Digital Commons Network^™

Neptune-Benson Perlite Media Loader, Mark Farat, Ben Modica, Patrick Carroll, Ronald Beaulieu

Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Projects

Neptune-Benson has presented the Gods of Perlite with the task of designing a device that can automate the process of transferring the filtration medium, perlite, into their Defender filtration system models. In some European countries, perlite is viewed as a hazardous material. The design will minimize the amount of human contact, allowing Neptune-Benson to investigate expanding their market into those regions. This device operates as a vacuum pneumatic conveying system that will be responsible for ensuring at least one full filter change-out of at least 45 pounds of perlite. Through the preliminary stages of the design process, communication with the …

Simuili Scoliosis Brace, Gabriella Devine, Chris Viveiros, Daniel Cross, Thomas Brey

Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Projects

Additive manufacturing is a relatively new and innovative manufacturing process that has been emerging in recent years. Until now this process has been almost strictly used for prototyping but through the combined e orts of the members of team 17 and their sponsors at SIMULIA it will emerge in the medical field to revolutionize the treatment of scoliosis. The overall goal of this project is to be able to take a 3D external scan of a patients body and from that design and print a fully functional customized brace. The major objectives for this are to externally scan a patient …

Lab On Paper, Aaron Matarese, Luis Pimentel, Winfield Smith

Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Projects

This final design report highlights the developments of the Lab on Paper over the past year. The goal is to redesign the Lab on Paper to be more easily manufactured and eliminate the hook effect which causes false negatives in lateral flow assays. Sponsor Labonachip, LLC desires to bring Lab on Paper to market and the easiest way to do so is to adapt it to existing manufacturing lines. By eliminating the hook effect, Lab on Paper will be more accurate and reliable than current lateral flow assays.

The Lab on Paper aims to become a universal diagnostic instrument that …

Hasbro Drone Customization And Enhancement, Chace Medeiros, Thomas Nagy, Dan Shaw, Brad Beauparlant

Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Projects

The Game of Drones team was given the task of customizing and enhancing a new toy drone for Hasbro. The team was specifically tasked with designing custom drone attachments and accessories that more completely "gamify" the drone-flying experience. The aim of the project is to create better versions of what competitors are offering and create new, original experiences that are more engaging to a small crowd.

The design process began with the purchase of four drones in the target price range of $60-$100. The drones were then tested and compared in order to choose one as a baseline for the …

Raytheon Cable Stability, Taylor Fortier, Andrew Moreno, Louis Maroun

Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Projects

Stable Cable has been tasked by Raytheon to create a universal, modular, vibration resistant cable management system. This design report highlights the steps taken to research, conceptualize, evaluate, and construct a working version of our product. This cable management system must be seismic zone 4 compliant and provide a serviceable solution in a small footprint. To evaluate our product’s ability to perform Stable Cable completed a cost analysis, as well running various computer simulations on CAD, Computer Aided Design, models. An prototype was also assembled to provide real world vision into the size of the product and was load and …

Hexagon Mechanized Ball Bar Fixture, Aaron Binek, Jeffrey Costa, Taylor Fields, Jackson Welsh

Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Projects

Team nineteen was partnered with Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence and tasked with the assignment of automating a ball bar fixture used in error mapping of coordinate measurement machines. This design report outlines the processes employed during the design by the team, with the long term goal of creating a functional prototype of the product. This semester work was done in conceptual design and analysis to meet the design specifications developed by Hexagon and Team 19. The culmination of this semesters work is presented in a Proof of concept, with the intent of fabrication and manufacture, along with redesign and optimization being …

Optimization And Redesign Of A Dual Rotary Cutter, Joseph Graziano, Joshua King, Nathan Kross, Tom O'Connor

Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Projects

This design report records the actions taken by the Spin to Win team to optimize and redesign a cutter assembly in a dual rotary sheeter, as well as design a gear reduction in the same assembly. The optimization and redesign of the cutter system focuses on two main factors, inertia and torsional stiffness. The sponsor for this project is MAXSON Automatic Machinery.

