Engineering Commons^™

Interval Computations And Interval-Related Statistical Techniques: Estimating Uncertainty Of The Results Of Data Processing And Indirect Measurements, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

In many practical situations, we only know the upper bound Δ on the measurement error: |Δx| ≤ Δ. In other words, we only know that the measurement error is located on the interval [−Δ, Δ]. The traditional approach is to assume that Δx is uniformly distributed on [−Δ, Δ]. In some situations, however, this approach underestimates the error of indirect measurements. It is therefore desirable to directly process this interval uncertainty. Such "interval computations" methods have been developed since the 1950s. In this paper, we provide a brief overview of related algorithms and results.

Process Improvements Of Cilantro Harvesting With Ergonomic Considerations, Eric Penningroth, Branden Shimamoto

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

The problems presented by Talley Farms to the team were a lower than desired cilantro harvesting capacity and work health pertaining to lower back problems. The project objectives were to address and improve upon both of these objectives. To increase harvesting capacity, a simulation model was created using standard times from time studies. The simulation model helped to compare the different harvesting methods as well as the effect of the utilization of the on-site manager. The throughputs between each of the models were analyzed. To address ergonomic concerns, a work sampling study was conducted and it was determined that kneeling …

Bikeshare Business Model For Cal Poly- San Luis Obispo, Justin Benson, Andrew Neil Gatchalian

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

With the increasing admittance of students into colleges and universities across the nation, the need for alternate modes of transportation is becoming more pressing. College and university campuses, as well as small cities, in which there is a college or university, are being overloaded with student cars. In San Luis Obispo specifically, parking on campus as well as downtown can be extremely difficult to find. Traffic is also getting progressively worse, especially at the hour when class begins/ends and student arrive to or leave campus. Financial reasons are yet another deterrent for students at Cal Poly. Parking permits, gas, and …

Effects Of Patient Factors On Implantation Rates In In Vitro Fertilization, Heidi Richardson, Sofia Soto

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

The purpose of this report is to evaluate the effects of patient factors and embryo quality on the implantation rate in In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). For this report, statistical methods are used to test the significance of several patient and embryo characteristics on embryo implantation rate. This project is an analysis of data collected from over 36,000 patients.

The analysis concluded several findings. There was enough statistical evidence to conclude that age was significant in regards to implantation rate and FSH levels. As the patient ages, the amount of FSH levels found in their blood increases. A patient with high …

Ole Miss Engineer 2014-2015

Ole Miss Engineer

No abstract provided.

Microstructural Development Of Galvanized Steels Prepared With Ni-P Electroless Deposited Pre-Coatings, Chulaluk Somphotch, Suparoek Henpraserttae, Ekasit Nisarattanaporn, Yuttanant Boonyongmaneerat

Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals

An electroless pre-coating process is investigated as a possible method to prevent the sandelin effect, whereby steels containing silicon reacts rapidly with zinc during galvanization. From the microstructural and kinetics analysis, it is found that nickel-phosphorus electroless pre-coatings effectively serve as barriers to the reaction between Fe and Zn during galvanization, regardless of the silicon content in the steel substrates. Correspondingly, the coating thickness of the galvanized steels can be well-controlled.

Art+Eng Week Dubbed Success, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

A first-of-its-kind collaboration between art and engineering students at Utah State University demonstrated that creativity and technical know-how go hand in hand.

Influence Of Hot-Dip Coatings On Mechanical And Corrosion Behaviors Of Steel Bolts, Thanit Kenhong, Gobboon Lothongkum, Yuttanant Boonyongmaneerat

Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals

Steel is the main type of materials used in construction applications. Steel bolt, in particular, is used for fastening all the structural components together, and hence high durability in terms of the mechanical and corrosion resistance is inevitably critical. Carbon steel shows adequate mechanical strength, yet it is highly susceptible to corrosion. On the other hand, stainless steel is praised for its remarkable corrosion resistance, yet its relatively low yield stress exhibits a drawback. Hot-dip coating which provides Fe-Zn or Zn-Ni compounds in the coating interface could potentially mitigate the shortcomings of carbon steel and stainless steel by providing improved …

Effect Of Surfactant On Conductivity Of Poly(Pyrrole-Co-Formyl Pyrrole) Via Emulsion Polymerization, Sirilak Arunsawad, Kawee Srikulkit, Sarintorn Limpanart

Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals

P(Py-co-FPy) were synthesized via emulsion polymerization, SDS and PSS used as surfactant and TFA as catalyst. Amounts of surfactant were vary as mole ratio of surfactant : monomer (0.25, 0.5 and 1.0). The synthesis copolymers were characterized by FTIR, SEM, particle size analyzer and four point probes. As a result of FT-IR spectra proved that the synthesized copolymers are associated with the structure of the P(Py-co-FPy). Spherical particles were detected by SEM and particles diameter is in range of 60-600 nm depending on type and amounts of surfactant. The electrical conductivity is in the range of 1.74x 10-5 to 2.21 …

Mechanical Properties Of Poly(Lactic Acid) Composites Reinforced With Microfibrillated Cellulose Prepared Using High Speed Blending, Supachok Tanpichai, Jatuphorn Wootthikanokkhan

Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals

Bamboo fibers, as a raw cellulose source, were used to prepare microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) using a high speed blender at 20,000 rpm for 60 min. Nanofibers with the width of less than 100 nm were disintegrated from the fibers. MFC networks were then prepared, and embedded in poly(lactic acid) resin using a compression molding at temperature of 180 C and a pressure of 10 MPa. Mechanical properties of poly(lactic acid) composites reinforced with MFC were investigated. The interaction between MFC fibrils and PLA resin was observed. As a result, Youngs modulus and tensile strength of the composites increased to 3.1 …

Development Of Workforce Skills: Student Perceptions Of Mentoring In First Robotics, Katie Joan Veal Wallace

Dissertations

In today’s global economy, new workforce competencies are needed for success at both individual and societal levels. The new workforce skills extend beyond basic reading, writing, and arithmetic to include higher order processes such as critical thinking and problem solving. Technical job opportunities have grown by approximately 17%, yet the United States continues to decline in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Further, U.S. students earn average or below average test scores when compared to other developed countries. Researchers cite the need to incorporate the learning of workplace skills into secondary education curriculum, and advocates call for new teaching …

Need For Data Processing Naturally Leads To Fuzzy Logic (And Neural Networks): Fuzzy Beyond Experts And Beyond Probabilities, Vladik Kreinovich, Hung T. Nguyen, Songsak Sriboonchitta

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Fuzzy techniques have been originally designed to describe imprecise ("fuzzy") expert knowledge. Somewhat surprisingly, fuzzy techniques have also been successfully used in situations without expert knowledge, when all we have is data. In this paper, we explain this surprising phenomenon by showing that the need for optimal processing of data (including crisp data) naturally leads to fuzzy and neural data processing techniques.

This result shows the potential of fuzzy data processing. To maximally utilize this potential, we need to provide an operational meaning of the corresponding fuzzy degrees. We show that such a meaning can be extracted from the above …

Every Sue Function Is A Ratio Of Two Multi-Linear Functions, Joe Lorkowski, Olga Kosheleva, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

We prove that the function computed by each single-use expression is a ratio of two multi-linear functions.

When Can We Reduce Multi-Variable Range Estimation Problem To Two Fewer-Variable Problems?, Joe Lorkowski, Olga Kosheleva, Luc Longpre, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Sometimes, a function f of n variables can be represented as a composition of two functions of fewer variables. In this case, the problem of computing the range of f on given intervals can be reduced to two range-computation problems with fewer variables. In this paper, we describe a feasible algorithm that checks whether such a reduction is possible -- and, if it is possible, produces the desired reduction.

50 Years Of Fuzzy: From Discrete To Continuous To -- Where?, Vladik Kreinovich, Hung T. Nguyen, Olga Kosheleva, Rujira Ouncharoen

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

While many objects and processes in the real world are discrete, from the computational viewpoint, discrete objects and processes are much more difficult to handle than continuous ones. As a result, a continuous approximation is often a useful way to describe discrete objects and processes. We show that the need for such an approximation explains many features of fuzzy techniques, and we speculate on to which promising future directions of fuzzy research this need can lead us.

Ua66 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter, Cheryl Stevens, Dean

Ogden College of Science & Engineering Publications

No abstract provided.

