Engineering Commons^™

Statistically Steady Measurements Of Rayleigh-Taylor Mixing In A Gas Channel, Malcolm J. Andrews, Arindam Banerjee

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A novel gas channel experiment is described to study the development of high Atwood number Rayleigh-Taylor mixing. Two gas streams, one containing air and the other containing a helium-air mixture, flow parallel to each other separated by a thin splitter plate. The streams meet at the end of a splitter plate leading to the formation of an unstable interface and of buoyancy driven mixing. This buoyancy driven mixing experiment allows for long data collection times, has short transients, and is statistically steady. The facility was designed to be capable of large Atwood number studies (At~0.75). We describe initial validation work …

An Optimal Dynamic Inversion Approach For Controlling A Class Of One-Dimensional Nonlinear Distributed Parameter Systems, Radhakant Padhi, S. N. Balakrishnan

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Combining the principles of dynamic inversion and optimization theory, a new approach is presented for stable control of a class of one-dimensional nonlinear distributed parameter systems, assuming the availability a continuous actuator in the spatial domain. Unlike the existing approximate-then-design and design-then-approximate techniques, here there is no need of any approximation either of the system dynamics or of the resulting controller. Rather, the control synthesis approach is fairly straight-forward and simple. The controller formulation has more elegance because we can prove the convergence of the controller to its steady state value. To demonstrate the potential of the proposed technique, a …

Magnetically Filtered Faraday Probe For Measuring The Ion Current Density Profile Of A Hall Thruster., Joshua L. Rovey, Mitchell L. R. Walker, Alec D. Gallimore, Peter Y. Peterson

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The ability of a magnetically filtered Faraday probe (MFFP) to obtain the ion current density profile of a Hall thruster is investigated. The MFFP is designed to eliminate the collection of low-energy, charge-exchange (CEX) ions by using a variable magnetic field as an ion filter. In this study, a MFFP, Faraday probe with a reduced acceptance angle (BFP), and nude Faraday probe are used to measure the ion current density profile of a 5 kW Hall thruster operating over the range of 300-500 V and 5-10 mg/s. The probes are evaluated on a xenon propellant Hall thruster in the University …

Robust/Optimal Temperature Profile Control Using Neural Networks, Vivek Yadav, Radhakant Padhi, S. N. Balakrishnan

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

An approximate dynamic programming (ADP) based neurocontroller is developed for a heat transfer application. Heat transfer problem for a fin in a car''s electronic module is modeled as a nonlinear distributed parameter (infinite-dimensional) system by taking into account heat loss and generation due to conduction, convection and radiation. A low-order, finite-dimensional lumped parameter model for this problem is obtained by using Galerkin projection and basis functions designed through the `Proper Orthogonal Decomposition'' technique (POD) and the `snap-shot'' solutions. A suboptimal neurocontroller is obtained with a single-network-adaptivecritic (SNAC). Further contribution of this paper is to develop an online robust controller to …

System For Heating Bulk Materials, Nassib Aouad, J. Kennedy

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A system for heating bulk material to remove moisture. The system includes a heat exchanger system in the floor of a bin for receiving moist bulk material. The heat exchanger system is capable of withstanding the weight of the bulk material as well as being stable for the dynamic process of loading and discharging the bulk material. The heat exchanger includes a plurality of spaced beams mounted between a top plate and bottom plate. The spaced beams form conduits for receiving water or other fluids that have been heated by a stove capable of burning wood, coal, biomass material or …

Modeling Radiated Emissions From Cables Attached To Printed Circuit Boards Driven By Power Bus Noise, K. Morishita, N. Kobayashi, T. Harada, H. Ke, Todd H. Hubing

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This paper describes a two-step technique for modeling the radiated electromagnetic emissions from a printed circuit board with attached cables when the source of the emissions is noise between the board's power and ground planes. the first step calculates the electric fields at the edges of the power-ground plane pair. the second step replaces the power plane with equivalent sources embedded within the ground plane structure. Examples are provided that demonstrate the accuracy of this approach. © 2006 IEEE.

