Digital Commons Network^™

Electric Vehicle, Terence Lee, Troy Stephens, Corbin Williams

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Student Publications

This project focuses on the research, design, and implementation of a traction inverter for the M- 9000-MACHE "Eluminator" electric motor. The work transitions the control and power stages from previous custom prototypes to industrial-grade evaluation platforms to achieve a stable motor spin. This phase integrates a Silicon Carbide (SiC) MOSFET power stage with a real-time TI C2000 control architecture, serving as a critical step in a multigenerational research initiative to develop a modular electric vehicle traction framework.

Java Oo Visualizer, Darian Dean, Ashley Mckim, Simon Gardling, Josh Kalinsky

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Student Publications

Current Challenge: Understanding the execution of an object-oriented program is challenging for students beginning their undergraduate CS degree

Common Issue: Students learn syntax but fail to see the underlying behavior of object creation, reference assignment, and method calls

Unified Solution: bridge the gap between abstract concepts and concrete understanding by animating the process of object instantiation, reference assignment, and results of method

Competitive Programming Primer, Jon Ayuco, Pedro Marcet, Ivan Marriott

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Student Publications

Helps first-year CS/SWE Students that are confused on how advanced algorithms work.

Professors can give a visual aid in-class.

Encourages unsure students interested in Competitive Programming a low-risk place to practice

Remotely Controlled Car Via Lte/Wi-Fi, Nicholas Shenk, Christian Prieto, Joseph Digafe, Donoven Nicolas

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Student Publications

PROBLEM 

• Professionals must enter dangerous environments just to gather information 
• Existing robotic systems are expensive and complex
• Communication links are often unreliable or high-latency
• Limited real-time feedback reduces decision-making ability

Fit Ar Navigation App (Fitarna), Vincenzo Barager, Dathan Dixon, Jacob Hall-Burns, Ethan Wadley

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Student Publications

Navigation Complexity: Large-scale academic facilities like the Evans Library present significant wayfinding challenges for new students and visitors.

GPS Limitations: Standard satellite-based navigation fails indoors due to signal attenuation and lack of floor-level granularity.

The Solution: FITARNA leverages Augmented Reality to provide intuitive, real-time visual guidance, bridging the gap between digital maps and the physical environment.

Cali: Cobot Autonomous Living Interface, Nicholas Santamaria, Heber Lopez, Berke Celal Dogan

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Student Publications

The CALI (Cobot Autonomous Living Interface) system is an assistive robotic platform designed to help individuals with limited mobility eat independently. CALI integrates computer vision, neural networks, and robotic motion control to detect food items on a plate and deliver them safely to a user. By combining AI perception with precise robotic control, the system demonstrates a practical application of assistive robotics.

Panther Shuttle App, Joey Hilte, Chase Monigle, Tony Arrington, Jonathan Suo

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Student Publications

Florida Tech students rely on the campus shuttle system to travel between dorms, classrooms, and nearby housing areas. However, existing tools do not provide reliable real-time tracking or notifications about delays.

The Panther Shuttle App provides students with live shuttle locations, schedules, and alerts to improve campus transportation and reduce wait times.

Hydrodynamic Response To Hurricane Forcing At Sebastian Inlet, Ava Russin

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Tidal inlets are influenced by tides, wind, and atmospheric forcing, which can be significantly altered during hurricanes. Using Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler observations, this study quantifies storm-driven changes in depth averaged velocity and residual circulation at Sebastain Inlet before, during, and after Hurrican Ian and Hurricane Nicole (2022).

Era5 Vs Asos: Verifying Reanalysis Accuracy In The Fort Pierce Ef3 Tornado, Anastasia Vosinakis

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

• October 9th, 2024, Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida (NHC, 2024). 
• Just before Milton made landfall, tornadoes were being produced on the East Coast of Florida. 
• The tornado being studied is the EF3 tornado which occurred in Fort Pierce, Florida. 
• Six people tragically lost their lives. 
• Focus of project: to see the correlation of wind reanalysis data when studying tornadoes.

