Engineering Commons^™

The Professional Constructor, Full Issue, Volume 45, Number 01

The Professional Constructor

No abstract provided.

Supercavitation Capabilities On A Submarine, Adam Vu

Georgia College Student Research Events

Submarines have shaped the way wars have been fought and have been influential in our understanding of fluid dynamics. In the past, supercavitation has been implemented to an idea that has been used to significantly increase the velocity of torpedoes in Chinese and Russian submarines. An example of this is the Russian VA-111 Shkval torpedo. The idea being that if your torpedo is expelling a gas out of the nose cone region, creating a boundary layer between the water and the torpedo, the torpedo will be facing much less resistance relative to when it was traveling in water alone. This …

Sortie-Based Aircraft Component Demand Rate To Predict Requirements, Thomas R. O'Neal

Theses and Dissertations

Weapon System Sustainment (WSS) costs are growing at an increasing rate despite the vast efforts to reduce them. Researchers have attributed much of the cost increase to inaccurate demand forecasts for weapon system spare parts. In 2011, the forecast to sustain all United States Air Force (USAF) aircraft was 19% accurate and WSS costs per year have continuously increased. The purpose of this study is to explore a parsimonious change to aircraft component forecasting to reduce costly forecast error. This study substitutes flying hours with sorties for the purpose of demand forecasting. Many F-16 and B-52 spare parts are evaluated …

Resilient Aircraft Sustainment: Quantifying Resilience Through Asset And Capacity Allocation, Zachary B. Shannon

Theses and Dissertations

Decision makers lack a clear, generalizable method to quantify how additional investment in inventory and capacity equates to additional levels of resilience. This research facilitates a deeper understanding of the intricacies and complex interconnectedness of organizational supply chains by monetarily quantifying changes in network resilience. The developed Area under the Curve metric (AUC) is used to quantify the level of demand that each asset allocation can meet during a disruptive event. Due to its applicability across multiple domains, the USAF F-16 repair network in the Pacific theater (PACAF) is modeled utilizing discrete event simulation and used as the illustrating example. …

Advancing Asset Management At Indot, Louis Feagans

Purdue Road School

As INDOT continues to develop Asset Management, the use of GIS and the mapping of assets become more critical. In this session INDOT will show the advancement in GIS Asset Management that has occurred in the last few years and where we are headed in the future.

Michigan's Inventory-Based Rating System For Unpaved Roads, Peter Torola

Purdue Road School

The current rating systems for unpaved roads lack stability and reliability and, therefore, provide little benefit as project- or network-level metrics. Since many of these systems are derived from paved-road assessment systems, they focus heavily on surface distresses rather than road width, drainage, and other features. This session presents the Inventory-Based Rating System as a stable and implementable method of condition assessment for unpaved roads, without the focus on surface distresses.

2020 Oklahoma Research Day Full Program, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

Oklahoma Research Day Abstracts

No abstract provided.

Mechanical Properties Of Transition Metals Mn,Fe And Zn Doped Nio Nanoparticles, Ahmed Khalaf, Jamalat Al Boukhari, Lidea Zeidan

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

This work is a continuation of the characterization study of nickel oxide (NiO) nanoparticles (NPs) doped with transition metals (TM) like Mn, Fe and Zn, synthesized by the co-precipitation method. In this part, the effect of TM doping on the physical and mechanical properties of the NiO NPs is examined using a digital Vickers microhardness tester. The microhardness measurement results enable us to evaluate the important mechanical parameters including Vickers microhardness (HV), Young's modulus (E), yield strength (Y) and fracture toughness (KIC), responsible for practical industrial applications. It was found that all the properties given above strongly depend on the …

Empirical Study Of Knowledge Sharing Among Multinational Academicians, Shaidah Jusoh, Hejab Alfawareh

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Knowledge sharing among faculty members may enhance the quality of teaching and research activities. Despite the fact that a number of research has been conducted, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first work that focus on multinational academicians. The aim of this empirical study is to investigate ways and factors which contribute to knowledge sharing in the context of multinational academicians at universities. We performed this study at the Information Technology faculty at one of universities in Saudi Arabia, as a case study. The faculty employed academicians from 10 different countries including Malaysia, Jordanian, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, …

Rotary Oscillation Of A Rigid Sphere In A Couple Stress Fluid, Tarek Shehadeh, Emad Ashmawy

