Engineering Commons^™

Hydrodynamics In Recirculating Fluidized Bed Mimicking The Stripper Section Of The Fluid Coker, Francisco J. Sanchez Careaga

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The stripper section of a Fluid Coker^TM consists of a system of baffles (sheds) that enhances the removal of interstitial and adsorbed hydrocarbon vapors from the fluidized coke-particles. Most of the hydrocarbon-vapors released below a stripper shed flow up to the stripper shed, where they may crack and form coke deposits that foul the shed. Extensive fouling changes the shapes of the sheds, makes them thicker and reduces the free-space between the adjacent sheds until downward solids flow is so impaired that the Coker has to be shut down.

The Radioactive Particle Tracking (RPT) technique allows the determination of …

Treatment Of Combined Sewer Overflows Using Ferrate (Vi), Rohan Gandhi

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Prevention of pollution from combined sewer overflows (CSOs) is currently a major concern due to their impact on aquatic and human environment. With the stringent regulations related to the CSOs treatment, it is necessary to develop an efficient, fast and low cost treatment technique that meets the applicable criteria. In this work, the comprehensive study was done to determine the efficiency of ferrate (VI) for the treatment of CSOs. At a Fe (VI) dose of 0.24 mg/l, TCOD, SCOD, TBOD₅, SBOD₅, TSS, VSS, TP, TN and soluble TN removal efficiencies of 71%, 75%, 69%, 68%, 72%, …

Characterization Techniques And Electrolyte Separator Performance Investigation For All Vanadium Redox Flow Battery, Zhijiang Tang

Doctoral Dissertations

The all-vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) is an excellent prospect for large scale energy storage in an electricity grid level application. High battery performance has lately been achieved by using a novel cell configuration with advanced materials. However, more work is still required to better understand the reaction kinetics and transport behaviors in the battery to guide battery system optimization and new battery material development. The first part of my work is the characterization of the battery systems with flow-through or flow-by cell configurations. The configuration difference between two cell structures exhibit significantly different polarization behavior. The battery output can …

Development Of A Monitoring Framework For The Detection Of Diversion Of Intermediate Products In A Generic Natural Uranium Conversion Plant, Jennifer L. Ladd-Lively

Doctoral Dissertations

The objective of this work is the development of an on-line monitoring and data analysis framework that could detect the diversion of intermediate products such as uranium dioxide, uranium tetrafluoride, and uranium hexafluoride in a natural uranium conversion plant (NUCP) using a multivariate statistical approach. This was an initial effort to determine the feasibility of this approach for safeguards applications. This study was limited to a 100 metric ton of uranium (MTU) per year NUCP using the wet solvent extraction method for the purification of uranium ore concentrate. A key component in the multivariate statistical methodology was the Principal Component …

Study On Fine Powder Coating With Modified Additive, Dangchen Xue

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Powder coating is a dry coating technology competing with conventional liquid coatings and offers many benefits such as the elimination of volatile organic compounds, high efficiency of material usage and improved coating durability. However, the rough and thick film surface restricts its wide application. The fine powder coating, which can solve the film quality issues, also has its own limitation: the powder is too cohesive to handle. Although, nanoparticle flow additives can significantly improve the flowability of fine powders, it leads to another obstacle at the same time. Since the inorganic nano additives are not fully compatible with the organic …

Physiological Fluid Specific Agglomeration Patterns Diminish Gold Nanorod Photothermal Characteristics, Kristen K. Comfort, Jared W. Speltz, Bradley M. Stacy, Larry R. Dosser, Saber M. Hussain

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

Investigations into the use of gold nanorods (Au-NRs) for biological applications are growing exponentially due to their distinctive physicochemical properties, which make them advantageous over other nanomaterials. Au-NRs are particularly renowned for their plasmonic characteristics, which generate a robust photothermal response when stimulated with light at a wavelength matching their surface plasmon resonance. Numerous reports have explored this nanophotonic phenomenon for temperature driven therapies; however, to date there is a significant knowledge gap pertaining to the kinetic heating profile of Au-NRs within a controlled physiological setting. In the present study, the impact of environmental composition on Au-NR behavior and degree …