Conservation Of Stress And Immune Gene Families Across Major Aquaculture Fish Species, Julia Pearson, Rana Alghorir, Maryam Young, Abby Briggs, Sonia Peters

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Aquaculture environments impose thermal, oxidative, and immune stress. Successful species must maintain cellular stability under these conditions. They can do this by the relative expression of stress genes.

Growing Pains: A Genetic Comparison Of Nurse Sharks (Ginglymostoma Cirratum) With Differing Growth Rates, Michelle Gargiulo

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Nurse sharks, Ginglymostoma cirratum, range throughout the tropical and subtropical Atlantic, and are commonly found in coastal ecosystems in Southern Florida and the Keys. Nurse sharks like all Elasmobranchs (sharks, skates, and rays) are slowgrowing and long lived, making them susceptible to extinction. Recently listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List1,2, nurse sharks are relatively underrepresented in scientific literature, and much research remains to be done to understand and protect this species. Growth rates and body size between fish populations of the same species can vary widely. Individuals in the tropics often grow faster and mature at a smaller …

Microburst Day Potential Index: Improving Launch And Public Safety, Zachary Kopel

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Microbursts

•  A common convective wind event 
• Capable of causing damage from wind exceeding 30kts (NWS) 
• Cape Canaveral is a prime microburst environment 
• Can affect launch ops and daily activities by exceeding safety standards

Influence Of Sediment Composition On Seagrass Growth, Hattie Lechner, Joshua Ahrens

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Seagrass Beds are a vital component of the Indian River Lagoon (IRL). They support biodiversity and improve water quality, yet they have experienced significant declines in recent years. Multiple restoration efforts have attempted to replant seagrass in the lagoon and have experienced varying levels of success. Sediment characteristics such as grain size, pH, and nutrient/sulfide concentrations can influence seagrass health and growth, but the relative importance is unclear. This study investigated the relationship between sediment characteristics and the performance of the seagrass Halodule wrightii across multiple different types of sediments found within the IRL in order to identify ideal sediments/locations …

The Carbon Dioxide Utilization Potential Of Marine Algae, Declan O'Leary, Giovanni Williams, Joey Ciocher, Aidan Yeilding, Eddie Wawrzycki-Stein, Melvin Jarrett, William Marple, Olivia Mullenski, Abby Tickett, Connor Burnand, David Kulcsar

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Excessive atmospheric CO₂ drives ocean acidification, lowering seawater pH and carbonate ion availability, which impairs calcification in corals, mollusks, and many plankton—threatening reef structure, biodiversity, and food webs (1, 2).

The goal of this research is to explore the potential of marine algae or seaweeds in reducing carbon dioxide in the oceans.

Multi-Strain Assessment Of Quorum Sensing In Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, Jacqueline Krueger

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Quorum sensing (QS) allows microbial populations to coordinate phenotypic switching, selecting for specific behaviors that are only beneficial when expressed at high cell densities (HCD, >106 cells/mL) rather than low cell densities (LCD, < 106 cells/mL)

Finding Jaws: Dna Barcoding Shark Cartilage To Identify Species, Kenna Peters

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) are vital keystone predators that help regulate the health of marine ecosystems, and some of the largest and most wide-ranging fishes in the ocean1. Elasmobranch identification is difficult due to morphological similarities between species, and the high risk of encountering cryptics. These are evolutionarily distinct, but physically identical to more common taxa, and can only be identified using genetics. Misidentification is a major obstacle to shark science, especially considering new data showing that >70% of all elasmobranchs have been lost in the past 50 years, and many sharks are now shifting ranges in response to global …

Growth And Nutrient Uptake Of Ulva Lactuca: Theoretical Nutrient Removal And Fertilizer Reuse Potential, Audrey Crawford

