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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

A Computer Science Approach To Identify And Classify Hyperactivated Spermatozoa, Norbert Kaula Jan 2009

A Computer Science Approach To Identify And Classify Hyperactivated Spermatozoa, Norbert Kaula

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Effective Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) relies in part upon accurate but easily conducted measurements of sperm motion parameters. Several established methods are widely used to assess possible reasons for male infertility, in human and veterinary Andrology clinics. Computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA) devices quantitatively assess sperm motion parameters, which have been defined by the World Health Organization, and include the percentage of motile cells in a sample and the motion characteristics of individual cells, such as curvilinear velocity (VCL), average path velocity (VAP) and straight line velocity (VSL). However, CASA analyses fail to define hyperactive sperm motility or determine the prevalence …


Thermocapillary Effects In Driven Dewetting And Self-Assembly Of Pulsed Laser-Irradiated Metallic Films, Agegnehu Atena, Mikhail Khenner Jan 2009

Thermocapillary Effects In Driven Dewetting And Self-Assembly Of Pulsed Laser-Irradiated Metallic Films, Agegnehu Atena, Mikhail Khenner

Mathematics Faculty Publications

In this paper the lubrication-type dynamical model is developed of a molten, pulsed laser-irradiated metallic film. The heat transfer problem that incorporates the absorbed heat from a single beam or interfering beams is solved analytically. Using this temperature field, we derive the 3D long-wave evolution PDE for the film height. To get insights into dynamics of dewetting, we study the 2D version of the evolution equation by means of a linear stability analysis and by numerical simulations. The stabilizing and destabilizing effects of various system parameters, such as the peak laser beam intensity, the film optical thickness, the Biot and …


Systems Chemistry And Parrondo’S Paradox: Computational Models Of Thermal Cycling, Daniel C. Osipovitch, Carl Barratt, Pauline M. Schwartz Jan 2009

Systems Chemistry And Parrondo’S Paradox: Computational Models Of Thermal Cycling, Daniel C. Osipovitch, Carl Barratt, Pauline M. Schwartz

Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Faculty Publications

A mathematical concept known as Parrondo’s paradox motivated the development of several novel computational models of chemical systems in which thermal cycling was explored. In these kinetics systems we compared the rates of formation of product under cycling temperature and steady-sate conditions. We found that a greater concentration of product was predicted under oscillating temperature conditions. Our computational models of thermal cycling suggest new applications in chemical and chemical engineering systems.


One-Pot Synthesis Of Anionic (Nitrogen) And Cationic (Sulfur) Codoped High-Temperature Stable, Visible Light Active, Anatase Photocatalysts, Suresh Pillai, Declan Mccormack, Steven Hinder, Pradeepan Periyat Jan 2009

One-Pot Synthesis Of Anionic (Nitrogen) And Cationic (Sulfur) Codoped High-Temperature Stable, Visible Light Active, Anatase Photocatalysts, Suresh Pillai, Declan Mccormack, Steven Hinder, Pradeepan Periyat

Articles

No abstract provided.


Simulation Of Corn Stover And Distillers Grains Gasification With Aspen Plus, Ajay Kumar, Hossein Noureddini, Yaşar Demirel, David Jones, Milford Hanna Jan 2009

Simulation Of Corn Stover And Distillers Grains Gasification With Aspen Plus, Ajay Kumar, Hossein Noureddini, Yaşar Demirel, David Jones, Milford Hanna

Yaşar Demirel Publications

A model was developed to simulate the performance of a lab‐scale gasifier and predict the flowrate and composition of product from given biomass composition and gasifier operating conditions using Aspen Plus software. Mass balance, energy balance, and minimization of Gibbs free energy during the gasification were applied to determine the product gas composition. Carbon conversion efficiency and tar content were provided to the model as inputs as these could not be predicted by the model based on minimization of Gibbs free energy. Experiments for validation of the model were performed on a lab‐scale fluidized bed gasifier using corn stover and …


Rational Construction By Molecular Dynamics Modeling And Simulations Of Porous Adsorbent Media For Bioseparation, Enrico Riccardi Jan 2009

Rational Construction By Molecular Dynamics Modeling And Simulations Of Porous Adsorbent Media For Bioseparation, Enrico Riccardi

