Digital Commons Network^™

Preparation And Characteristics Of Galangal Essential Oil/Alginate Microcapsules, T Jiamrungraksa, S Charuchinda

Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals

Galangal essential oil/alginate microcapsules were prepared by solidifying in liquid (orifice method) between sodium alginate and calcium chloride. The structure, morphology and also the thermal stability of the microcapsules were investigated by FT-IR, optical microscope, infrared moisture determination balance (IMDB) at 120°C for 2 hours. The galangal essential oil release content of microcapsules was estimated by measuring time course of weight of microcapsules determination by isothermal TGA at 37°C and 120°C. FT-IR spectral data confirmed the presence of galangal essential oil in the prepared microcapsules. An increase of sodium alginate concentration and oil content resulted in significantly higher average size …

Army Supply Chain Management: Trends And Parellels With Industry, Matthew C. Olson

Honors Theses

Documents assembled as part of a supply chain management study to compare the tools and concepts used by private industry with the public sector, specifically the Department of Defense and the United States Army.

The Impact Of Network Parameters On The Quality Of Voice Calls In Voice Over Internet Protocol (Voip) Services, Olugbenga Bamidele Olumuyiwa

Theses (Pre-2016)

Many residential as well as business customers have been switching to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone services. VoIP phone services are based on the transmission of voice over packet switched IP networks. VoIP customers use their internet connection not only to connect to the Internet but also to make phone calls. VoIP service providers have always faced the challenge of providing customers with good call quality even though the IP network that carries call traffic does not provide any Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees. Delays, packet loss, jitter, and out of sequence packets are some sources of poor VoIP …

Mate Choice In Fish: A Review, Hannah Gardner

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Literature review

An Investigation Of The Risks For Human Health From Bio-Available And Bio-Accessible Arsenic In The Tamar Catchment Using Human Hair Bio-Markers And Geochemical Data, Richard Cattan

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Geologic mineralisation and anthropogenic exploitation in the Tamar catchment of south-west England have resulted in an environment enriched with arsenic, a recognised carcinogen and systemic toxicant that can target many organs in the human body. This study examined geochemical data from the catchment and found particularly high arsenic contamination around the historic mining districts of Callington and Gunnislake, where maximum concentrations of 39 µg L-1 in stream waters, 11000 mg kg-1 in stream sediments, and 15000 mg kg-1 in topsoils were found in certain areas. Hair samples from 91 catchment residents were analysed using inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The arsenic …

Nine Years On: Revisiting The Pond Communities Of The Lizard Peninsula, Uk, Billie Rowan

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Ponds contribute in various amounts to freshwater biodiversity and in some regions can be of considerably high biodiversity value compared to other freshwaters. The ecology of pond communities has been studied by numerous authors, yet many of these studies represent only a snapshot in time. This study explored the macroinvertebrate communities of a selection of ponds on the Lizard Peninsula, UK and revisited these ponds after a nine year period, examining changes in composition, environmental variables structuring the communities and their conservation value. Ponds in both years formed distinct groups, based on community similarities. In both years area was an …

Beneficial Roles Of Microorganisms In The Coral Reef Ecosystem, Katie R. Laming

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Coral reef biodiversity has declined over the past few decades and despite recent significant scientific interest in reefs in light of noticeable effects of climate change on this fragile habitat there is still much undiscovered about the true diversity of the symbiont community. There is also much to ascertain about underlying holobiont mechanisms relating to beneficial properties resident bacteria possess to help their hosts defend themselves from pathogenic xenobacteria or how symbionts provide the holobiont and other reef organisms with nutrition by utilising the carbon and nitrogen cycles. These are some of the questions addressed in this literature review. It …

Depmap: Dependency Mapping Of Applications Using Operating System Events, Ryan Matteson

Master's Theses

Applications are increasingly hosted on shared, heterogeneous distributed systems. Web applications and “cloud” computing are broad examples of this, but even relatively isolated servers often depend on shared, network-accessible resources. This standardization around service layers abstracts aspects of service delivery, but often entails a large collection of component systems. The complexity that is abstracted from a functional perspective can give rise to runtime issues. Critical issues arising out of this model include resource utilization (sizing, capacity testing, resource monitoring) and dependency management (identifying and monitoring dependencies between components and potential for impact to an application).

