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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

Nitrogen Doped Carbon Nanofibers Derived From Water-Soluble Precursors, Lee Cremar, Ben Jones, Nicole Martinez, Gustavo Mejia, Hilario Cortez, Edgar Muñoz, Rocío Nava, Karen Lozano Dec 2017

Nitrogen Doped Carbon Nanofibers Derived From Water-Soluble Precursors, Lee Cremar, Ben Jones, Nicole Martinez, Gustavo Mejia, Hilario Cortez, Edgar Muñoz, Rocío Nava, Karen Lozano

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Nitrogen doped carbon fibers were synthesized from polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), a water soluble precursor. The PVA fine fibers were first developed by centrifugally spinning an aqueous based solution using Forcespinning® technology. The precursor fibers were then exposed to sulfuric acid vapors to partially carbonize and stabilize the fibers for further heat treatment. For nitrogen doping, the fibers were exposed to two different heat treatment routes. One was under a nitrogen atmosphere at 850°C followed by exposure to ammonia gas at 500°C. The second route consisted of heating the treated fibers in pure ammonia gas only, up to 850°C. Both heating …


Suspension-Driven Gravity Surges On Horizontal Surfaces: Effect Of The Initial Shape, ‪Nadim Zgheib, T. Bonometti, S. Balachandar Nov 2017

Suspension-Driven Gravity Surges On Horizontal Surfaces: Effect Of The Initial Shape, ‪Nadim Zgheib, T. Bonometti, S. Balachandar

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

We present results from highly resolved direct numerical simulations of canonical (axisymmetric and planar) and non-canonical (rectangular) configurations of horizontal suspension-driven gravity surges. We show that the dynamics along the initial minor and major axis of a rectangular release are roughly similar to that of a planar and axisymmetric current, respectively. However, contrary to expectation, we observe under certain conditions the final extent of the deposit from finite releases to surpass that from an equivalent planar current. This is attributed to a converging flow of the particle-laden mixture toward the initial minor axis, a behaviour that was previously reported for …


Polyethylene Oxide—Fullerene Nanocomposites, Nasar Ali, Dorina M. Chipara, Karen Lozano, James R. Hinthorne, Mircea Chipara Nov 2017

Polyethylene Oxide—Fullerene Nanocomposites, Nasar Ali, Dorina M. Chipara, Karen Lozano, James R. Hinthorne, Mircea Chipara

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Polyethylene oxidefullerene nanocomposites have been prepared by using the solution path with water as solvent (only for the polymer). The dispersion of C60 within the polymer solution was achieved by high power sonication. The study aims to a better understanding on the effect of C60 nanoparticles on the macromolecular chains. Raman Wide Angle X Ray spectroscopy, Differential Scanning Calorimetry, and Thermogravimetric Analysis were used to inspect the interactions between the nanofiller and macromolecular chains. The experimental results revealed a completely different behavior of fullerene dispersed within polymeric matrices than using carbon nanotubes or nanofibers as nanofiller. …


A Vertical Axis Rotor For Wave Energy Conversion, Yingchen Yang, Joab Soto, Francisco Salazar Oct 2017

A Vertical Axis Rotor For Wave Energy Conversion, Yingchen Yang, Joab Soto, Francisco Salazar

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The present work augments vertical-axis unidirectional wave energy converter (WEC) designs with a new approach. The enabling technique is the hydrodynamic design of a special rotor, which consists of a series of uniquely shaped blades in a certain formation. Specifically, individual blades are realized by revolving a two-dimensional symmetric hydrofoil about its chord line. Then the blades are arranged around a vertical shaft in a desired formation to form the rotor. When driven by an approaching flow through interaction, the rotor naturally rotates about the vertical shaft in a predefined direction. The approaching flow could be from any spatial direction, …


Chiral Metamaterial-Based Microwave Sensors, Nantakan Wongkasem, Amornthep Sonsilphong, Mario Gonzalez Sep 2017

Chiral Metamaterial-Based Microwave Sensors, Nantakan Wongkasem, Amornthep Sonsilphong, Mario Gonzalez

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

A significant resonance shift is found in both reflection and transmission coefficients from both parallel and perpendicular excitations in a helical structure. The responses from the perpendicular excitation show better sensitivity than those from the parallel excitation at 480 MHz-560 MHz for 0.2 circumference difference. Additional electromagnetic properties of a helical structure, such as chirality, optical rotatory dispersion and circular dichroism can also further combine to enhance the sensing performance.


