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Electron Tunneling Apparatus And Associated Methods, Shakil Awan

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Application number: EP20120859028 20121120

Driven By Beliefs: Understanding Challenges Physical Science Teachers Face When Integrating Engineering And Physics, Emily A. Dare, Joshua A. Ellis, Gillian H. Roehrig

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

It is difficult to ignore the increased use of technological innovations in today’s world, which has led to various calls for the integration of engineering into K-12 science standards. The need to understand how engineering is currently being brought to science classrooms is apparent and necessary in order to address these calls for integration. This multiphase, mixed-methods study investigated the classroom practices and beliefs of high school physical science teachers following an intensive professional development on physics and engineering integration.

Classroom observations showed that teachers new to incorporating engineering into their physical science classrooms often struggled to maintain focus on …

Design Practices Of Preservice Elementary Teachers In An Integrated Engineering And Literature Experience, Kristen Bethke Wendell

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

The incorporation of engineering practices and core ideas into the Next Generation Science Standards at the elementary school level provides exciting opportunities but also raises important questions about the preparation of new elementary teachers. Both the teacher education and engineering education communities have a limited literature base on the resources that novice elementary teachers bring to learning and teaching engineering. The purpose of this descriptive exploratory research study was to characterize the design practices used by preservice elementary teachers during an integrated engineering and literature experience. Using a modification of the Design Activity Coding Scheme (Atman et al., 2007), we …

High And Low Computer Self-Efficacy Groups And Their Learning Behavior From Self-Regulated Learning Perspective While Engaged In Interactive Learning Modules, Harry B. Santoso, Oenardi Lawanto, Kurt Becker, Ning Fang, Edward M. Reeve

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

The purpose of this research was to investigate high school students’ computer self-efficacy (CSE) and learning behavior in a selfregulated learning (SRL) framework while utilizing an interactive learning module. The researcher hypothesizes that CSE is reflected on cognitive actions and metacognitive strategies while the students are engaged with interactive learning modules. Two research questions guided this research: (1) how is students’ CSE while engaged in interactive learning modules? and (2) how do high and low CSE groups plan and monitor their cognitive action, and regulate their monitoring strategies based on their CSE level? The research used a mixedmethods approach to …

Gender Differences In The Consistency Of Middle School Students’ Interest In Engineering And Science Careers, Marsha Ing, Pamela R. Aschbacher, Sherry M. Tsai

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

This longitudinal study analyzes survey responses in seventh, eighth, and ninth grade from diverse public school students (n = 482) to explore gender differences in engineering and science career preferences. Females were far more likely to express interest in a science career (31%) than an engineering career (13%), while the reverse was true for males (58% in engineering, 39% in science). After controlling for student and school demographic characteristics, females were as consistent as males in their science career interests during the three years of the study but less consistent in their engineering career interests. Knowing an engineer significantly …

U.S. Drought Monitor, October 28, 2014, Brian Fuchs

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for October 28, 2014 (10/28/14) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Basins Of Attraction For Two Species Competitive Model With Quadratic Terms And The Singular Allee Effect, Ann Brett, Mustafa Rs Kulenović

Mathematics Faculty Publications

We consider the following system of difference equations:

χ_n+1 = χ²_n/(B₁χ²_n + C₁y²_n), y_n+1 = y²_n/(A₂ + B₂χ²_n + C₂y²_n), n = 0, 1, ..., where B₁, C₁, A₂, B₂, C₂ are positive constrants and χ0, y0 ≥ 0 are initial conditions. This system has interesting dynamics and it can have up to seven equilibrium points as well as a singular …

Influence Of Pt:Ru Ratio In Nanotubes Array Structures On The Electrocatalytic Activity Of Methanol Oxidation, Jin-Hua Yuan, Feng-Bin Wang, Xing-Hua Xia

Journal of Electrochemistry

Bimetallic PtRu nanotubes array electrodes (NTAEs) with varied Pt to Ru atomic ratios have been prepared by electrochemical codeposition in 3-aminopropyltri-methoxysilane modified porous anodic alumina (PAA) membranes. The structure and morphology of the catalysts were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. Electrochemical results showed that the NTAEs with varied atomic ratios could be achieved by controlling the precursor concentration for deposition. The prepared nanoarrays composed of Pt or PtRu alloy promoted the mass-normalized activity toward the sluggish electrooxidation reaction of methanol due to the increased catalytic activity and real surface area, as well as the …