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

In this paper, the rotary oscillation of a rigid sphere in an incompressible couple stress fluid is studied. The classical no slip boundary conditions are imposed on spherical boundary. Moreover, it is assumed that the couple stresses on the boundary of the sphere vanish. In the present study, the motion is generated by a sudden rotary oscillation of the rigid sphere about an axe passing through its center with a time-dependent angular velocity. Stokasian assumption is taken into consideration so that the non-linear terms are neglected in the equation of motion. The torque experienced by the couple stress fluid on …

On The Product Of Two Hypoexponential Random Variables, Therrar Kadri, Khaled Smaili, Seifedine Kadry, Ali El-Joubbeh

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

In this paper, we consider the product of two independent Hypoexponential distributions which has many applications in sciences and engineering. We find analytically the probability density function, the cumulative distribution function, moment generating function, the reliability function and hazard function, which was proved to be a linear combination of the K distribution. Finally, we will apply our results application in stochastic PERT Network.

Influence Of Nano-Ag Addition On Phase Formation And Excess Conductivity Analysis Of (Cu0.5tl0.5)-1223 Superconducting Phase, Nayera Mohammed, Seham Mahmoud, Weleed Abdeen, Marwa Hasebbo

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Ceramic superconducting samples of type (nano-Ag)xCu0.5Tl0.5Ba2Ca2Cu3O10-δ, 0.0 ≤ x ≤ 3.0 wt.%, were successfully synthesized via single step solid-state reaction technique at 850 ºC and under ambient pressure. The samples were characterized by XRD and SEM. Obtained data revealed that the highest grains connectivity volume fraction was detected for the sample with x = 0.15 wt.%. The electrical properties of the prepared samples was examined using the electrical resistivity measurements, and the results proved that the highest superconducting transition temperature Tc was observed at x = 0.15 wt.%. Furthermore, the fluctuation conductivity Δσ(T), above Tc, was analyzed as a function …

Speed Bump Detection For Autonomous Vehicles Using Signal-Processing Techniques, Mohamad Darwiche, Wassim El-Hajj-Chehade

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Autonomous vehicle (AV) is one of the emerging technologies that have far-reaching applications and implications in smart cities. Among the current challenges of the Smart City, Traffic management is of utmost importance. AV technologies can decrease transportation cost and can be used for efficient management and control of traffic flows. Traffic management strongly depends on the road surface condition. Abnormalities in the road, such as manholes and potholes, can cause accidents when not identified by the drivers. Furthermore, human-induced abnormalities, such as speed bumps, could also cause accidents. Detecting road abnormalities provide safety to human and vehicles. Current researches on …

A Review On The Use Of Vegetable Oil And Its Waste In Construction Applications, Ahmed Chamaa, Jamal Khatib, Adel Elkordi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

The generation of waste materials is causing an impact on the environment due to many reasons including the effect on human health and decrease in landfill space. Of these waste materials is the waste cooking oil. There are large amounts of waste vegetable oil generated in the world and most of it is disposed of in the sewer system which can cause problems when treating wastewater. This paper is a review of literature on the use of vegetable oil (VO) and waste vegetable oil (WVO) as chemical admixtures in construction materials. The construction materials include mainly concrete and pavement. The …

Flexural Testing Of Various Composite-Beamsunder Quasi-Static Loads, Wael Slika, Adnan Masri, Oussama Baalbaki

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

The successful interaction between concrete and steel has inspired researchers to develop composite structural systems. Steel and concrete are utilized in various configurations to reduce construction costs and assure optimal load-response behavior. Since the response spectrum of the composite system varies from one system to another, adequate understanding of the composite system behavior is essential to guarantee a desired response. Several parameters affect the flexural capacity and failure mode of a composite section, such as geometry, material properties and bond. In practice, advanced material mechanics and numerical modeling can be utilized for simulating section response, however, variability in the material …

The Impact Of Design Changes In Construction Projects On The Cost Charged By Consultant Offices, Hadi Abou Chakra

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

In any construction project, a large number of modifications occur. The consequences of those modifications may result in additional costs due to the re-design of the project on each member of the project’s stakeholders. The financial impact of modifications during the construction phase of a project on consultant offices will be explored in this study. The aim of this study is to investigate the cost of the modifications and to examine the type of relationship between the time ‎spent on the design to accomplish the modifications and the amount of money earned in the return of the ‎extra work done. …

Siderite As A Weighting Material In Drilling Mud, Khaled Abou Alfa, Rami Harkouss, Jamal Khatib

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Successful petroleum drilling largely depends on the type and quality of mud used in the process. There exist many types of muds, which differ in use and composition. Certain muds are composed of materials that can cause damage to the formation and the bottom-hole. This has resulted in the search for alternatives mud additives or addition of new materials to minimize the damage of the formation and enhance the stability of the wellbore. Several bodies of literature exist that research different sources of mud functions and additives, also their effect on the drilling process, the production zone and the environment. …

Under Pressure: Decision Making In Aircraft Maintenance And The Role Of Gender, Stephanie Douglas Ph.D., Bettina M. Mrusek Ph.D.