A Fast Fpga Implementation For Triple Des Encryption Scheme, Edni Del Rosal, Sanjeev Kumar Sep 2017

A Fast Fpga Implementation For Triple Des Encryption Scheme, Edni Del Rosal, Sanjeev Kumar

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

In cryptography, the Triple DES (3DES, TDES or officially TDEA) is a symmetric-key block cipher which applies the Data Encryption Standard (DES) cipher algorithm three times to each data block. Electronic payment systems are known to use the TDES scheme for the encryption/decryption of data, and hence faster implementations are of great significance. Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) offer a new solution for optimizing the performance of applications meanwhile the Triple Data Encryption Standard (TDES) offers a mean to secure information. In this paper we present a pipelined implementation in VHDL, in Electronic Code Book (EBC) mode, of this commonly …


Past, Present And Future Of Surgical Meshes: A Review, Karen Baylón, Perla Rodríguez-Camarillo, Alex Elías-Zúñiga, Jose Antonio Díaz-Elizondo, Robert Gilkerson, Karen Lozano Aug 2017

Past, Present And Future Of Surgical Meshes: A Review, Karen Baylón, Perla Rodríguez-Camarillo, Alex Elías-Zúñiga, Jose Antonio Díaz-Elizondo, Robert Gilkerson, Karen Lozano

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Surgical meshes, in particular those used to repair hernias, have been in use since 1891. Since then, research in the area has expanded, given the vast number of post-surgery complications such as infection, fibrosis, adhesions, mesh rejection, and hernia recurrence. Researchers have focused on the analysis and implementation of a wide range of materials: meshes with different fiber size and porosity, a variety of manufacturing methods, and certainly a variety of surgical and implantation procedures. Currently, surface modification methods and development of nanofiber based systems are actively being explored as areas of opportunity to retain material strength and increase biocompatibility …


Radiative Heat Transfer Analysis Of Railroad Bearings For Wayside Hot-Box Detector Optimization, Arthur Mealer, Constantine Tarawneh, Stephen Crown Jul 2017

Radiative Heat Transfer Analysis Of Railroad Bearings For Wayside Hot-Box Detector Optimization, Arthur Mealer, Constantine Tarawneh, Stephen Crown

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The railroad industry utilizes wayside detection systems to monitor the temperature of freight railcar bearings in service. The wayside hot-box detector (HBD) is a device that sits on the side of the tracks and uses a non-contact infrared sensor to determine the temperature of the train bearings as they roll over the detector. Various factors can affect the temperature measurements of these wayside detection systems. The class of the railroad bearing and its position on the axle relative to the position of the wayside detector can affect the temperature measurement. That is, the location on the bearing cup where the …


Hysteresis Heating Of Railroad Bearing Thermoplastic Elastomer Suspension Element, Oscar O. Rodriguez, Arturo A. Fuentes, Constantine Tarawneh, Robert E. Jones Jun 2017

Hysteresis Heating Of Railroad Bearing Thermoplastic Elastomer Suspension Element, Oscar O. Rodriguez, Arturo A. Fuentes, Constantine Tarawneh, Robert E. Jones

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Thermoplastic elastomers (TPE’s) are increasingly being used in rail service in load damping applications. They are superior to traditional elastomers primarily in their ease of fabrication. Like traditional elastomers they offer benefits including reduction in noise emissions and improved wear resistance in metal components that are in contact with such parts in the railcar suspension system. However, viscoelastic materials, such as the railroad bearing thermoplastic elastomer suspension element (or elastomeric pad), are known to develop self-heating (hysteresis) under cyclic loading, which can lead to undesirable consequences. Quantifying the hysteresis heating of the pad during operation is therefore essential to predict …


Front Dynamics Of Elliptical Gravity Currents On A Uniform Slope, S. J. Zhu, ‪Nadim Zgheib, S. Balachandar, A. Ooi Jun 2017

Front Dynamics Of Elliptical Gravity Currents On A Uniform Slope, S. J. Zhu, ‪Nadim Zgheib, S. Balachandar, A. Ooi

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

In the present investigation, we report data from direct numerical simulations of elliptical, finite release, Boussinesq gravity currents propagating down a uniform slope. The study comprises a series of simulations of elliptical gravity currents on a range of slope angles. The shape parameters are varied to study the effects of the initial cross-sectional aspect ratio (Λ0) and mean height to lock radius ratio (Γ) on the dynamics of the gravity current. It is found that the long-time development of the current spatial mass distribution is influenced by its initial shape at smaller slope angles (θ=5∘ and 10∘) whereas the long-time …


