Engineering Commons^™

Biomaterials For Local, Controlled Drug Delivery To The Injured Spinal Cord, Alexis M. Ziemba, Ryan J. Gilbert

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Affecting approximately 17,000 new people each year, spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating injury that leads to permanent paraplegia or tetraplegia. Current pharmacological approaches are limited in their ability to ameliorate this injury pathophysiology, as many are not delivered locally, for a sustained duration, or at the correct injury time point. With this review, we aim to communicate the importance of combinatorial biomaterial and pharmacological approaches that target certain aspects of the dynamically changing pathophysiology of SCI. After reviewing the pathophysiology timeline, we present experimental biomaterial approaches to provide local sustained doses of drug. In this review, we present …

Integration Host Factor Stabilized Pcr- Amplified Dna For High-Throughput Protein Synthesis Subtitle, William Bradley, Bradley Bundy

Journal of Undergraduate Research

As the search continues for novel proteins with market-incentivized properties, the demand for tools to accelerate the identification of these proteins increases. This has led to investigating methods for screening proteins that yield faster results (high-throughput) with greater titers of protein stable enough for analysis (high yield).

Tissue Engineering: Cell-Seeded 3d Printed Vascular Graft, Tomonori Baba, Alonzo Cook

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this project was to create and test a biocompatible modified alginate gel for 3D printing blood vessels to be used in vascular networks for tissue engineering and as vascular grafts. Vascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, and more than $100 billion are spent annually for its treatment. Treatments for cardiovascular disease, such as synthetic blood vessels still have some problems with thrombosis and immune rejection. We propose to use the patient’s own cells to form replacement blood vessels, to reduce the risk of immune rejection and the endothelial cells will be …

The Use Of A Passive Endothermic Reactor Cooling System For Lwr Emergency Cooling, Joel Johnson, Dr. Matthew Memmott

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of the project was to test the viability and begin design on a passive endothermic reaction cooling system (PERCS). The idea behind PERCS is to improve the safety of and to avoid potential disasters resulting from accident conditions in nuclear reactors. To do this, a PERCS will be designed that can be simply integrated into current nuclear power plant systems. The PERCS concepts to date are completely passive; rather than requiring valve or operator actuation, the system initiates due to natural conditions in the reactor system.

Cytosolic Delivery Of Doxorubicin From Liposomes To Multidrug-Resistant Cancer Cells Via Vaporization Of Perfluorocarbon Droplets, Jacob B. Williams, Clara M. Buchanan, Ghaleb Husseini, William G. Pitt

Faculty Publications

A common mechanism of multidrug resistance is the upregulation of efflux pumps in the cancer cells that can more rapidly export unwanted materials (e.g. cancer drugs) out of the cell, compared to sensitive cancer cells. This research seeks to overcome this mechanism by vaporizing a perfluoropentane emulsion droplet inside of a drug-containing liposome (eLiposome) that was endocytosed into a cancer cell. Folate attached to the eLiposome facilitates uptake into the cell as observed by confocal microscopy. Ultrasound was examined as a trigger to initiate the vaporization of the perfluoropentane droplet and release doxorubicin from folated eLipsosomes (feLD). Two seconds of …

Cytosolic Delivery Of Doxorubicin From Liposomes To Multidrug-Resistant Cancer Cells Via Vaporization Of Perfluorocarbon Droplets, Jacob B. Williams, Clara M. Buchanan, Ghaleb A. Husseini, William G. Pitt

Faculty Publications

A common mechanism of multidrug resistance is the upregulation of efflux pumps in the cancer cells that can more rapidly export unwanted materials (e.g. cancer drugs) out of the cell, compared to sensitive cancer cells. This research seeks to overcome this mechanism by vaporizing a perfluoropentane emulsion droplet inside of a drug-containing liposome (eLiposome) that was endocytosed into a cancer cell. Folate attached to the eLiposome facilitates uptake into the cell as observed by confocal microscopy. Ultrasound was examined as a trigger to initiate the vaporization of the perfluoropentane droplet and release doxorubicin from folated eLiposomes (feLD). Two seconds of …

