest Stubble influences actin cytoskeleton dynamics in developing imaginal discs through interactions with the Rho1 pathway. This work will discuss a genetic screen conducted to further investigate the role of Stubble in bristle and imaginal disc morphogenesis. From 50,000 EMS-mutagenized chromosomes …

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A Compartive Analysis Of The Evolution Of Forest Management In The United States In General, With A Focus On Oregon, North Carolina, Patrick Kelly Jan 2006

A Compartive Analysis Of The Evolution Of Forest Management In The United States In General, With A Focus On Oregon, North Carolina, Patrick Kelly

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate and discuss the evolution of forest management practices in the United States. The paper discusses the trends in forest management that have occurred within the United States in general, and specifically within the western (Oregon) and southern (North Carolina and Florida) United States. The trends discussed include the three (3) to four (4) epochs of management and use that are generally accepted within the forest management literature, with the exception of North Carolina that is in the process of a fifth (5). The comparative analysis within the paper discusses the western model …

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Mapping And Characterization Of 18-5 And 12-5, Genes Which Potentially Link The Rhoa Signaling Pathway To The Ecdysone Response, Samuel Fox Jan 2006

Mapping And Characterization Of 18-5 And 12-5, Genes Which Potentially Link The Rhoa Signaling Pathway To The Ecdysone Response, Samuel Fox

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Systemic steroid hormone and intracellular signaling pathways are known to act cooperatively during the development of vertebrate and invertebrate epithelia. However, the mechanism of this interaction is poorly understood. Morphogenesis of Drosophila leg imaginal disc epithelia is regulated both by the steroid hormone 20-hydroxyecdysone (ecdysone) and the RhoA GTPase signaling pathway. Recent evidence suggests that these pathways act cooperatively to control imaginal disc morphogenesis. Thus, leg imaginal disc morphogenesis is an excellent system in which to study the interaction of steroid hormone and intracellular signaling pathways. We have identified mutations in three genes, 12-5, 18-5, and 31-6, with roles in …

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Discrimination Of Automobile Carpet Fibers Using Multiple Analytical Techniques And The Subsequent Creation Of A Searchable Data, Derek Dorrien Jan 2006

Discrimination Of Automobile Carpet Fibers Using Multiple Analytical Techniques And The Subsequent Creation Of A Searchable Data, Derek Dorrien

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Forensic fiber examination is an important part of trace evidence analysis. Fibers may be recovered from a crime scene that could link a particular suspect to the scene. Clothing fibers are most frequently encountered but automobile carpeting fibers may also be recovered. An understanding of the frequency of occurrence and the discrimination power of different analytical techniques is needed in order to better establish the evidentiary value of automobile carpet fiber evidence. Seventy-five automobile carpet fiber samples were analyzed using a series of techniques ranging from nondestructive to destructive. These techniques included polarized light microscopy, fluorescence microscopy, microspectrophotometry, Fourier-transform infrared …

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Dispersal Behavior Of Mosquitofish (Gambusia Holbrooki), Shireen Alemadi Jan 2006

Dispersal Behavior Of Mosquitofish (Gambusia Holbrooki), Shireen Alemadi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) are native to the southeastern United States but invasive elsewhere, and are dominant predators in many ecosystems that they inhabit. Information on dispersal behavior will help better understand and predict mosquitofish metapopulation dynamics and invasions. I experimentally tested dispersal behavior of individual mosquitofish under a range of laboratory conditions relevant to field situations. Preliminary experiments showed that gender, lighting conditions, hunger and acclimation time did not significantly affect net dispersal rate. Power analysis based on this preliminary experiment determined that 6 replicate fish were sufficient for each subsequent experiment; I used 24 fish, and each fish was …

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User-Centered Virtual Environment Assessment And Design For Cognitive Rehabilitation Applications, Cali Fidopiastis Jan 2006

User-Centered Virtual Environment Assessment And Design For Cognitive Rehabilitation Applications, Cali Fidopiastis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Virtual environment (VE) design for cognitive rehabilitation necessitates a new methodology to ensure the validity of the resulting rehabilitation assessment. We propose that benchmarking the VE system technology utilizing a user-centered approach should precede the VE construction. Further, user performance baselines should be measured throughout testing as a control for adaptive effects that may confound the metrics chosen to evaluate the rehabilitation treatment. To support these claims we present data obtained from two modules of a user-centered head-mounted display (HMD) assessment battery, specifically resolution visual acuity and stereoacuity. Resolution visual acuity and stereoacuity assessments provide information about the image quality …

