Engineering Commons^™

An Exploration Of Neural Networks In Enhanced Resolution Remote Sensing Products, Jordan Paul Brown

Theses and Dissertations

Scatterometry and radiometry are used to obtain measurements of Earth properties with extensive spatial coverage at daily or near-daily temporal resolution. Their measurements are used in many climate studies and weather applications, such as iceberg tracking, ocean wind estimation, and volumetric soil moisture measurements. The spatial resolution of these data products ranges from a few kilometers to tens of kilometers. Techniques to enhance the spatial resolution of these products help reveal finer scale features, but come at the cost of increased noise. This thesis explores the application of neural networks as a possible method to handle the noise and uncertainty …

The Travel And Tourism Competitiveness Index: Examining The Reciprocal Relationship Among The Ttci Factors Relative To Porter’S (1998) Diamond Model And Airline Passenger Seat Capacity For The Countries Of The World, Hani Abdullah

Theses and Dissertations

The current study tested the application of Porter's (1998) diamond model of international competitiveness to the travel and tourism (T&T) industry by examining the relationship among the 14 factors of the travel and tourism competitiveness index (TTCI) to the model's four dimensions. The assignment of TTCI factors to these dimensions was guided by Dwyer and Kim (2003) and Ritchie and Crouch (2010). The study also examined the relationship between TTCI factors and airline passenger seat capacity, which was measured as the per capita annual average of weekly available seat kilometers. The sample comprised 136 countries, which represented 70% of the …

Groundwater Level Mapping Tool: Development Of A Web Application To Effectively Characterize Groundwater Resources, Steven William Evans

Theses and Dissertations

Groundwater is used worldwide as a major source for agricultural irrigation, industrial processes, mining, and drinking water. An accurate understanding of groundwater levels and trends is essential for decision makers to effectively manage groundwater resources throughout an aquifer, ensuring its sustainable development and usage. Unfortunately, groundwater is one of the most challenging and expensive water resources to characterize, quantify, and monitor on a regional basis. Data, though present, are often limited or sporadic, and are generally not used to their full potential to aid decision makers in their groundwater management.This thesis presents a solution to this under-utilization of available data …

Management Of Global Reservoir Sedimentation: Evaluating Rescon 2 For Sediment Management Alternatives, Christopher Jacob Garcia

Theses and Dissertations

Reservoir sedimentation occurs as dams impound streams and rivers, preventing the delivery of sediments downstream. Globally, reservoirs lose approximately 40 million acre-ft of storage to sediments each year. Several methods for managing reservoir sedimentation have been developed to help extend project life. In 2017, the World Bank sponsored REServoir CONservation (RESCON) 2, a pre-feasibility program aimed to help users select sediment management practices to consider for more detailed studies.There are two main objectives to this research: 1) perform a sensitivity analysis to understand which parameters require greater precision and which can be roughly approximated, and 2) evaluate RESCON 2 suggested …

A Discovery Of Social Impact Categories For The Sustainable Design Of Engineered Products And Their Consideration By Industry Professionals, Andrew Taylor Pack

Theses and Dissertations

Sustainable design is often practiced and assessed through the consideration of three essential areas: economic sustainability, environmental sustainability, and social sustainability. For even the simplest of products, the complexities of these three areas and their trade-offs cause decision making transparency to be lost in most practical situations. Additionally, the models and tools available to consider social sustainability are severely underdeveloped. This thesis is separated into three parts: 1) a design tool to consider all three aspects of sustainability simultaneously, 2) a literature survey to characterize social impact as it relates to products, and 3) interviews with engineering professionals regarding how …

Effect Of Support, Preparations Methods, Ag Promotion And Nc Size On The Activity, Selectivity And Sintering Deactivation Of Supported Co Fischer-Tropsch Catalyst, Mahmood Rahmati

