Engineering Commons^™

A Review Of Electrically Conductive Cement Concrete Pavement For Sustainable Snow-Removal And Deicing: Road Safety In Cold Regions, Mohammad Anis, Mohamed Abdel-Raheem

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Within cold U.S. regions, winter storms can cause interruptions in transportation networks, affecting transportation entities’ revenue streams. Conventional snow-removal methods on roadways efficiently remove snow and ice, yet their adverse environmental impacts further make winter maintenance more challenging. In response to these concerns, electrically conductive cement concrete (ECCC) pavement has become an effective alternative for deicing and snow melting on road surfaces. ECCC utilizes the Joule heating principles to effectively melt snow and ice by incorporating conductive elements into conventional concrete. This paper comprehensively reviews the current literature on ECCC pavement. Previous studies have diligently explored various aspects of ECCC …

Real-Time Vehicle And Lane Detection Using Modified Overfeat Cnn: A Comprehensive Study On Robustness And Performance In Autonomous Driving, Monowar Hossain Saika, Sonjoy Paul Avi, Kazi Toriqul Islam, Tanjida Tahmina, Md Shahriar Abdullah, Touhid Imam

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This examination researches the use of profound learning methods, explicitly utilizing Convolutional Brain Organizations (CNNs), for ongoing recognition of vehicles and path limits in roadway driving situations. The study investigates the performance of a modified Over Feat CNN architecture by making use of a comprehensive dataset that includes annotated frames captured by a variety of sensors, including cameras, LIDAR, radar, and GPS. The framework shows heartiness in identifying vehicles and anticipating path shapes in 3D while accomplishing functional rates of north of 10 Hz on different GPU setups. Vehicle bounding box predictions with high accuracy, resistance to occlusions, and efficient …

Forecasting Future Research Trends In The Construction Engineering And Management Domain Using Machine Learning And Social Network Analysis, Gasser G. Ali, Islam H. El-Adaway, Muaz O. Ahmed, Radwa Eissa, Mohamad Abdul Nabi, Tamima Elbashbishy, Ramy Khalef

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Construction Engineering and Management (CEM) is a broad domain with publications covering interrelated subdisciplines and considered a key source of knowledge sharing. Previous studies used scientometric methods to assess the current impact of CEM publications; however, there is a need to predict future citations of CEM publications to identify the expected high-impact trends in the future and guide new research efforts. To tackle this gap in the literature, the authors conducted a study using Machine Learning (ML) algorithms and Social Network Analysis (SNA) to predict CEM-related citation metrics. Using a dataset of 93,868 publications, the authors trained and tested two …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Titanium Nitride–Carbon Composites And Their Use In Lithium-Ion Batteries, Helia Magali Morales, Horacio Vieyra, David A. Sanchez, Elizabeth M. Fletes, Michael Odlyzko, Timothy P. Lodge, Victoria Padilla-Gainza, Mataz Alcoutlabi, Jason Parsons

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This work focuses on the synthesis of titanium nitride–carbon (TiN–carbon) composites by the thermal decomposition of a titanyl phthalocyanine (TiN(TD)) precursor into TiN. The synthesis of TiN was also performed using the sol-gel method (TiN(SG)) of an alkoxide/urea. The structure and morphology of the TiN–carbon and its precursors were characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM, TEM, EDS, and XPS. The FTIR results confirmed the presence of the titanium phthalocyanine (TiOPC) complex, while the XRD data corroborated the decomposition of TiOPC into TiN. The resultant TiN exhibited a cubic structure with the FM3-M lattice, aligning with the crystal system of the synthesized …

Lamina Cribrosa Insertions Into The Sclera Are Sparser, Narrower, And More Slanted In The Anterior Lamina, Fengting Ji, Mohammad R. Islam, Bingrui Wang, Yi Hua, Ian A. Sigal

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose: The lamina cribrosa (LC) depends on the sclera for support. The support must be provided through the LC insertions. Although a continuous insertion over the whole LC periphery is often assumed, LC insertions are actually discrete locations where LC collagenous beams meet the sclera. We hypothesized that LC insertions vary in number, size, and shape by quadrant and depth.