Experimental Analysis Of R134a, R22, And R404 For An Edibon Taab: Air Conditioning Lab Unit, Kyle T. Heesen

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This paper presents an experimental analysis of an Ebidon® TAABTM: Air Conditioning Lab unit running on R-134a being compared with R22 and R404 refrigerants, a $24,449 piece of equipment purchased by the JMU ISAT Department. In this paper we will compare the performance of the R-134a refrigerant under a range of working conditions and compare them to how the system would run on R22 or R404. The experimental tests use varying fan speeds and the R-134a data collected is compared to simulated data collected for R22 and R404. Analysis of the collected data and simulated data will be compared on …

Potential Benefits Of Combining Anomaly Detection With View Planning For Uav Infrastructure Modeling, R. Abraham Martin, Landen Blackburn, Joshua Pulsipher, Kevin W. Franke, John Hedengren

Faculty Publications

This paper presents a novel method for UAV-based 3D modeling of large infrastructure objects, such as pipelines, canals and levees, that combines anomaly detection with automatic on-board 3D view planning. The study begins by assuming that anomaly detections are possible and focuses on quantifying the potential benefits of the combined method and the view planning algorithm. A simulated canal environment is constructed, and several simulated anomalies are created and marked. The algorithm is used to plan inspection flights for the anomaly locations, and simulated images from the flights are rendered and processed to construct 3D models of the locations of …

Analyzing Potential Benefits Of Heat Integration Designs For A Dtbp Production Plant, Paul Stanzione

Senior Theses

This thesis looks at the implementation of various heat integration designs for a ditertiary butyl peroxide (DTBP) production plant. Heat integration, also known as process integration, is a common industrial practice in the chemical process industry to reduce utility costs. Heat integration is commonly analyzed using pinch technology, which focuses producing a heat exchanger design that pairs hot streams with excess energy with cold streams that need to be heated. These designs usually cut utility costs, but they also require the building of more heat exchangers to place within the process.

Determination Of Fatty Acid Methyl Esters Derived From Algae Scenedesmus Dimorphus Biomass By Gc-Ms With One-Step Esterification Of Free Fatty Acids And Transesterification Of Glycerolipids, Satya Girish Chandra Avula, Joanne M. Belovich, Yan Xu

Chemical & Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications

Algae can synthesize, accumulate and store large amounts of lipids in its cells, which holds immense potential as a renewable source of biodiesel. In this work, we have developed and validated a GC–MS method for quantitation of fatty acids and glycerolipids in forms of fatty acid methyl esters derived from algae biomass. Algae Scenedesmus dimorphus drymass was pulverized by mortar and pestle, then extracted by the modified Folch method and fractionated into free fatty acids and glycerolipids on aminopropyl solid-phase extraction cartridges. Fatty acid methyl esters were produced by an optimized one-step esterification of fatty acids and transesterification of glycerolipids …

An Industrial Process For The Production Of Nylon 6 6 Through The Step-Growth Reaction Of Adipic Acid And Hexamethylenediamine, David Wallace Jacobson

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

A continuous, two stage, four reactor system process is presented here for the proposed purpose of nylon 6 6 manufacture at the rate of 85 million lbs per year. Report components include: process descriptions, simulation methods and results, economic analysis, EH&S considerations, process control descriptions, and a general recommendation for how to proceed with plans enclosed. The general design of the plant is a two stage system composed of one PFR used for the formation of nylon salt and low molecular weight nylon chains, followed by three CSTR’s used for increasing nylon molecular weight. The overall process has been found …

Synthesis Of Graphene Oxide Membranes And Their Behavior In Water And Isopropanol, Ashish Aher, Yuguang Cai, Mainak Majumder, Dibakar Bhattacharyya

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

Graphene oxide (GO) membrane has been synthesized on commercial polysulfone ultrafiltration membranes (Pore size: 17 nm) using the drop casting method followed by baking at 90 C for 24 h. Baking resulted in the reduction of GO and removal of bulk water intercalated in the GO sheets. Deposited GO film showed high stability under shear stress variation. This work shows that water adsorption on the GO membrane determines its permeation performance. Despite the higher viscosity of isopropyl alcohol (IPA), its permeability was 7 times higher than water through the baked (“dry”) GO membranes, which were never contacted with water. However, …