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A Mathematical Study Of Malaria Models Of Ross And Ngwa, William Plemmons Jan 2006

A Mathematical Study Of Malaria Models Of Ross And Ngwa, William Plemmons

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Malaria is a vector borne disease that has been plaguing mankind since before recorded history. The disease is carried by three subspecies of mosquitoes Anopheles gambiae, Anopheles arabiensis and Anopheles funestu. These mosquitoes carry one of four type of Plasmodium specifically: P. falciparum, P. vivax, P. malariae or P. ovale. The disease is a killer; the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that about 40% of the world's total populations live in areas where malaria is an endemic disease and as global warming occurs, endemic malaria will spread to more areas. The malaria parasite kills a child every 30 seconds. In …

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Noise Characerization For Proposed Ucf Phyiscal Science Building Sites., Jorge Martinez Jan 2006

Noise Characerization For Proposed Ucf Phyiscal Science Building Sites., Jorge Martinez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Today's Advance Technology Facilities require low noise levels and increased noise monitoring. Ambient noise can interfere with the accuracy and precision of experiments and manufacturing processes. Therefore preconstruction site surveys are needed to develop strategies for mitigating noise. Vibration and low frequency electromagnetic fields are particularly detrimental for sensitive instruments, and they are also difficult to mitigate. However a large part of these costs can be avoided or minimized if a quiet building site is selected in the first place. Accelerometers and gauss meters combined with a computer for acquisition and analysis provide a low cost method of evaluating noise …

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Decreasing Alcohol Use Among High School Students By Challenging Alcohol Expectancies, Iris Cruz Jan 2006

Decreasing Alcohol Use Among High School Students By Challenging Alcohol Expectancies, Iris Cruz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Altering alcohol expectancies has reduced alcohol use among college students and may lead to successful prevention of alcohol use among high school students. We randomly assigned 379 12th-grade students to an expectancy challenge, traditional alcohol information, or control condition, and used Individual Differences Scaling to map expectancies into memory network format with Preference Mapping to model likely paths of association. After expectancy and traditional alcohol interventions, higher drinking male participants exhibited a greater likelihood to associate alcohol use with negative and sedating consequences and a decreased likelihood to associate alcohol with positive and arousing consequences. Drinking decreases paralleled the magnitude …

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Multiobjective Simulation Optimization Using Enhanced Evolutionary Algorithm Approaches, Hamidreza Eskandari Jan 2006

Multiobjective Simulation Optimization Using Enhanced Evolutionary Algorithm Approaches, Hamidreza Eskandari

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In today's competitive business environment, a firm's ability to make the correct, critical decisions can be translated into a great competitive advantage. Most of these critical real-world decisions involve the optimization not only of multiple objectives simultaneously, but also conflicting objectives, where improving one objective may degrade the performance of one or more of the other objectives. Traditional approaches for solving multiobjective optimization problems typically try to scalarize the multiple objectives into a single objective. This transforms the original multiple optimization problem formulation into a single objective optimization problem with a single solution. However, the drawbacks to these traditional approaches …

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Using The Software Adapter To Connect Legacy Simulation Models To The Rti, Deepak Kumar Rachapalli Jan 2006

Using The Software Adapter To Connect Legacy Simulation Models To The Rti, Deepak Kumar Rachapalli

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The establishment of a network of persistent shared simulations depends on the presence of a robust standard for communicating state information between those simulations. The High Level Architecture (HLA) can serve as the basis for such a standard. While the HLA is architecture, not software, use of Run Time Infrastructure (RTI) software is required to support operations of a federation execution. The integration of RTI with existing simulation models is complex and requires a lot of expertise. This thesis implements a less complex and effective interaction between a legacy simulation model and RTI using a middleware tool known as Distributed …

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Performance Efficacy Using A Comparison Of Commerical And In-House Y-Str Multiplex Systems For Operational Use, Kathleen Mayntz-Press Jan 2006

Performance Efficacy Using A Comparison Of Commerical And In-House Y-Str Multiplex Systems For Operational Use, Kathleen Mayntz-Press

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

It is routine for the forensic scientist to obtain a genetic profile of an individual from DNA recovered from a biological stain deposited at a crime scene. In contrast, only a limited number of laboratories in the United States have the capability of performing Y-STR analysis in casework. In order to aid in facilitating the transfer of Y-STR technology to the crime laboratory community for operational use, a comparison between commercial products from three main vendors (Applied Biosystems AmpFLSTR Yfiler PCR Amplification Kit, Promega PowerPlex - Y System, Reliagene Y-PLEX 12) and two in-house Y-STR multiplexes (MPI and MPB) commenced. …