Doctoral Dissertations

"Ion-exchange chromatography employing porous adsorbent particles or monoliths in which charged ligands are immobilized onto polymeric extender molecules grafted on the pore surfaces of a base matrix has become a very important method for bioseparations. In this dissertation, a novel fundamental and systematic methodology has been developed that uses the molecular dynamics (MD) modeling and simulation approach to rationally design, construct, and characterize polymeric porous adsorbent media and study the transport and adsorption of a charged biomolecule (desmopressin) in a representative adsorbent medium. The MD results have also been utilized in a macroscopic model to study the large-scale dynamic behavior …


Antibacterial Properties Of A Tri-Sodium Citrate Modified Glass Polyalkenoate Cement, A. W. Wren, D. Boyd, R. Thornton, J. C. Cooney, Mark R. Towler Jan 2009

Antibacterial Properties Of A Tri-Sodium Citrate Modified Glass Polyalkenoate Cement, A. W. Wren, D. Boyd, R. Thornton, J. C. Cooney, Mark R. Towler

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Primary deep infection following joint replacement surgery accounts for 7% of all revisions. Glass polyalkenoate cements (GPCs) have previously been shown to exhibit antibacterial properties. The present study had two objectives. The first was to determine if addition of tri-sodium citrate (TSC) to the powder phase of an Al-free GPC (0.04 SrO-0.12 CaO-0.36 ZnO-0.48 SiO2, by mole fraction) enhanced the resultant cement's antibacterial properties against three strains of bacteria that are commonly found in periprosthetic sites following total joint replacements (TJRs); namely, E. coli, B. fragilis, and S. epidermidis. Four cement sets were prepared, which contained 0 wt% TSC (control), …


The Design By Molecular Dynamics Modeling And Simulations Of Porous Polymer Adsorbent Media Immobilized On The Throughpore Surfaces Of Polymeric Monoliths, E. Riccardi, J. C. Wang, A. I. Liapis Jan 2009

The Design By Molecular Dynamics Modeling And Simulations Of Porous Polymer Adsorbent Media Immobilized On The Throughpore Surfaces Of Polymeric Monoliths, E. Riccardi, J. C. Wang, A. I. Liapis

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Ion-exchange porous adsorbent media having intermediate and low surface densities of dextran polymer grafted on the surface of the through pores of polymeric monoliths are constructed and characterized by a molecular dynamic modeling and simulation approach that has also been shown to be effective in the construction and characterization of porous ion-exchange adsorbent media whose number of immobilized dextran polymer chains per unit surface area is high. the activation step that prepares the surface of the pores of the dextran polymer layer for the immobilization of the charged ligands insignificantly affected the pore structure of the dextran polymer layer, while …


Simulation Of A Tubular Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Stack Operating On Biomass Syn-Gas Using Aspen Plus, Wayne Doherty, Anthony Reynolds, David Kennedy Jan 2009

Simulation Of A Tubular Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Stack Operating On Biomass Syn-Gas Using Aspen Plus, Wayne Doherty, Anthony Reynolds, David Kennedy

Articles

A tubular solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack is modelled and its operation on biomass syn-gas is investigated. The objective of this work is to develop a computer simulation model of a biomass gasification-SOFC (BG-SOFC) system capable of predicting performance under various operating conditions and using diverse fuels. The stack is modelled using Aspen Plus and considers ohmic, activation and concentration losses. It is validated against published data for operation on natural gas. Operating parameters such as fuel and air utilisation factor (Uf and Ua), current density (j) and steam to carbon ratio ( …


The Effects Of Water To Fuel Ratio On The Kinetics Of Supercritical Water Reformation Of Jet Fuel, Satya Putta Jan 2009

The Effects Of Water To Fuel Ratio On The Kinetics Of Supercritical Water Reformation Of Jet Fuel, Satya Putta

Masters Theses

"The noncatalytic direct reformation of jet fuel was studied in a supercritical water medium using a specially designed 400-mL Haynes® 230 alloy tubular reactor. The experiments were conducted at 1042±5 K, 240.9±0.1 bar, and at water flow rates of 7.5, 15, 30 g/min with varying water-to-fuel feed ratios of 7.5, 15 and 30. The principal reactions are direct reformation of jet fuel into hydrogen and carbon oxides and pyrolysis of jet fuel into lighter hydrocarbons and coke. The effluent gas contained H₂, CO, CO₂ and CH₄, with smaller concentrations of C₂H₄ and C₂H₆. This thesis discusses the effects of the …


