Digital Commons Network^™

Novel Solution Processable Acceptors For Organic Photovoltaic Applications, Ying Shu

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

The field of organic electronics has become an increasingly important field of research in recent years. Organic based semiconductors have the potential for creating inexpensive, solution processed devices on flexible substrates. Some of the applications of organic semiconductors include organic field effect transistors, organic light emitting diodes and organic photovoltaics.

Functionalized pentacenes have been proven to be viable donor materials for use in organic photovoltaic devices. The goal of this research is to synthesize and test the viability of novel electron deficient pentacenes and pentacene based materials as acceptors to be used as drop-in replacements for PCBM in bulk-heterojunction organic …

Comparison Of Digestive Function In Young And Mature Horses, Jennifer Elizabeth Earing

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

While forage plays an important role in equine nutrition, little research has been conducted evaluating fiber utilization by young horses. Therefore, studies were conducted to compare in vivo digestibility and digesta passage in weanlings and mature horses (Exp 1) and yearlings and mature horses (Exp 2). All horses were fed forage-based diets at the same rate (on a metabolic BW basis; Exp 1: 67% alfalfa cubes, 33% concentrate; Exp 2: 75% timothy cubes, 25% concentrate). Ytterbium labeled hay and cobalt-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid were used to estimate digesta mean retention time (MRT), while in vivo digestibility (DM, OM, and NDF) was measured …

Some Contributions To The Censored Empirical Likelihood With Hazard-Type Constraints, Yanling Hu

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Empirical likelihood (EL) is a recently developed nonparametric method of statistical inference. Owen’s 2001 book contains many important results for EL with uncensored data. However, fewer results are available for EL with right-censored data. In this dissertation, we first investigate a right-censored-data extension of Qin and Lawless (1994). They studied EL with uncensored data when the number of estimating equations is larger than the number of parameters (over-determined case). We obtain results similar to theirs for the maximum EL estimator and the EL ratio test, for the over-determined case, with right-censored data. We employ hazard-type constraints which are better able …

Microneedle-Assisted Transdermal Delivery Of Naltrexone Species: In Vitro Permeation And In Vivo Pharmacokinetic Studies, Mikolaj Milewski

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Naltrexone (NTX) is a drug used primarily in the management of alcohol dependence and opioid dependence. Based on several drawbacks associated with the oral and injectable intramuscular dosage forms of naltrexone currently available on the market, there is substantial interest in delivering naltrexone transdermally. Although naltrexone does not permeate skin at the rate sufficient to reach therapeutic plasma concentrations in humans, novel flux enhancement methods such as microneedles help address this challenge. Earlier work in humans has demonstrated that the use of microneedles achieves plasma concentrations in the lower end of expected therapeutic values. Further flux enhancement is desired to …

Construction Of Efficient Authentication Schemes Using Trapdoor Hash Functions, Santosh Chandrasekhar

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

In large-scale distributed systems, where adversarial attacks can have widespread impact, authentication provides protection from threats involving impersonation of entities and tampering of data. Practical solutions to authentication problems in distributed systems must meet specific constraints of the target system, and provide a reasonable balance between security and cost. The goal of this dissertation is to address the problem of building practical and efficient authentication mechanisms to secure distributed applications. This dissertation presents techniques to construct efficient digital signature schemes using trapdoor hash functions for various distributed applications. Trapdoor hash functions are collision-resistant hash functions associated with a secret trapdoor …

Connections, Paths, And Explanations - A Social Network Approach To Investigating Experiences Of Early Childhood Special Education With The Ecls-K, Kathryn Shirley Akers

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate a practical application of social network analysis in the field of education using a large-scale data source. Using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Base Year data, a network is identified by examining the connections that occur between supports, both inside and outside formal special education resources for kindergarteners with access to special education programs.