Observability-In-Depth: An Essential Complement To The Defense-In-Depth Safety Strategy In The Nuclear Industry, Francesca Favaro, Joseph Saleh

Faculty Publications

Defense-in-depth is a fundamental safety principle for the design and operation of nuclear power plants. Despite its general appeal, defense-in-depth is not without its drawbacks, which include its potential for concealing the occurrence of hazardous states in a system, and more generally rendering the latter more opaque for its operators and managers, thus resulting in safety blind spots. This in turn translates into a shrinking of the time window available for operators to identify an unfolding hazardous condition or situation and intervene to abate it. To prevent this drawback from materializing, we propose in this work a novel safety principle …

Flow Compressibility Effects Around An Open-Wheel Racing Car, J. Keogh, G. Doig, S. Diasinos

Aerospace Engineering

A numerical investigation has been conducted into the influence of flow compressibility effects around an open-wheeled racing car. A geometry was created to comply with 2012 F1 regulations. Incompressible and compressible CFD simulations were compared-firstly with models which maintained Reynolds number as Mach number increased, and secondly allowing Mach number and Reynolds number to increase together as they would on track. Results demonstrated significant changes to predicted aerodynamic performance even below Mach 0·15. While the full car coefficients differed by a few percent, individual components (particularly the rear wheels and the floor/ diffuser area) showed discrepancies of over 10% at …

On The Interaction Of A Racing Car Front Wing And Exposed Wheel, S. Diasinos, G. Doig, T.J. Barber

Aerospace Engineering

A numerical investigation of generic open-wheel racing car wing and wheel geometry has been conducted, using original sub-scale experimental data for validation. It was determined that there are three main interactions that may occur, identifiable by the path that the main and secondary wing vortices take around the wheel. Interaction ‘A’ occurs when the main and secondary wing vortices both travel outboard of the wheel; interaction ‘B’ is obtained when only the main wing vortex passes inboard of the wheel; while interaction ‘C’ sees both wing vortices travel inboard of the wheel. The different interactions are achieved when geometric changes …

Redesign Of Talley Farm's "Fresh Harvest" Produce Program, Nicole Bordwell, John Rivera, Jared Toboni

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Fresh Harvest, a Central Coast Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program run by Talley Farms located in Arroyo Grande, CA, has a rapidly growing customer base. They harvest, package, and deliver boxes of fresh quality produce to almost 3000 subscribers. However, Talley Farms’ space for production and processing is limited and at times required for other aspects of business. This results in a problem where Talley Farms current processing system of produce for the Fresh Harvest program is not suitable for the forecasted growing demand. This report addresses the need to prepare for continued significant growth to the demand for Fresh …

Analysis And Improvement Of The Security Building At Pg&E Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, Alyssa Carter, Natalie Christa, Phuong Anh Pham Dinh

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

A new Security building was recently designed and built at the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) Diablo Canyon Power Plant (DCPP).This building’s staff and equipment are responsible for performing routine inspections on all personnel entering the facility in order to prevent security-related incidents from occurring at the nuclear power plant. Similar to airport security procedures, the DCPP security building routine inspections include the use of x-ray machines, metal detectors, and explosive detectors.

The Power Plant periodically experiences pre-planned, preventive maintenance outages, that last 4-6 weeks. During an outage, a power plant reactor is shut down for maintenance, repair, and re-fueling. …

Modernization Of The Walker River Irrigation District Water Gauges, Stuart Styles, Robert C. Bryan, Kenneth C. Spooner

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

The Irrigation Training and Research Center (ITRC) and Walker River Irrigation District (WRID) collaborated on WRID’s Water Gauge Improvement Project with support from the Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of Interior in Carson City, Nevada. This paper presents a summary of the proposed plan and implementation for improving water gauges in WRID with strategic engineering recommendations for new hardware and control equipment; water management strategies; flow measurement devices; and integration of a new district-wide SCADA system. Field investigations and engineering analyses were carried out by the ITRC in 2009 to inspect existing WRID infrastructure, to review current operational procedures, and …

The Cadet Training Program Versus The Student Certification Program: A Study Of It- Support Training Programs At Western Kentucky University, Michael Courtney Moore

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Technology is a critical component of modern-day success. Advancements in technology have improved communication between individuals and companies. Technological advancements have allowed students to earn college degrees online. People who habitually use technology expect a high level of performance and support. As new technologies are implemented, such as complex web services or new operating systems, the dependence for information technology (IT) support grows in demand. Even learning curves can be cumbersome without proper assistance from IT professionals. Companies and institutions must accommodate user needs by implementing fast, efficient, and friendly support. In order to offer optimal customer support, representatives must …