The Importance Of Using Time Domain To Analyze The Effect Of Decoupling Capacitor Performance On Printed Circuit Boards, Bruce Archambeault, Jay Diepenbrock, Samuel Connor, Liang Xue, Giuseppe Selli

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This paper demonstrates the importance of using the time domain to properly analyze decoupling capacitor performance on printed circuit boards as well as ASIC packages, etc. Frequency domain analysis is too limited unless the phase information is used along with the magnitude information. the time domain analysis combines the magnitude and phase information to allow a more accurate analysis of decoupling capacitor distance, decoupling capacitor value, and the effects of connection inductance. the impact of connection inductance is extremely important, and it needs to be included in any decoupling capacitor analysis, since this inductance can easily overshadow low plane impedance …

Transverse-Earthquake Induced Deformations Of A Bridge Approach Embankment In The New Madrid Seismic Zone, Wanxing Liu, Richard Wesley Stephenson, Ronaldo Luna

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

It is predicted that strong earthquakes, larger than M 7.0, may occur within next 50 years in the New Madrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ), the location of three of the most powerful earthquakes in United States history. Large displacements may occur during strong earthquakes that can cause an embankment to fail or lose its function. The hyperbolic stress-strain model with Masing rules was modified to account for strength and stiffness reduction due to change in the effective confining pressure. The Byrne model was combined with a hyperbolic model to calculate the pore water pressure caused by seismic shaking. This modified hyperbolic …

Electrochemical Deposition And Characterization Of Fe₃O₄ Films Produced By The Reduction Of Fe(Iii)-Triethanolamine, Hiten M. Kothari, Elizabeth A. Kulp, Steven J. Limmer, Philippe Poizot, Eric W. Bohannan, Jay A. Switzer

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this paper, we demonstrate that films of magnetite, Fe₃O₄, can be deposited by the electrochemical reduction of a Fe(III)-triethanolamine complex in aqueous alkaline solution. the films were deposited with a columnar microstructure and a [100] preferred orientation on stainless steel substrates. In-plane electrical transport and magnetoresistance measurements were performed on the films after they were stripped off onto glass substrates. the resistance of the films was dependent on the oxygen partial pressure. We attribute the increase in resistance in O₂ and the decrease in resistance in Ar to the oxidation and reduction of grain …

Segmental Dynamics Of Poly(Isopropyl Acrylate)-D7 On Silica, Piyawan Krisanangkura, Frank D. Blum

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

For a polymer film deposited on a surface, the strength of the surfacesegment interaction affects the mobility of polymer-chain segments. The selfconsistent field lattice model of Scheutjens and Fleer,1 based on mean-field lattice models of polymer at interfaces,2 has been used to describe the distribution of conformations of polymers on surfaces. Adsorbed-polymer segments may be classified as belonging to loops, trains or tails. There are different techniques used to study the molecular motion of the polymer including modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC)3 and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR).4,5 in this work, solid-state deuterium (2H) NMR was used to characterize the polymer …

Segmental Dynamics In Poly(Methyl Acrylate) On Silica: Molecular-Mass Effects, Burak Metin, Frank D. Blum

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

The effect of molecular mass on the segmental dynamics of poly(methyl acrylate) (PMA) adsorbed on silica was studied using deuterium quadrupole-echo nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and modulated differential scanning calorimetry. Samples adsorbed on silica (all about 1.5 mg PMA/m2 silica) were shown to have more restricted segmental mobility, and higher Tg's, than the corresponding bulk PMA samples. Around the glass-transition region, adsorbed samples exhibited segmental mobility, which could be classified as heterogeneous due to a superposition of more-mobile and less-mobile components present in the deuterium NMR spectra. This heterogeneity was consistent with a motional gradient with more-mobile segments near the …

Completely Explosive Autonomous High-Voltage Pulsed-Power System Based On Shockwave Ferromagnetic Primary Power Source And Spiral Vector Inversion Generator, Sergey I. Shkuratov, Evgueni F. Talantsev, Jason Baird, Millard F. Rose, Zachary Shotts, Z. Roberts, Allen H. Stults, Larry L. Altgilbers

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Novel explosive and conventional pulsed-power technologies were combined, and a series of explosive-driven high-voltage power supplies was designed, built, and tested. The power supply contained an explosive-driven high-voltage primary power source based on the fundamental physical effect of shockwave demagnetization of Nd₂ Fe₁₄B high-energy ferromagnet and a power-conditioning stage. The volume of the energy-carrying ferromagnetic elements in the shockwave ferromagnetic generators (FMGs) was 8.75 cm³. The power-conditioning stage was based on the spiral vector inversion generator (VIG). The combined FMG-VIG system demonstrated successful operation and good performance. The output-voltage pulse amplitude of the combined FMG-VIG …