Social network mappings and quantitative findings are presented for formal and informal supports and primary disability category, along with policy implications and suggestions for further research. Findings indicate that social network analysis offers a unique and innovative perspective to …

Solution Phase And Membrane Immobilized Iron-Based Free Radical Reactions: Fundamentals And Applications For Water Treatment, Scott Romak Lewis

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Membrane-based separation processes have been used extensively for drinking water purification, wastewater treatment, and numerous other applications. Reactive membranes synthesized through functionalization of the membrane pores offer enhanced reactivity due to increased surface area at the polymer-solution interface and low diffusion limitations. Oxidative techniques utilizing free radicals have proven effective for both the destruction of toxic organics and non-environmental applications. Most previous work focuses on reactions in the homogeneous phase; however, the immobilization of reactants in membrane pores offers several advantages. The use of polyanions immobilized in a membrane or chelates in solution prevents ferric hydroxide precipitation at near-neutral pH, …

Gauge-Gravity Duality And Its Applications To Cosmology And Fluid Dynamics, Jae-Hyuk Oh

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

This thesis is devoted to the study of two important applications of gauge-gravity duality: the cosmological singularity problem and conformal fluid dynamics. Gauge-gravity duality is a concrete dual relationship between a gauge theory (such as electromagnetism, the theories of weak and strong interactions), and a theory of strings which contains gravity. The most concrete application of this duality is the AdS/CFT correspondence, where the theory containing gravity lives in the bulk of an asymptotically anti-de-Sitter space-time, while the dual gauge theory is a deformation of a conformal field theory which lives on the boundary of anti-de-Sitter space-time(AdS).

Our first application …

Role Of Pi3k-Akt Pathway In The Age Associated Decline In Tlr Mediated Activation Of Innate And Adaptive Immune Responses, Mosoka Papa Fallah

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Immunosenescence results in reduced immune response to infections with Streptococcus pneumoniae as well as to pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccines. The antibody response to the capsular polysaccharide (CPS) provides protection against S. pneumoniae infection. CPS immunoresponse is T cell independent and needs the macrophage-derived cytokines such as IL-12, IL-6 and IL-1β to elicit an antibody response. We showed a cytokine dysregulation, i.e. a decrease in IL-12, IL-6 and TNF-α but an increase in IL-10, in the aged (18-24 months old comparable to >65 years in human) compared to young adult mouse (8-12 weeks less than 65 years old) splenic macrophages (SM) or …

The Ecology Of Disturbances And Global Change In The Montane Grasslands Of The Nilgiris, South India, Madhusudan P. Srinivasan

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Biodiversity rich regions worldwide face threats from various global change agents. This research quantifies environmental influences on vegetation, and the impacts of exotic woody plant invasion and anthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition in a global biodiversity hotspot. The study was conducted in the montane grasslands of the Nilgiris, Western Ghats, and outlines potential management options for this region. Specifically, I examined (1) the role of environmental factors in influencing native plant distribution and ecosystem properties, (2) the status and impact of exotic shrub (Scotch broom, henceforth broom) invasion, (3) the role of disturbances in the success of broom, (4) the role …

Analysis Of Differential Gene Expression And Alternative Splicing In The Liver And Gastrointestinal Tract In The Lactating Rat, Antony Thomas Athippozhy

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Rat exon microarrays were utilized to detect changes in mRNA expression and alternative splicing in the liver, duodenum, jejunum, and ileum of the lactating rat when compared to age-matched virgin controls. Analysis of data at the level of gene expression revealed differential expression of genes involved in cholesterol biosynthesis in each tissue examined, suggesting increased Sterol Response Element Binding Protein activity. We also detected decreased mRNA from components of the T-cell signaling pathway in the jejunum and ileum. We characterized expression of solute carrier and adenosine triphosphate binding cassette proteins. In addition to characterizing genes by pathway, we have also …

Bayesian Semiparametric Generalizations Of Linear Models Using Polya Trees, Angela Schoergendorfer

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

In a Bayesian framework, prior distributions on a space of nonparametric continuous distributions may be defined using Polya trees. This dissertation addresses statistical problems for which the Polya tree idea can be utilized to provide efficient and practical methodological solutions.