This thesis presents an automated …

Risk Identification And Project Approval: An Importance-Performance Analysis Of Taxonomy-Based Risks In Information Technology Projects, Tiago Ferreira Da Silva

Theses

The dissemination of project management practices is consolidating project as a great mean of achieving an organization's strategic plan (PMI, 2008, p. 10). But there are no resources and funds available to all, and competition among alternative projects is increasing. Funding institutions, government agencies, and credit rating organizations started considering project risk in project evaluation, instead of only using financial metrics such as ROI (Return on Investment) or NPV (Net Present Value). In order to obtain resources needed to implement projects, and thus contribute to an organization's objectives, it is necessary to identify the risks that have greater influence on …

Paths To Upper Level Positions In Public Relations, Patrick J. Bishop

Dissertations

Preparation for a career in the field of public relations (PR) is based on a set of unique core competencies typically found in liberal arts. Though PR professionals rarely gain business degrees, they acquire knowledge, skills, perspectives, and strategies wellsuited to executive-level positions in business. Additionally, managerial positions in PR offer greater potential for influence than task-oriented roles with limited strategic opportunity.

This study examines the advancement of PR practitioners into upper-level management positions in business. The purpose of this research is to identify factors and behaviors that contribute to, or hinder, PR professional’s attainment of top-management positions. This study …

Avid Through Student Perspectives: A Qualitative Study On Avid Students' Experiences In The Program, Aidee Vasquez

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

The purpose of this research was to examine how Hispanic high school students represent their experiences in one college readiness program, Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID), which is designed to prepare students in the academic middle for four-year college. Utilizing social and cultural capital theories, I examined student perspectives on the supports AVID provided for them to gain the social and cultural capital needed for success in school and entry to college. I conducted eight forty-five minute semistructured interviews grounded in an ethnographic perspective. Eight participating AVID students came from low socioeconomic backgrounds, were Hispanics in the academic middle (GPA …

Design And Implementation Of An Actively Adjustable Spring Mechanism Via Redundant Actuation, Eleazar Marquez

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This study presents the theoretical results and experimental validation of an adjustable stiffness mechanism. The use of redundant actuation is emphasized in the design of a one-degree-of-freedom Watt II mechanism capable of independently controlling the effective stiffness without a change in equilibrium position. This approach is in contrast to previous spring mechanism designs unable to actively control the spring rate independent of deflection, and has potential applications in various types of suspension and assembly systems. Results indicate that driving the redundantly actuated, unidirectional, spring mechanism requires attaching two direct brush-type direct current motors on each of the two grounded revolute …

Surface Optimization Of High Density Polyethylene And Carbon Nanofiber Composites For The Improvement Of Electromagnetic Shielding Effectiveness, Brandon C. Jarvis

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Nanoreinforced composites of High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) and Carbon Nanofibers (CNF) of varying nanofiber concentration were fabricated via melt mixing. Following fabrication, various metal and metal-nitride thin films were sputter deposited upon the substrates. Volume resistivity measurements of the composite substrates, as well as four point probe analysis of the composites and the deposited films were performed and are reported. Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) Shielding Effectiveness (SE) measurements were performed upon all samples in order to gauge the effects of percolation and the presence of the deposited film(s) upon overall SE. Comparisons of experimental measurements with analytical models available in the …

Photonic Crystal Design And Fabrication Assisted By Tunable Femtosecond Oscillator Laser, Kristofer B. Ohlinger

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Photonic Crystals have the potential for engineered light interaction as directed by the photonic bandgap, a property that details the prohibited propagation region and ultimately the ability to guide light. A so called, photonics-on-chip, would incorporate arbitrary light guiding with functional elements in one package. The realization of such a device is subject to the fabrication paradigms implemented and this thesis is concerned with holographic lithography as a means for creating polymer photonics crystal templates and two-photon polymerization for incorporating light guiding pathways.

In this thesis, the design of the to-be-fabricated structures has been co-opted by computational exploration of the …

The Impact Of Caesar Augustus On Roman Trade, William Edwin Wilson

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This paper studies Gaius Julius Octavian Caesar (Augustus) who combined the military/political expertise of a Roman Patrician with the practical business sense of the upper middle class (Equites) and as a consequence, his administration revived Rome’s economic fortunes and launched a new period of economic prosperity for the Empire. It also explores the specific actions of Augustus and those near to him that led directly to the revival of Rome’s economic fortunes and the remodeling of Rome and its many celebrated monuments and essential buildings. It concludes with a final summation of the man and his contributions to Rome’s success …

A Comprehensive Simulation Model For Floating Gate Transistors, Steven Joseph Rapp

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Floating-gate transistors have proven to be extremely useful devices in the development of analog systems; however, the inability to properly simulate these devices has held back their adoption. The objective of this work was to develop a complete simulation model for a floating-gate (FG) MOSFET using both standard SPICE primitives and also MOSFET models taken directly from foundry characterizations. This new simulation model will give analog designers the ability simulate all aspects of floating-gate device operation including transient, AC and DC characteristics. This work describes the development of this model and demonstrates its use in various applications.