Electrochemistry Of Glucose Oxidase Modified On Porin-Phospholipid Biomimic Membrane, Kun-Qi Wang, Zuo-Ming Zhang, Wei Xing, Chang-Peng Liu, Xing Zhou

Journal of Electrochemistry

Biomimic membrane with nano-channels, which is made up of porin MspA and 1,2-Dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC) is constructed on glassy carbon substrate, and glucose oxidase (GOD) is modified on it. The direct electrochemical reaction and electrocatalytic behavior to oxygen and glucose of GOD on the GOD/MspA-DMPC/GC electreode are expounded by the cyclic voltammetric method. The study shows that GOD immobilized on porin MspA and DMPC biomimic membrane displays direct and surface-controlled electrochemical reaction nearby formal potential (E0′) of the flavoprotein active centre (FAD/FADH), and the electrochemical reaction contains two electrons and two protons exchange in 0.1 mmol·L^-1 phosphate buffer solution (PBS) …

Effect Of Imidazole Ionic Liquids On The Electro-Oxidation Of P-Methoxy Toluene, Qiong Chen, Ying-Hong Zhu, Ying Zhu, Yan-Fang Li, Chun-An Ma

Journal of Electrochemistry

The interactions between four Imidazole ionic liquids (EMIMBF₄, BMIMBF₄, BMIMHSO₄, BMIMAc) and p-methoxy toluene were investigated by ultraviolet spectroscopy. The red shifts of absorption peak were obviously observed, and the fine structures of the spectroscopy were disappeared on the long wave district. p-MT producing stable excited state was benefit from the interaction with solvent molecules. The electro-oxidation behavious of p-MT were studied in the four ILs on platinum electrode by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and chronoamperometry (CP), and the diffusion coefficients (D) and activation energies (ED) were calculated. The results indicated that the electro-oxidation process …

Review Of Carbon Materials Energy Storage Mechanism In Lead-Carbon Battery, Le-Ying Wang, Hao Zhang, Chen Hu, Shu-Kai Zhang, Hai-Lei Zhao, Gao-Ping Cao, Wen-Feng Zhang, Yu-Sheng Yang, Xiao-Kang Lai

Journal of Electrochemistry

The traditional lead-acid batteries are mainly used for automobile and various internal combustion engine starting, wireless communication base stations and renewable energy storage; however, their negative plates are easily sulfated under partial-state-of-charge duty, then their charging capacity and cycle life are greatly reduced. Lead-carbon battery is a new type of lead-acid battery, in which a carbon material with high specific surface area and conductivity is added into a negative plate, and has excellent rate discharge performance and higher PSoC cycle life. Lead-carbon battery has a good application prospect in energy storage and hybrid electric vehicle, so these years the study …

Determination Of Folic Acid By Composite Film Electrode Modified With Poly-Alizarin Red And Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes, Xue-Ping Du, Tong-Fang Lou, Ying Dong, Jian-Ying Qu

Journal of Electrochemistry

The novel modified electrode was fabricated by electropolymerizing alizarin red onto the surface of multi-walled carbon nanotubes on glassy carbon electrode surface, which exhibited good electrocatalytic activity for folic acid. The experimental results showed that the reduction peak current of folic acid at -0.63 V was linear to its concentration over the range of 1.25×10^-6 ~ 4.00×10^-5 mol·L^-1 in the optimized experimental conditions (R = 0.9985). Test for recovery was carried out by standard addition method, and the recovery ratios were in the range of 92.0% ~ 102.0%. The modified electrode was prepared simply with excellent stability, …

Electro-Catalytic Properties Of Β-Pbo2/Sb-Sno2/Ti Electrode On Phenol Oxidation, Peng Li, Yue-Min Zhao, Li-Zhang Wang, Yan-Le Zhang, Zhao-Qing Lu

