Engineering Commons^™

Impulse, Dave Graves, Kyle Johnson, Lisa Schaefer

Impulse (Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering Publication)

Features:
[Page] 2 New MTS machine takes university researchers to another level: With a push, pull, or a twist, the new MTS machine allows faculty and students to conduct research at another level.
[Page] 4 Stat students profit from Big Blue: SDSU alums at IBM ;pearhead fund-raising for a new computerized statistics lab.
[Page] 6 Too much fun to quit ... almost: Dean Vi1gil Ellerbruch is stepping down after thirty-four years.
[Page] 8 Rebuilding a life: In a wheelchair 12,000 miles from home, a Bangladesh student still plans to earn his master's, and "do something for me and this world." …

Experimental Procedure For Testing Of Piles Under Varying Axial And Lateral Loads, Pedro Franco Silva, F. Seible

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A research program was carried out at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) to study the seismic response of piles and their connections to the pier cap. As part of this research program, an experimental procedure for testing of piles under simulated seismic loading was developed. This experimental procedure was implemented in a research program to test the as-built piles of the San Diego Coronado Bay Bridge piles in order to validate the design criteria recommended by the design team for the seismic retrofit of the Coronado Bay Bridge.

Calibrations Of Cold-Formed Steel Welded Connections, F. M. Tangorra, R. M. Schuster, Roger A. Laboube

American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) Specifications, Standards, Manuals and Research Reports (1946 - present)

No abstract provided.

Light Gage Steel Framing, Dale Industries

CCFSS Library (1939 - present)

No abstract provided.

Metal Drywall Framing And Accessories, Dale Industries

CCFSS Library (1939 - present)

No abstract provided.

Video Compression Using Wavelets And Hierarchical Motion Estimation, Andrew Peter Byrne

Theses : Honours

This thesis investigates the benefits and the significant compression that can be obtained from data that has been decomposed using a wavelet transform. A video compression algorithm was developed that employs the wavelet transform and a hierarchical motion estimation algorithm which itself utilises benefits of the wavelet transform. Using MATLAB, a popular software tool for matrix based computation and analysis, several functions were developed which together formed the video compression algorithm. A variety of tests were conducted on a sample video sequence to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of the techniques employed. The results, although not the same as the …

Investigation And Characterisation Of Growth Phases Of Polycrystalline Cadmium Sulfide Thin Films Produced By The Chemical Bath Deposition Method, Peter Duncan

Theses : Honours

This research project investigates the characterisation and morphology of the growth phases of polycrystalline CdS thin films that were created using the Chemical Bath Deposition (CBD) method. One batch of CdS thin films was created by the author (group B) whilst another batch (group A) was obtained from a previous research project. In both cases, the experiments were designed such that successive slides in a set represent successive phases in the growth of these CdS thin films. Therefor analysis of the near surface for all slides in a set gave an accurate representation of conditions on the surface at the …

Use Of "Studio" Methods In The Introductory Engineering Design Curriculum, Patrick Little, Mary P. Cardenas

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

A number of themes, including interest in first year design courses, commitment to active learning approaches, and desires for changes in course structures and costs have come together in a variety of teaching approaches. Some of these approaches have been referred to as using “studio” methods, although the particular pedagogy appears to vary greatly. In this paper, some of these experiments are briefly reviewed and placed in a larger context of studio education in other disciplines. The paper seeks to differentiate studio education from other active learning approaches. An introductory engineering design course was taught using an architecture studio model …

Use Of "Studio" Methods In The Introductory Engineering Design Curriculum, Patrick Little, Mary P. Cardenas

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

A number of themes, including interest in first year design courses, commitment to active learning approaches, and desires for changes in course structures and costs have come together in a variety of teaching approaches. Some of these approaches have been referred to as using “studio” methods, although the particular pedagogy appears to vary greatly. In this paper, some of these experiments are briefly reviewed and placed in a larger context of studio education in other disciplines. The paper seeks to differentiate studio education from other active learning approaches. An introductory engineering design course was taught using an architecture studio model …

Webquests As An Integrative Experience In Introductory Environmental Engineering, Mary P. Cardenas