Novel Iii-V Alloys For Unassisted Water Splitting., Alejandro Martinez-Garcia

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Direct conversion of solar energy to fuels by photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting has been identified as a promising route for sustainable power generation and storage. However, semiconductor materials with suitable opto-electronic properties have yet to be identified. In this dissertation, band gap engineering of III-V alloys, tuning the light sensitivity of GaP and GaN nitride through alloying Sb, is investigated for developing new semiconductor alloys with appropriate opto-electronic properties and their performance with overall water photoelectrolysis. In addition to III-V materials, copper oxide (Cu₂O) electrode was investigated for p-type semiconductor material. The new III-V alloy anodes were studied …

Data Driven Discovery Of Materials Properties., Fadoua Khmaissia

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The high pace of nowadays industrial evolution is creating an urgent need to design new cost efficient materials that can satisfy both current and future demands. However, with the increase of structural and functional complexity of materials, the ability to rationally design new materials with a precise set of properties has become increasingly challenging. This basic observation has triggered the idea of applying machine learning techniques in the field, which was further encouraged by the launch of the Materials Genome Initiative (MGI) by the US government since 2011. In this work, we present a novel approach to apply machine learning …

Beer, Booze, And Biofuels: An Introduction To Chemical Engineering, Kayla Revelle, Jacob Lambert, Kelly Kopchak

Senior Theses

The goal of this thesis project was to provide the layout, curriculum, and scheduling for an introductory course regarding chemical engineering for non-majors. Throughout the course of our studies in chemical engineering and engineering in general it had come to our attention that there were many myths regarding the classes and curriculum. We had heard countless times things such as “I am glad I’m not an engineering major”, “those classes seem so hard and boring”, or “It’s all math”. The purpose of this project and class was to dispel those myths and show non-majors what chemical engineering is all about. …

Sec-Butanol From Crude Butene Feedstock Plant Design, Samantha How, Jacob Przywara, Bryce Robbins, Gavino Valdez

Senior Theses

Sec-butanol, C4H10O, is a flammable alcohol that is widely used as a fuel additive or as a reactant to make butanone, an industrial solvent. A hydration reaction between n-butenes and water, catalyzed by sulfuric acid, is a commonly used process in producing sec-butanol. However, a more challenging reaction and separation scheme is presented with a crude feedstock of butenes because of the abundance of azeotropes produced by side reactions. The development of a new plant design is relevant to industrial chemical plants that produce large amounts of crude butene side products, and can be useful by increasing plant efficiency and …

Tailings Dust Emissions, Emily Degner, Sam Horn, Zakary Galligan, Ryan Bernard, Julie Jameson, Josh Mueller, Natalie Tucker, Joe Griffin

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Fugitive dust emissions from the storage and handling of mine tailings presents environmental and safety concerns, which must be addressed to promote the land sustainability and the health and safety of individuals around a tailings storage facility (TSF). The investigated dust control methods were agglomeration, binder slurry injection, and topical spray.

The Dust Busters determined that pelletizing was the most practical method of agglomeration. In order to produce durable pellets from the mine tailings, which consist primarily of silica, a binder must be added. A variety of binders were considered including magnesium and calcium chloride, bentonite, barite, cement, vinyl polymers, …

Production Of Mesophase Pitch From Gasified Lignin-Derived Tars, Adedayo O. Idowu

Theses and Dissertations

Lignin tars are created as a by-product of lignin gasification. Significant effort has gone into minimizing tar production. However, no process has been shown to completely eliminate its formation. As a result, the tar is being used to manufacture low value products such as asphalt, or is being used as a fuel in fixed combustion systems.

