Engineering Commons^™

Reaction Kinetics Analysis Of Urethane Polymerization To Gelation, B Liu, Hossein Noureddini, J S. Dorsey, Delmar C. Timm

Papers in Molecular Chemistry

A chemical reaction analysis of a thermosetting, urethane resin formulated from a triol and a diisocyanate is reported. Population density distributions of oligomeric molecules, monomer concentration, the cumulative molar concentration of intramolecular bonds, the resin's average molecular weights, and extent of reaction were determined as a function of time. Rate expressions for intermolecular reactions were first order with respect to the concentration of each reactant and were proportional to the functionality of their respective chemical moieties. Rate expressions for intramolecular reactions were first order with respect to the concentration of the reactant and were proportional to the functionality of the …

Diffraction Based Latent Image Analysis For Improving Cd Control During Lithography, Lisa-Michelle Milner

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

The smallest device geometries, the critical dimensions (CDs), diminish with each generation of microelectronics. This puts more demands on the lithography process to repeatably produce these small dimensions within their 10% tolerance. I believe that individual optimization of the lithography steps will be necessary to meet the stringent demands of smaller CDs. This is possible through analysis of the latent image (the exposed, undeveloped pattern in the resist). In this work, a metrology technique is discussed for the determination of optimum lithography parameters through an interrogation of the latent image. This technique involves illuminating a latent image grating with a …

St. Joseph School Area Neighborhood Housing Project Revitalization Study, Kentucky Library Research Collections

Research Collections

No abstract provided.

Climatic Variability And Dynamics Of Great Salt Lake Hydrology, Taiye B. Sangoyomi

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The time evolution of the Great Salt Lake hydro-climatic system is studied from the perspective of nonlinear dynamics. The dynamics are reconstructed in phase space using the Great Salt Lake volume time series. Important attributes for describing the system are then obtained from the reconstructed space. These include the minimum number of state variables required to describe the system inferred from a determination of the intrinsic dimension, and characterization of the system in terms of linear/nonlinear, and deterministic/stochastic. Other attributes obtained are the dominant modes of behavior of the system, as well as the limit of predictability or information loss, …

Weigh Station Bypassing, Herbert F. Southgate, Joseph D. Crabtree, Jerry G. Pigman, Nikiforos Stamatiadis

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

A Study was initiated in May of 1990 to investigate the problem of trucks bypassing or avoiding weigh/enforcement stations in Kentucky. A literature review identified two major studies (Wisconsin and Florida) on the subject, both of which are summarized in this report. In addition, a 1989, limited-scope study of truck bypassing of weigh stations in Kentucky was reviewed and summarized.

The primary data collection effort for this study took place in the fall of 1990, centered around the Simpson County enforcement station on Interstate-55. Three potential bypass routes were identified. Automatic vehicle classification (AVC) and weight-in-motion (WIM) equipment was installed …

Stress Evaluation Of Welded Steel Bridges On Coal-Haul Routes, Theodore Hopwood Ii, Keith J. Hogan, Christopher M. Oberst

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report describes the procedure developed and being employed to determine and assess live-load stresses in structural members of welded steel bridges on extended· weight coal haul routes. Those bridges are routinely subjected to loads from coal trucks in excess of those permitted on other routes. Those elevated loads may result in high stresses in bridge members. Of principal concern are certain weld details on steel bridges that are susceptible to fatigue cracking when subject to high live-load stresses. Seventeen welded steel bridges on extended-weight coal haul routes have been identified for investigation under this study.