Preliminary Investigation Of Novel Bone Graft Substitutes Based On Strontium-Calcium-Zinc-Silicate Glasses, D. Boyd, G. Carroll, Mark R. Towler, C. Freeman, P. Farthing, I. M. Brook Jan 2009

Preliminary Investigation Of Novel Bone Graft Substitutes Based On Strontium-Calcium-Zinc-Silicate Glasses, D. Boyd, G. Carroll, Mark R. Towler, C. Freeman, P. Farthing, I. M. Brook

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Bone graft procedures typically require surgeons to harvest bone from a second site on a given patient (Autograft) before repairing a bone defect. However, this results in increased surgical time, excessive blood loss and a significant increase in pain. In this context a synthetic bone graft with excellent histocompatibility, built in antibacterial efficacy and the ability to regenerate healthy tissue in place of diseased tissue would be a significant step forward relative to current state of the art philosophies. We developed a range of calcium-strontium-zinc-silicate glass-based bone grafts and characterized their structure and physical properties, then evaluated their in vitro …


Continuous-Flow, Rapid Lysis Devices For Biodefense Nucleic Acid Diagnostic Systems, Robert W. Doebler, Barbara Erwin, Anna Hickerson, Bruce Irvine, Denice Woyski, Ali Nadim, James D. Sterling Jan 2009

Continuous-Flow, Rapid Lysis Devices For Biodefense Nucleic Acid Diagnostic Systems, Robert W. Doebler, Barbara Erwin, Anna Hickerson, Bruce Irvine, Denice Woyski, Ali Nadim, James D. Sterling

Business and Information Technology Faculty Research & Creative Works

Two mechanical lysis devices have been developed as compact, robust components to provide rapid sample preparation for nucleic acid diagnostic systems. One such component, known as the Micro Bead-Beater™ (μBB™, BBTM, Claremont BioSolutions, Upland, CA), is a compact device that is capable of ultrarapid lysis (>90% lysis in 30 s) of micro volumes (< 80 μL) of Bacillus spores in a continuous-flow format or in a disposable single-tube format. The μBB is also capable of processing much larger volumes of solutions containing spores or vegetative cells using a continuous-flow mode. A second mechanical lysis device designed as a disposable component is the microfluidic bead blender, which uses a small electric motor to spin vanes within the bead-laden solution. DNA quantification results using dsDNA-binding fluorescence dyes and real-time PCR are presented, comparing the lysis of Bacillus subtilis spores using the μBB™ with other well-known lysis techniques. Nanoscale imaging results obtained using scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy on B. subtilis spores lyzed using the μBB™ are also presented. © 2009, Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening. All rights reserved.


Reduction Of Model Order Based On Proper Orthogonal Decomposition For Lithium-Ion Battery Simulations, Long Cai, Ralph E. White Jan 2009

Reduction Of Model Order Based On Proper Orthogonal Decomposition For Lithium-Ion Battery Simulations, Long Cai, Ralph E. White

Faculty Publications

A reduced-order model (ROM) is developed using proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) for a physics-based lithium-ion battery model. The methodology to obtain the proper orthogonal modes and to analyze their optimality is included. The POD-based ROM for a lithium-ion battery is used to simulate a charge/discharge process and the behavior of a battery pack. Compared to the physics-based model, the computational time to solve the ROM is significantly less, and the two models show excellent agreement.


Effect Of Water Transport On The Production Of Hydrogen And Sulfuric Acid In A Pem Electrolyzer, John A. Staser, John W. Weidner Jan 2009

Effect Of Water Transport On The Production Of Hydrogen And Sulfuric Acid In A Pem Electrolyzer, John A. Staser, John W. Weidner

Faculty Publications

The thermochemical cycle involving the interconversion between sulfur dioxide and sulfuric acid is a promising method for efficient, large-scale production of hydrogen. A key step in the process is the oxidation of sulfur dioxide to sulfuric acid in an electrolyzer. Gaseous SO2 fed to a proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer was previously investigated and was shown to be a promising system for the electrolysis step. A critical factor in the performance of this gas-fed electrolyzer is the management of water since it: (i) is needed as a reactant, (ii) determines the product sulfuric acid concentration, …


Electrochemical Removal Of Carbon Monoxide In Reformate Hydrogen For Fueling Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells, Sivagaminathan Balasubramanian, Charles E. Holland, John W. Weidner Jan 2009