Wear and tear on a machine and its parts could be costly or even jeopardize the integrity of the system. Spin to Win came up with a redesign that can theoretically decrease the inertia by up to 40% …

Facebook And Branding Of Small To Medium-Sized Enterprises, Angella Banks, Perry Haan

AMTP Proceedings 2017

Small to Medium Size Enterprise (SME) owners face many challenges as they strive to keep their businesses afloat. Although these challenges vary, one of the most prevalent is the inability to market effectively. Over 50% of SMEs close within the first five years (Cronin-Gilmore, 2012). This case study explored the relationship between Facebook and SMEs’ brands, and Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC). Through the examination of these relationships, the study identified barriers that hinder SMEs ability to use Facebook effectively and further strengthen their branding strategies. Facebook can be an inexpensive marketing tool that SME owners has access; however, challenges exist, …

Part 2: Airbnb In Virginia Beach, Center For Economic Analysis And Policy, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Airbnb has become an increasingly significant competitor to conventional hotels throughout the United States, and Virginia Beach is no exception. The rise of Airbnb is yet another manifestation of the emergence of the “gig” economy.

On The Skein Theory Of 0-Framed Surgery Along The Trefoil Knot, Andrew Robert Holmes

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, we will give a generating set of the Kauffman bracket skein module over the field Q(A) of 0-framed surgery along the trefoil knot. This generating set is described as a certain subset of a known basis for the skein module over Z[A^±1] of the trefoil exterior.

Healing Mechanism Investigation Of Self-Healing Concrete By Microencapsulated Calcium Nitrate, Gabriel Andres Arce Amador

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Durability of reinforced concrete structures depends highly on the integrity of the concrete which protects the structure from the environment. However, concrete is a brittle material and as such it is prone to cracking which allows for detrimental agents to penetrate the structure and produce early deterioration. Embedding microcapsules with chemical healing agents in concrete materials for self-healing applications as well as implementing SMAs as reinforcement of concrete structures for self-closing of cracks are both state-of-the-art techniques with enormous potential for enhancement of concrete infrastructure durability. In this work, both techniques are combined as an alternative for superior self-healing of …

Descendants Of Abraham: A Comparative Approach To Jewish And Islamic Rhetorics, Brandon Katzir

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Descendants of Abraham: A Comparative Approach to Jewish and Islamic Rhetorics provides two important correctives to modern scholarship. It emphasizes the importance of Jewish and Islamic rhetorics typically neglected by Western-centric historians of rhetoric, and it showcases the cultural relationship between Jews and Muslims that has been typically occluded by modern scholarship. Focusing on the early Islamic world, I demonstrate instantiations of interconnectivity between Jewish and Islamic rhetoric in Arabic from the 9th-12th centuries CE. Specifically, I look at how judicial rhetoric plays an important role in the adjudication of halakha and sharia, followed by a consideration of theological rhetoric …

Finding Voice In The Academy Through Yellow Storytelling: An Asian American Autoethnography On Suffering In Higher Education, Thuong Thi Nguyen

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

ABSTRACT Higher education institutions in the United States (U.S.) were founded for a select segment of the population, i.e. white Christian men from upper socioeconomic classes (Thelin, 2011). Research shows the policies, pedagogies, and practices created for use within majority populations and dominant cultures are not as beneficial or effective for individuals from underrepresented backgrounds. As the U.S. becomes more diverse and college enrollment among diverse students increases, higher education institutions need to identify more holistic approaches and investigate alternative methods to better serve these populations. This dissertation is a response to that need. In order to offer other alternatives, …

A Palynostratigraphic Investigation Of Holocene Coastal Texas Bays: Implications For Future Coastal Change, Shannon Marie Ferguson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Although the Gulf of Mexico is one of the most studied basins in the world, a majority of the focus has been driven by petroleum exploration and/or on seismic and sedimentological facies models. Rarely has the intent of previous studies been to characterize the Holocene climatic record of coastal Texas. Of those studies that discuss Holocene vegetation change, the majority focus on the Mississippi River Delta, the Edwards Plateau or central Florida, leaving an absence of insight to western Gulf of Mexico climate changes. The Texas coastline stretches 595 km across almost 4° of latitude and the strong northwestern precipitation …

Consumer Acceptance Of Licensed Brand Extensions: An Analysis Of Key Success Factors For Extending Into Fashion Categories, Langchao Zhang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Brand extension and lifestyle branding have been the most commonly used marketing strategies. Unlike other consumer goods, fashion products, or other lifestyle products contains strong meaning of the user’s identity, thus, once done well, the parent non-fashion brands could benefit from not only the profit generated by the extension, but also creating a closer and stronger relationship with customers. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to examine how fashion product attributes affect consumers’ behavioral intention towards the fashion extension, to examine how perceived fit and brand extension authenticity affect consumers behavioral intention towards the fashion extensions, to explore the …

Symphony No. 1 And The Development Of New Techniques In Contemporary Music Composition, Eric Lacy