Electrostatic Active Radiation Shielding -- Revisited, John W. Wilson, R. K. Tripathi, R. C. Youngquist

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

For the success of NASA's new vision for space exploration to Moon, Mars and beyond, exposures from the hazards of severe space radiation in deep space long duration missions is ''a must solve'' problem The payload penalty demands a very stringent requirement on the design of the spacecrafts for human deep space missions. Langley has developed state-of-the-art radiation protection and shielding technology for space missions. The exploration beyond low Earth orbit (LEO) to enable routine access to space require protection from the hazards of the accumulated exposures of space radiation, galactic cosmic rays (GCR) and solar particle events (SPE), and …

Longitudinal Shock Wave Depolarization Of Pb(Zr₅₂Ti₄₈)O₃ Polycrystalline Ferroelectrics And Their Utilization In Explosive Pulsed Power, Sergey I. Shkuratov, Evgueni F. Talantsev, Jason Baird, Henryk Temkin, Larry L. Altgilbers, Allen H. Stults

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A poled lead zirconate titanate Pb(Zr52Ti48)O3 (PZT) polycrystalline piezoelectric ceramic energy-carrying element of a compact explosive-driven power generator was subjected to a longitudinal explosive shock wave (the wave front traveled along the polarization vector P0). The shock compression of the element at pressures of 1.5-3.8 GPa caused almost complete depolarization of the sample. Shock wave velocity in the PZT was determined to be 3.94 ± 0.27 km/s. The electric charge stored in a ferroelectric, due to its remnant polarization, is released during a short time interval and can be transformed into pulsed power. Compact explosive-driven power sources utilizing longitudinal shock …

Circuit Models For Power Bus Structures On Printed Circuit Boards Using A Hybrid Fem-Spice Method, Todd H. Hubing, Chunlei Guo

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Power bus structures consisting of two parallel conducting planes are widely used on high-speed printed circuit boards. In this paper, a full-wave finite-element method (FEM) method is used to analyze power bus structures, and the resulting matrix equations are converted to equivalent circuits that can be analyzed using SPICE programs. Using this method of combining FEM and SPICE, power bus structures of arbitrary shape can be modeled efficiently both in the time-domain and frequency-domain, along with the circuit components connected to the bus. Dielectric loss and losses due to the finite resistance of the power planes can also be modeled. …

Decentralized Power Control With Implementation For Rfid Networks, Kainan Cha, Anil Ramachandran, David Pommerenke, Jagannathan Sarangapani

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In radio frequency identification (RFID) systems, the detection range and read rates will suffer from interference among high power reading devices. This problem grows severely and degrades system performance in dense RFID networks. In this paper, we investigate a suite of feasible power control schemes to ensure overall coverage area of the system while maintaining a desired read rate. The power control scheme and MAC protocol dynamically adjusts the RFID reader power output in response to the interference level seen locally during tag reading for an acceptable signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). We present novel distributed adaptive power control (DAPC) and probabilistic …

Design And Implementation Of A Storage Management Method For Content Distribution, Chang-Soo Kim, Yu-Hyeon Bak, Sang-Min Woo, Won-Jae Lee, Nunm-Ok Gee, Hag-Young Kim

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The SMART system is a special purpose server developed by ETRI and designed for efficient streaming services over high speed networks. The SMART server has one or more special purpose NS (Network-Storage) card. The NS card has several disks that store multimedia contents. However all of the multimedia contents to be serviced cannot be stored at the server. In this paper, we will describe the storage management mechanism in design and implementation aspects. With this storage management mechanism, the SMART server can provide effectiveness in managing storage and distributing some contents from a source station to streaming service servers.

Distributed Power Control For Cellular Networks In The Presence Of Channel Uncertainties, Maciej Jan Zawodniok, Q. Shang, Jagannathan Sarangapani

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this paper, a novel distributed power control (DPC) scheme for cellular network in the presence of radio channel uncertainties such as path loss, shadowing, and Rayleigh fading is presented. Since these uncertainties can attenuate the received signal strength and can cause variations in the received Signal-to-Interference ratio (SIR), a new DPC scheme, which can estimate the slowly varying channel uncertainty, is proposed so that a target SIR at the receiver can be maintained. Further, the standard assumption of a constant interference during a link's power update used in other works in the literature is relaxed. A CDMA-based cellular network …

