Engineering Commons^™

The Electroreduction Of Carbon Dioxide On Porous Copper Nanoparticles, Monica Alisa Padilla

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

Copper nanoparticles of porous, controlled structure were synthesized using the sacrificial support method (SSM). The precursor weight percent (wt%) of copper (Cu) and fumed silica (EH-5) was varied to determine the optimum ratio for this material. The precursors were reduced at i) 350°C in a 7% H2 atmosphere and ii) at 250°C in a 100% H2 atmosphere. The specific surface areas of the nanoparticles was measured by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller N2 absorption. The morphologies and widths of the nanoparticles were confirmed by imaging the nanoparticles by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The bulk composition of the nanoparticles was determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD). …

Directional Camera Control On High Altitude Balloons, Matthew M. Plewa, Brent Scharlau

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

The research reported in this paper examined the design and control of a gimbal for solar eclipse tracking and video recording. The gimbal design required 3 axes of rotation to allow for full range of motion. Utilizing individual brushless motors for each of the axes ensure minimum rotational requirements on each axes. In controlling the gimbal, both a mathematical and visual method were utilized. The mathematical method is a modified version of what is currently used for solar array pointing. The visual method looks at where the position of the sun is within the image and determines what angle changes …

An Overview Of A Solar Eclipse Video Payload, Alexander M. Peters

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

The HABET group at Iowa State University has been designing and building balloon payloads for years, giving students hands on experience with the engineering involved in creating and launching payloads to near space conditions. After attending the AHAC conference in 2014 the group begain to design a balloon for the 2017 solar eclipse. Working closely with the Space Grant Consortium’s design team, HABET has designed and completed preliminary testing on a Solar Eclipse Video payload. This payload uses multiple subsystems to complete the mission. The mission required an altitude control system, live video downlink, and a camera pointing system. Our …

Computational Fluid Dynamics Study Of Balloon System Tethered To A Stratosail, Jayakanth Loganathan, Kian-Meng Lim, Heow Pueh Lee, Boo Cheong Khoo

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

In this paper, we present a numerical study of a stratospheric balloon system tethered to a passive device, known as the Stratosail, for station-keeping operation. For scientific applications, stratospheric balloons that operate at altitudes between 15 and 20 km will need to maintain station over a fixed point above the earth for a prescribed period of time. This is a challenging problem due to the limitation of payloads and lack of an energy source. The present study uses computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations to analyze the drift velocity of such a balloon-Stratosail system under typical wind conditions in the stratosphere. …

Using Thermocouple, Thermistor, And Digital Sensors To Characterize The Thermal Wake Below Ascending Weather Balloons, Erick Agrimson, Kaye Smith, Rachel Newman, Kassandra Surma, Maggie Singerhouse, Britany Craig, Marilyn Mcnamara, James Flaten, Alex Pratt, Stephanie Wegner, Joe Dillon

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

In this paper we present additional results from our on-going research effort to characterize the thermal wake that trails below ascending latex weather balloons on flights into the stratosphere; a wake which interferes with the ability of temperature sensors in payload boxes hanging from the balloon (and hence enveloped by the wake) to correctly measure the ambient temperature of the atmosphere through which the balloon is ascending. A “wake boom” is used to measure temperature variations up to 1.5 m horizontally from varying distances directly below the neck of the balloon. Results to date agree with the literature that especially …

Techniques For Payload Stabilization For Improved Photography During Stratospheric Balloon Flights, James Flaten, Christopher Gosch, Joseph (Benjamin) Habeck

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

Payload-box rotation and swing are perennial challenges to achieving high-quality photography (typically videography) during weather-balloon flights to “near-space” (AKA the stratosphere). Continuous camera motion can lead to blurred still photos, nearly-impossible-to-watch video footage, and precludes time-exposure photography required for most astronomical imaging even though altitudes are reached where the daytime sky appears black. Apparently-random payload rotation, persisting even at altitude, can often exceed servo rotation rates and frustrate attempts to do active camera pointing. Here we discuss mostly-passive payload stabilization strategies we, and our collaborators, have used to mitigate and dampen both swing and rotation of suspended payloads on high-altitude …

Analysis Of Particle Transport And Deposition Of Micron-Sized Particles In A 90° Bend Using A Two-Fluid Eulerian–Eulerian Approach, Erick S. Vasquez, Keisha B. Walters, D. Keith Walters

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

Two-phase flows involving dispersed particle and droplet phases are common in a variety of natural and industrial processes, such as aerosols, blood flow, emulsions, and gas-catalyst systems. For sufficiently dilute particle/aerosol phases, a simplified one-way coupling is often assumed, in which the continuous primary phase is unaffected by the presence of the dispersed secondary phase and standard CFD methods can be applied. To predict the transport and deposition of the particle phase, typically a Lagrangian particle-tracking or Eulerian one-fluid/two-phase drift-flux approach is used. Here, a full two-fluid Eulerian modeling approach is presented for coarse particles (>1 μm), in which …

College Of Engineering News, Georgia Southern University

College of Engineering & Computing: News & Publications (2010-2023)

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Multispectral Metamaterial Detectors For Smart Imaging, John A. Montoya

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

The ability to produce a high quality infrared image has significantly improved since its initial development in the 1950s. The first generation consisted of a single pixel that required a two-dimensional raster scan to produce an image. The second generation comprised of a linear array of pixels that required a mechanical sweep to produce an image. The third generation utilizes a two-dimensional array of pixels to eliminate the need for a mechanical sweep. Third generation imaging technology incorporates pixels with single color or broadband sensitivity, which results in 'black and white' images. The research presented in this dissertation focuses on …

Interview With Joe Hoey, Rca Heritage Program

RCA Oral History Transcripts

Interview with Joe Hoey for the RCA Heritage Program Oral History grant.