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The initial part of this dissertation is a symphony. Symphony No. 1 consists of three movements. Each movement begins with a monumental gesture designed to make a bold and unforgettable statement. Within each movement, there is an interesting array of harmonic and rhythmic schemes. In Symphony No. 1, the diametrically opposed concepts of “simple” and “complex” are featured prominently. These concepts are contrasted thematically, rhythmically, and harmonically. The next part of this dissertation establishes the existence of certain obstacles facing contemporary composers and the benefits of developing new techniques in composition. The music of György Ligeti and Arvo Pärt are …

Prison To School To Redemption: A Full Circle Channel To The Complete ‘School-To-Prison Pipeline’, Kristen Alana Antoine

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate education and self-efficacy for incarcerated men who have chosen to pursue post-secondary educations despite being in the confinement of the PIC. A narrative inquiry design was used. This is where the story of a real life problem or situation is used to provide sufficient background data in order to analyze and solve a problem. It was important to share the stories of the participants so that readers could understand the overall effects of education and religion in this culture. The study data was collected through participant letters, face-to-face discussion, PASCI survey, artifacts, …

Dorothy Day's Distributism And Her Vision For Catholic Politics, William Patric Schulz

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation is a study of Dorothy Day’s political ideas, her creation of the Catholic Worker movement, and her relationship with Distributism, the official socio-economic teaching of the Catholic Church. In order to fully understand Day’s views, it is necessary to review her intellectual development, and the foundational ideas and documents of Distributism. As is noted in the introduction, precious little scholarship has been done on Distributism, and few outside of Catholic academic circles are even aware of its existence. Beyond that, Day, herself, is not especially well-known, as existing scholarship tends to focus on either her early, Socialist activities …

Aleksander Peçi Before And After The Iron Curtain, Elida Dakoli

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Abstract This research describes the life, compositional style and works of one of the most well-known Albanian composers, Aleksander Peçi, focusing on how the political climate affected his life and his art. Several of Peçi’s techniques are examined, including Carousel structure, Cartesian Production, Kabaoisos, and Polygravité. Albanian iso-polyphony and its influence on Peçi’s work are discussed. The research was done in hopes of reaching a better understanding of the effects Communism and the subsequent period of freedom have had on Albanian music.

The Effects Of Instrumental Noise On Searches For Generic Transient Gravitational Waves In Advanced Ligo, Marissa Walker

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

One hundred years after Albert Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves as a result of his theory of general relativity, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), made the first direct detection of a gravitational-wave signal from a binary black hole merger, GW150914. GW150914 was found not only by search methods specifically developed to find the distinctive waveform produced by coalescing binaries, but also by generic searches designed to find any arbitrary short-duration signal in the LIGO data. The impact of noise on the searches must be carefully investigated in order to reduce the search background and enable confident gravitational-wave …

A Mixed Methods Analysis Of School- And Student-Level Effects: Mathematics Course Completion And Achievement Beyond Algebra 2 Among Mexican American Female High School Students, Lester Archer

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In the United States, as the Hispanic population continues to grow, persistently low mathematics achievement among Mexican Americans continues to exist, particularly among girls. Low mathematics achievement places this group in a disadvantaged position. As such, a multistage mixed method study was implemented to investigate possible factors associated with mathematics achievement and the probability of taking mathematics courses beyond Algebra 2 among Mexican American female high school students. The Educational Longitudinal Study (ELS:2002) database provided the quantitative sample (n = 710) of respondents who self-identified as Mexican American, female, and had a math IRT score. A parallel sample (n = …

Bach's Goldberg Variations: Suggestions For Redistributing The Notes Between The Hands To Facilitate Performance On The Modern Piano, Kia Hadipour

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In Goldberg Variations, Bach has written overlapping voices originally intended for bi manual harpsichord. However, playing the piece on the modern piano causes the hands to collide in those segments,creating a technical challenge that remains unresolved in available editions. In this thesis, I propose a method to reduce the hands’ overlap by re-distributing the notes between them. This solution also improves readability of the score by obviating the need for a clef change at each voice cross. I further use a few examples in the piano repertoire to examine how hand and finger re distribution may facilitate performance. As an …

Assessing And Modeling Community Resilience To Coastal Hazards Using A Bayesian Network, Heng Cai

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation presents the assessment and modeling of community resilience to coastal hazards in the Lower Mississippi River Basin (LMRB) in southeastern Louisiana at the census block group scale. The first part is to provide a quantitative method to assess and validate the community resilience index to coastal hazards and identify the relationships between a set of socio-environmental indicators and community resilience. The Resilience Inference Measurement (RIM) model was applied to assess the resilience of the block groups. The resilience index derived was empirically validated through two statistical procedures: K-means cluster analysis of three variables (exposure, damage, and recovery) to …