Theses and Dissertations

A series of silver-promoted, 20 wt% cobalt Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) catalysts supported on an alumina modified with 5 wt% silica were prepared using two methods: traditional incipient wetness impregnation (IWI) and a new solvent-deficient precipitation (SDP) technique. Catalysts containing silver promoter concentrations of 0.3, 0.6, 1.2, and 2.5 wt% were prepared using each of the two methods. Silver improved the reducibility of the cobalt significantly, lowering reduction temperatures by up to 100°C, and increasing the extent of reduction by up to 35%. Further, in both preparation methods, changing the silver loading altered the cobalt dispersion. The smallest Co crystallite size …

Magnetic Field Aided Indoor Navigation, William F. Storms

Theses and Dissertations

This research effort examines inertial navigation system aiding using magnetic field intensity data and a Kalman filter in an indoor environment. Many current aiding methods do not work well in an indoor environment, like aiding using the Global Positioning System. The method presented in this research uses magnetic field intensity data from a three-axis magnetometer in order to estimate position using a maximum – likelihood approach. The position measurements are then combined with a motion model using a Kalman filter. The magnetic field navigation algorithm is tested using a combination of simulated and real measurements. These tests are conducted using …

Integrating Global And Local Forecasting Resources And Methods For Flood Warning Systems In Central America And Caribbean Region, José Fidel Pérez

Theses and Dissertations

Hurricanes and tropical storms occur very frequently in the Central American and Caribbean Region (CA&CR). These extreme weather events produce a lot of rain and consequently a lot of flooding. Damages and loses have been estimated to amount to 13.4 billion dollars in the last ten years. Flood Warning Systems (FEWS) are a key preventive strategy to reduce risk. Technological progress is improving the resources made available for FEWS to be more viable. In spite of the international support for FEWS and the fast development of ICT, there are very few countries in the CA&CR that have succeeded in developing …

A Flexible Service-Oriented Approach To Address Hydroinformatic Challenges In Large-Scale Hydrologic Predictions, Michael Antonio Souffront Alcantara

Theses and Dissertations

Water security is defined as a combination of water for achieving our goals as a society, and an acceptable level of water-related risks. Hydrologic modeling can be used to predict streamflow and aid in the decision-making process with the goal of attaining water security. Developed countries usually have their own hydrologic models; however, developing countries often lack hydrologic models due to factors such as the maintenance, computational costs, and technical capacity needed to run models. A global streamflow prediction system (GSPS) would help decrease vulnerabilities in developing countries and fill gaps in areas where no local models exist by providing …

Swat Online: Development Of A Web-Based Decision Support System For The Soil And Water Assessment Tool, Spencer Dean Mcdonald

Theses and Dissertations

As satellite and climate modelling technology continues to improve and as climatological disasters and issues continue to impact the global community, climate data will increase in size and relevance. With this new influx of information, it is becoming more and more important for scientists to simply and concisely communicate their findings to both decision makers in governments and disaster preparedness organizations and also to the general public. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is a powerful modelling tool that allows scientists to simulate essentially all of the physical processes involved in the water cycle. The data that SWAT produces …

Process Intervention For Water Recovery In Food Manufacture, Christian Michael Wisniewski

Theses and Dissertations

A case study has been conducted for the recovery of water from complex wastewater at a soluble coffee manufacturing factory. The study has evaluated separation methods for process intervention based on environmental and economic assessments. Water recovery was identified in two possible wastewater streams at the factory: the overall plant effluent and an intermediate stream before it enters on-site pre-treatment. A novel vibratory field membrane separation was tested at the laboratory scale using real factory wastewater and scaled-up using appropriate design protocols. Recovery of water from the intermediate stream proved the most effective, both environmentally and economically. The full-scale vibratory …

Adjustment Of Rapidscat Backscatter Measurements For Improved Radar Images, Garrett Scott Mcdonald

Theses and Dissertations

RapidScat is a spaceborne wind scatterometer mounted on the International Space Station (ISS). The RapidScat mission lasted from September 2014 to November 2016. RapidScat enables the measurement of diurnal patterns of sigma-0 measurements. This capability is possible because of the non-sun-synchronous orbit of the ISS, in which the local time of day (LTOD) of sigma-0 measurements gradually shifts over time in any given location. The ISS platform is a relatively unstable platform for wind scatterometers. Because of the varying attitude of the ISS, RapidScat experiences a constant variation of its pointing vector. Variations of the pointing vector cause variations in …