Journal of Electrochemistry

The combination technology of brush pyrolysis and electroplating was employed in the preparation of β-PbO₂/Sb-SnO₂/Ti electrode. X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) results showed that the Sb-SnO₂ as an interlayer would restrain the formation of lead fluoride and the crystallization degree on the electrode surface could be as high as 100%. The grain size was calculated by Scherrer formula to be 25.2 nm and the agglomeration of lead dioxide was effectively eliminated. The potential span of diffusion control phase, oxygen evolution potential, Tafel slope for the β-PbO₂/Sb-SnO₂/Ti electrode during …

Review Of Virtual Schooling And Student Learning, Michael K. Barbour

Education Faculty Publications

A new report compares the performance of Florida Virtual School (FLVS) students with students in traditional brick-and-mortar schools and concludes the FLVS students perform about the same or somewhat better on state tests and at a lower cost. The report claims to be the first empirical study of K-12 student performance in virtual education. This is not correct, and the report in fact confirms the findings and repeats the methodological flaws and limitations of previous research. The report’s findings fail to account for the potential bias of student selectivity in the FLVS sample, the potential impact of regression effects, differential …

The Immersion Mode Ice Nucleation Behavior Of Mineral Dusts: A Comparison Of Different Pure And Surface Modified Dusts, S. Augustin-Bauditz, H. Wex, S. Kanter, M. Ebert, D. Niedermeier, F. Stolz, A. Prager, F. Stratmann

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

In this study we present results from immersion freezing experiments with size-segregated mineral dust particles. Besides two already existing data sets for Arizona Test Dust (ATD), and Fluka kaolinite, we show two new data sets for illite-NX, which consists mainly of illite, a clay mineral, and feldspar, a common crustal material. The experiments were carried out with the Leipzig Aerosol Cloud Interaction Simulator. After comparing the different dust samples, it became obvious that the freezing ability was positively correlated with the K-feldspar content. Furthermore, a comparison of the composition of the ATD, illite-NX, and feldspar samples suggests that within the …

Nonsmooth Algorithms And Nesterov's Smoothing Technique For Generalized Fermat-Torricelli Problems, Nguyen Mau Nam, Nguyen Thai An, R. Blake Rector, Jie Sun

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Publications and Presentations

We present algorithms for solving a number of new models of facility location which generalize the classical Fermat--Torricelli problem. Our first approach involves using Nesterov's smoothing technique and the minimization majorization principle to build smooth approximations that are convenient for applying smooth optimization schemes. Another approach uses subgradient-type algorithms to cope directly with the nondifferentiability of the cost functions. Convergence results of the algorithms are proved and numerical tests are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithms.

Redox Chemistry In The Phosphorus Biogeochemical Cycle, Matthew A. Pasek, Jacqueline M. Sampson, Zachary Atlas

School of Geosciences Faculty and Staff Publications

The element phosphorus (P) controls growth in many ecosystems as the limiting nutrient, where it is broadly considered to reside as pentavalent P in phosphate minerals and organic esters. Exceptions to pentavalent P include phosphine—PH₃—a trace atmospheric gas, and phosphite and hypophosphite, P anions that have been detected recently in lightning strikes, eutrophic lakes, geothermal springs, and termite hindguts. Reduced oxidation state P compounds include the phosphonates, characterized by C−P bonds, which bear up to 25% of total organic dissolved phosphorus. Reduced P compounds have been considered to be rare; however, the microbial ability to use reduced P …

Extraction And Empowerment: The Application Of Traditional Knowledge Within The Development Of The Nwt Bhp Ekati Diamond Mine, Daniel Vanclieaf

Laurier Undergraduate Journal of the Arts

No abstract provided.

Boosting Electrocatalytic Activity Of Nitrogen-Doped Graphene/Carbon Nanotube Composite For Oxygen Reduction Reaction, Yu Zhang, Jin-Song Hu, Wen-Jie Jiang, Lin Guo, Zi-Dong Wei, Li-Jun Wan

Journal of Electrochemistry

Developing low-cost catalysts with high electrocatalytic activity for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) has recently attracted much attention because the sluggish ORR currently limits the performance and commercialization of fuel cells and metal-air batteries as well. Nitrogen doped carbon materials have been considered as a promising candidate for the replacement of high-cost and scarce Pt-based catalysts although their electrocatalytic activity still needs to be much improved. In this work, an improved nitrogen-doped graphene/carbon nanotubes composite (N-rGO/CNT) was developed as an efficient ORR electrocatalyst. It was found that the ORR activity of N-rGO/CNT composite could be significantly enhanced by introducing iron in …