The Use Of Near Infrared And Microwave Sensing For On-Line Real Time Monitoring Of Moisture Content And Composition Of Powder Blend, Ryan V. Mcdonnell, Anshu Gupta, John Austin, Michael T. Harris, Gintaras V. Reklaitis

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Online process analytics has been a topic of interest by pharmaceutical companies as a method of determining how operating parameters affect the final quality of their products. One form of online process analytics that has been found to be effective is microwave sensing. While it has been found that microwave resonance sensing can be used to measure parameters such as moisture content and density, it has yet to be discovered if such sensors have the ability to measure changes in content uniformity of raw materials pharmaceutical companies use. Data was collected using a spin riffler fitted with a microwave sensor …

Tobacco Mosaic Virus Implemented As An Interfacial Layer In Organic Photovoltaic Cells, Monica D. Del Real, Bryan Boudouris

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) are flexible, light weight, and economical to produce due to low processing temperatures, solution processing, and print fabrication. This makes them optimal for a wide range of applications. However, the efficiencies of OPVs are currently not high enough for them to be viable in the market or to be able to compete with inorganic photovoltaics. Therefore the integration of new materials and methods into OPVs in order to increase their efficiency is a vital field. One way to increase the efficiency of OPVs is to increase the surface area in-between layers to allow for enhanced electron transport. …

Optimisation Of The Transesterification Stage Of Biodiesel Production Using Statistical Methods, Arnold Paintsil

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The present research examines solely the transesterification stage of the biodiesel production process. Six process variables that affect the yield of biodiesel at this stage are examined using the 12 run Plackett-Burman Design. To study the effect of FFA[1] and to replicate real life situations where oil (feedstock) contain varying amounts of FFA, linoleic acid is used as FFA and intentionally added to high oleic acid canola oil containing less than 0.07% FFA. The process is catalyzed with potassium carbonate and evaluated at varying temperatures, stirring rates, reaction times and methanol oil ratios. The yields at the end of …

The Biological Impact Of Concurrent Exposure To Metallic Nanoparticles And A Static Magnetic Field, Kristen K. Comfort, Elizabeth I. Maurer, Saber M. Hussain

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

The rapid advancement of technology has led to an exponential increase of both nanomaterial and magnetic field utilization in applications spanning a variety of sectors. While extensive work has focused on the impact of these two variables on biological systems independently, the existence of any synergistic effects following concurrent exposure has yet to be investigated. This study sought to ascertain the induced alterations to the stress and proliferation responses of the human adult low calcium, high temperature keratinocyte (HaCaT) cell line by the application of a static magnetic field (approximately 0.5 or 30 mT) in conjunction with either gold or …

Aging And Stabilization Of Pyrolitic Bio-Oils And Model Compounds, A. G. Manjula Taranganie Siriwardhana

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

When compared to conventional liquid fuels, bio-oil has several undesired properties such as high viscosity, high acidity, high molecular weight, instability, and phase separation upon aging. Therefore, bio-oil needs further stabilization and upgrading before it can be used as a fuel in engines. Phase separation is considered as one of the major issues because it is detrimental to any fuel application and creates problems in storage, transportation and upgrading of bio-oils. This thesis investigates the phase separation of hardwood derived bio-oil under accelerated aging conditions. Different alcohols are used as stabilizing agents and the minimum required amount of alcohol for …

Fate Of Estrogens In Anaerobic Digestion And Their Removal In Advanced Oxidation, Shubhajit Sarkar

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Estrogenic compounds are most significant endocrine disrupting compounds (EDC), which are of primary concern due to their widespread presence in the aqueous environment and also due to their adverse impact both on aquatic life and potential risk to human health. Conventional wastewater treatment plants are not designed to remove EDC, with biosorption on biosolids as the predominant removal mechanism. Anaerobic digestion is one of the most preferred processes employed for sludge stabilization in wastewater treatment plants. Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are seen as promising technologies for removal of estrogens from the environment. In this research, a controlled degradation study of …