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

• Eutrophication is a major problem in the Indian River Lagoon (IRL)  
• One natural response to eutrophication is increased algal growth
• Previous studies identified Ulva lactuca as one of the fastest-growing macroalgal species in the lagoon (Whitehouse and Lapointe, 2015) 
• Ulva lactuca also has potential use as a fertilizer, creating a link between nutrient removal and beneficial reuse
• This study aimed to quantify nutrient uptake rates of Ulva lactuca in order to estimate how much nutrient load could theoretically be reduced through large-scale cultivation

Impact Of Bryozoans On The Psii Efficiency Of Sargassum, Maxwell Ronan Stanfield

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Sargassum species such as s. fluitans and s. natans support epiphytic organisms on its surface, such as diatoms, hydrozoans, and encrusting bryozoans. Evidence previous studies suggests that marine epiphytic organisms have a negative effect on the photosynthetic pathways of the algae they live on (Khan, Du, Khan, Che, and Khurshid 2021; Cancino, Mufioz, Mufioz, and Orellana 1987). Interestingly, some evidence shows that even when epiphytic encrusting bryozoans limit the light reaching red algae, the algae was able to produce more photosynthetic pigments to compensate for the lowered light intensity (Muñoz, Cancino, and Molina 1991). No data is currently available on …

Waste Not, Get Watts: Waste-To-Energy And Gas-To-Energy Systems Comparison, Sydney E. Cordeiro

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Waste-to-Energy (WtE) systems generate power by converting waste into usable energy through processes such as combustion and gasification, reducing reliance on landfills and recovering energy from discarded materials.¹ Gas-to-Energy (GtE) systems produce electricity from natural gas using high-efficiency generation technologies like gas turbines and combined-cycle plants, offering reliable and efficient power output.² This comparison evaluates the feasibility and scalability of WtE and GtE systems for Florida Tech, determining which approach would better meet campus sustainability goals.

Brevards Microplastics: A Literature Review And Proposed Methods To Study Florida Beaches, Kenna Peters

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

With populations along coastlines rapidly increasing so does the risk of microplastics entering the environment. Previous studies have found that 68% of microplastics found in the environment come from man-made cellulosic materials like rayon. Little information is known about the distribution, transportation, and final location of microplastics once they are introduced. Brevard County contains multiple types of beaches that differ substantially in human activity levels, urban density, and land-use patterns. Having a full picture of microplastic distribution and intensity is vital to understanding and reversing the impact these pollutants have on the environment.

Does Information Loss Bias Our Estimates Of Predation In The Fossil Record?, Ashcon Davachi

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

• Predation in fossil marine-ecosystems is generally estimated through analysis of time-averaged prey assemblages.
• Do time-averaged assemblages reflect predation on smaller ecological time scales?
• In this project I compared estimates of predation-related damage to snail shells derived on two ecological time scales to determine whether information loss biases our estimates of predation in the fossil record

Reefstarter Deployment System, Dylan Alvarez, Jacob Elston, Alex Ketchen, Jaidyn Lodens

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

• Threats from coastal erosion drive the need for effective and sustainable protection methods. 
• Interlocking concrete reef blocks dissipate wave energy while also supporting habitat restoration.
• Current deployment methods are inefficient and require significant human interaction.
• A compact hydraulic lifting system should enable increased safety, control, and efficiency

The September 17th, 2025, Gigantic Jet Off The Puerto Rican Coast: A Case Study, Jaedon Benbow

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Gigantic jets (GJs) are an electrical discharge that propagates upward from the top of a thunderstorm, reaching altitudes between 70 and 90 km, terminating in the lower ionosphere (Lazarus et al., 2021). This GJ event occurred on 5:33:53 UTC on September 17th, 2025. Despite the rarity of gigantic jets, tropical regions like Puerto Rico have a higher likelihood of occurrence due to more available convection. This GJ event was caught on radar. This provides additional data helpful for analyzing this case.