The research presented here is part of an effort to increase the viability of using lignocellulosic biomass as a feedstock to produce high value products. We tested the postulate that tars derived from lignin could be processed into a mesophase pitch allowable for conversion …

Effect Of High Cationic Flocculant On Anaerobic Digestion Of Municipal Wastewater., Prathap D. John

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Anaerobic digestion (AD) of municipal sludge is a widely used stabilization process at municipal wastewater treatment plants. It is highly effective in reducing sludge volume and produces methane gas which is used as fuel in the wastewater plant. Following digestion sludge is sent to a centrifuge to separate the solids from the liquids. Louisville MSD adds flocculent to material in the centrifuge to better coagulate the solids, thereby aiding in separation of the solids from the liquids. The potential for further AD, COD reduction, and methane generation of the liquid effluent from the centrifuge was unknown, particularly in regards to …

Assessing The Effects Of Sensitizing Tungsten Oxide With Zinc Telluride, Chengeto Kazuva

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a comparison study of the performance of plain tungsten oxide (WO₃) thin films and tungsten oxide thin films sensitized with zinc telluride (ZnTe) as photoelectrocatalysts. Tungsten oxide and zinc telluride are semiconductors which were prepared on indium tin oxide (ITO) coated glass, and subsequently studied for water splitting applications. The main method of synthesis employed was electrochemical deposition. Tungsten oxide thin films were deposited from a precursor solution of peroxotungstic acid while the zinc telluride thin films were deposited from a solution containing dissolved zinc sulfate heptahydrate, sulfuric acid and tellurium dioxide. Surface morphology, film composition and …

Passive Solar Distillation Of Acid Rock Drainage, Stephanie Shreve, Luke Galuska, Anna Stoller, Alex Raney, Agustin Caceres, Caitlyn Chambers, Chris Graham, Devin Hazlett

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Arkansas Razorback Distillers (A.R.D.) has developed a passive solar distillation system for treating acid rock drainage (ARD) from legacy (i.e., abandoned) mines. The solar still addresses the need to reduce both the metal sulfate contaminants as well as the acidity of acid rock drainage. During the design phase, A.R.D. addressed the need for the system to be low cost, simple, and effective for general use as well as a specified location. To demonstrate the applicability of the solar still, A.R.D. used the Freeport McMoRan Inc. Copper Queen legacy mine in Bisbee, Arizona, as a base case scenario. The mine was …

Proposal To Build Nylon 6,6 Plant: A Grassroots Economic Analysis, Caleb M. Woodall

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

This report analyzes the profitability of building a grass roots Nylon 6,6 plant in Calvert City, Kentucky. A rigorous process simulation was produced, equipment prices were estimated, utility usage was assessed, and a plan for the plant organization was developed. The calculations yielded values for fixed capital investment ($10.5 million), working capital ($101 million) and revenue ($114 million). The discounted cash flow rate of return was calculated to be 8.94%. The conclusion drawn from these calculated values is that the current plan for the plant would not be profitable on a 10 year project life basis. However, recommendations are presented …

Life Cycle Assessment Of Sweet Sorghum As Feedstock For Second-Generation Biofuel Production, Karla Morrissey

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

There exist few life cycle assessments (LCAs) in the literature that focus on the second-generation biofuel production from sweet sorghum, a non-food-source feedstock that offers several advantages in terms of farming requirements compared to corn or sugarcane. The objective of this LCA study was to evaluate biofuels produced from sweet sorghum to determine the potential environmental benefits of producing sweet sorghum biofuel compared to conventional fossil fuels. The biofuel production process used for this study differed from other LCAs in that, in parallel to stalk juice extraction and fermentation, residual bagasse and vinasse was pyrolyzed and upgraded to a diesel …

Feasibility Analysis Of Recycled-Paper Fueled Agricultural Desalination Process: Design Of Recycling And Desalination Processes, Sean M. Street

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

While recycled-paper-briquettes have lower BTU ratings than wood, and fresh water is typically a low cost to agricultural entities, situations exist where economic and/or environmental factors may allow a recycled-paper-fueled desalination process to be viable for some specific agricultural entities. This document begins with a discussion of how water is priced throughout India before analyzing trends in the Maize futures market. By tying the two together, an opportunity is created for solution which the remainder of the document presents. Paper waste in India makes-up 50% of its solid waste country-wide; however, only a quarter of that waste is recycled - …

Evaluation Of Phosphorous Removals By Biochar Supported Nano-Scale Zero-Valent Iron, Maria S. Rossetti