Electrochemical Removal Of Carbon Monoxide In Reformate Hydrogen For Fueling Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells, Sivagaminathan Balasubramanian, Charles E. Holland, John W. Weidner

Faculty Publications

A twin-cell electrochemical filter is demonstrated to reduce the CO concentration in reformate hydrogen. In this design, the potential and gas flow are switched between the two filter cells so that alternative CO adsorption and oxidation occur in each cell while providing a continuous flow of H2 to a fuel cell. The effects of filter switching time and applied potential on the CO concentration of gas exiting the filter are presented here for a CO concentration of 1000 ppm in nitrogen flowing at 100 cm3/min. The parasitic loss of hydrogen from a corresponding reformate stream was estimated to be 1.5%.


Art In A New Light: Design And Assessment Of Illuminants To Reduce Photochemical Degradation Of Works Of Art, Monica Fabiola Delgado Jan 2009

Art In A New Light: Design And Assessment Of Illuminants To Reduce Photochemical Degradation Of Works Of Art, Monica Fabiola Delgado

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to design the best lighting that will minimize long term photochemical degradation of Old Master Drawings and/or other works of art, while maintaining the patron's appreciation of the object's color and detail. The present approach is a technological refinement to the basic underlying earlier work on fluorescent lighting by W. A. Thornton, W.A. at General Electric1. Thin-film dielectric, multi-coating technology is used to create filters that eliminate ultraviolet light, near infrared light and significant unnecessary parts from the visible spectrum, thus maximizing the reduction in photochemical degradation, while maintaining optimal color rendering. Three interference …


Transition Metal Catalysts For Hydrodesulfurization Reactions Applied To Petroleum Industry, Brenda Torres Jan 2009

Transition Metal Catalysts For Hydrodesulfurization Reactions Applied To Petroleum Industry, Brenda Torres

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Catalysis plays a fundamental role in petroleum refining and basic petrochemical industries creating new routes in the development of industrial processes. Moreover, catalysis has become indispensable to the solution of environmental pollution problems and therefore on public health. World wide concerns for preservation of the environment has motivated the development of "Green" catalyst based technologies, to achieve a better utilization of petroleum resources and demands for cleaner transportation fuels. These environmental concerns have led to increasingly drastic regulations on sulfur, nitrogen and aromatics content in fuels. Sulfur content in the motor and diesel fuels is continuously reduced by regulations to …


Sialic Acid Conjugated Chitosan For The Attenuation Of Amyloid-Beta Toxicity, Dhruva Dilip Dhavale Jan 2009

Sialic Acid Conjugated Chitosan For The Attenuation Of Amyloid-Beta Toxicity, Dhruva Dilip Dhavale

LSU Master's Theses

Amyloid-beta (Aβ), a 39 to 43 amino acid long peptide, is the primary species identified in senile plaques associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and has been implicated in the neurotoxicity associated with AD. It is believed that Aβ toxicity is mediated through the interaction with neuronal membranes. A variety of evidence indicates that 1) Aβ may bind to the cell surface sialic acids, 2) the affinity of this interaction is higher if the gangliosides or sialic acids on the cell surface are clustered, 3) the removal of the surface sialic acids attenuate Aβ toxicity. Based on this data, we hypothesized …


One-Pot Synthesis Of Anionic (Nitrogen) And Cationic (Sulfur) Codoped High-Temperature Stable, Visible Light Active, Anatase Photocatalysts, Suresh Pillai, Declan Mccormack, Steven Hinder, Pradeepan Periyat Jan 2009

One-Pot Synthesis Of Anionic (Nitrogen) And Cationic (Sulfur) Codoped High-Temperature Stable, Visible Light Active, Anatase Photocatalysts, Suresh Pillai, Declan Mccormack, Steven Hinder, Pradeepan Periyat

Articles

No abstract provided.


