Digital Commons Network^™

Management Of Construction Jobsite Productivity : A Self Assessment Approach, Nicos Poliviou Nicolaou

Theses

A critical component of construction project management is the improvement of jobsite productivity. This paper proposes a procedure for use by project managers to assess jobsite productivity performance. The methodology provides a framework which when applied will identify specific aspects of the jobsite where potential productivity improvement is possible. A major feature is its systematic approach which will direct the project manager to the specific resources which when better managed will lead to lower construction costs.

Schottky-Barrier Solar Cells, Surface Patterning For Efficient Light Collection, Constantinos Manolis

Theses

Different geometrical surface configurations are considered here for a Au/n-Si semiconductor Schottky-barrier solar cell to improve their light collection efficiency.

Optical and electrical properties are theoretically analyzed for two given optical wavelengths of 0.9 and 0.5 micrometers respectively.

The configurations considered are: V-shaped, Star- shaped, M-shaped, asymmetric-V-shaped, and asymmetric-M-shaped. They all show a significant improvement in the short-circuit current over a flat cell model, while the open-circuit voltage remains practically unchanged.

Investigation Of Benzo(A)Pyrene In Outdoor Air, Indoor Air And Personal Inhalation Air, Hsiu-Wen Chen

Theses

The assessment of human exposure to an environmental contaminant requires the measurement of the concentrations levels present in each pathway of possible contact.

This was an investigation of human exposure to an environmental pollutant, benzo(a)pyrene, in outdoor air, indoor air and personal inhalation air samples. The analytical procedure involved extraction by ultrasonic and separation by thin layer chromatography, and detection by fluorescence. The resulting data was used to develop a profile of indoor and outdoor human exposure to B(a)P during the year.

Investigation Of Surface Formation In Abrasive Waterjet Cutting, Shy-Shyan Chen

Theses

This study is concerned with experimental and numerical investigation of the dynamics of surface generation during the impingement of the abrasive waterjet on a workpiece.

A series of erosion zones were generated by the abrasive waterjet on the polished surface of stainless steel samples. The impingement was carried out at different traverse speeds and abrasive flow rates. An optical, a scanning electron microscope and a laser displacement sensor were used to investigate the developed surface.

The microscopical examination of the surface enabled determination of the shape of asperities created by individual particles, distribution of asperities on the surface and the …

Obstacles To Women Seeking Management Careers : What They Are, And How American Companies And Women Confront Them, Lih-Fang Chiou

Theses

The thesis focuses on the obstacles faced by women who enter management. It is understood from the literature that the obstacles facing women can be attributed to societal issues or external factors, and to internal obstacles which arise from the perception women have of themselves and their position in the labor force.

The purpose of this research is not to identify all of the obstacles. The focus, instead, is on how women and management respond to the obstacles and how they have created access to senior management positions.

In choosing a managerial career, the critical mission for women executives is …

Implementation Of The Sliding Dictionary Data Compression Algorithm On An At&T Dsp 32 Digital Signal Processor, Shu Fang

Theses

Compared with other data compression algorithms, the sliding dictionary is more practical for implementation in hardware. After a comprehensive study of the algorithm, an on line data compression scheme which uses AT&T DSP 32 Digital Signal Processor has been developed. Assembly language programs for encoder and decoder have been written and tested. The whole compression system has been simulated in a real-time environment and results have been obtained. A quantized coding scheme has been used to increase compression ratio. Separate assembly language programs have been written to implement the quantized coding scheme and tested. Results obtained from real-time simulation are …

Interpolation Search For Alphabetic Tables, Loizos Gabriel

Theses

One of the fastest search techniques for uniformly distributed sorted numerical tables is interpolation search. This divide and conquer technique accesses the most probable key rather than the middle key as in binary search and continues to search similarly the appropriate part of the table . In the previous work we proved a lg lg n average number of accesses for interpolation search.