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Development Of Thermally Processed Nanocomposites With Controlled Surfaces, Petya Georgieva Jan 2006

Development Of Thermally Processed Nanocomposites With Controlled Surfaces, Petya Georgieva

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The ever increasing need for technology development requires the integration of inexpensive, light weight and high strength materials which are able to meet the high standards and specifications for various engineering applications. The intention of this work is to show that the suitable material selection and the utilization of plasma spray processing can be of potential interest to a large number of industrial, biomedical and everyday life applications. This research demonstrates also that plasma processing is a promising engineering tool for multifunctional coatings and near-net-shape manufacturing. Further, the theoretical and experimental results are combined in order to explain the mechanisms …

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Sensor-Based Computing Techniques For Real-Time Traffic Evacuation Management, Georgiana Hamza-Lup Jan 2006

Sensor-Based Computing Techniques For Real-Time Traffic Evacuation Management, Georgiana Hamza-Lup

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The threat of terrorist incidents is higher than ever before and devastating acts, such as the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, have left many concerns about the possibility of future incidents and their potential impact. Unlike some natural disasters that can be anticipated, terrorist attacks are sudden and unexpected. Even if sometimes we do have partial information about a possible attack, it is generally not known exactly where, when, or how an attack will occur. This lack of information posses great challenges on those responsible for security, specifically, on their ability to respond fast, whenever …

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An Authentic Ecg Simulator, Paul Michalek Jan 2006

An Authentic Ecg Simulator, Paul Michalek

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An ECG (electrocardiogram) simulator is an electronic tool that plays an essential role in the testing, design, and development of ECG monitors and other ECG equipment. Principally an ECG simulator provides ECG monitors with an electrical signal that emulates the human heart's electrical signal so that the monitor can be tested for reliability and important diagnostic capabilities. However, the current portable commercially available ECG simulators are lacking in their ability to fully test ECG monitors. Specifically, the portable simulators presently on the market do not produce authentic ECG signals but rather they endeavor to create the ECG signals mathematically. They …

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Design Optimization Of Solid Rocket Motor Grains For Internal Ballistic Performance, Roger Hainline Jan 2006

Design Optimization Of Solid Rocket Motor Grains For Internal Ballistic Performance, Roger Hainline

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The work presented in this thesis deals with the application of optimization tools to the design of solid rocket motor grains per internal ballistic requirements. Research concentrated on the development of an optimization strategy capable of efficiently and consistently optimizing virtually an unlimited range of radial burning solid rocket motor grain geometries. Optimization tools were applied to the design process of solid rocket motor grains through an optimization framework developed to interface optimization tools with the solid rocket motor design system. This was done within a programming architecture common to the grain design system, AML. This commonality in conjunction with …

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A Non-Isolated Half Bridge Buck-Based Converter For Vrm Application And Small Signal Modeling Of A Non-Conventional Two Phase Bu, Majd Batarseh Jan 2006

A Non-Isolated Half Bridge Buck-Based Converter For Vrm Application And Small Signal Modeling Of A Non-Conventional Two Phase Bu, Majd Batarseh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is about treatment of the nonbiodegradable organic content of landfill leachate by chemical oxidation combined with biological treatment. It is divided into three parts. In the first part, ferrate was compared to Fenton's reagent for the purpose of removing non-biodegradable organic compounds from mature leachate. Oxidation conditions (time, pH, and dose) were optimized to yield maximum organic removal using two leachate samples from 20 and 12-year old solid waste cells. Results from this research demonstrated that ferrate and Fenton's reagent had similar optimum pH ranges (3-5), but different organic removal capacities, ranging from 54 to 79 % of …

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Cognitive Training Transfer Using A Personal Computer-Based Game:A Close Quarters Battle Case Study, Michael Woodman Jan 2006

Cognitive Training Transfer Using A Personal Computer-Based Game:A Close Quarters Battle Case Study, Michael Woodman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Developers of Commercial off the Shelf (COTS) gaming software are making remarkable strides in increasing the realism of their software. This realism has caught the attention of the training community, which has traditionally sought system and operational replication in training systems such as flight simulators. Since games are designed and marketed for entertainment and not designed for training of tasks, questions exist about the effectiveness of games as a training system in achieving the desired transfer of skills to the actual environment. Numerous studies over the past ten years have documented that PC-based simulation training environments can offer effective training …