Electrochemical Deposition Of Copt Alloy Thin Film And Its Abnormal Infrared Effects, Qing-Song Chen, Guo-Cong Guo, Shi-Gang Sun

Journal of Electrochemistry

Nanostructured CoPt alloy thin film was deposited on glassy carbon substrate (denoted as CoPt/GC) under cyclic voltammetric conditions. SEM studies demonstrated that the CoPt/GC was composed of nonuniform nanoparticles with an average size of 139 nm. The composition of the CoPt/GC was analyzed by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), which depicts a Co:Pt ratio of ca. 3:5. In situ FTIR spectroscopy employing CO adsorption as a probe reaction revealed that the CoPt/GC exhibits abnormal infrared effects (AIREs). The unique anomalous IR features of CO adsorbed (CO_ad) on CoPt/GC consist in the complete inversion of the CO_ad IR …

Recent Progress In Heteroatoms Doped Carbon Materials As A Catalyst For Oxygen Reduction Reaction, Wei Ding, Xue Zhang, Li Li, Zi-Dong Wei

Journal of Electrochemistry

Developing catalytic materials for oxygen reduction reactions (ORR) with high performance and low cost has been one of the major challenges for large-scale applications of fuel cells. In this review, we summarize the recent progress in the heteroatoms doped carbon materials as a catalyst for the catalysis of ORR, with an emphasis on the universal origin of their catalytic mechanisms. The future prospects of the metal-free catalyst were to find precisely controlled doping methods, to explore the role of heteroatoms in the catalysis, and to generate more active catalysts with suitable nanostructure.

Fabrication Of Pattern Of Graphene Oxide And Au Nanoparticles By Microcontanct Printing Technique, Wen-Hui Pang, Xiao-Jian Xiao, Meng-Wei Ye, Kai-Chao Deng, Jing Tang

Journal of Electrochemistry

Graphene oxide (GO) was prepared by modified Hummers method. Using the GO solution as "ink", Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) and GO were transferred to the surface of ITO substrate modified with (3-aminopropyl) triethoxysilane (APTES/ITO) in a sequence. The transferred AuNPs and GO could form a uniform and dense composite pattern which was characterized by FE-SEM and AFM. Moreover, using the APTES/ITO substrate surface potential as zero, the sequences of the surface potential were APTES>GO>Au.

Fabrication And Characterization Of The Ni-Scsz Composite Anodes With A Cu-Lscm-Ceo2 Catalyst Layer In The Thin Film Sofc, Yao Lv, Bo Huang, Xi-Zhi Gu, Chun-Yi Hou, Yi-Xing Hu, Xiao-Yin Wang, Xin-Jian Zhu

Journal of Electrochemistry

Solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) directly operating on hydrocarbon without external reforming has the potential of greatly speeding up the application of SOFCs for transportation. In this paper, a three-layer structure anode was fabricated by tape casting and screen printing method. The addition of Cu-LSCM-CeO₂ to the supported anode surface presented better performance running on H₂ and ethanol. The maximum power densities were 511 and 390 mW?cm^-2, respectively, running on H₂ and ethanol at 750 °C. No significant degradation was observed on the anode. Consequently, the Cu-LSCM-CeO₂ catalyst layer on the surface of the …

Preparation And Electrochemical Behavior Of Pbo/Gn/Ac, Yun-Fang Gao, Yan-Ping Wang, Qiu-Shi Yao, Fu-Hua Wang, Dong-Lei Ren, Xin Xu

Journal of Electrochemistry

The lead oxide/graphene/activated carbon (PbO/GN/AC) composite materials were prepared by impregnating commercial activated carbon and graphene in saturated lead nitrate solution followed by calcination. The structures and morphologies of the composite were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The results show that PbO crystals (about 200 nm) were dispersed uniformly on the surface of activated carbon and graphene. Electrochemical data indicate that the composite exhibited good electrochemical performances. The PbO/GN/AC composite possessed the higher over-potential of hydrogen evolution and the high specific capacitance of 312.6 F·g^-1, while the internal resistance …

Lead Gift Announced For Ole Miss Science Building, Tina Hahn

University of Mississippi News

No abstract provided.