The study test procedure …

Protective Construction With Reinforced Earth, Christopher Y. Tuan

Civil Engineering Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

The objective of this research is to develop a simple analytical method that characterizes plane shock wave propagation through reinforced earth and the dynamic interaction with modular retaining wall panels. The shock wave was initiated as a velocity boundary condition. The exact solution was obtained by the Laplace transform method. A step-by-step design procedure based on the "limit state" concept is proposed. Because of the impulsive nature of ground shock. the maximum response of the wall panel and reinforced soil system depends mainly on the capacity and rate of energy absorption and dissipation of the system. Therefore, the connection between …

An Expert System For Design, Materials Selection And Manufacture Of Frp Liquid Containers, Khalid Mahmoud Abdel Ghany

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Comprehensive Fully Integrated Finite Element Analysis Of Metal Flow And Die Stresses In Forward Cold Extrusion, Tarek Hamdi Farid

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Machine Interference Problems In Robot Served Manufacturing Systems Under Priority Analysis Considerations, Amr Fawzi Hamed

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Laboratory Study On Properties Of Rubber-Soils, Imtiaz Ahmed

JTRP Technical Reports

The waste tire problem in the United States is of great magnitude and has far reaching environmental and economic implications. This study investigates the feasibility of using tire chips, alone and mixed with soils, as lightweight material in highway embankments . The report contains: synthesis of all available information and results from laboratory testing of tire chips, rubber-Ottawa sand, and rubber-Crosby till. It is found that rubber-sand with chip/mix ratios of 33% or less exhibits excellent engineering properties: easy to compact; low dry density; low compressibility; high strength; and excellent drainage characteristics. On the whole, the rubber-Crosby till mixes do …

Bs News

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

Tensile Comparison Of The Variables Using The Statasys 3-D Modeler, William Oscar Birt

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

The objective of this study was to investigate some of the different variables that were used in building a prototype model on the Stratasys 3-D Modeler. Variables tested were: 1) speed of the head; 2) z slice; 3) road width; 4) orientation angle of the path; 5) tip and liquefier temperatures; 6) envelope temperature. There were 34 tests and each test had 10 specimens in it for a total of 340 tensile specimens. Each test consisted of the six variables. Tests indicated that the “orientation angle” variable had the greatest effect on tensile strength.

The Application Of Neural Networks To Optimal Robot Trajectory Planning, Daniel J. Simon

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Interpolation of minimum jerk robot joint trajectories through an arbitrary number of knots is realized using a hardwired neural network. Minimum jerk joint trajectories are desirable for their similarity to human joint movements and their amenability to accurate tracking. The resultant trajectories are numerical rather than analytic functions of time. This application formulates the interpolation problem as a constrained quadratic minimization problem over a continuous joint angle domain and a discrete time domain. Time is discretized according to the robot controller rate. The neuron outputs define the joint angles (one neuron for each discrete value of time) and the Lagrange …

Suboptimal Robot Joint Interpolation Within User-Specified Knot Tolerances, Daniel J. Simon, Can Isik

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Approximation of a desired robot path can be accomplished by interpolating a curve through a sequence of joint-space knots. A smooth interpolated trajectory can be realized by using trigonometric splines. But, sometimes the joint trajectory is not required to exactly pass through the given knots. The knots may rather be centers of tolerances near which the trajectory is required to pass. In this article, we optimize trigonometric splines through a given set of knots subject to user-specified knot tolerances. The contribution of this article is the straightforward way in which intermediate constraints (i.e., knot angles) are incorporated into the parameter …

Spontaneous Coherent Pulsations In Standing-Wave Laser Oscillators: Stability Criteria For Homogeneous Broadening, Pitak Chenkosol, Lee W. Casperson

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The stability criteria for single-mode standing-wave laser oscillators in the homogeneously broadened limit are reported, and two types of criteria are distinguished. The first type (type 1) corresponds to the minimum value of the threshold parameter for which an infinitesimal perturbation away from steady state grows into an oscillatory solution. A second type (type 2) corresponds to the minimum value of threshold parameter for which large-amplitude oscillations do not decay to the steady-state solution. Undamped pulsations in single-mode homogeneously broadened standing-wave laser oscillators are found to occur at a much higher excitation level than in ring-laser oscillators with homogeneous broadening. …

Practical Optimization Modeling For Contaminant Plume Management, Richard C. Peralta, Alaa H. Aly

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Simulation/optimization (S/0) models can be used to greatly speed the process of computing desirable groundwater pumping strategies for plume management. They make the process of computing optimal strategies fairly straightforward and can help minimize the labor and cost of groundwater contaminant clean-up.