Assessment Of Target Purity Difference For A Louisiana Sugar Mill, Luz Stella Polanco Jan 2009

Assessment Of Target Purity Difference For A Louisiana Sugar Mill, Luz Stella Polanco

LSU Master's Theses

The main goals of a “raw” sugarcane factory are to have an efficient profitable operation with the required sugar quality and maximum sugar recovery. The loss of sugar to final molasses accounts for 45 to 47% of the total sugar losses. An estimation of the average cost of the manufacturing losses for the 2007 harvest season was approximately $9 million – the sugar lost to the final molasses accounts for approximately 50% of this cost (Salassi, 2008). For final molasses, the “Target Purity” (or equilibrium purity) refers to the minimum level of sucrose that theoretically remains in solution for a …


Realtime Reservoir Characterization And Beyond: Cyber-Infrastructure Tools And Technologies, Yaakoub Youssef El-Khamra Jan 2009

Realtime Reservoir Characterization And Beyond: Cyber-Infrastructure Tools And Technologies, Yaakoub Youssef El-Khamra

LSU Master's Theses

The advent of the digital oil _x000C_eld and rapidly decreasing cost of computing creates opportunities as well as challenges in simulation based reservoir studies, in particular, real-time reservoir characterization and optimization. One challenge our e_x000B_orts are directed toward is the use of real-time production data to perform live reservoir characterization using high throughput, high performance computing environments. To that end we developed the required tools of parallel reservoir simulator, parallel ensemble Kalman _x000C_lter and a scalable work ow manager. When using this collection of tools, a reservoir modeler is able to perform large scale reservoir management studies in short periods …


Evaluation Of Interwell Connectivity Of Little Creek Field, Mississipii [Sic] From Production Data, Gbemisola Yewande Ogunyomi Jan 2009

Evaluation Of Interwell Connectivity Of Little Creek Field, Mississipii [Sic] From Production Data, Gbemisola Yewande Ogunyomi

LSU Master's Theses

The understanding of geological characteristics and heterogeneity of a reservoir enables better decisions for reservoir development. Statistical methods use universally available injection and production rate data to help evaluate reservoir characteristics and behavior.In this research project, statistical methods typically used to infer communication between injector-producer well pairs in a waterflood reservoir using only production and injection rate data are applied to a CO2 flood. The multivariate linear regression (MLR) technique computes weighting coefficients possibly related to the fraction of the flow in a producer that comes from each of the injectors (Albertoni and Lake, 2002). MLR was applied to the …


Tem Study Of Niobium Surfaces Treated By Different Polishing Techniques, A.T. Wu, D. Gu, Helmut Baumgart Jan 2009

Tem Study Of Niobium Surfaces Treated By Different Polishing Techniques, A.T. Wu, D. Gu, Helmut Baumgart

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

TEM cross-section observation on Nb surfaces has been a challenge to our superconducting radio frequency (SRF) community due to the highly reactive nature of Nb. Although it was demonstrated in an early attempt1 that under a suitable sample preparation procedure reasonably clear cross-section images of Nb could be obtained, to the best of our knowledge good atomically resolved images had never been obtained. In this report, it is shown that by modifying the sample preparation procedure adopted in reference 1 it is possible to obtain good cross-section images of Nb surfaces with atomic resolution routinely. Surface atomic structures of Nb …


Particle-Chemical Interactions And Environmental Chemodynamics Of Fine And Ultrafine Particles In A Natural Disaster Scenario, Nicholas A. Ashley Jan 2009

Particle-Chemical Interactions And Environmental Chemodynamics Of Fine And Ultrafine Particles In A Natural Disaster Scenario, Nicholas A. Ashley

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The interactions of fine and ultrafine particles with chemicals play a dominant role in determining the mobility and availability of pollutants in the environment. Fine particles in sediments can sequester chemicals from the water column, and release volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds to the gas phase upon exposure to air. Ultrafine particles which are photoreactive can degrade these vapor-phase contaminants, and may transform the molecules into species which are more toxic or hazardous than the parent. As the widespread, commercial use of ultrafine particles becomes more common, understanding the chemodynamics of these particles and their interactions with chemicals in the …


Integrated Data-Driven Techniques For Environmental Pollution Monitoring, Swathi Pakalapati Jan 2009

Integrated Data-Driven Techniques For Environmental Pollution Monitoring, Swathi Pakalapati

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The adverse health e_x000B_ffects of tropospheric ozone around urban zones indicate a substantial risk for many segments of the population. This necessitates the short term forecast in order to take evasive action on days conducive to ozone formation. Therefore it is important to study the ozone formation mechanisms and predict the ozone levels in a geographic region. Multivariate statistical techniques provide a very e_x000B_ffective framework for the classifi_x000C_cation and monitoring of systems with multiple variables. Cluster analysis, sequence analysis and hidden Markov models (HMMs) are statistical methods which have been used in a wide range of studies to model the …