An Exploration Of The Spatial Distribution Of National Park Units, Daniel Servian

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

National Parks can reveal a glimpse into significant aspects of a culture. Visiting and experiencing a National Park can open a window into a culture's heritage, intellectual philosophy, triumphs, and sorrows. As of 2009, the National Park Service administered 393 National Park units, located across America and its territories. The purpose of this paper is to spatially investigate the National Park designation process. Examination of the trends and patterns within the National Park designation process required computation of the data via exploratory data analysis (EDA) and exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA). This analysis will illustrate significant clusters and correlation between …

Prediction For Resolution Time Of Software Defect, Da Wang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In practical software development projects, solving test issues efficiently during Software Development Life Cycle is critical to release software products on time. Different test environments, test resources and test requirements could result in different outcomes. Therefore, getting accurate prediction of the software defects' resolution time could be beneficial to the practical projects.;In our study, data mining techniques offer great promise in prediction of software defects' resolution time. Our research is conducted based on the NASA Metrics Data Program (MDP). We first calculate the resolution time for available projects. Using unsupervised discretization methods, we split resolution time into certain interval as …

Mechanisms Of Tungsten Carbide-Cobalt Nanoparticle-Induced Angiogenesis, Yingxue Zhu

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Hard metal or cemented carbide consists of a powder mixture of 80 to 90% of tungsten carbide (WC) and 5 to 10% of metallic cobalt (Co). Nanoparticles are engineered structures with one dimension of at least 100 nanometers or smaller. The small size results in properties that may be substantially different from particles of the same composition in the micrometer scale. It has been demonstrated that the inhalation of hard metal particles may cause an interstitial pulmonary disease and lung cancer, the mechanism of which involves an interaction between Co and WC particles, the generation of reactive oxygen species, and …

Correlating Simulated Surface Marks With Near-Surface Tornado Structure, Michael I. Zimmerman

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Tornadoes often leave behind patterns of debris deposition, or "surface marks", which provide a direct signature of their near surface winds. The intent of this thesis is to investigate what can be learned about near-surface tornado structure and intensity through the properties of surface marks generated by simulated, debris-laden tornadoes. Earlier work showed through numerical simulations that the tornado's structure and intensity is highly sensitive to properties of the near-surface flow and can change rapidly in time for some conditions. The strongest winds often occur within tens of meters of the surface where the threat to human life and property …

Teacher And Administrator Perceptions Of Technology Use In Two West Virginia Middle Schools, Carrie E. Marcum

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The "digital natives" that are sitting in today's classrooms live their lives surrounded by technology. "The current crop of learners differs in significant ways from previous generations because, unlike their predecessors, they have literally grown up 'digital'" (Simpson & Clem, 2008, p. 2). Teachers and administrators often struggle to keep up with the technological world that students are used to. This mixed-methods study included West Virginia teachers and administrators from two middle schools. Teachers and administrators at the two schools were given surveys that addressed the following: frequency of technology use for personal and professional use, confidence level with various …

An Annotated Bibliography Of Music Composed By Heinz Holliger For The Oboe, Oboe D'Amore, Or English Horn, Matthew Allen Ward

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This annotated bibliography is intended to serve as a resource for those musicians seeking any compositions composed by Heinz Holliger for the oboe, oboe d'amore, or English horn for performance, pedagogical, or research-related purposes. This bibliography is a current listing of all published and unpublished compositions written for these instruments by Holliger as of March 2010. Twenty-four annotations provide information on performance-related criteria such as the year of completion, publisher, instrumentation, movements and titles, text and translation, available historical information, timing, difficulty, range, and extended techniques. Also included is a description and discussion of all the extended techniques that appear …

A Degradation Model For Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Anodes Due To Impurities In Coal Syngas, Fatma Nihan Cayan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) offer great promise as a clean and efficient alternative to conventional power generation technologies. A major advantage of SOFCs in comparison to other fuel cell types is that they can be operated directly on a wide variety of fuels including biogas, hydrocarbon fuels and coal-derived synthesis gas (syngas). SOFC operating on coal syngas is an especially attractive prospect given the abundant coal resources in the world. However, coal syngas usually contains various impurities such as phosphorus, arsenic, zinc, sulfur, mercury, selenium, and vanadium which affect the performance and durability of SOFCs. At low impurity concentrations, …