National Training Aircraft Symposium (NTAS)

In aircraft maintenance, leaders are under near-constant pressure to maintain airworthiness. Every minute an aircraft cannot fly due to maintenance represents financial waste. Decisions are therefore made in a relatively quick fashion. A leader evaluates the situation, identifies a course of action and then communicates this message to a team of technicians. However, gender influences regarding leaders’ decisions can influence team members’ perceptions of those decisions.

The study will measure decision making methods of leaders in aircraft maintenance and the perceptions of the technicians. It informs how gender influences decision making from both the leader and follower perspective. The expected …

Revisiting Cost Index - The Challenge Of Calculating A Precise Figure For Brazilian Airliners, Joaquim Pedro De Albuquerque D'Orey, Guilherme Amaral Da Silveira

National Training Aircraft Symposium (NTAS)

Within numerous possibilities, Cost Index (CI) is the tool that can provide economic speeds and deliver the lowest cost for a given flight. Cost Index is a highly volatile number that shifts its optimum value in several different circumstances. Through the analysis of the Brazilian regulation, operation and infrastructure reality, this paper reviews several influencers that can interfere with the optimum CI value for a specific flight, aiming for maximum precision and economy. A structured questionnaire was submitted to pilots from four of the biggest Brazilian airliners operating under part 121. The purpose of this questionnaire was to investigate whether …

Integrating Aviation Technology, Emergency Services, And Human Resilience: Considerations From Social Scientists, Chelsea A. Lenoble Ph.D., Joel M. Billings Ph.D., Allison A. Kwesell Ph.D., Ray H. Chang Ph.D.

National Training Aircraft Symposium (NTAS)

Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have a range of applications within the field of disaster response. This presentation offers a novel framework of psychosocial considerations designed to advance UAS and disaster management integration. Social scientists highlight important challenges to the effective integration of three primary entities: UAS, the team of teams that responds to disasters, and populations affected by disasters.

The presentation adopts an emerging theoretical perspective on the intersection between UAS capabilities and disaster phases and extends it by bringing necessary attention to social science issues. Specifically, the framework outlines psychosocial considerations and areas of improvement for preparation (training), response …

The Universality Of Communication: Preparing The Next Generation Of Aviation Professionals, Patti J. Clark Ph.D., Doreen M. Mcgunagle Ph.D., Laura Zizka Ph.D.

National Training Aircraft Symposium (NTAS)

Current aviation college programs aim to prepare the next generation of aviation professionals to meet the needs of the ever-increasing global demand for air travel. Previous literature has identified gaps in competencies that employers noted in young graduates. This study attempts to narrow that gap by focusing on the curriculum of the top 20 aviation programs in the U.S. to compare the curriculum to the skills employers cited to assess whether the courses offered in the current programs reflect the actual needs of the aviation workplace. From a survey of Aerospace and Defense (A&D) employers, ten skills were cited: Team …

Integrate A Conflict Resolution Session Into The Freshman Engineering Problem Solving Course To Improve Students’ Ability To Solve Interpersonal Team Conflicts, Xinyu Zhang, Jeremy G. Roberts

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

The project-based freshman engineering course entitled “Engineering Problem Solving I” in the Fundamentals of Engineering Program (FEP) at West Virginia University (WVU) requires students to work in teams to complete engineering design projects. Many students are lacking in their team dynamics, particularly in handling inter-team conflicts, which can seriously hinder their learning and future coping with conflict. When a conflict happened within a team, students hesitated to enforce their team charters, which defines the project parameters and the team’s standard of conduct. Some students avoided confronting the difficult team members, some waited for the instructor to handle the issues for …

The Effects Of Funding Gaps On Depot Maintenance Hours, Carlo S. D'Amato

Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between expenditures and readiness level is a topic of interest to military senior leaders, defense resource planners, and the American taxpayer alike. Senior leaders within the Air Force (AF) justify increased defense budgets by pointing to the potential adverse effects that decreased funding could have on military readiness. Resource planners within the AF are then tasked with the responsibility of ensuring that budgets are allocated most effectively to maximize the AF's ability to project airpower across a variety of contingency operations. This thesis investigates the relationship between budgets and readiness by examining the relationship between depot level funding …