A Simulation-Based Evaluation Of Alternative Initial Responses To Gas Kicks During Managed Pressure Drilling Operations, Majid Davoudi Jan 2009

A Simulation-Based Evaluation Of Alternative Initial Responses To Gas Kicks During Managed Pressure Drilling Operations, Majid Davoudi

LSU Master's Theses

Managed pressure drilling (MPD) is an adaptation of conventional drilling that has been developed to manage and control subsurface pressures in the well in order to minimize specific drilling problems. The constant bottom hole pressure approach (CBHP) is a versatile method of MPD, where a closed annulus allows initial responses to kicks other than simply shutting in the well. The objective of this research was to identify and evaluate the best initial response to gas kicks taken during drilling as a basis for developing reliable well control procedures for CBHP operations. Nine non-circulating and circulating responses (NCRs and CRs) were …


The Effects Of Inorganic Solids And Certain Gases On The Thermal Decomposition Of Catechol, Jerome Apilan Robles Jan 2009

The Effects Of Inorganic Solids And Certain Gases On The Thermal Decomposition Of Catechol, Jerome Apilan Robles

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In order to investigate the effects of calcium carbonate and iron oxide on the thermal decomposition of solid fuels, we have constructed an isothermal flow reactor to perform experiments on the model compound catechol (ortho-dihydroxybenzene), a phenol-type compound representative of coal, wood and biomass. Calcium carbonate and iron oxide are inorganic components of coal and wood, which have demonstrated catalytic properties in thermal reactions and are commercially used to enhance the conversion of solid fuels. In this study, the effects of the inorganic solids on pyrolysis and combustion are conducted through identification and quantification of the products formed after subjecting …


Photocatalytic Reaction In Monolithic Optical Fiber Reactor With Inverse Opal Catalyst, Maoming Ren Jan 2009

Photocatalytic Reaction In Monolithic Optical Fiber Reactor With Inverse Opal Catalyst, Maoming Ren

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The development of photocatalytic reactor is essential for the successful application of heterogeneous semiconductor in environmental study, which has been shown to be photoactive and effective to oxidate organic pollutant and photoreduce CO2 to useful compounds. In this dissertation, a monolithic optical fiber reactor (MOFR) coated with inverse opal titania, which uses optical fibers as light-transmitting conductor and support of catalyst, was developed for both photodegradation and photoreduction. 1,2-dichlorobenzene, a volatile organic compound (VOC), was selected as the organic pollutant. This configuration of reactor and catalyst provides a high surface area, enhances mass transfer within the catalyst, manipulates photons transmission …


Mechanistic Foam Modeling And Simulations: Gas Injection During Surfactant-Alternating-Gas Processes Using Foam-Catastrophe Theory, Ali Afsharpoor Jan 2009

Mechanistic Foam Modeling And Simulations: Gas Injection During Surfactant-Alternating-Gas Processes Using Foam-Catastrophe Theory, Ali Afsharpoor

LSU Master's Theses

The use of foam for mobility control is a promising means to improve sweep efficiency in subsurface applications such as improved/enhanced oil recovery and aquifer remediation. Foam can be introduced into geological formations by injecting gas and surfactant solutions simultaneously or alternatively. Alternating gas and surfactant solutions, which is often referred to as surfactant-alternating-gas (SAG) process, is known to effectively create fine-textured strong foams due to fluctuation in capillary pressure. Recent studies show that foam rheology in porous media can be characterized by foam-catastrophe theory which exhibits three foam states (weak-foam, strong-foam, and intermediate states) and two strong-foam regimes (high-quality …


Supercritical Pyrolysis Of 1-Methylnaphthalene, Michelle Somers Walker Jan 2009

Supercritical Pyrolysis Of 1-Methylnaphthalene, Michelle Somers Walker

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Fuels used in future high-speed jet aircraft will act as coolants to absorb excess heat produced by the engine, exposing the fuel to elevated temperatures and pressures beyond the fuel’s critical point before entering the combustion environment. Fuels used in this capacity are subject to pyrolysis reactions in the supercritical environment, forming polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and eventually carbonaceous solids, a disastrous effect for aircraft operation. Thus, it is important to understand how different components of jet fuel will react in the supercritical pyrolysis environment, particularly if their reactions will lead to PAH and/or carbonaceous solids. To better understand these …