Improved Performance Of Analog And Digital Acousto-Optic Modulation With Feedback Under Profiled Beam Propagation For Secure Communication Using Chaos, Fares S. Almehmadi, Monish Ranjan Chatterjee

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Using intensity feedback, the closed-loop behavior of an acousto-optic hybrid device under profiled beam propagation has been recently shown to exhibit wider chaotic bands potentially leading to an increase in both the dynamic range and sensitivity to key parameters that characterize the encryption. In this work, a detailed examination is carried out vis-à-vis the robustness of the encryption/decryption process relative to parameter mismatch for both analog and pulse code modulation signals, and bit error rate (BER) curves are used to examine the impact of additive white noise.

The simulations with profiled input beams are shown to produce a stronger encryption …

Structural Characterization Of Iron Oxides And Hydroxides In The Clay Fraction Of Soil From The Inca Civilization Moray Terraces, Maria Luisa Ceron Loayza, Jorge Aurelio Bravo Cabrejos, Felipe Americo Reyes Navarro, Rosio Ascuna Arcondo

Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals

We introduce the structural characterization of the iron oxides and hydroxides in the clay fraction from soil collected in Moray terraces, Peru. It is important since these terraces are considered as a major technological advancement in agriculture in Inca Civilization times. We utilized the following: techniques of selective dissolution by dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH); analytical techniques of X-ray diffractometry (XRD); and transmission Msbauer spectroscopy (TMS). XRD of the untreated samples showed that all the terraces contain quartz and calcite. After a treatment with NaOH and DCB, the peaks from quartz kept defined; XRD analysis shows a well-crystallized Fe3+ …

Creating Tomorrow, Fall 2014, College Of Engineering

College of Engineering Magazines

Annual magazine for the College of Engineering at Utah State University.

Security Issues In Data Warehouse, Saiqa Aleem, Luiz Fernando Capretz, Faheem Ahmed Dr.

Electrical and Computer Engineering Publications

Data Warehouse (DWH) provides storage for huge amounts of historical data from heterogeneous operational sources in the form of multidimensional views, thus supplying sensitive and useful information which help decision-makers to improve the organization’s business processes. A data warehouse environment must ensure that data collected and stored in one big repository are not vulnerable. A review of security approaches specifically for data warehouse environment and issues concerning each type of security approach have been provided in this paper.

Reliability-Based Design And Acceptance Protocol For Driven Piles, Joseph Jabo

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The current use of the Arkansas Standard Specifications for Highway Construction Manuals (2003, 2014) for driven pile foundations faces various limitations which result in designs of questionable reliability. These specifications are based on the Allowable Stress Design method (ASD), cover a wide range of uncertainties, do not take into account pile and soil types, and were developed for general use. To overcome these challenges it is deemed necessary to develop a new design and acceptance protocol for driven piles. This new protocol incorporates locally calibrated RLFD resistance factors for accounting for local design and construction experiences and practices, as well …

Utilizing Failure Information For Mission Assessment And Optimization For Complex Systems, Charlie Destefano

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper presents a new failure analysis method, Failure Identification for Mission Analysis (FIMA), which performs a general failure analysis for the overall state of a system, as well as a mission-specific analysis that identifies how failures may have differing effects on the various mission tasks that a system must complete. The FIMA method is capable of being implemented at any point in the design process. During early design stages, the FIMA method will identify various qualitative failure scenarios based on programmed functional relationships and any number of initial failures wished to be simulated. The functional relationships for this method …

Microbial Community Shifts Caused By Changes In The Primary Oxidant At A Drinking Water Treatment Plant, Connie Marie Moloney

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Microbial communities resistant to common oxidants can cause concerns for water treatment plants (WTPs). If a bacterium is not fully oxidized during disinfection, these species can impede upon filtration processes or seed biofilms in the distribution system. In an effort to minimize disinfection by-products (DBP's) that result from the reaction of chlorine (Cl2) with natural organic matter, water treatment plants have the option to change their primary oxidant to chlorine dioxide (ClO2). The following study examines the change in microbial communities during the sedimentation process under differing oxidation regimes, specifically chlorine (Cl2) and ClO2 at the local water treatment plant …