Development And Application Of An Experimental Model For The Fluid Coking Process, Carolina B. Morales

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Liquid injection into a fluidized bed is used in industrial applications such as the Fluid Coking^TM process for heavy oil thermal cracking. Poor initial liquid-solid contact results in the formation of agglomerates that limit heat and mass transfer processes, reduce the yield of valuable compounds and create operating problems. The present study develops a new experimental model to simulate the complex phenomena that occur when heavy oil is injected in a Fluid Coker through two-phase nozzles. The model is applied in a pilot scale fluidized bed using scaled-down industrial spray nozzles. The experimental results indicate that agglomerate formation slows …

Carbon Dioxide Adsorption By Metal Organic Frameworks (Synthesis, Testing And Modeling), Rana Sabouni

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

It is essential to capture carbon dioxide from flue gas because it is considered one of the main causes of global warming. Several materials and various methods have been reported for the CO₂ capturing including adsorption onto zeolites, porous membranes, and absorption in amine solutions. All such methods require high energy input and high cost. New classes of porous materials called Metal Organic Frameworks (MOFs) exhibit excellent performance in capturing carbon dioxide from a gas mixture.

In the course of the current research, a novel MOF synthesis method using combined microwave and ultrasound, and microwave only was introduced and …

A Base Case Design And Capital Cost Analysis Of An All Vanadium Redox-Flow Battery, Mark Alan Moore

Masters Theses

Interest in the development of redox-flow batteries (RFBs) for large-scale grid storage is growing, and considerable investments have been made into the research and development of RFBs over the past few decades. Unfortunately, practical implementation has been hampered by various cost and performance issues typical of an immature state of development. One critical factor for the competitiveness of this technology is the installed cost. The purpose of this work is to develop an evolutionary procedure to be used for the base-case design of a Vanadium Redox-Flow Battery, and to incorporate recent developments in all-vanadium RFB research in order to present …

Studies Of Reaction Processes For Voloxidation Methods, Jared Allen Johnson

Doctoral Dissertations

Various facets of the voloxidation process and processes that have been derived from the voloxidation process have been investigated since its development over four decades ago. Despite the numerous studies performed, gaps remain in understanding of particular fundamental aspects of the reaction processes. In this work, several of these specific aspects of the oxidation processes for standard voloxidation and NO₂ [nitrogen dioxide] voloxidation are studied experimentally and modeled.

In the case of standard voloxidation, the oxidation rates of simulant UO_­2 [uranium dioxide] pressurized water reactor pellets in oxygen-rich environments were studied with an emphasis on the controlling phenomena …

Economic Report On Vanadium Redox Flow Battery With Optimization Of Flow Rate, Kevin Spellman, Kendrick Stiles, Ian Little

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Study Level Design Of A Vanadium Redox Flow Battery, Katie Lutes

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Influence Of The Measurement Medium And Matrix Modifiers On The Determination Of Silicon In Waters By Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry, Mamoune El Himri, Abdelouahed El Himri

elhimri2@hotmail.com

An electrothermal atomic absorption (ETAAS) method has been developed for the direct determination of Si in natural waters. Measurements were carried out on previously alkalinized samples and using a mixture of Pd and Mg(NO3)2 as matrix modifier, with an ashing temperature of 1400 ºC and an atomization temperature of 2400 ºC. Transversally heated pyrolitically graphite tubes, equipped with L’vov platform and Zeeman effect correction, was employed in this study.

A limit of detection of 2.6 µg/L Si was obtained and accuracy was evaluated by analyzing two Standard Reference Material at different concentration levels, a good agreement (<5%) was obtained. This developed procedure was demonstrated of the need of using an alkaline medium for accurate Si determination by ETAAS.