The inefficiency of interpolation search for an alphabetic table is demonstrated by Burton and Lewis and a robust variation suggested by them to improve the efficiency. This inefficiency is expected since such tables are usually far from …

Robotic Safety Utilizing A Safety Engineering Approach, Brian Gallagher

Theses

Robotic safety is examined and explained using a safety engineering perspective. After reviewing robot fundamentals and defining the need for safety, hazard assessment and risk analysis techniques are studied. Reasons for a comprehensive robot safety program are discussed. Currently available accident statistics are examined to better understand the hazards associated with robot installations. Robotic safety procedures and methods are listed which can help reduce the severity or frequency of hazards. Various safeguarding sensors and types are analyzed for they are the "last line of defense" to reduce hazards to an acceptable level. The American Robot Safety Standard, ANSI/RIA R15.06 - …

A Computer-Aided Instruction Electrical Safety Course, Edward John Gusciora

Theses

It is the purpose of this thesis to show how computerized training can be used in helping to create an effective safety program. Through example, a complete electrical safety program will be developed for workers whose jobs do not pertain directly to electrical installations, but who use them through the course of their daily work activities. A computer-aided instruction module on electrical safety will be developed for presentation to workers on an IBM compatible computer.

Importance of Thesis

Too often safety factors go into the design criteria of a piece of equipment or a manufacturing process and do not extend …

Thermal Decomposition Of 1,1,2- Trichloroethane In Hydrogen In Tubular Flow Reactors At Atmospheric Pressure, Chen-Chung Yeh

Theses

The decomposition of 1,1,2-trichloroethane in a hydrogen gas bath was carried out at 1 atmosphere total pressure in three different surface to volume ratio flow reactors. Temperature ranged from 440 to 850 °C and the residence times studied were in the range 0.2 - 2.3 seconds. Application of the first order rate expression to this data yields a linear relationship for each temperature studied and thus global rate constants for loss of reactant were determined.

It was found that conversion of the reagent was a function of both temperature and residence time. The major products observed are 1, 2-dichloroethylene (CHClCHCl), …

Thermal Desorption Of Hazardous And Toxic Organic Compounds, Manuel S. Nolau

Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to study the thermal desorption behavior of toxic organic compounds, specifically o-xylene, p-xylene, ethyl benzene, p-chlorotoluene, and anthracene, from soil with respect to temperature and time, and to develop a mathematical model that will describe this desorption behavior. The model will allow prediction of the concentration of an organic contaminant in commercial soil desorption system over time given a known set of parameters of the specific chemical as well as flow rate and temperature. For this purpose, two sets of experiments were done: These are identified as 1. Thermal desorption and 2. plug flow …

Thermal Decomposition Of 1,1,1-Thrichloroethane-Methane-Oxygen Mixture In Tubular Flow Reactor, Yo-Ping Wu

Theses

The thermal decomposition of 1,1,1-trichloroethane in methane/oxygen mixtures and argon bath gas was carried out at 1 atmosphere total pressure in a tubular flow reactors. The thermal degradation of 1,1,1-trichloroethane and methane were analyzed systematically over temperature ranges from 500 to 800°C, with average residence times in the range of 0.05 to 2.5 seconds. Five reactants ratio sets in three different size flow reactors were studied.

It was found that the complete decay (99%) of the 1,1,1-trichloroethane at 1 second residence time occurs at about 600°C for all the reactants ratio sets. The major product for 1,1,1-trichloroethane decomposition are 1,1-dichloroethylene …

Scanning Electron Microscopy And X-Ray Energy Dispersive Spectroscopic Analysis Of Selected Sorbent Materials, Elhamy Amin Sedhom

Theses

A previous study⁽¹⁾ showed that a combination of acidic and basic sorbents in a layered system is required to reduce to safe levels the contaminants present in the leachates emanating from industrial landfills. The sorbents used were fly ash, vermiculite, kaolinite, illite, zeolite, apautagite, bentonite, activated carbon and bauxite.

The purpose of this investigation is to study the physical properties, elemental composition and the distribution of the aforementioned solid sorbents. Properties of interest are particle size, shape and distribution and also the chemical composition and the distribution of the elements within the sample particles.

Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and …

Nonlinear, Metal-Clad Optical Waveguide, Bhavesh Patel

Theses

Planar optical waveguides consisting of different types of films including nonlinear films with metal cladding have been studied theoretically. Ideal metal cladding with σ = ∞ and nonideal metal cladding with σ ≠ ∞, that is, with complex refractive index is considered to get electric field and wave number for TE₀ mode. For nonlinear material, approximate solution is derived in a series form using Rayleigh-Schrodinger method. The appropriate eigenvalue equations are solved by Newton-Raphson iteration method. For self-focusing media in the center, the propagation constant increases with increasing power and with self-focusing media in the cladding the propagation constant …

Network Realizability Approach To Robust Stability Of Discrete-Time Systems Characterized By Polynomials, Sri Indran Rasiah

Theses

In system design, the coefficients of a characterizing polynomial are usually not precisely known but can be bounded from above and below by real numbers. The requirement of robust system design from the stability standpoint demands, then, the guaranteeing of the stability of a set of polynomials.