Current Capture, Maggie Palmer, Colin Stefan, Ricky Gay, Sofia Scarpa, Hayden Linkel

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

Current Capture aimed to design, develop, and test a prototype of a hydropower turbine that is scalable and deployable. The design considers the harsh ocean environment, corrosion in the material selection, efficiency in the blade choice, and structural positioning in the housing extremities. Two NACA foil composite blades were designed and manufactured to perform an experiment and analyze the velocities and RPMs.

The Forecasting Challenge Of Snow Cover Induced Temperature Depressions, Lucas Silva

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

• Snow cover can keep the surface layer cool in the day and amplify cooling at night
• Unexpected SCITDs can cause sudden freezes, deteriorating travel conditions
• To what extent is the forecast accuracy of the NWS affected during SCITDs?

Midwest Extremes: Quantifying 26 Years Of Excessive Heat Events And Demographic Risk, Nasir Grant

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

• According to Vose et al. (2017), the Midwest experienced the largest increase in average minimum temperature among all regions of the United States which is a noticeable risk to the Midwest population.
• The climatology of the Midwest is majority hot summer humid continental and includes warm summer humid continental and cold semi-arid.
• This study investigated cities that have experienced high counts of (EHEs) and positive population growths in between 2000 and 2020 while plotting the cities into a risk map.

Plant Growth Promoting Phenotypes Of Fungal Isolates From The International Space Station, Shane Doyle, Frances A. Edmonson

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Student Publications

• In situ (on site) space crop production is vital for sustainability and dietary health of astronauts. 
• We hypothesize that International Space Station (ISS) derived fungal isolates will stimulate plant growth and express PGP phenotypes.
• Eleven space-viable fungi were screened via phenotypic testing to identify plant growthpromoting (PGP) activity.
• Prior research has been conducted solely with ISS derived bacteria, while ISS fungi are unexplored, which could reveal new or improved symbiotic relationships and growth factors.

The Invisible Shield: Why Our Stomach Doesn’T Digest Itself, Kevon Findley

Mathematics and System Engineering Student Publications

The stomach contains highly acidic gastric fluid with a very low pH.  A thin mucus lining protects the stomach from self-digestion and keeps nearby epithelial cells near a pH 7.  A weakened mucus layer is associated with conditions such as Gastritis and Peptic Ulcer Disease.

How can the protective mucus barrier be maintained and be of stable thickness?

A Continuous Viral Vaccine Biomanufacturing Platform Utilizing Multiple Bioreactor Configurations, Justin Sargunas, Bradley Priem, Dylan Carman, Taravat Sarvari, Natalie Nold, Vaishali Sharma, Andrew Pekosz, Caryn Heldt, Michael Betenbaugh

Michigan Tech Publications

Scalable, continuous biomanufacturing processes have grown in importance to meet demand for smaller bioreactor sizes, lowered production costs, and improved quality attribute consistency. The Sf9/recombinant baculovirus (rBV) expression system demonstrates promise for virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine and gene therapy production. Here, we present a continuous rBV platform integrating an infection plug flow reactor (PFR) between stirred tank growth (gCSTR) and production (pCSTR) bioreactors. Cell expansion in the gCSTR included a ramp-up stage followed by continuous growth, reaching a steady state of 5×10 cells/mL and >90% viability. Péclet number-fit tracer studies confirmed near-ideal plug flow in the PFR, yielding a 10 …

Pepper Spray Exposure And The Effect On Dna Profiling Of Blood, Brandon Schmakel

Honors Projects

Pepper spray is a common self defense tool used in both law enforcement and civilian settings, with the goal of incapacitating the sprayed individual. In real casework where pepper spray was used, a red-brown stain which tested positive presumptively for blood provided no DNA profile after further testing six months later. A previous graduate student, Emma Crawn, attempted to emulate these casework conditions and instead achieved a DNA profile with slight indications of inhibition or degradation. Further analysis of active pepper spray ingredients such as Oleoresin Capsicum (OC) and Chloroacetophenone (CN) reveals that there are observed reactions, such as oxidation, …