An Analysis Of Using Error Metrics To Determine The Accuracy Of Modeled Historical Streamflow On A Global Scale, Elise Katherine Jackson

Theses and Dissertations

Streamflow data is used throughout the world in applications such as flooding, agriculture, and urban planning. Understanding daily and seasonal patterns in streamflow is important for decision makers, so that they can accurately predict and react to seasonal changes in streamflow for the region. This understanding of daily and seasonal patterns has historically been achieved through interpretation of observed historical data at stream reaches throughout the individual regions. Developing countries have limited and sporadic observed stream and rain gage data, making it difficult for stakeholders to manage their water resources to their fullest potential. In areas where observed historical data …

Sentiment Analysis Of Twitter Data, Evan L. Munson

Theses and Dissertations

The rapid expansion and acceptance of social media has opened doors into users’ opinions and perceptions that were never as accessible as they are with today's prevalence of mobile technology. Harvested data, analyzed for opinions and sentiment can provide powerful insight into a population. This research utilizes Twitter data due to its widespread global use, in order to examine the sentiment associated with tweets. An approach utilizing Twitter #hashtags and Latent Dirichlet Allocation topic modeling were utilized to differentiate between tweet topics. A lexicographical dictionary was then utilized to classify sentiment. This method provides a framework for an analyst to …

Selective Deposition Of Platinum By Strong Electrostatic Adsorption Onto Cobalt- And Iron-Based Catalysts For Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis, Fahad A. Almalki

Theses and Dissertations

Cobalt and iron based catalysts are commercially predominant for Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, Co-based catalysts for their stability, activity, and inactivity for the water gas shift reaction and Fe-based catalysts for their cheap cost, high light-olefins and alcohols selectivity, and tolerance to H2/CO ratio. These catalysts are structure sensitive with lower activity at nanoparticle sizes smaller than 6-8 nm. Co-based catalysts exhibit high activity, low CH4 selectivity, and high C5+ selectivity, while Fe-based catalysts are more selective to low-molecular-weight hydrocarbons such as olefins and alcohols. The reducibility of cobalt and iron is another important factor which may be key for improving their …

A Location-Aware Middleware Framework For Collaborative Visual Information Discovery And Retrieval, Andrew J.M. Compton

Theses and Dissertations

This work addresses the problem of scalable location-aware distributed indexing to enable the leveraging of collaborative effort for the construction and maintenance of world-scale visual maps and models which could support numerous activities including navigation, visual localization, persistent surveillance, structure from motion, and hazard or disaster detection. Current distributed approaches to mapping and modeling fail to incorporate global geospatial addressing and are limited in their functionality to customize search. Our solution is a peer-to-peer middleware framework based on XOR distance routing which employs a Hilbert Space curve addressing scheme in a novel distributed geographic index. This allows for a universal …

Characterization Of Jet Fuel Combustion Emissions During A C-130 Aeromedical Evacuation Engines Running Onload, Michelle L. Page

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to characterize jet fuel combustion emissions (JFCE) in an occupational setting. Prior research demonstrated that aircraft emit hazardous species, especially at engine start-up and ground idle. Complaints of eye, nose, and throat irritation from occupational exposures near aircraft exist. In this study JFCE were tested during an aeromedical evacuation engines running patient onload (ERO) on a C-130 Hercules at the 179^th Airlift Wing, Mansfield-Lahm Air National Guard. Ultrafine particles, VOC, formaldehyde, carbon monoxide (CO), sulfuric acid, and metals were sampled simultaneously in approximate crew and patient breathing zones. Testing methods were portable condensation …

Development And Investigation Of An Air Transportation Operations Safety Climate Scale, Matthew D. Roberts