Stability theorems for continuous-time systems and discrete-time systems, are studied in this report. It is shown that one more condition has to be included into each of the theorem. The revised theorem for continuous-time systems is proved through network realizability theory. The one for discrete-time systems is, then, proved via the use of …

Hardware And Software Designs For Integrated Electrical Engineering Experiments, Sujin Pramojaney

Theses

The interfacing between the various electrical engineering fields is not emphasized in the electrical engineering laboratory; the traditional aim of a laboratory course is to complement a single theoretical course. The object of this thesis is to provide means, hardware and software, that can be used in different system configurations to perform useful industrial tasks. The chosen task is to control electrical machines using a microcomputer. Experiments can be written to be performed by students, using these systems. The emphasize of these experiments can be on the characteristics of a power electronics device, but the device will be seen as …

Nonlinear Variants Of The Least Mean Square (Lms) Algorithm, John George Van Saders

Theses

Adaptive systems using the LMS algorithm or its variants usually require bilinear correlation multipliers with high dynamic range and large bandwidth. The class of LMS-type algorithms utilizing zero-memory limiters (on one or both correlation multiplier inputs) to reduce dynamic range are examined. The correlator limiters may be included to simplify the hardware implementation or may arise due to limited dynamic range of the loop components. The application of a theorem due to Price provides a technique for simplifying the analysis, which otherwise might be extremely difficult. The analysis provides closed-form expressions for the mean weight convergence behavior, permitting examination of …

Arithmetic Pipeline Analysis Package Ii, Sai K. Vedantam

Theses

This work describes the implementation of arithmetic pipeline scheduling algorithms, to enhance an existing simulation package. The user need only specify the arithmetic equations to be processed and the required stage configuration. The program automatically performs the tasks of forming the reservation table, building the pipeline and specifying the input/output connectivity for each segment and multiplexer in the pipeline. This package integrates two existing simulation tools and enhances many aspects of the previous programs.

The main application area for such a tool is education. Since it is very easy to use and requires little or no time for one to …

Caldac, A New Approach To Computer-Assisted Theatrical Lighting Design, David William Zalewski

Theses

CALDAC, which stands for Computer-Assisted Lighting Design and Control, is a design environment integrating two present day state-of-the-art theatrical lighting computer aides, the computer-aided design (CAD) program and the preset storage system. The CALDAC environment also features On-Screen Stage Simulation, a newly proposed design tool. It is shown that this integration offers a strong advantage to the lighting designer and his/her crew.

The thesis begins by introducing the concepts of theatrical lighting design and the evolution of computerized control. The basics of CAD for the lightplot design are presented, followed by an introduction to the concepts of on-screen stage simulation. …

Variations Of Alkalinity, Ph, Oxidation Reduction Potential, And Conductivity In Single And Multi-Stage Sludge Digestion Systems, Nasser M. Kamazani

Theses

Anaerobic digestion is used at many municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants. Recent increase in the cost of energy and search for an alternative source of energy for the future have prompted renewed interest in anaerobic digestion for energy recovery by production of methane from waste materials, including wastewater sludges and agricultural and municipal solid wastes. Accordingly, a large literature exist on the subject, most of it dealing with more physical aspects of different process design. Little or not enough attention has been paid to its highly complex biochemical characteristics.

The purpose of this study is a preliminary investigation regarding …

Simulation And Off-Line Programming Of Robotic Workcells, Krishnaprasad V. Kamisetty

Theses

A typical, complex robotic workcell, namely NJIT's Flexible Manufacturing System (FMS) cell has been designed, modelled and simulated to bridge the gap between design and its implementation. McDonnell Douglas' (McAuto) PLACE, BUILD, COMMAND and ADJUST have been used to simulate entire cycle of the NJIT's FMS cell. Various aspects such as "Cycle Time Analysis", robot reachability of various positions in the cell and "Collision Detection" have also been studied and analyzed.