One problem considered is the estimation of risks, odds ratios, or other similar measures that are derived by specifying a threshold for an observed continuous variable. It has been previously shown that fitting a linear model to the continuous outcome under the assumption of a logistic error distribution leads to more efficient odds ratio estimates. We will show that deviations …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Peak Power Tracking Technologies For Solar Arrays On Small Spacecraft, Daniel Martin Erb

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

The unique environment of CubeSat and small satellite missions allows certain accepted paradigms of the larger satellite world to be investigated in order to trade performance for simplicity, mass, and volume. Peak Power Tracking technologies for solar arrays are generally implemented in order to meet the End-of-Life power requirements for satellite missions given radiation degradation over time. The short lifetime of the generic satellite mission removes the need to compensate for this degradation. While Peak Power Tracking implementations can give increased power by taking advantage and compensating for the temperature cycles that solar cells experience, this comes at the expense …

Methionine-35 Of Aβ(1-42): Importance For Oxidative Stress In Alzheimer Disease, D. Allan Butterfield, Rukhsana Sultana

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Alzheimer disease (AD) is an age-related progressive neurodegenerative disorder. This devastating disease is characterized by the presence of senile plaques (SP), neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs), and loss of synapses. Amyloid beta-peptide 1–42 (Aβ(1–42)) is the main component of SP and is pivotal to AD pathogenesis. Brain of subjects with AD and arguably its earliest manifestation, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), demonstrate increased levels of oxidative stress markers. Our laboratory combined these two aspects of AD and MCI and proposed the Aβ(1–42)-associated free radical oxidative stress hypothesis to explain oxidative stress under which the MCI and AD brain exist …

Bedrock Geology And Tectonic Evolution Of The Western Central Maine Zone, South Central Massachusetts, Thomas Bradley Walker

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

Bedrock geology of the East Brookfield quadrangle (EBQ), based on new 1:24000 scale mapping, consists of an interfolded sequence of Rangeley Fm. and Paxton Fm. metasediments, intruded by Early Mississippian tonalitic to granitic orthogneisses and underlain in the western half by folded orthogneisses of unknown age. Pervasive flattening strains have created planar, generally NNE-SSW striking and consistent moderately west dipping foliations. Generally strike-parallel stretching lineations and boudinage structures, with rarer dip parallel stretching lineations, reflect extrusion of CMZ metasediments and orthogneisses with a flattening component. Mapping in the EBQ demonstrates that a transition between deformational mechanisms of the southern Central …

Selective Inguinal Lymphadenectomy In The Treatment Of Invasive Squamous Cell Carcinoma Of The Vulva, Christopher P. Desimone, Jeffrey Elder, John R. Van Nagell Jr.

Obstetrics and Gynecology Faculty Publications

En bloc radical vulvectomy with bilateral inguinofemoral lymphadenectomy has now been replaced by radical wide excision and selective inguinal lymphadenectomy based on the stage and location of invasive vulvar cancer. Early stage lateral cancers can be effectively treated by radical wide excision and ipsilateral superficial inguinal lymphadenectomy. Lymph node mapping using perilesional injection of radiocolloid and blue dye may identify sentinel lymph nodes which can be removed, thereby avoiding the morbidity of full inguinal lymphadenectomy in selected patients with early stage disease.

Geology Of Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, Matthew M. Crawford, Hanna Hunsberger

Map and Chart--KGS

Cumberland Gap National Historical Park is located in parts of Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. The park was authorized by President Franklin Roosevelt on June 11, 1940, and is now the largest historical park in the National Park System. It contains 24,000 acres along Cumberland Mountain near Ewing, Va., proceeding southwest toward Fern Lake in Tennessee, a distance of approximately 20 miles. The average width of the park is only 1.6 miles.

The park hosts a distinctive range of geologic processes and features. Unique structural geology, caves and karst, surface and groundwater erosion, and mass wasting are just a few of …

Kentucky Landscapes Through Geologic Time, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

We now understand that the earth’s crust is broken up into a number of plates, some of continental size, and that these plates have been moving— centimeters a year—throughout geologic history, driven by the internal heat of the earth. This movement creates our mountain chains, earthquakes, geologic faults, and volcanoes. The theory of plate tectonics (from the Greek, tektonikos: pertaining to building) attempts to describe the process and helps explain the geology of Kentucky.