Preparation Of Pt/Dna-Mwcnts/Gc Electrode And Its Electrocatalytic Activity Toward H2O2 Reduction, Li-Li Fan, Li-Na Wu, Zhi-Yu Qu, Dan-Feng Liu, Jun-Ming Zhang, Si-Ming Fan, You-Jun Fan

Journal of Electrochemistry

The DNA-multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs)/glassy carbon (GC) electrode was prepared by modifying the DNA functionalized MWCNTs composite on a GC electrode. A novel non-enzymatic H₂O₂ sensing electrode was fabricated by electrodepositing Pt nanoparticles on the DNA-MWCNTs/GC electrode. The modified electrodes were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The response properties of the sensing electrode to H₂O₂ were investigated by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. The results indicated that the sensing electrode exhibited a good linear relationship between response current and H₂O₂ concentration in the range of 0.04 ~ 18.07 mmol·L^-1 with …

Dynamics And Survival Of Coral And Octocoral Juveniles Following Disturbance On Patch Reefs Of The Florida Reef Tract, Lucy Bartlett

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Over the past several decades, rapid decline in adult stony-coral (comprising the Orders Scleractinia and Anthomedusae, specifically Family Milleporidae) cover has occurred concurrent with an increase in adult octocoral (Octocorallia/gorgonian) cover along the Florida Reef Tract. In January 2010, the Florida Keys experienced extremely cold air and water temperatures, below the lethal threshold for many reef organisms including corals. Very high stony-coral mortality occurred on some patch reefs. The newly-available space created by this disturbance event provided the opportunity for recruitment and settlement of new coral larvae and other reef organisms.

The goal of this study was to examine post-disturbance …

On The Origin Of The Errors Of IK As Estimated From K-L Equation In Rotating Disk Electrode System, Wei Chen, Ling-Wen Liao, Zheng-Da He, Yan-Xia Chen

Journal of Electrochemistry

Rotating disk electrode system is mainly used to study the kinetics of reactions whose reactants have very low solubility in the electrolyte. For an irreversible reaction, Koutecky-Levich equation (K-L Eq.) is frequently used to deduce the kinetic current i_k). Since K-L Eq. is derived based on the assumption that a system should conform the steady-state diffusion conditions, the data recoded from the actual system which deviates from such a condition, great error may be induced for the i_k estimated. In this work, polarization curves for oxygen reduction reaction at polycrystalline Pt electrode recorded in solutions with various …

Dead-Box Helicase Proteins Disrupt Rna Tertiary Structure Through Helix Capture, Cynthia Pan, Jeffrey P. Potratz, Brian Cannon, Zachary B. Simpson, Jessica L. Ziehr, Pilar Tijerina, Rick Russell

Physics: Faculty Publications and Other Works

DEAD-box helicase proteins accelerate folding and rearrangements of highly structured RNAs and RNA–protein complexes (RNPs) in many essential cellular processes. Although DEAD-box proteins have been shown to use ATP to unwind short RNA helices, it is not known how they disrupt RNA tertiary structure. Here, we use single molecule fluorescence to show that the DEAD-box protein CYT-19 disrupts tertiary structure in a group I intron using a helix capture mechanism. CYT-19 binds to a helix within the structured RNA only after the helix spontaneously loses its tertiary contacts, and then CYT-19 uses ATP to unwind the helix, liberating the product …

Electrochemical And Spectroscopic Studies Of Ethanol Oxidation On Nano-Cubic Pt Modified By Tin Adatoms, Lu Rao, Bin-Wei Zhang, Yan-Yan Li, Yan-Xia Jiang, Shi-Gang Sun

Journal of Electrochemistry

The nano-cubic Pt modified by tin (Sn) was synthesized and used to investigate the role of this adatom played in the ethanol oxidation. The onset potential of ethanol oxidation was significantly shifted negatively which can be forward about 300 mV when the coverage of Sn (θSn)was 0.9. The electrtochemical in situ FTIR result demonstrated that the amount of CO₂ increased first, and then decreased with θSn increased, and reached the maximun when θSn was 0.38. Furthermore, the formation of acetic acid could be observed at very low potential (-0.05 V) after modifying Sn adatom, and the amount of acetic …