Theses and Dissertations

Safety is of critical importance in many industries, and the US Air Force is no exception. Since 2005, the US Air Force has experienced more than 119 on-duty air and ground fatalities as well as 520 off-duty ground fatalities. One of the more dangerous environments in the U.S. Air Force and the civilian industry is air transportation operations where the fatal injury rate is higher than the national average. However, peer-reviewed safety research focusing on air transportation operations is practically non-existent, both in the military and civilian context. Therefore, safety research that helps us better understand how to shape safety …

Measuring The Robustness Of Forensic Tools' Ability To Detect Data Hiding Techniques, Samuel Isaiah Moses

Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this research is to create a methodology that measures the robustness and effectiveness of forensic tools' ability to detect data hiding. First, an extensive search for any existing guidelines testing against data hiding was performed. After finding none, existing guidelines and frameworks in cybersecurity and cyber forensics were reviewed. Next, I created the methodology in this thesis. This methodology includes a set of steps that a user should take to evaluate a forensic tool. The methodology has been designed to be flexible and scalable so as new anti-forensic data hiding methods are discovered and developed, they can …

Cost And Fuel Usage Optimization Of Activating Solution Based Silica Fume Geopolymer Concrete, Lateef Najeh Assi

Theses and Dissertations

Development of sustainable construction materials has been the focus of research efforts worldwide in recent years. Concrete is a major construction material; hence, finding alternatives to ordinary Portland cement is of extreme importance due to high levels of carbon dioxide emissions associated with its manufacturing process. Geopolymer concrete is a potential solution; however, concerns about the high cost and the low real fuel energy efficiency are obstacles against its increase in the market share.

In this thesis, the current cost and fuel (thermal energy) usage are calculated. In addition, the cost and fuel usage were optimized based on previous experimental …

Balancing Technical And User Objectives In The Design Of Improved Biomass Cookstoves For Developing Regions Of The World, Kendall Steven Thacker

Theses and Dissertations

Over the past decade a large amount of research has been dedicated in academic literature to improving the technical capabilities of improved cookstoves; primarily the performance efficiency and reduction of emissions. Unfortunately, as published literature has highlighted, the trade-offs that result from placing such a concentrated emphasis on these technical objectives is that improved cookstoves lack the same level of usability as traditional cookstoves. Thus, users often return to using their traditional stoves and the potential impact of the improved cookstoves is never fully realized. In order for improved cookstoves to have greater impact, there must be better balance between …

Refugees In Urban Environments: Social, Economic, And Infrastructure Impacts, Garrett L. Jameson

Theses and Dissertations

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has estimated that in 2015 there were 21.3 million refugees worldwide; it is estimated that 1.8 million of these persons were newly displaced during 2015. As refugees leave their country to seek the protection of another nation's government, they generally flow into urban areas. The impact of this flow on cities and on the refugees, themselves, is not fully understood. This study is focused on the impact of government policy decisions on the social, legal, and economic integration of refugees within an urban environment. Investigation into this topic resulted in the development of …

A System Dynamics Model Investigating The Efficacy Of Non-Kinetic Policy Strategies On The Diffusion Of Democratic Ideologies In China, Maria S. Phillips

Theses and Dissertations

Shaping the next century of global politics and power, United States-China relations comprise one of the most significant bilateral relationships in the world. A new era of unrestricted warfare is one example of how aggression from China could be very costly for the United States. The growth of democratic ideals within China decreases the risk of detrimental impacts according to democratic peace theory. This thesis explores a multifaceted system of relationships that regulate the diffusion of democratic ideology within China, as defined by a proxy-measure characterized as human rights by Freedom House. Relative deprivation theory coupled with an adapted Bass …

Predicting Solar Performance In A Contingency Environment To Meet Net-Zero Facility Power, Anthony D. Williams

Theses and Dissertations

The U.S. government is involved in contingency operations all over the world and these operations require operational support and sustainment in these locations; this includes the reliable delivery of power to base infrastructure. The traditional means of delivering this support requirement in austere environments has been the use of diesel-power generation that has an extensive logistical and economic tail. The research sought out contingency solar applications that may be implemented and operated to offset the facility demand loads in the location to achieve net-zero power. This research explores the technical feasibility of a deployable photovoltaic microgrid to deliver power to …

Preparation And Application Of Catalysts For The Stereospecific Reduction And Photooxygenation Of Olefins In Continuous Operations: A Novel Method For The Production Of Artemisinin, Daniel C. Fisher

Theses and Dissertations

Over the last two centuries, the discovery and application of catalysts has had a substantial impact on how and what chemicals are produced.Given their broad significance, our group has focused on developing new catalyst systems that are recoverable and reusable, in an attempt to reduce concomitant costs.