Multiscale Modeling Of Enzyme-Catalyzed Methanol Production By Particulate Methane Monooxygenase, Katherine K. Bearden

Doctoral Dissertations

In this work, the conversion of methane to methanol by the particulate Methane Monooxygenase (pMMO) enzyme is investigated using a multi-scale modeling approach. This enzyme participates in carbon cycling and aids in the removal of harmful atmospheric methane, converting it to methanol. The interaction between pMMO and a neighboring enzyme that is present in the same organism is studied, and the unknown pMMO active site is elucidated and tested for methane oxidation towards the production of methanol.

Fundamental knowledge of pMMO's mechanism is not fully understood. Understanding how this enzyme works in nature will provide information towards designing efficient synthetic …

Married Coal Gasification And Biomass Pyrolysis, Michael Balch

Honors Theses and Capstones

This project is a proposal to marry a coal gasification process to a biomass pyrolysis. Coal is pyrolized to produce syngas and a large amount of heat. The syngas is treated and fed to a Fischer-Tropsch process. The excess heat produces steam that is used to pyrolize biomass. The biomass produces char, gas, and vapor. The char and gas are recovered, and the vapor is condensed to produce bio-oil.

The proposed plant has a capacity of 1100 tons of biomass (550 dry tons) per day. I assumed an operating factor of 0.9 The plant could be operational within five years, …

Comparison Of Biomass To Bio-Oils Reactor Systems: Direct Conversion Vs. Companion Coal Gasification, Alexandra Eicher

Honors Theses and Capstones

It is well known that the United States’ dependence on crude-oil negatively affects its economy, safety, and environment. To alleviate these negative consequences, a more economical and environmentally-friendly source of fuel, such as biomass, should be explored. The conversion of biomass to bio-oils involves the pyrolysis of biomass at about 500°C, thus requiring a great deal of heat. This heat source could be the excess waste heat from a coal gasifier.

As such, this report specifies the design of an industrial plant that produces bio-oils from biomass by using the waste heat from a coal gasifier. It is designed to …

Study Of An Alternative Process For Oxidizing Vapor Grown Carbon Nanofibers Using Electron Beam Accelerators, Maria Cecília Evora, Donald A. Klosterman, Khalid Lafdi, Lingchuan Li, L.G.A. Silva

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

The use of a high-energy electron beam was explored in this study as an alternative technique for oxidizing vapor grown carbon nanofiber surfaces. The radiation exposures were carried out at three different electron beam facilities with beam energies of 1.5, 3.0 and 4.5 MeV and radiation doses ranging from 1000 to 3500 kGy. XPS analysis showed that oxygen was readily incorporated on the surface: the ratio O1s/C1s increased approximately by a factor of 4 when the carbon nanofibers were irradiated at 3500 kGy. The oxidized nanofibers exhibited better dispersion in a water/methanol solution (50% v/v) than as-received nanofibers. Raman spectroscopy …

Note: A Simple Thermal Gradient Annealing Unit For The Treatment Of Thin Films, C. J. Metting, Johnathan K. Bunn, Ellen A. Underwood, Yihao Zhu, G. Koley, T. Crawford, Jason R. Hattrick-Simpers

Faculty Publications

A gradient annealing cell has been developed for the high-throughput study of thermalannealing effects on thin-film libraries in different environments. The inexpensive gradientannealing unit permits temperature gradients as large as 28 °C/mm and can accommodate samples ranging in length from 13 mm to 51 mm. The system was validated by investigating the effects of annealing temperature on the crystallinity, resistivity, and transparency of tin-doped indium oxide deposited on a glass substrate by magnetron sputtering. The unit developed in this work will permit the rapid optimization of materials properties such as crystallinity, homogeneity, and conductivity across a variety of applications.