Methods: Coronal cryosections through the full LCs from six healthy monkey eyes were imaged using instant polarized light microscopy. The images were registered into a stack, on which we manually marked LC insertion outlines, nothing their position in-depth and quadrant …

Improvement Of Subgrade California Bearing Ratio (Cbr) Using Recycled Concrete Aggregate And Fly Ash, Safkat Tajwar Ahmed, Mozaher Ul Kabir, Chowdhury Zubayer Bin Zahid, Tahsin Tareque, Seyedali Mirmotalebi

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The study aims to understand the effect of different admixtures on improving the quality of flexible pavement subgrades. In this paper, recycled concrete aggregates (RCA) and Fly Ash were used as the admixtures in improving the maximum dry density (MDD), swelling potential, and California bearing ratio (CBR) of subgrade soil. The percentages of RCA and fly Ash used were 5%, 10%, and 15%. With the upscaling in fly ash dosage, the optimum moisture content and the California bearing ratio increased. However, the MDD of soil decreased for higher fly ash contents. On the contrary, the optimum moisture content (OMC) of …

Recent Progress And Challenges Of Implantable Biodegradable Biosensors, Fahmida Alam, Md Ashfaq Ahmed, Ahmed Hasnain Jalal, Ishrak Siddiquee, Rabeya Zinnat Adury, G M Mehedi Hossain, Nezih Pala

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Implantable biosensors have evolved to the cutting-edge technology of personalized health care and provide promise for future directions in precision medicine. This is the reason why these devices stand to revolutionize our approach to health and disease management and offer insights into our bodily functions in ways that have never been possible before. This review article tries to delve into the important developments, new materials, and multifarious applications of these biosensors, along with a frank discussion on the challenges that the devices will face in their clinical deployment. In addition, techniques that have been employed for the improvement of the …

Existence Of A Nonzero Worst-Case Ach For Short-Term Exposure In Ventilated Indoor Spaces, K. A. Krishnaprasad, ‪Nadim Zgheib, K. Choudhary, M. Y. Ha, C. Y. Choi, K. S. Bang, S. Jang, S. Balachandar

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

A well-ventilated room is essential to reduce the risk of airborne transmission. As such, the scientific community sets minimum limits on ventilation with the idea that increased ventilation reduces pathogen concentration and thus reduces the risk of transmission. In contrast, the upper limit on ventilation is usually determined by human comfort and the need to reduce energy consumption. While average pathogen concentration decreases with increased ventilation, local concentration depends on multiple factors and may not follow the same trend, especially within short exposure times over large separation distances. Here, we show through experiments and high-fidelity simulations the existence of a …

Impact Of Welding Parameters In The Porosity Of A Dissimilar Welded Lap Joint Of Cp800-Xpf1000 Steel Weldment By Gmaw-P, Julio Cesar Garcia-Guerrero, Francisco Fernando Curiel-López, Víctor Hugo López-Morelos, Jaime Taha-Tijerina, Teresita Jesus Sánchez-Cruz, Maria Del Carmen Ramirez-Lopez, Eduardo Cortes-Carillo, Miguel Angel Quinones-Salinas

Informatics and Engineering Systems Faculty Publications and Presentations

The use of the orthogonal array L4 allows a determination of the effect between the welding parameters peak current (Ip), background current (Ib) and frequency (f) on the porosities in a dissimilar welded lap joint of CP800 and XPF1000 steel weldment by the gas metal arc welding process with the transfer pulsed mode. According to the results, modifications in the welding parameters affect the heat input during welding. A heat input higher than 0.30 KJ/mm generates up to 0.32% porosity in the weld metal, while a heat input lower than 0.25 KJ/mm generates up to 28% porosity in the weld …

Adsorption Of Crystal Violet Dye From Synthetic Wastewater By Ball-Milled Royal Palm Leaf Sheath, Neloy Sen, Nawrin Rahman Shefa, Kismot Reza, Sk Md Ali Zaker Shawon, Md. Wasikur Rahman

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

The current study shows that using a batch approach to remove crystal violet dye from synthetic wastewater is feasible when using royal palm leaf sheath powder as an adsorbent. In order to investigate the effects of many parameters, including starting concentration, pH effect, dye concentration, adsorbent dose, contact time, and temperature, experiments were carried out under various operating conditions. Maximum removal was obtained at pH 6 and at a concentration of 100 ppm, which are considered as ideal values. The influence of pH and dye concentration was shown to be substantial. Langmuir, Freundlich, and Temkin isotherm models were fitted to …