The geologic story of the rocks that form Kentucky’s landscape began a half billion years ago when the area was covered by water. Deposits of sand, …

Spitzer Reveals What Is Behind Orion's Bar, Robert H. Rubin, Janet P. Simpson, C. R. O'Dell, Ian A. Mcnabb, Sean W. J. Colgan, Scott Y. Zhuge, Gary J. Ferland, Sergio A. Hidalgo

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

We present Spitzer Space Telescope observations of 11 regions south-east (SE) of the Bright Bar in the Orion Nebula, along a radial from the exciting star θ¹ Ori C, extending from 2.6 to 12.1 arcmin. Our Cycle 5 programme obtained deep spectra with matching Infrared Spectrograph (IRS) short-high (SH) and long-high (LH) aperture grid patterns. Most previous IR missions observed only the inner few arcmin (the ‘Huygens’ Region). The extreme sensitivity of Spitzer in the 10–37 μm spectral range permitted us to measure many lines of interest to much larger distances from θ¹ Ori C. Orion is the …

Detection Of Optical Coronal Emission From 106-K Gas In The Core Of The Centaurus Cluster, R. E. A. Canning, A. C. Fabian, R. M. Johnstone, J. S. Sanders, C. S. Crawford, N. A. Hatch, Gary J. Ferland

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

We report a detection (3.5 × 10³⁷± 5.6 × 10³⁶ erg s⁻¹) of the optical coronal emission line [Fe X] λ6374 and upper limits of four other coronal lines using high-resolution VIMOS spectra centred on NGC 4696, the brightest cluster galaxy in the Centaurus cluster. Emission from these lines is indicative of gas at temperatures between 1 × 10⁶−5 × 10⁶ K, so traces the interstellar gas in NGC 4696. The rate of cooling derived from the upper limits is consistent with the cooling rate from X-ray observations (∼10 M_⊙ yr …

A Computational Tool For Estimating Off-Target Application Areas In Agricultural Fields, Rodrigo S. Zandonadi, Joe D. Luck, Timothy S. Stombaugh, Michael P. Sama, Scott A. Shearer

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

A computational method for estimating off-target application areas based on the machine-controlled section width and the field shape was developed and implemented in software with a graphical user interface written in the MatLab environment. The program, which is called the Field Coverage Analysis Tool (FieldCAT), includes three modules: data import, data preparation, and coverage analysis. Nine field boundaries were evaluated to test the software using controlled section widths from 0.5 to 27 m and various swath orientations. The estimated off-target application area from the widest section width varied from 9% to 24% depending on the shape and size of the …

Lipopolysaccharide Animal Models For Parkinson's Disease, Mei Liu, Guoying Bing

Neuroscience Faculty Publications

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), an endotoxin from Gram-negative bacteria, acts as a potent stimulator of microglia and has been used to study the inflammatory process in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD) and anti-inflammatory therapy for PD treatment. Here, we review the growing body of literature on both in vitro and in vivo LPS PD models. Primary cell cultures from mesencephalic tissue were exposed to LPS in vitro; LPS was stereotaxically injected into the substantia nigra, striatum, or globus pallidus of brain or injected into the peritoneal cavity of the animal in vivo. In conclusion, the LPS PD models are summarized as …

Mitochondria, Amyloid Β, And Alzheimer's Disease, Ryan Douglas Readnower, Andrew David Sauerbeck, Patrick G. Sullivan

Spinal Cord and Brain Injury Research Center Faculty Publications

Hypometabolism is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and implicates a mitochondrial role in the neuropathology associated with AD. Mitochondrial amyloid-beta (Aβ) accumulation precedes extracellular Aβ deposition. In addition to increasing oxidative stress, Aβ has been shown to directly inhibit mitochondrial enzymes. Inhibition of mitochondrial enzymes as a result of oxidative damage or Aβ interaction perpetuates oxidative stress and leads to a hypometabolic state. Additionally, Aβ has also been shown to interact with cyclophilin D, a component of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore, which may promote cell death. Therefore, ample evidence exists indicating that …

Expedient Treatment Of A Collodion Baby, Michael Chung, Jaime Pittenger, Stuart Tobin, Andrew Chung, Nirmala Desai

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Only ~270 cases of collodion babies have been reported in the literature since 1892. As the name suggests, the term "collodion baby" refers to a phenotype that can be characterized by a yellow, shiny, tight parchment-like membrane stretched over the skin. Although the collodion membrane is only an evanescent condition of the newborn, neonatal complications can occur in 45% of all collodion babies, leading to a mortality rate of ~11% in the first few weeks of life. Most children born as collodion babies will spontaneously desquamate within 2 weeks, but may be as long as 3 months. Eventually, these children …