The ease of effecting any modifications to the existing workcell design has been demonstrated. The NJIT's FMS cell consists of the GE P-50 robot, the IBM 7535 robot, the …

Csma/Cd Lan Performance : Modeling And Simulation In Csim, Nanda K. Kanuri

Theses

A simulation model to analyze the performance of CSMA/CD protocol is developed. CSIM, a process oriented simulation language, is used. Performance measures such as throughput, average delay and maximum delay per packet are presented. System performance is analyzed for different loads, number of stations, and network lengths, with packet length as parameter. By trading off the throughput and delay time, an optium packet length can be selected from simulated performance curves. A general scheme for MAC protocols modeling is provided.

The Effects Of Degraded Indoor Air Quality On Employees Working In High Rise Office Buildings, Richard Patrick Luongo

Theses

An examination of the effects of poor indoor air quality on workers in high rise office buildings was conducted. These effects are manifested physiologically, psychologically and economically and originate from sources inside and outside the building, as well as from the building's ventilation system. These sources include combustion products, microorganisms, volatile organic chemicals, cigarette smoke and miscellaneous chemicals. Lower productivity and higher absenteeism are the initial results of these effects. If the situation becomes chronic, an erosion of trust between employer and employee can occur which may eventually serve as the basis for litigation, such as worker's compensation claims and …

Distributed Data Collection System Based On Hierarchical Network, Harish Mahindrakar

Theses

On line data collection systems are essential in order to satisfy the requirements for real-time applications. Typical applications are computer integrated manufacturing, security control, hourly wage calculations, human resources management. On line data collection system makes it possible to closely monitor and track different operations with more accuracy. On line data collection systems eliminate redundant work, save time and money.

If the distributed system is based on a multicontroller, it becomes really cost effective solution to build such a system.

This effort is the design of a distributed multicontroller system, required in a data collection system. A hierarchical network is …

Selection And Analysis Of Optimal Textural Features For Accurate Classification Of Monochrome Digitized Image Data, Denis J. Robert

Theses

A feature-selection technique based on measures of global class separability in multidimensional feature space is proposed for classifying monochrome digitized imagery by machine. Feature-selection procedures are an essential step in optimal classification in reduced feature space. Textural features constitute the type of measurements used to characterize image data due to its monochrome nature. IV The ability of the proposed feature-selection technique to provide an optimal environment for classifying image pixels is measured by the Gaussian Maximum Likelihood method. The appropriateness of using textural features to characterize monochrome digital image data is assessed in similar fashion. The robustness of the proposed …

A Graphic Identity Program For The Thousand Acre Swamp Sanctuary, Cynthia B. Hummel

Theses

People have often failed to appreciate the significance of wetlands. Lack of awareness has caused wetlands to be drained, filled, and polluted, to meet shortterm human needs. One half of the original 215 million acres of wetlands in the United States no longer exist. Best estimates indicate that we are continuing to loose 458,000 acres of our remaining wetlands each year. Wetlands have an enormous ability to produce and support plant and animal life. They rank among the most productive ecosystems in the world, and produce as much plant growth as tropical jungles, and 20 times as much plant material …

Photomontage: The Art Of Persuasion, Jessica Loy

Theses

The purpose of my thesis is to study the photomontage medium and its contribution to graphic design. I will begin with an academic research project which will concentrate on the specific use of photomontage by designers of the avant-garde period through the 1940s. This research will be completed by a written paper.

Interactive Interface Design: Graphic Design Archive Prototype 2.0, Cathleen Britt

Theses

None provided.

2d Special Effects On The Genigraphics 100 D+, Jane M. Wood

Theses

None provided.

Use Of An Incorparated Hardening Develpoer To Produce A Phase Modulated Hologram In A Silver Halide Material, Geoffrey B. Gretton

Theses

A holographic material is investigated which uses an incorporated hardening developer in a fine grain silver halide emulsion to first obtain a hardening modulation in the gelatin, and then convert the hardening modulation to a refractive index modulation by alcohol dehydration similar to the dichromated gel process. The hardening modulation is observed but conversion to a refractive index modulation by alcohol dehydration is not seen. The feasibility and problems of the material are evaluated.