Investigating Lifecycle Costs Of Optimized Battery-Photovoltaic Systems On A Forward Operating Base, Neal S. Fennell

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to investigate the total life-cycle cost of using utility-scale battery systems to increase the energy efficiency of forward operating bases, thereby reducing the burden of diesel fuel logistics. Specifically, this thesis answered three research questions addressing optimal sizing for various battery types connected with photovoltaic grids, logistical parameters directly impacting total cost, and the cost of increasing the energy resilience of the network. The research questions were answered through a review of literature, modeling, and data analysis. The model determines an optimal size and area for a Vanadium redox flow, Lithium-ion, or Lead-acid battery …

The Impact Of Changing The Size Of Aircraft Radar Displays On Visual Search In The Cockpit, Justin R. Marsh

Theses and Dissertations

Advances in sensor technology have enabled our fighter aircraft to find, fix, track, target, engage (F2T2E) at greater distances, providing the operator with more data within the battlefield. Modern aircraft are designed with larger displays while our legacy aircraft are being retrofitted with larger cockpit displays to enable display of the increased data. While this modification has been shown to enable improvements in human performance of many cockpit tasks, this effect is often not measured nor fully understood at a more generalizable level. This research outlines an approach to comparing human performance across two display sizes in future F-16 cockpits. …

An Investigation Into Subject Matter Expert Elicitation In Cost Risk Analysis, Christopher W. Miller

Theses and Dissertations

This research compares the efficacy of subject matter expert (SME) elicitation methods to other cost estimation methods using a development and production dataset provided by AFLCMC/FZC. First, by using descriptive statistics to evaluate low versus high amount of the respective cost estimation methods by analyzing the means of percent cost growth for both groups. Next, this research involved using a statistics-based approach to investigate whether SME based cost estimating methods have an associated relationship to percent change of Program Acquisition Unit Costs (PAUC), which will be our proxy variable to cost growth. Using a pooled cross-sectional OLS regression analysis model …

Recognizing Potential Cyberspace Warriors Through The Use Of Suspicion Propensity Index, Meghan G. Strang

Theses and Dissertations

The Air Force currently suffers from excessively high attrition rates in the cyberspace career. The field is currently aiming to develop an entrance examination for the career, striving to improve personnel selection and decrease these high attrition rates. The attribute of suspicion is a key focus of the preliminary examination development, theorizing that it is a potential indicator present among competent cyber operators. This research makes use of the Suspicion Propensity Index (SPI), a reliable measure of one’s tendency to be suspicious, along with the highly cited Mayer’s trust questionnaire in order to compare the attributes that appear in successful …

Inherent Jeopardy Of Performance Based Contracting Metrics: A Simulation Experiment, Daniel Cherobini

Theses and Dissertations

There is a growing trend across the world to adopt Performance Based Contracting strategies to support logistics systems. Using these policies, contract payments are strongly related to the performance achieved compared to prespecified metrics. However, managers are not always confident on what are the most suitable performance goals to use in these agreements. As a consequence, contractors struggle to deliver the desired performance results, while aircraft fleets experience an increase in support costs. And when the results are inadequate, leaders are tempted to impose even more performance targets to contractors, willing to exercise more control over the support organization. In …

Parklets San Luis, Owen Kenny, Preston Jag Stebel, Leonidas Goodman, Lukas Braun

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Downtown San Luis Obispo has been a popular destination for tourists, students, families, and roadtrippers. However, according to Ryan Betz, Interim Assistant to the City Manager, foot traffic and retail business revenue has been decreasing. Downtown SLO does not have enough free public spaces. Recent projects such as sidewalk bump outs and lighted crosswalks have aimed at making SLO more pedestrian accessible, but they have not actually made downtown more pleasurable. These projects have not seemed to drive any more business or traffic downtown. There are a myriad of ways to rectify this; studies show that having a free place …

Undergraduate Pilot Training Attrition: An Analysis Of Individual And Class Composition Component Factors, Christina M. Akers

Theses and Dissertations

The Air Force is working hard to reduce the shortage of nearly 2,000 pilots that threatens the Air Force’s core mission. Officials have focused on increasing retention and training throughput. Despite this, the first Pilot Training Next class graduated in August of 2018 with 13 of the initial 20 students (65.5% graduation rate). The purpose of this research is to explore attrition reduction by understanding how class composition of individual abilities and personalities affects the class graduation rate. Using AFOQT scores, SDI+ scores, PCSM scores, flight hours, and college GPAs, correlations were studied and a simple linear regression was run …