Understanding And Improving Lithium Ion Batteries Through Mathematical Modeling And Experiments, Rutooj D. Deshpande

Theses and Dissertations--Chemical and Materials Engineering

There is an intense, worldwide effort to develop durable lithium ion batteries with high energy and power densities for a wide range of applications, including electric and hybrid electric vehicles. For improvement of battery technology understanding the capacity fading mechanism in batteries is of utmost importance. Novel electrode material and improved electrode designs are needed for high energy- high power batteries with less capacity fading. Furthermore, for applications such as automotive applications, precise cycle-life prediction of batteries is necessary.

One of the critical challenges in advancing lithium ion battery technologies is fracture and decrepitation of the electrodes as a result …

Chemical Evolution And Residence Time Of Groundwater In The Wilcox Aquifer Of The Northern Gulf Coastal Plain, Estifanos Haile

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

This study aims to integrate groundwater geochemistry and mathematical modeling to determine the dominant geochemical processes and groundwater residence time within the Wilcox aquifer in the northern Gulf Coastal Plain. Groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for major ion chemistry, stable isotopes (¹⁸O, ²H, and ¹³C), and radioisotope ³⁶Cl content. Geochemical modeling enabled the identification of major sources and sinks of solutes in the aquifer. A two-dimensional, finite-difference, numerical model was used to determine the deep groundwater flow rate and transport of ³⁶Cl in the aquifer. Major ion chemistry shows a chromatographic pattern along …

Arsenic Heterogeneity In Aquifer Sediments From West Bengal, India, Emily Eastridge

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

Multiple studies in the Bengal basin have shown that elevated As in groundwater coincides with reduced, relatively dark sediments of Himalayan provenance. In West Bengal state (India), As concentrations > 10 μg/L tend to occur east of the River Bhagirathi-Hoogly, the main distributary of the Ganges. Associations among sediment chemistry and mineralogy for four cores from either side of the Bhagirathi-Hoogly (cores 1 and 2 to the east, 3 and 4 to the west) in Murshidabad district were investigated. Ten sediment samples were collected from each boring at various depths to a maximum of 38 to 43 m. Sediment chemistry was …

Locating Hot Spots Of Fecal Pollution In An Urban Watershed Of Central Kentucky Using Bacteroides 16s Rrna Markers, Tricia L. Coakley

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

The field of molecular fecal source tracking in the water environment has developed rapidly since the first PCR assays for general and host-­‐specific Bacteroides 16s rRNA markers were published. Numerous host-­‐specific molecular markers and PCR assays have been developed, adding greater specificity, sensitivity and quantitative methods to the array of options. The public demand for readying methods for transfer to the commercial lab, so that they may be used to generate data for public utilities, citizen action groups and regulatory agencies, has fueled the development of an entire new research community. These methods, however plentiful, have not found community agreement …

Fabrication Of Mwcnt Based Gas Sensor Using Site-Selective Growth Of Nanotubes On Gold Patterned Silicon Oxide Substrate, Srikanth Durgamahanty

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Growth confinement techniques for multi walled carbon nanotubes on Au/SiO₂ surfaces was studied and incorporated into a gas sensor design. A device framework was conceived and a sensor was built to achieve this structure. The fabrication results were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy which confirmed the achievement of highly site-selective growth of carbon nanotubes, exclusively between the interdigitated electrodes. The sensor was then evaluated for its capacitance and conductance response when exposed to NO₂ gas. Variation in sensitivities with frequency and flow rate were analyzed. A mathematical model was derived for such a device structure and the predictions …

Rotate And Hold And Scan (Rahas): Structured Light Illumination For Use In Remote Areas, Eli Ross Crane

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

As a critical step after the discovery of material culture in the field, archaeologists have a need to document these findings with a slew of different physical measurements and photographs from varying perspectives. 3-D imaging is becoming increasingly popular as the primary documenting method to replace the plethora of tests and measurements, but for remote areas 3-D becomes more cumbersome due to physical and environmental constraints. The difficulty of using a 3-D imaging system in such environments is drastically lessened while using the RAHAS technique, since it acquires scans untethered to a computer. The goal of this thesis is to …