An Expert System For Local Flood Response Coordination And Training, Xiaoyin Zhang, Gary Moynihan, Andrew Ernest, Joseph Gutenson Jun 2017

An Expert System For Local Flood Response Coordination And Training, Xiaoyin Zhang, Gary Moynihan, Andrew Ernest, Joseph Gutenson

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Flood response is an essential component of flood management to rescue people, reduce property loss, and limit the impact to the environment. Effective flood response depends on a sound coordination structure with unified responsibilities, smooth communications, and scalable response plans. An efficient coordination system, including command and management structures, is built on a thorough understanding of the responsibilities and actions of each role for delivering the response core capabilities. Collecting, sharing, using, and handling the knowledge require great efforts in knowledge management. To further enhance such efforts, an expert system for local flood response coordination and training (LFRS) was developed …


Development Of Prognostic Techniques For Surface Defect Growth In Railroad Bearing Rolling Elements, Nancy De Los Santos, Robert Jones, Constantine Tarawneh, Arturo A. Fuentes, Anthony Villarreal Apr 2017

Development Of Prognostic Techniques For Surface Defect Growth In Railroad Bearing Rolling Elements, Nancy De Los Santos, Robert Jones, Constantine Tarawneh, Arturo A. Fuentes, Anthony Villarreal

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Prevention of bearing failures which may lead to catastrophic derailment is a major safety concern for the railroad industry. Advances in bearing condition monitoring hold the promise of early detection of bearing defects, which will improve system reliability by permitting early replacement of failing components. However, to minimize disruption to operations while providing the maximum level of accident prevention that early detection affords, it will be necessary to understand the defect growth process and try to quantify the growth speed to permit economical, non-disruptive replacement of failing components rather than relying on immediate removal upon detection. The study presented here …


A Vertical Axis Wave Turbine With Hydrofoil Blades, Yingchen Yang, Isaiah Diaz, Sergio Soto Quintero Feb 2017

A Vertical Axis Wave Turbine With Hydrofoil Blades, Yingchen Yang, Isaiah Diaz, Sergio Soto Quintero

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This work discusses a new wave energy converter (WEC) design that, when deployed in waves, performs unidirectional rotation about a vertical shaft. The uniqueness of this new WEC design is on utilizing omnidirectional water flow generated by waves to drive a rotor to perform unidirectional rotation about a vertical axis. This unique feature circumvents the frequency-dependent issue of common WECs, and eliminate realignment needs to cope with dynamically changing wave propagation directions. The key component of the WEC is a rotor, which has a vertical shaft with a number of blades mounted to it. Each blade has a hydrofoil-shaped cross …


Frequency Response Reduced Order Model Of Primary Resonance Of Electrostatically Actuated Mems Circular Plate Resonators, Dumitru I. Caruntu, Reynaldo Oyervides Feb 2017

Frequency Response Reduced Order Model Of Primary Resonance Of Electrostatically Actuated Mems Circular Plate Resonators, Dumitru I. Caruntu, Reynaldo Oyervides

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper deals with the amplitude-frequency response of soft AC electrostatically actuated MEMS clamped circular plates. Alternating Current (AC) frequency is near half natural frequency of the plate. This results in primary resonance of the system. Two methods are used and compared, namely the Method of Multiple Scales (MMS), and Reduced Order Model (ROM). Both methods are in excellent agreement for amplitudes less than 0.4 of the gap. For amplitudes between 0.4 and 1 of the gap only seven terms ROM accurately predicts the behavior of the system. The effects of the voltage and damping parameters on the frequency response …


Development Of Disaster Management In Turkey: From 1999 Kocaeli Earthquake To 2011 Van Earthquake, Mert Tolon, Kağan Cenk Mızrak Jan 2017

Development Of Disaster Management In Turkey: From 1999 Kocaeli Earthquake To 2011 Van Earthquake, Mert Tolon, Kağan Cenk Mızrak

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The natural disasters that have occurred in Turkey are categorized as % 61 earthquakes, followed by landslides, floods, rock falls, fires and storms. Between the years of 1903 and 2000, there have been nearly 150 earthquakes in Turkey which led to damage and this is a challenge for Turkey. The management and plans of these natural disasters in Turkey were first developed in 1959. In 1999, with the magnitude of 7.4, The Kocaeli and Duzce earthquakes affected a region of Turkey that constitutes % 23 of the country’s population. After that, in 2000 necessary laws have been prepared and enacted. …