Resolution Enhancement Of Spaceborne Scatterometer Data, David G. Long, Perry J. Hardin, Peter T. Whiting

Faculty Publications

A method for generating enhanced resolution radar images of the Earth's surface using spaceborne scatterometry is presented. The technique is based on an image reconstruction technique that takes advantage of the spatial overlap in scatterometer measurements made at different times to provide enhanced imaging resolution. The reconstruction algorithm is described, and the technique is demonstrated using both simulated and actual Seasat-A Scatterometer (SASS) measurements. The technique can also be used with ERS-1 scatterometer data. The SASS-derived images, which have approximately 4-km resolution, illustrate the resolution enhancement capability of the technique, which permits utilization of both historic and contemporary scatterometer data …

Analysis Of Cutthroat Flume Discharge Ratings, Liyan Ren

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Sixteeen sets of original laboratory data collected by many investigators for various Cutthroat flume sizes are thoroughly reviewed and organized. Best-fit discharge parameters are obtained by performing the free-flow analysis and the submerged-flow analysis. Then, the transition submergence can be calculated. Afterwards, the unified free-flow and submerged-flow discharge parameters are developed for each flume size in order to generalize the calibrations for Cutthroat flumes. This is a very tedious process requiring a trial-and-error approach. Finally, comparisons are made of the measured laboratory discharges with the predicted discharges for both free flow and submerged flow using both the best-fit and the …

A Mechanistic Approach To Modeling Habitat Needs Of Drift-Feeding Salmonids, R. Craig Addley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A mechanistic model is developed to determine the habitat needs of drift-feeding stream salmonids from the direct cause-and-effect relationships of environmental and physiological variables on net energy intake (NEI). The model determines NEI by subtracting energy costs (basal metabolism, swimming cost, digestion cost) and losses (egestion and excretion) from the gross energy intake obtained as a result of simulated prey capture. The prey capture portion of the model utilizes components of the predation model of C.S. Holling and the prey capture model of N.F. Hughes and L.M. Dill to determine the rate of prey capture (gross energy intake) as a …

Probable Maximum Flood Estimation In Northern Utah, Khin Maung Win

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The probable maximum flood (PMF) is used for the xxi assessment of maximum flood potentials in spillway sizing of new dams and in evaluating the adequacy of existing hydrologic structures. Determination of the PMF begins with the estimation of the probable maximum precipitation (PMP) for a particular dam site. Selecting hydrologic methods and assumptions for converting PMP to PMF, which are most appropriate for Utah conditions, is important to meet current inflow design flood (IDF) safety standards.

The objectives of this study were (a) to demonstrate a maximization approach to PMF determination, (b) to evaluate effects of basin characteristics and …

Jet Velocity Dissipation And Modelling With Aeration, Stephen J. Schlenker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The effects of natural aeration and fall height upon velocity dissipation and modelling were studied. Underwater velocities and void ratios (proportion of air volume to total volume) were measured along the jet centerline at various depths in the receiving pool under 1- and 2-inch diameter vertical circular free-falling jets. Maximum air bubble penetration depths were also measured. In the tests, the nozzle velocities were designed so that the two differently sized models would have equivalent Froude numbers for direct comparison of respective underwater parameters. Air entrainment-the natural development of air bubbles within a pool receiving a free-falling jet-causes voids to …

One-Dimensional Computer Modeling Of Thermal And Water Quality Characteristics Of Coldwater Lake, Wa, David Kevin Whitaker