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study evaluated the effectiveness of biochar-supported nano-scale zero-valent iron (nZVI/BC) in removing phosphorus (P) from water. Samples of nZVI/BC were prepared using aqueous nanoparticles synthesis techniques, and were mixed with a stock phosphorus solution. To determine P reductions water samples were tested for P content using the ascorbic acid method. This procedure was repeated for samples of stock P solution, zero-valent iron (ZVI), biochar, and ZVI/BC. nZVI/BC reduced P content by 86% whereas ZVI, biochar, and ZVI/BC removed 6%, -23%, and 17% respectively. This suggests that nZVI/BC has the potential to be an effective method of stormwater remediation.

Enhancement Of Heat Transfer Coefficient Using Fe₂O₃-Water Nanofluids, Nasser Zouli, S. A. M. Mohammed, Muthanna H. Al-Dahhan

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this work, we developed a local heat transfer probe that can measure the heat transfer coefficient to study the effect of the nanofluid with various concentrations and size of nanoparticles on the local heat transfer coefficient in a developed separate effect experimental setup.Water with iron (III) oxide (Fe₂O₃) nanoparticles were used as the nanofluids flowing through the test section. The nanoparticle sizes of the Fe₂O₃ were varying between 20 and 40nm. The concentrations for the different nanoparticle sizes were ranged between 0 and 0.09 % in volume fractions. The results show that use of aqueous Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles can significantly …

Polyisobutylene Telechelic Prepolymers By In Situ End-Quenching And Post-Polymerization Modifications, Bin Yang

Dissertations

This volume focuses on the development of telechelic polyisobutylene (PIB) prepolymers by combining end-capping of living carbocationic polymerization of isobutylene (IB) with suitable reactants and post-polymerization modifications. Alkylation kinetics of PIB tert-chloride with alkoxybenzenes using either TiCl₄ or AlCl₃ were investigated. Quantitative para-position end-capped products were only achieved if the alkoxybenzene/AlCl₃ molar ratio was greater than unity; while no such molar ratio is required for TiCl₄, but the alkylation rate was slower than AlCl₃ under the same conditions. Photopolymerization kinetics analysis of PIB triphenol tri(meth)acrylates with low and high M_ns, …

Common Treatments And Procedures Used For Fractures Of The Distal Radius And Scaphoid: A Review, Basel A. Khader, Mark R. Towler

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The distal radius and the scaphoid are the most commonly injured carpal bones among both active adults and the osteoporotic elderly. The purpose of surgical treatment is to restore form and function to the wrist. Depending on the nature of the fracture, either topical procedures or invasive surgery can be applied. This article critiques the treatments currently used for fixation of wrist fractures in order to drive the development of new materials to improve patient outcomes.

Evaluation Of Electrocoagulation For Chloride And Ammonium Removal From The Reject Brine Effluent Pretreated By Solvay Process, Miada Abubaker Ali

Theses

Excessive use of desalination, due to the increase in freshwater demand, results in large productions of reject brine. Therefore, the development of an efficient treatment process of the reject brine becomes vital. The Solvay process is one of the main treatment technologies, wherein NH₃ is introduced to convert soluble Na⁺ into insoluble NaHCO₃. However, in this process, Cl^- is not removed and NH₄⁺ is introduced, and therefore electrocoagulation has been proposed for their removal. The experiment was designed using Minitab with different initial concentrations of chloride (7400 – 32600 mg/l), current densities (0.033 …

Oil Recovery By Surfactant Flooding; Sensitivity Analysis To Technical Parameters And Economic Analysis, Hadel Mohsen Moustafa

Theses

Various enhanced oil recovery methods including miscible gas injection, chemical, thermal and other methods are applied at the third phase of production after the primary and secondary recovery have been exhausted. Surfactant flooding is one of the chemical methods that is capable of recovering more oil by decreasing the IFT and/or wettability alteration.This piece of work aims to asses and select the development options using surfactant process that maximize oil recovery for a synthetic reservoir model by optimizing technical and economic analysis.

Reservoir simulation study using ECLIPSE 100 was used to study the different development options of surfactant flooding applied …