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

An Integrative Experience was developed as part of an introductory environmental engineering course at Harvey Mudd College. The Integrative Experience was developed to help the college students consider the relationship of science and technology with contemporary society. Junior and senior students enrolled in the course designed WebQuests for middle school students. The WebQuests involved the integration of an environmental issue, problem, or technology and societal effects. WebQuests were designed for a middle school audience in order to expand the amount of engineering outreach that is done at the K-12 level. The HMC students chose WebQuests topics including nuclear and alternative …

Languages For Engineering Design: Empirical Constructs For Representing Objects And Articulating Processes, Clive L. Dym, Philip Brey

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

Design knowledge incorporates knowledge and information about designed objects and their attributes, as well as about methods and means for undertaking the design process. Such design knowledge is articulated in several different representations or languages. This paper presents a typology of the languages of engineering design, emphasizing the representation of designed objects and the articulation and representation of the cognitive processes of design. Design languages include verbal or textual statements, drawings and graphics, formulas, and numbers. Still other design languages follow from computational styles. The languages of design and their computer-based implementations are empirical in origin, since observation reveals that …

Assessing The Rate Of Change In The Enterprise Database System Market Over Time Using Dea, Timothy R. Anderson, Keith Hollingsworth, Lane Inman

Engineering and Technology Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper builds upon previous work of using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to measure incremental innovation in technology by applying it to the Online Transaction Processing Market. A variable returns to scale DEA model is utilized to determine an annual rate of change in benchmarks based on data provided by the Transaction Processing Performance Council. This rate of change may then be used to forecast possible future performance trendsetters of the TPC.

A Model To Evaluate The Effect Of Organizational Adaptation, Holly A. H. Handley, Alexander H. Levis

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

When an organization’s output declines due to either internal changes or changes in its external environment, it needs to adapt. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of different adaptation strategies on organizational per- formance, an organizational model composed of individual models of a five stage interacting decision maker was designed using an object oriented design approach and implemented as a Colored Petri net. The concept of entropy is used to calculate the total activity value, a surrogate for decision maker workload, based on the functional partition and the adaptation strategy being implemented. The individual decision maker’s total activity is monitored, …

Levels Of Interoperability In Coalition Systems, Holly A. H. Handley, Alexander H. Levis, Michel Bares

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Systems of different command centers that are brought together in a coalition operation must have some level of interoperability in order to work together. Bares [2000] has introduced a formalism of three interoperability domains that describe the ability of the systems to define their own level of interoperability within the coalition by assessing their own and the other systems’ ability to interact on actions of the coalition. The lowest domain, interconnectivity, reflects the ability to exchange messages; this level must already have been achieved in order for the systems to participate in the coalition. The second domain, interoperability, reflects a …

Preparation Of Magnetic Nanoparticles And Their Assemblies Using A New Fe(Ii) Alkoxide Precursor, Suresh Pillai, Grainne Biddlecombe, Yurii Gun’Ko, John Kelly, J. Michael Coey, Alexis Douvalis

Articles

No abstract provided.

Submerged And Solid-State Phytase Fermentation By Aspergillus Niger: Effects Of Agitation And Medium Viscosity On Phytase Production, Fungal Morphology And Inoculum Performance, Maria Papagianni, Sue E. Nokes, Keith Filer

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Qualitative relationships between agitation levels and medium viscosity, Aspergillus niger morphology and phytase production were investigated in submerged and solid-state fermentations. Overall phytase production increased with increasing shaker speeds from 150 to 300 rpm, although specific growth rates and phytase production rates were higher at 150 rpm for 72 h from inoculation. Fungal morphology was greatly influenced by agitation with the morphological forms of small pellets and entangled mycelia predominating at 150 rpm, while the free filamentous form was obtained at 300 rpm. Upon inoculation of SSF, increased productivities were obtained from inocula grown at 150 rpm. A shift towards …

Guides And Specifications For The Use Of Composites In Concrete And Masonry Construction In North America, Antonio Nanni

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This paper covers the latest developments in the preparation of design guidelines, construction specifications, and inspection and quality control recommendations related to the use of composites in construction. The forms of FRP composites addressed are limited to bars and laminates for reinforcement of concrete and masonry structures (new construction and repair/rehabilitation). FRP bars are being used as the internal reinforcement in concrete members when the conventional steel bars may be undesirable for a host of reasons (e.g., corrosion), and principles for design and construction have been established and proposed to industry by the American Concrete Institute (ACI). Conversely, strengthening of …