Infrared Optical Properties Of Amorphous And Nanocrystalline Ta2o5 Thin Films, Trevor J. Bright, J. I. Watjen, Zhuomin Zhang, Christopher Muratore, Andrey A. Voevodin, D. I. Koukis, David B. Tanner, Daniel J. Arenas

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

The optical constants of tantalum pentoxide (Ta 2O5) are determined in a broad spectral region from the visible to the far infrared. Ta 2O5 films of various thicknesses from approximately 170 to 1600 nm aredeposited using reactive magnetron sputtering on Si substrates. X-ray diffraction shows that the as-deposited films are amorphous, and annealing in air at 800 °C results in the formation of nanocrystallineTa 2O5. Ellipsometry is used to obtain the dispersion in the visible and near-infrared. Two Fourier-transform infrared spectrometers are used to measure the transmittance and reflectance at wavelengths from 1 to 1000 μm. The surface topography and …

Tannic Acid Coated Gold Nanorods Demonstrate A Distinctive Form Of Endosomal Uptake And Unique Distribution Within Cells, Emily A. Untener, Kristen K. Comfort, Elizabeth I. Maurer, Christin M. Grabinski, Donald A. Comfort, Saber M. Hussain

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

One of the primary challenges associated with nanoparticle-dependent biological applications is that endosomal entrapment in a physiological environment severely limits the desired targeting and functionality of the nanoconstructs. This study sought to overcome that challenge through a systematic approach of gold nanorod (GNR) functionalization: evaluating the influence of both aspect ratio and surface chemistry on targeted cellular internalization rates and preservation of particle integrity. Owing to their unique spectral properties and enhanced surface area, GNRs possess great potential for the advancement of nanobased delivery and imaging applications. However, their ability for efficient intracellular delivery while maintaining their specific physiochemical parameters …

Biogas As A Sustainable Alternative For Current Energy Need Of India., Gauri P. Minde, Sandip S. Magdum, Kalyanraman V.

Sandip S. Magdum

Per capita energy consumption of India is declining with increasing its population, which has direct impact on national economy. Biogas technology seems promising to attain sustainable energy yields without damaging the environment. Waste management, manure creation, health care and employment foundation are the benefits of biogas system. Use of biogas assures renewable energy supply and balance of green house gases. India is traditionally using biogas since long time but there is need to improve the technology, applications and deployment strategies. Bioenergy centralization in urban and decentralization in rural can help government to minimize both the import of fuel derivatives and …

Mechaniczny Rozdział Faz Proj., Wojciech M. Budzianowski

Wojciech Budzianowski

No abstract provided.

Challenges And Prospects Of Processes Utilising Carbonic Anhydrase For Co2 Separation, Patrycja Szeligiewicz, Wojciech M. Budzianowski

Wojciech Budzianowski

This article provides an analysis of processes for separation CO2 by using carbonic anhydrase enzyme with particular emphasis on reactive-membrane solutions. Three available processes are characterised. Main challenges and prospects are given. It is found that in view of numerous challenges practical applications of these processes will be difficult in near future. Further research is therefore needed for improving existing processes through finding methods for eliminating their main drawbacks such as short lifetime of carbonic anhydrase or low resistance of reactive membrane systems to impurities contained in flue gases from power plants.

Yttrium(Iii) Oxomolybdates(Vi) As Potential Host Materials For Luminescence Applications: An Investigation Of Eu3+-Doped Y2[Moo4]3 And Y2[Moo4]2[Mo2o7], Sonja Laufer, Sabine Strobel, Thomas Schleid, Joanna Cybinska, Anja V. Mudring, Ingo Hartenbach

Anja V. Mudring

Two ternary yttrium(III) oxomolybdates(VI) are investigated, both structurally and spectroscopically. The crystal structure of Y2[MoO4]3 was solved at room temperature in the orthorhombic space group Pba2 (a = 1030.21(3), b = 1032.41(3), c = 1057.25(3) pm, Z = 4). In the unit cell, three discrete ortho-oxomolybdate(VI) units [MoO4]2− and two Y3+ cations, both with CN = 7 featuring a monocapped trigonal-prismatic oxygen environment, can be distinguished. Y2[MoO4]2[Mo2O7] crystallizes monoclinically in the space group P21/c (a = 681.85(2), b = 959.13(3), c = 1052.99(3) pm, β = 105.586(2)°) with two formula units per unit cell. In this compound the anionic environment …