Dynamic Simulation Of A Mems Cantilever Switch, James W. Fonda, Steve Eugene Watkins

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The dynamic behavior of a micro-electro-mechanicalsystem (MEMS) cantilever switch is investigated. Overactuation of the switch can degrade bounce characteristics and reduce the lifetime of the contacts. This work concerns the development of a control system that limits the number of switch bounces and reduces the impact force on the beam tip. A limited mass-spring analysis of the tip-position is given and an associated control approach is applied. Input limiting, state-feedback, and adaptive control methods are compared. All results demonstrate improved switch bounce characteristics for the simplified beam model with the adaptive showing the best performance improvement. A comprehensive finite element …

An Internet Based Intelligent Argumentation System For Collaborative Engineering Design, Xiaoqing Frank Liu, Samir Raorane, Man Zheng, Ming-Chuan Leu

Computer Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

Modern product design is a very complicated process which involves groups of designers, manufacturers, suppliers, and customer representatives. Conflicts are unavoidable in collaboration among multiple stakeholders, who have different objectives, requirements, and priorities. Unfortunately, current web-based collaborative engineering design systems do not support collaborative conflict resolution. In this paper, we will develop an intelligent computational argumentation model to enable management of a large scale argumentation network, and resolution of conflicts based on argumentation from many participants. A web-based intelligent argumentation tool is developed as a part of a web-based collaborative engineering design system based on the above model to resolve …

Pocket Deformable Mirror For Adaptive Optics Applications, Leonid A. Beresnev, Mikhail Vorontsov, Peter Wangsness

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Adaptive/active optical elements are designed to improve optical system performance in the presence of phase aberrations. For atmospheric optics and astronomical applications, an ideal deformable mirror should have sufficient frequency bandwidth for compensation of fast changing wave front aberrations induced by either atmospheric turbulences or by turbulent air flows surrounding a flying object (air optical effects). In many applications, such as atmospheric target tracking, remote sensing from flying aircraft, boundary layer imaging, laser communication and laser beam projection over near horizontal propagation paths the phase aberration frequency bandwidth can exceed several kHz. These fast-changing aberrations are currently compensated using relatively …

Adaptive Beam Director For A Tiled Fiber Array, Mikhail Vorontsov, Jim F. Riker, Ernst Polnau, Svetlana Lachinova, Venkata S. Rao Gudimetla

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

We present the concept development of a novel atmospheric compensation system based on adaptive tiled fiber array architecture operating with target-in-the-loop scenarios for directed beam applications. The adaptive tiled fiber array system is integrated with adaptive beam director (ABD). Wavefront control and sensing functions are performed directly on the beam director telescope primary mirror. The beam control of the adaptive tiled fiber array aims to compensate atmospheric turbulence-induced dynamic phase aberrations and results in a corresponding brightness increase on the illuminated extended object. The system is specifically designed for tiled fiber system architectures operating in strong intensity scintillation and speckle-modulation …

Enhanced Cerenkov Second-Harmonic Generation In Patterned Lithium Niobate, Cong Deng, Joseph W. Haus, Andrew Sarangan, Aziz Mahfoud, Concita Sibilia, Michael Scalora, Aleksei M. Zheltikov

Electro-Optics and Photonics Faculty Publications

We present experimental results of second harmonic generation enhancement through the resonance of the band edge in a photonic crystal based on lithium niobate. Proton exchange technique was used to fabricate a waveguide near the surface of the lithium niobate substrate. The photonic crystal structure over the waveguide was made by UV laser interferometry. Subsequently experiments were designed to quantify the Cerenkov second-harmonic generation (CSHG) radiated into the substrate. The SHG radiated inside the waveguides was also experimentally investigated. In our experiments, the second guided mode of the waveguide was tuned to the band edge resonance to enhance the second …

Loading And Recovery Behavior Of The Human Lumbar Spine Under Static Flexion, Guntulu Selen Hatipkarasulu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Musculoskeletal disorders account for 32 percent of work related injuries and illnesses. Extensive studies have been conducted to understand and explore the factors that affect the development of musculoskeletal disorders to provide effective control strategies. One of the most important factors that allow effective control strategies is the biomechanical factors. Among the biomechanical risk factors, exposures to repetitive static and vibratory activities are known to result in musculoskeletal disorders. A ligamento–muscular reflex activity exists in humans and animals to stabilize the knee, shoulder, elbow, ankle joints, and spine. This reflex activity decreases over time when static loading is applied, which …