Characterization Of Microstructural And Mechanical Properties Of 17-4 Ph Stainless Steel By Cold Rolled And Machining Vs. Dmls Additive Manufacturing, Pablo Moreno-Garibaldi, Melvyn Alvarez-Vera, Juan Alfonso Beltrán-Fernández, Rafael Carrera-Espinoza, Héctor Manuel Hdz-García, J. C. Díaz-Guillen, Rita Muñoz-Arroyo, Javier A. Ortega, Paul Molenda

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The 17-4 PH stainless steel is widely used in the aerospace, petrochemical, chemical, food, and general metallurgical industries. The present study was conducted to analyze the mechanical properties of two types of 17-4 PH stainless steel—commercial cold-rolled and direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) manufactured. This study employed linear and nonlinear tensile FEM simulations, combined with various materials characterization techniques such as tensile testing and nanoindentation. Moreover, microstructural analysis was performed using metallographic techniques, optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results on the microstructure for 17-4 PH DMLS stainless steel reveal …

Wire Texture C-Axis Distribution Of Strontium Ferrite/Pa-12 Extruded Filament, Gabriela Espinosa-Rodriguez, Oluwasola Arigbabowo, Jonathan Alvarado, Jitendra Tate, Wilhelmus J. Geerts

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The magnetic anisotropy of strontium ferrite (SF)/PA12 filament, a popular hard magnetic ferrimagnetic composites that is used for 3D-printing of permanent magnets, is studied by vibrating sample magnetometry. The studied filaments have a composition of SF/PA-12 thermoplastic composite with a 40% wt.  ratio of SF. SF particles are non-spherical platelets with an average diameter of 1.3 um and a diameter to thickness ratio of 3. Filaments are produced by a twin-screw extruder and have a diameter of 1.5 mm. SEM images show that the SF particles are homogeneously distributed through the filament. VSM measurements on different parts of the filaments …

Tribological Properties Of H-Bn, Ag And Mgo Nanostructures As Lubricant Additives In Vegetable Oils, Victoria Granja, Kollol Sarker Jogesh, Jaime Taha-Tijerina, C. Fred Higgs Iii

Informatics and Engineering Systems Faculty Publications and Presentations

There exists an ever-growing need for sustainable engineering solutions to improve emission control and the energy efficiency of tribosystems. This study examines the tribological properties of two environmentally friendly vegetable fluids, soybean and sunflower oil, with the addition of three non-toxic nanostructures (h-BN, silver and MgO) at different concentrations. It was found that nanostructures added to vegetable oils at specific concentrations can exhibit good friction reduction and wear preventive properties. The addition of h-BN nanosheets in sunflower oil decreased the coefficient of friction and the wear damage, as measured by the wear scar diameter. Silver and magnesium oxide nanoparticles further …

Modelling Of A Drone To Analyze Dynamic Instabilities With Its Delivery System, Eleazar Marquez, Ivan Luna

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

In the study herein, an alternative mathematical model was developed with the intention of understanding the dynamics associated with the instabilities generated by an UAV and its delivery system, particularly the coupled nonlinearities of the system, and thus provide feedback to optimize drone design. In this regard, a Newton-Euler methodology was adopted to establish the parameters of the equations of motion of the target UAV system, which consisted of a combination of a platform and delivery system operating simultaneously. Specifically, the UAV platform was modelled as a rigid body which accounted for a total of six-degrees-of-freedom, three corresponding to the …

Assessing The Lubrication Performance Of Sunflower Oil Modified With Montmorillonite Clay (Mmt) Nanoparticles For Industrial Applications, Md Mashfiqur Rahman, Md Abu Sayeed Biswas, Laura Peña-Pará, Demófilo Maldonado- Cortés, Javier A. Ortega

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Because of the environmental impact and price volatility, there has been a growing concern about using petroleum-based lubricants. This issue has encouraged research into the development of biodegradable lubricants like vegetable oils. This study assessed the tribological behavior of sunflower oil modified with Montmorillonite nanoclay (MMT) as lubricant additives. A block-on-ring tribometer was used to assess the wear and friction characteristics of the nano-lubricants. A custom-made tapping torque tester was used to evaluate the nano-lubricants in a real-world application. It was found that the volumetric wear, Coefficient of Friction, and torque of the system decreased when MMT nanoparticles were added. …