Process Model And Control System For The Glass Fiber Drawing Process, Songke Liu

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Drawing of glass fibers is an important industrial process used for manufacture of a variety of materials ranging from optical communications cables to fiber filter media. A variety of machines exist for performing the drawing function, but all share similar problems with control of the fiber diameters and breakage of the fibers during the extrusion process. In many cases, control systems are not configured to monitor the most critical process variables-- temperature of molten glass in the furnace, but instead use only furnace crown temperature. Upsets in disturbance variables such as ambient temperature are compensated manually by operators, usually only …

Computational Fluid Dynamic Studies Of Chemical Looping Combustion Systems, Kartikeya Krishnaji Mahalatkar

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Responsible carbon management will be required for the future utilization of fossil fuels for power generation. One technology that is showing tremendous potential for carbon capture is the chemical looping combustion (CLC). CLC involves combustion of fuels by heterogeneous chemical reactions with an oxygen carrier, usually a granular metal oxide, exchanged between two fluidized beds. In any regular combustion process the oxidizer for the fuel is air which essentially is a mixture of oxygen and nitrogen. This results in a flue gas stream which consists of primarily of relatively dilute CO 2 (15 -- 20%), mixed with steam and nitrogen. …

Wireless Sensing System For Load Testing And Rating Of Highway Bridges, Yan Luo

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Structural capacity evaluation of bridges is an increasingly important topic in the effort to deal with the deteriorating infrastructure. Most bridges are evaluated through subjective visual inspection and conservative theoretical rating. Diagnostic load test has been recognized as an effective method to accurately assess the carrying capacity of bridges. Traditional wired sensors and data acquisition (DAQ) systems suffer drawbacks of being labor intensive, high cost, and time consumption in installation and maintenance. For those reasons, very few load tests have been conducted on bridges.;This study aims at developing a low-cost wireless bridge load testing & rating system that can be …

Laboratory And Real-World Measurement Of Diesel Particulate Matter, Yuebin Wu

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

West Virginia University's Center for Alternative Fuels, Engines, and Emissions (CAFEE) has designed and constructed, with support from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the 'next level' transportable dual-primary full-flow dilution tunnel emissions-measurement laboratory. As one of the major contributors, the author participated in the design and the fabrication processes of this laboratory. A systematic SimulinkRTM model was built for the Particulate Matter (PM) sampling system and a parametric study of the PM system was performed. Modeling of gas chemical composition, mass and heat transfer, as well as modeling of the primary and the secondary tunnels, were conducted with this …

A Novel Global Pattern Recognition Algorithm, Joseph M. Stoffa

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The background, development, performance assessment, and analysis of a novel pattern recognition algorithm that is applicable to any set of binary images are discussed. The efficacy of the algorithm when applied to the problem of fingerprint recognition is quantified. The conclusion was that the algorithm is relatively poor as a fingerprint identification algorithm, averaging an equal error rate of approximately 19% as calculated by the rules specified in the Year 2000 Fingerprint Verification Competition. The positive attributes of the algorithm were its ultra-fast matching times, orientation independence, lack of rejection events, relative insensitivity to resolution difference, and one-way transformations. The …

Ferric Iron Nanoparticle Formation Mediated By Negatively Charged Polypeptides, Vamsi Krishna Aluru

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The creation of magnetite particles by magnetotactic bacteria has been of great interest for a number of years. Previous studies have shown that magnetite nanocrystals have been synthesized in the presence of recombinant Mms6 protein. Mms6 plays a vital role in the biomineralization of bacterial magnetite nanocrystals. The objective of this research is to determine the effect of functional group type on size and shape of magnetic nanoparticles formed by biomineralization. Control over the size of nanoparticles is paramount. Use of nanoparticles as contrast agents in MRI is advantageous, as they are small enough to be localized in desired region …

Simulation-Based Optimum Design Of Sensor Arrays Using Multi-Objective Tabu Search, Zongyu Geng

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This thesis is concerned with the optimum design of sensor arrays (i.e., electronic noses or tongues) using simulation experiments. The proposed design method adopts a set of new criteria, which more adequately represent the desirable properties of a sensor array in practice. A number of best non-dominated array designs are selected through a multiple objective (criteria) Tabu search algorithm. The evaluation of a candidate sensor array is based on its multivariate calibration model, which is efficiently estimated from well-designed simulation experiments. The method can be used to optimize the design of both linear and nonlinear sensor arrays.