Intercarrier Interference Suppression For The Ofdm Systems In Time-Varying Multipath Fading Channels, Xiaozhou Huang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Due to its spectral efficiency and robustness over the multipath channels, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) has served as one of the major modulation schemes for the modern communication systems. In the future, the wireless OFDM systems are expected to operate at high carrier-frequencies, high speed and high throughput mobile reception, where the fasting time-varying fading channels are encountered. The channel variation destroys the orthogonality among the subcarriers and leads to the intercarrier interference (ICI). ICI poses a significant limitation to the wireless OFDM systems. The aim of this dissertation is to find an efficient method of providing reliable communication …

Structural Performance Of Approach Slab And Its Effect On Vehicle Induced Bridge Dynamic Response, Xiaomin Shi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Differential settlement often occurs between the bridge abutment and the embankment soil. It causes the approach slab to lose its contacts and supports from the soil and the slab will bend in a concave manner. Meanwhile, loads on the slab will also redistribute to the slab ends, which may result in faulting (or "bump") at the slab ends. Once a bump forms, repeating traffic vehicles can deteriorate the expansion joint in turn. In this case, the vehicle receives an initial disturbance before it reaches the bridge. This excitation introduces an extra impact load on the bridge and affects its dynamic …

An Adaptive Multi-Scale Computational Method For Modeling Nonlinear Deformation In Nanoscale Materials, Wenming Wang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation a coupled multi-scale computational model for simulating nonlinear deformation processes in crystalline metals at finite temperatures is developed. The computational model uses the finite element method to model the coarse scale response of the material. The constitutive response in the finite element will be modeled through interatomic potentials acting on the underlying homogeneous crystal lattice that characterizes its nanostructure. An adaptive remeshing technique is proposed to automatically delineate regions of severe deformation where homogeneity of the microstructure/deformation is violated. In these regions the finite element will be replaced by a set of deformed atoms which interact with …

Nanoelectropulse-Driven Membrane Perturbation And Small Molecule Permeabilization, P. Thomas Vernier, Yinghua Sun, Martin A. Gundersen

Bioelectrics Publications

Background
Nanosecond, megavolt-per-meter pulsed electric fields scramble membrane phospholipids, release intracellular calcium, and induce apoptosis. Flow cytometric and fluorescence microscopy evidence has associated phospholipid rearrangement directly with nanoelectropulse exposure and supports the hypothesis that the potential that develops across the lipid bilayer during an electric pulse drives phosphatidylserine (PS) externalization.

Results
In this work we extend observations of cells exposed to electric pulses with 30 ns and 7 ns durations to still narrower pulse widths, and we find that even 3 ns pulses are sufficient to produce responses similar to those reported previously. We show here that in contrast to …

Plasma Membrane Voltage Changes During Nanosecond Pulsed Electric Field Exposure, W. Frey, R. O. Price, P. F. Blackmore, R. P. Joshi, R. Nuccitelli, S. J. Beebe, K. H. Schoenbach, J. F. Kolb

Bioelectrics Publications

The change in the membrane potential of Jurkat cells in response to nanosecond pulsed electric fields was studied for pulses with a duration of 60 ns and maximum field strengths of similar to 100 kV/cm (100 V/cell diameter). Membranes of Jurkat cells were stained with a fast voltage-sensitive dye, ANNINE-6, which has a subnanosecond voltage response time. A temporal resolution of 5 ns was achieved by the excitation of this dye with a tunable laser pulse. The laser pulse was synchronized with the applied electric field to record images at times before, during, and after exposure. When exposing the Jurkat …

The Role Of Electrospinning In The Emerging Field Of Nanomedicine, S. Y. Chew, Y. Wen, Yuris A. Dzenis, K. W. Leong

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

The fact that in vivo the extracellular matrix or substratum with which cells interact often includes topography at the nanoscale underscores the importance of investigating cell-substrate interactions and performing cell culture at the submicron scale. An important and exciting direction of research in nanomedicine would be to gain an understanding and exploit the cellular response to nanostructures. Electrospinning is a simple and versatile technique that can produce a macroporous scaffold comprising randomly oriented or aligned nanofibers. It can also accommodate the incorporation of drug delivery function into the fibrous scaffold. Endowed with both topographical and biochemical signals such electrospun nanofibrous …