Rescuing Relationships: Toward An Understanding Of Exchange Relationship Disruption And Recovery, Matthew Mark Lastner

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Research investigating business-to-business (B2B) exchange supports the position that cultivating strong exchange relationships is vital to the long-term success of both parties involved in an exchange. However, while much is known about how exchange relationships are developed and organized to yield maximum benefits for buyers and sellers, very little research has been advanced to understand how B2B exchanges experience disruptive events and what impact disruptions have on the long-term health of these relationships. Across three essays, this dissertation utilizes a multi-method approach to examine the nature and impact of disruptive events on inter-firm exchange relationships to address this shortcoming in …

Structure-Based Prediction Of Protein-Protein Interaction Networks Across Proteomes, Surabhi Maheshwari

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) orchestrate virtually all cellular processes, therefore, their exhaustive exploration is essential for the comprehensive understanding of cellular networks. Significant efforts have been devoted to expand the coverage of the proteome-wide interaction space at molecular level. A number of experimental techniques have been developed to discover PPIs, however these approaches have some limitations such as the high costs and long times of experiments, noisy data sets, and often high false positive rate and inter-study discrepancies. Given experimental limitations, computational methods are increasingly becoming important for detection and structural characterization of PPIs. In that regard, we have developed a …

Kinetic And Kinematic Variables Related To Medial Elbow Joint Space In Collegiate Baseball Pitchers, Meghan Reid Jackson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) is a prime stabilizer in the elbow against valgus force. It is also a commonly injured structure in the overhead-throwing athlete. The majority of literature to date assesses the medial elbow by adding a valgus stress or evaluates the elbow after injury has occurred. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore static changes to the medial elbow and the relationship with the overhead throw. The first investigation sought to determine if there was a bilateral difference in the medial joint space of the elbow in general population college-aged students. There was no significant difference …

A Graph-Based Taxonomic Intelligent Tutoring System Utilizingbloom’S Taxonomy And Item-Response Theoretic Assessment, Dennis Gordon Castleberry Ii

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation details an intelligent tutoring system which aims to raise student trait abilities across concepts and levels of Blooms taxonomy within an educational program. The system utilizes Item Response Theory, a probabilistic theory of assessment which accounts for item discrimination, difficulty, and probability of guessing in its assessment of student trait ability. A modification to Item Response Theory which accounts for question dependencies is used to assess the probability that a student will answer a given question correctly given prior responses on the dependency questions. It also draws from theories of memory and forgetting present in the ACT-R model …

How I Got Over: A Study Of The Tenure Experiences Of Black Female Professors At Predominantly White Institutions, Veta E. Parker

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study explored the tenure experiences of seven Black female professors as they pursued tenure at select public higher/highest research activity predominantly white institutions. This study was pursued in an attempt to determine what challenges were presented during the tenure process. More importantly, this study sought to determine the role of mentorship in the pursuit of tenure. In addition, recommendations for success were offered to Black females who are currently pursuing tenure or who may choose to enter the academy. A narrative research study was utilized for this study which was informed by Black Feminist Thought. This allowed for a …

Essay On Incentives, Economic Conditions, And Human Capital Formation, Masayuki Onda

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, I offer three independent studies. The first examines the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on entrepreneurial activities over the period 1996-2008. We find that FDI has no discernible effect on entrepreneurial activity in probusiness states identified by the existence of Right-to-Work (RTW) states. In non-RTW states, however, we find that an increase in FDI decreases the average monthly rate of business creation and destruction. The second study assesses the impact of breastfeeding on early childhood outcomes. Using Birth Cohort of Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey (ECLS-b) data and employing a recently developed econometric technique, I estimate the …

Analysis And Optimization Of Scientific Applications Through Set And Relation Abstractions, M. Tohid (Rastegar Tohid, Mohammed)

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Writing high performance code has steadily become more challenging since the design of computing systems has moved toward parallel processors in forms of multi and many-core architectures. This trend has resulted in exceedingly more heterogeneous architectures and programming models. Moreover, the prevalence of distributed systems, especially in fields relying on supercomputers, has caused the programming of such diverse environment more difficulties. To mitigate such challenges, an assortment of tools and programming models have been introduced in the past decade or so. Some efforts focused on the characteristics of the code, such as polyhedral compilers (e.g. Pluto, PPCG, etc.) while others …