Our efforts have centered on constructing a recyclable chiral heterogeneous catalyst capable of effecting asymmetric hydrogenations of olefins with high stereoselectivity. A class of phosphinoimidazoline ligands, developed by researchers at Boehringer-Ingelheim, known as BIPI ligands, have proven efficacious in the asymmetric reduction of alkenes. However, these chiral ligands are homogeneous and coordinated to …

Spacex: Breaking The Barrier To The Space Launch Vehicle Industry, Matthew M. Liskowcyz

Theses and Dissertations

The Space Launch Vehicle (SLV) industry has been around for a long time, but few companies have managed to enter this industry. SpaceX was founded only 10 years ago, but it has managed to become a leader in the U.S. industry and a dominant player worldwide. The purpose of this thesis research is to discover what it took for SpaceX to break into this tightly controlled industry. A qualitative analysis was performed to compare SpaceX to companies that overcame the barriers of entry for their respective industries. SpaceX, like FedEx, could implement a unique technique to the industry and find …

Real-Time Monitoring Of Sand And Dust Storm Winds Using Wireless Sensor Technology, Hana Mohammed Mujlid

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation proposes an empirical model for prediction of the radio path loss in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). The model applies to WSNs that are deployed in environments with dust and sand storms. It is developed as a result of statistical analysis of the measured data collected during dust and sand storms. The measured data were obtained at 2.4GHz and for different levels of the storm severity. For the purpose of data collection a custom measurement system based on Xbee air interface was developed. The proposed model shows a very good agreement with the measured data. It is also demonstrated …

Meeting The Dod’S Tactical Weather Needs Using Cubesats, Shayna K. Mckenney

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates a CubeSat design that uses Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) components to capture, store, process, and downlink collected terrestrial weather data at resolutions near stat-of-the-art. The weather phenomena to be detected and transmitted in a timely manner are cloud formations, wind profiles, ocean currents, sea state, lightning, temperature profiles, and precipitation. It is hypothesized and shown that the proposed design will provide an improvement on the current U.S. tactical weather collection satellites because of the anticipated increased reliability and lowered cost to build and maintain the proposed CubeSat constellation. The methodology employed a multi-phase approach through the collective research of …

Reservoir Sedimentation: The Economics Of Sustainability, Matthew William George

Theses and Dissertations

Despite mounting demand for a more sustainable worldwide water supply system, available reservoir capacity is relentlessly diminishing due to sedimentation. This fact, coupled with a decrease in the rate of dam construction, indicate an impending water supply dilemma. In the future, dams should be designed following a life cycle management approach rather than the typical short-sighted design life technique.Neither sustainable reservoir lifespans nor intergenerational equity is achieved through conventional cost-benefit analyses (CBA), which render all benefits and costs projected to occur more than several decades into a project as negligible. Consequently, future expenditures, including dam decommissioning or retrofitting with sediment …

Calibration Of Rapidscat Over-Land Σ0, Forrest Dayton Minor

Theses and Dissertations

RapidScat is a Ku-band radar that measures the normalized backscatter coefficient σ⁰ of the Earth's surface. Launched in 2015, it currently operates on the International Space Station. Nearly one year into its mission, RapidScat measurements began exhibiting strange behavior that is believed to be caused by a change in receiver gain. Changes in gain are compensated for during post-processing, but the measurements have a lower signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Calibration and validation of σ⁰ measurements from this low SNR state are performed using extended land targets with various signal strengths. Study areas include the Amazon rainforest, Congo rainforest, Argentina …