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Fundamental Aspects Of Regenerative Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles And Their Applications In Nanobiotechnology, Swanand Patil Jan 2006

Fundamental Aspects Of Regenerative Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles And Their Applications In Nanobiotechnology, Swanand Patil

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cerium oxide has been used extensively for various applications over the past two decades. The use of cerium oxide nanoparticles is beneficial in present applications and can open avenues for future applications. The present study utilizes the microemulsion technique to synthesize uniformly distributed cerium oxide nanoparticles. The same technique was also used to synthesize cerium oxide nanoparticles doped with trivalent elements (La and Nd). The fundamental study of cerium oxide nanoparticles identified variations in properties as a function of particle size and also due to doping with trivalent elements (La and Nd). It was found that the lattice parameter of …

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Modeling Autonomous Agents In Military Simulations, Varol Kaptan Jan 2006

Modeling Autonomous Agents In Military Simulations, Varol Kaptan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Simulation is an important tool for prediction and assessment of the behavior of complex systems and situations. The importance of simulation has increased tremendously during the last few decades, mainly because the rapid pace of development in the field of electronics has turned the computer from a costly and obscure piece of equipment to a cheap ubiquitous tool which is now an integral part of our daily lives. While such technological improvements make it easier to analyze well-understood deterministic systems, increase in speed and storage capacity alone are not enough when simulating situations where human beings and their behavior are …

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Chemical And Biological Treatment Of Mature Landfill Leachate, Eyad Batarseh Jan 2006

Chemical And Biological Treatment Of Mature Landfill Leachate, Eyad Batarseh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The challenges imposed on Voltage Regulator Modules (VRM) become difficult to be achieved with the conventional multiphase buck converter commonly used on PC motherboards. For faster data transfer, a decrease in the output voltage is needed. This decrease causes small duty cycle that is accompanied by critical problems which impairs the efficiency. Therefore, these problems need to be addressed. Transformer-based non-isolated topologies are not new approaches to extend the duty cycle and avoid the associated drawbacks. High leakage, several added components and complicated driving and control schemes are some of the trade-offs to expand the duty cycle. The objective of …

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Characterization Of Critical Network Components Of Coupled Oscillators, Gregory Holifield Jan 2006

Characterization Of Critical Network Components Of Coupled Oscillators, Gregory Holifield

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation analyzes the fundamental limits for the determination of the network structure of loosely coupled oscillators based on observing the behavior of the network, specifically, node synchronization. The determination of the requisite characteristics and underlying behaviors necessary for the application of a theoretical mechanism for determining the underlying network topology in a network of loosely coupled natural oscillators are the desired outcome. To that end, this effort defines an analytical framework where key components of networks of coupled oscillators are isolated in order to determine the relationships between the various components. The relationship between the number of nodes in …

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Synthesis, Processing And Characterization Of Nanocrystalline Titanium Dioxide, Shipeng Qiu Jan 2006

Synthesis, Processing And Characterization Of Nanocrystalline Titanium Dioxide, Shipeng Qiu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Titanium dioxide (TiO2), one of the basic ceramic materials, has found a variety of applications in industry and in our daily life. It has been shown that particle size reduction in this system, especially to nano regime, has the great potential to offer remarkable improvement in physical, mechanical, optical, biological and electrical properties. This thesis reports on the synthesis and characterization of the nanocrystalline TiO2 ceramic in details. The study selected a simple sol-gel synthesis process, which can be easily controlled and reproduced. Titanium tetraisopropoxide, isopropanol and deionized water were used as starting materials. By careful control of relative proportion …

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In-Situ Ammonia Removal Of Leachate From Bioreactor Landfills, Nicole Berge Jan 2006

In-Situ Ammonia Removal Of Leachate From Bioreactor Landfills, Nicole Berge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A new and promising trend in solid waste management is to operate the landfill as a bioreactor. Bioreactor landfills are controlled systems in which moisture addition and/or air injection are used as enhancements to create a solid waste environment capable of actively degrading the biodegradable organic fraction of the waste. Although there are many advantages associated with bioreactor landfills, some challenges remain. One such challenge is the ammonia-nitrogen concentration found in the leachate. The concentrations of ammonia-nitrogen tend to increase beyond concentrations found in leachate from conventional landfills because recirculating leachate increases the rate of ammonification and results in accumulation …

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