Using Flash Animations And 3d Rendering To Increase The Effectiveness Of Instructional Software, Timothy A. Philpot

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Animation and three-dimensional rendering software offers exciting new capabilities that can enhance engineering instructional material. Using these software tools, instructional media can escape the static two-dimensional confines of the printed page or the classroom blackboard. This work-in-progress describes a project to develop instructional material for a Mechanics of Materials course. The paper presents examples of instructional animations, discusses software development tools used to create the animations and discusses early student reaction to the multimedia presentations

Multi -Mission Attitude Determination System For Balloon Flight, Liping Mo

Doctoral Dissertations

MADS (Multi-mission Attitude Determination System) is a new software package used to determine the attitude of instruments on a high-altitude balloon employed for scientific experiments. There is no existing system for the automated determination of the attitude of instruments in balloon experiments, so we have developed MADS to do the data analysis for balloon experiments to find the location of astrophysical sources such as gamma-ray or x-ray sources.

The two areas that required most work were modeling star trackers and modeling the motion of the balloon. Star trackers are used on satellites, but are far too expensive and sophisticated to …

Mathematical Modeling For Fabricating A Microstructure With A Pre-Specified Geometry Using Laser -Induced Chemical Vapor Deposition, Chaoyang Zhang

Doctoral Dissertations

Laser-induced chemical vapor deposition (LCVD) is an emerging new technique with many practical applications. To optimize the system for fabricating a microstructure with a pre-specified geometry in pyrolytic LCVD, a three-dimensional mathematical model is developed for predicting temperature distributions and laser dwell times across the substrate scanned by the laser beam. A microstructure is fabricated layer by layer, and for each layer the laser beam moves from one pixel to the next. The complicated correlations among temperature distribution, deposit growth rate, and laser dwell time are investigated. A purely heterogeneous reaction is assumed and any gas-phase transport is ignored.

A …

Improving Irrigation For Ord Sugar Cane, Jim Engelke, Joe Sherrard, Gae Plunkett, Tim Triglone

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Major changes are underway in irrigation practices for the Ord sugar industry as it moves to implement recent findings on improving irrigation efficiency and managing rising groundwater. Significant improvement in efficiency is expected by more accurately matching water application with crop water requirements and by minimising drainage losses through improved water application techniques.

Based on findings from this work, drying off may not be an appropriate strategy for the ORIA as a means of improving crop sucrose content, but could allow for some reduction in water use towards the end of the crop cycle without adversely impacting on sucrose yield. …

Comparing Size In Lime, Mark Whitten

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Extensive research into the management of soil acidity in Western Australia is increasing farmer awareness that lime use can reduce soil acidity and improve crop yields. However, as lime use increases, the question of lime performance and particle size is becoming more critical. Chris Gazey from the Department of Agriculture is heading up the soil acidity project, with the team comprising members from the department, CSIRO and the University of Western Australia. Mark Whitten reports on project outcomes relating to lime particle size.

Generalized Metrics And Topology In Logic Programming Semantics, Pascal Hitzler

Computer Science and Engineering Faculty Publications

Many fixed-point theorems are essentially topological in nature. Among them are the Banach contraction mapping theorem on metric spaces and the fixed-point theorem for Scott-continuous mappings on complete partial orders. The latter theorem is fundamental in denotational semantics since semantic operators in most programming language paradigms satisfy its requirements. The use of negation in logic programming and non-monotonic reasoning, however, renders some semantic operators to be non-monotonic, hence discontinuous with respect to the Scott topology, and therefore invalidates the standard approach, so that alternative methods have to be sought. In this thesis, we investigate topological methods, including generalized metric fixed-point …

A Study Of Financial Analysis Expectations And Practices In The Engineering Management Workplace, Paul Kauffmann, Resit Unal, Andres Sousa-Poza, William Peterson

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper describes an on-going study of Master of Engineering Management (MEM) students and the financial analysis related job expectations and environment they face. The objective of this effort is to provide enhanced understanding of these requirements so that instructional content in the related courses can be focused to meet these needs. To achieve this goal, the study segments findings based on a range of organizational and job level characteristics to identify critical differences in the financial work environment and the financial tools that are employed. Preliminary findings are discussed in this paper and contrasts between public and private sector …