Dissertations and Theses

Coldwater Lake is a new lake formed when a massive mudflow down the Toutle River Valley, caused by the eruption of Mount St. Helens on May 18, 1980, blocked the natural outlet of Coldwater Creek. This research utilizes physical, biological and chemical data collected at Coldwater Lake during the sun1mers of 1989 and 1990 to calibrate and verify the one-dimensional computer models CE-THERMRl and CE-QUAL-Rl for Coldwater Lake. CE-THERM-R1 was used to simulate thermal characteristics in Coldwater Lake during the summer stratification periods of 1989 and 1990. The model was calibrated to 1989 data and was verified with 1990 data. …

A Robust High Precision Algorithm For Sinewave Parameter Estimation, Kendall Ann Rydell

Dissertations and Theses

The estimation of sinewave parameters has many practical applications in test and data processing systems. Measuring the effective bits of an analog-to-digital converter and linear circuit identification are some typical examples. If a sinew ave's frequency is known, there is an established linear method to estimate the other parameters. But when none of the parameters are known (which is usually the case in practical situations), the estimation problem becomes more difficult. Traditional approaches to this task applied an iterative, sinewave curve-fit algorithm. Two problems with this technique are that convergence is often slow and not always guaranteed and the results …

The Effects Of Airline Deregulation On Airline Safety: An Econometric Analysis, William Charles De Jager

Dissertations and Theses

After an unfortunate series of accidents in the mid 1930's the Air Transport Association (ATA) lobbied Congress for regulation of the industry. The ATA claimed that unfair competition was endangering the public safety. The Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938 created the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) and gave the CAB the authority to regulate the industry.

During the regulation era airline ridership increased and safety improved. During the regulation period, opportunity for comparing the safety record of the regulated industry with the record of the unregulated portions of the industry was limited. The few attempts made rendered inconclusive results.

During a …

Ua66/3/3 Acm/Upe Awards Banquet, Association For Computing Machinery, Upsilon Pi Epsilon

Student Organizations

ACM/UPE awards and initiation banquet program.

Evaluation Of Us Seismic Code Provisions For Asymmetric-Plan Systems, Rakesh K. Goel, Anil K. Chopra

Civil and Environmental Engineering

The effects of plan asymmetry on the earthquake response of code-designed, one-story systems are identified with the objective of evaluating how well these effects are represented by torsional provisions in US building codes. The earthquake-induced deformations and ductility demands on resisting elements of asymmetric-plan systems, are compared with their values if the system plan were symmetric. The presented results demonstrate that the design eccentricity in US building codes should be modified in order to achieve the desirable goal of similar ductility demands on asymmetric-plan and symmetric-plan systems. The design eccentricity should be defined differently depending on the design value of …

A Study Of The Manufacturing Costs Of Grille And Side Screens On John Deere Tractors, John M. Beierschmitt

Graduate Research Papers

The problem discussed in this paper was the development of a process for the manufacture of a new, low cost, quality grille screen that previously had been made on conventional tooling, and now can not be made with the conventional process or tooling. The research comparison in this paper was done to show the financial advantage of this type of tooling.

An Examination Of The Labor Time Of A Robot Weld Cell, Chris S. Conrad

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine the labor time differential, if any, of a robot weld cell as compared to manual welding methods. Also, the variability of labor time differential between part numbers was to be examined.

The results of the study was intended to assist future investment decision makers in maximizing the return on capital expenditures. It was proposed that the labor time differential determined by this study be applied to the future labor and overhead rates in determining the return on investment for a robotic weld cell purchase. The variability of labor time differential between part …

Introduction To Electrical Engineering And The Art Of Problem Solving: Volume I, P. Frazer Williams

P. F. (Paul Frazer) Williams Publications

These notes were written to accompany a two-semester introductory course in Electrical Engineering. The primary goal of the course is to introduce you to the art of technical problem solving. Conventional Electrical Engineering curricula, in favorable cases at least, produce engineers who are reasonably adept at operating many of the tools important to the field, such as mathematics and circuit analysis. Often, however, these engineers lack skill in choosing which tools to use and in designing a plan of attack to solve problems which are new to them, even though they have all the information and skills needed to fabricate …