In-Situ Shear Exfoliation Of Graphene From Graphite Polymer Nanocomposites For Lung And Heart Motion, Md Ashiqur Rahman, Md Abdur Rahman Bin Abdus Salam, Ali Ashraf

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Graphene-based nanocomposites have become attractive for different applications such as energy storage, sensors, biomolecule detection, biomedical, healthcare, and wearable devices due to their unique mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties. However, using commercial graphene for making nanocomposite devices can be expensive, and fabricating nanocomposites can be challenging due to impurities while transferring graphene to elastomer composites. In this study, we used a simple, inexpensive in-situ shear exfoliation method to produce graphene from graphite directly within the elastomer. As the graphene in the elastomer reached beyond its percolation or threshold, electrons hop or tunnel around from one graphene flake to another. So, …

Graphene Reinforced Pvdf Nanofibers Fabricated With The Forcespinning® Method For Water Desalination Applications, Elmmer A. Vera Alvarado, Md. Abdur Rahman Bin Abdus Salam, Ali Ashraf, Karen Lozano

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) is a thermally driven energy and cost-efficient desalination technique where low-grade energy from solar or waste heat from plants can be used to recover fresh water from high saline water. The DCMD technique allows both the feed and permeate solutions to be in contact with the membrane, where vapor from the feed gets condensed in the permeate side once it collides with low- temperature water. Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanofiber membranes were prepared by the ForceSpinning® method, these were later dip coated in graphene solutions prepared with different solvents. The ForceSpinning® method, unlike electrospinning, operates in …

Effect Of Foot Additional Mass On The Clinical Angles Of Knee Extension Exercise, Dumitru I. Caruntu, Alfirio Trejo, Eric Rodriguez, Camila T. Alvarez B

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study investigates the effect of foot additional mass on the abduction and internal rotation knee angles during knee extension exercise. Three subjects (two male and one female) performed four sets of ten repetitions of the knee extension exercise for the right leg. For the first set, the subject performed the exercise with no additional weight. For each set after, weight was added around the subject’s right foot and the subject was allowed a rest period before beginning the next set. The weights for sets 1, 2, 3, and 4 were 0.00kg (no additional weight) ,0.82kg, 1.64kg, and 2.27kg respectively. …

Identifying Sick Cells From High-Resolution Solid-State Micropore Data, Abdul Hafeez, Azhar Ilyas, Ali R. Butt, Samir M. Iqbal

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Early detection of diseases such as cancer can drastically improve prognosis and treatment. To this end, solid-state micropores can measure distinct mechanical properties of diseased cells from their translocation behavior — detected as pulses in the temporal data stream of ionic current — and help diagnose diseases at early stages. However, the obstacle in such approaches is that the accuracy of the sensor is affected by noise, making the pulse detection task too subjective. This is inefficient especially when the disease-relevant data is only a fraction of the total acquired data. Thus, it is important to intelligently automate the detection …

Computational Modelling Of A Triaxial Vibrating Sample Magnetometer, Leo Rodriguez, Arjun Sapkota, Jonathan Alvarado, Jitendra S. Tate, Wilhelmus J. Geerts

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Magnetic Field Assisted Additive Manufacturing (MFAAM) enables 3D printing of magnetic materials of various shapes which exhibit a complex anisotropy energy surface containing contributions generated from different origins such as sample, particle, and agglomerate shape anisotropy, flow and field induced anisotropy, and particle crystal anisotropy. These novel magnet shapes require the need to measure the x, y, and z components of the magnetic dipole moment simultaneously to fully understand the magnetic reversal mechanism and unravel the complex magnetic anisotropy energy surface of 3D printed magnetic composites. This work aims to develop a triaxial vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) by adding a …

Towards Sustainability: A New Construction Method For Electrically Heated Rigid Pavement System, Mohamed Abdel-Raheem, Mohammad Anis

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Snow and ice damage to U.S. airport pavements, particularly in colder regions, poses an ongoing challenge, resulting in significant annual economic losses. Traditional snow removal methods are often perceived as cost-prohibitive, driving the quest for cost-effective alternatives to mitigate the adverse impacts on pavement sustainability. In response, this research investigates an innovative construction approach utilizing an electrically conductive composite (ECC) comprised of waterborne polyurethane (WPU) and graphite (Gp). The ECC is applied to a portland cement concrete (PCC) substrate using the parallel stripe technique, safeguarded by an additional layer of conventional concrete to withstand the friction caused by tires. This …