Middle-Ear Function With Tympanic-Membrane Perforations. Ii. A Simple Model., Susan E. Voss, John J. Rosowski, Saumil N. Merchant, William T. Peake

Engineering: Faculty Publications

A quantitative model of the human middle ear with a tympanic-membrane ~TM! perforation is developed. The model is constrained by several types of acoustic measurements made on human cadaver ears, which indicate that perforation-induced changes in transmission result primarily from changes in driving pressure across the TM and that perforation-induced change in the structure of the TM and its coupling to the ossicles contributes a substantially smaller component. The model represents the effect of a perforation on the pressure difference across the TM by inclusion of a path for sound coupling through the perforation from the ear canal to the …

Re-Engineering Of The Quality Assurance Process Using Work Study Methodology, Yew Hoong Chia

Student Works (2000-2009)

This project paper explores the application of Work Study methods to improve the manufacturing processes in the current semiconductor manufacturing environment. The scope of the project is narrowed down to the Quality Assurance Out-going Final Inspection (QA OFI) Gate process step at the End-Of-Line (EOL) Operations in Motorola Malaysia Sendirian Berhad. This QA OFI Gate process step had recently become a bottleneck to the total EOL operations and in need of productivity improvement. It was observed that Work Study methods were not being used extensively or applied in a systematic manner in the company being studied. Many changes were made …

Immobolisation And Biochemical Characterisation Of A Selected Commercially Available Laccase, Chandra Sundaralingam

Student Works (2000-2009)

ln this study, laccase from Novo Nordisk was chosen for biochemical characterization and immobilization investigation. The specific aims of this work was to develop optimum conditions for immobilization of laccase by entrapment method using copper alginate and characterize the laccase biochemically. The pH optimum of the crude enzyme extract was 5.5 and was found to be stable over a wide range of pH values. The apparent molecular weight of this enzyme was around 79,000 Daltons. Three peaks of activity (isoenzymes) were obtained from isoelectric focusing of pH values 4.7, 5.2 and 6.0. The optimum pH of the immobilized laccase by …

The Effect Of Aluminium Oxide And Cerium Oxide As Dispersoids In Chitosan-Lithium Acetate Complexes, Hoi Mien Leow

Student Works (2000-2009)

In this study, chitosan with 85% deacetylation was used with Ni(OAc)₂·2H₂O as doping salt and Al₂O₃, or CeO₂ as dispersoid. They were mixed in certain weight percentages and dissolved in 100ml of 0.5% acetic acid solution. These solutions were poured into petri dishes and left at room temperature for film formation. Infrared Spectroscopy has shown that there is interaction between chitosan and LiOAc with and without dispersoid. The peaks are shifted. broadened. split and differs in intensity. The electrical conductivity of all samples was calculated using the bulk resistance value obtained from the complex admittance plot. The highest electrical conductivity …

Waste Management In Palm-Oleo Sdn. Bhd, Ramesh Ramasamy

Student Works (2000-2009)

Oleochemical industry in Malaysia has been diversifying significantly due to the availability of raw materials (palm oil) and the high demand for downstream products such as fatty acids, fatty alcohols and glycerine. The growth of oleochemical industries is further enhanced by fluctuations io petroleum price and regular animal diseases, which made tallow-based fats unreliable. Environmental awareness is growing rapidly in Malaysia. There is growing realization of the need to balance industrial and economic development with environmental preservation and protection, as well as, with efficient use of energy sources in order to achieve sustainable development. Extensive waste management studies were focused …

Preparation And Characterization Of Lithiated Cathode Materials For Lithium Batteries, Shanti Navaratnam

Student Works (2000-2009)

Four different cathode materials, LiNiO₂, LiCoO₂, LiCo₀.₂ Ni₀.₈O₂ and LiCo₀.₄, Ni₀.₆O₂ were synthesized by sol - gel technique. The prepared materials were characterized X-ray diffraction pattern, FT-IR and cyclic voltammetry. X-ray diffraction pattern shows crystallinity of materials, increases with higher calcination temperature. From FT- IR studies, it was shown, that the purity of sample also increased with prolong heating at higher temperatures. It was possible to obtain pure and highly crystalline LiNiO₂ after heating for fourteen hours at 800°c. Cyclic voltammetry shows the four prepared materials are suitable for fabrication of cathode, as lithium ions can intercalate and de-intercalate. LiNiO₂ …