Three-Dimensional Imaging Using A Novel Rotating Point Spread Function Imager, Rakesh Kumar

Optical Science and Engineering ETDs

The capability to achieve three-dimensional (3D) imaging in a single snapshot is a highly coveted goal for the imaging community. To be able to extend the depth-of-field while simultaneously encoding depth in the point spread function (PSF) itself allows an imaging solution which is less time consuming and less data intensive than the inefficient multiscan based conventional 3D imaging. Light-field cameras also achieve 3D imaging in a snapshot, but at the cost of greatly reduced resolution. Phase mask based depth encoding solutions have been proposed by other groups, but they all suffer from a relatively smaller depth-of-field. Recently there has …

Real Time Mission Planning, Emad William Saad, Stefan Richard Bieniawski, Paul Edward Riley Pigg, John Lyle Vian, Paul Michael Robinette, Donald C. Wunsch

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The different advantageous embodiments provide a system comprising a number of computers, a graphical user interface, first program code stored on the computer, and second program code stored on the computer. The graphical user interface is executed by a computer in the number of computers. The computer is configured to run the first program code to define a mission using a number of mission elements. The computer is configured to run the second program code to generate instructions for a number of assets to execute the mission and monitor the number of assets during execution of the mission.

Virtual Capstone Design Teams: Preparing For Global Innovation, Jay Goldberg, Susannah Howe

Engineering: Faculty Publications

Global innovation requires collaboration between groups of people located in different parts of the world, and is a growing trend in industry. Virtual teams are often used to manage new product development projects. These teams are similar to traditional teams but are geographically separated and rely heavily on virtual methods of communication (email, Skype, teleconferencing, etc.) instead of regular face-to-face meetings. Experience working as a member of a virtual capstone design team can help prepare students for this growing trend. To begin preparing students for work on virtual teams in industry, we co-advised two virtual capstone design projects with students …

Communication-Theoretic Foundations For Optical Receivers Using Dynamically Biased Avalanche Photodiodes, Georges El-Howayek

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

To meet the demands of the exponential growth in video, voice, data and mobile device traffic over the internet, the telecommunication industry has been moving toward higher speed protocols such as 40-Gb/s and 100-Gb/s. Operations at such high speeds require detectors with optimized internal gain (leading to high sensitivity) to reduce cost. Avalanche photodiodes (APDs) are commonly used photodetectors in many high-speed optical receivers due to their internal optoelectronic gain, which allows the photogenerated current to dominate the thermal noise without the need for optical pre-amplification of the received optical signal. However, the long avalanche buildup time associated with APDs, …

Optimal Selected Phasor Measurement Units For Identifying Multiple Line Outages In Smart Grid, Jie Wu, Jinjun Xiong, Prasenjit Shil, Yiyu Shi

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Thanks to the advent of clock synchronization via the global positioning system (GPS), phasor measurement units (PMUs) collecting both the magnitude and phase angle with higher precision have implications for monitoring performance across the wide area of smart grids. Owing to high PMUs installation costs, developing optimal strategy of PMUs placement is important to monitor the transmission system status in the wide area. To characterize the performance of line outage identification, this paper firstly proposes the statistical model to describe the average identification capability of multiple line outages. Using this model, we develop a global optimal PMUs placement strategy to …

The Nucleation And Growth Of Nanoparticles For Heterogeneous Catalysis, Angelica Benavidez

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

These studies investigate the nucleation and growth of nanoparticles and how their interaction with a support affects their reactivity as a heterogeneous catalyst. As capabilities in both synthesis methods and characterization methods advance, the use of nanoparticles and sub-nanometer species are more commonly used. These small particles introduce new factors that can cause differences in reactivity. Various catalyst synthesis methods are employed to deposit mono-dispersed particles on different oxide and carbon supports. Electron microscopy is used to study nanoparticle sintering and the careful tracking of individual particles gives insight into growth mechanisms. X-ray absorption spectroscopy measurements are used to characterize …

Interview With Art Simons, Rca Heritage Program

RCA Oral History Transcripts

Interview with Art Simons for the RCA Heritage Program Oral History grant.

Interview With Frank Keith, Rca Heritage Program

RCA Oral History Transcripts

Interview with Frank Keith for the RCA Heritage Program Oral History grant.

Interview With Joe Rosenberg, Rca Heritage Program

RCA Oral History Transcripts

Interview with Joe Rosenberg for the RCA Heritage Program Oral History grant.

Interview With Don Herzog, Rca Heritage Program

RCA Oral History Transcripts

Interview with Don Herzog for the RCA Heritage Program Oral History grant.

Interview With John Dodson, Rca Heritage Program

RCA Oral History Transcripts

Interview with John Dodson for the RCA Heritage Program Oral History grant.

Preface, Gennady Fridman, Jeremy Levesley, Ivan Tyukin, Donald C. Wunsch

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In August 2014 a conference on “Model reduction across disciplines” was held in Leicester, UK. As a scientific field, model reduction is an important part of mathematical modelling and data analysis with very wide areas of applications. The main scientific goal of the conference was to facilitate interdisciplinary discussion of model reduction and coarse-graining methodologies in order to reveal their general mathematical nature. This time, however, the conference had an additional personal and more profound mission – it was dedicated to the 60th birthday of Professor Alexander Gorban (albeit with some delay) whose fantastic achievements in applying model reduction techniques …

Seasonal Variability Of Atmospheric Nitrogen Oxides And Non-Methane Hydrocarbons At The Geosummit Station, Greenland, L. J. Kramer, D. Helmig, J. F. Burkhart, A. Stohl, S. Oltmans, R. E. Honrath

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Measurements of atmospheric nitrogen oxides NOx (NOx = NO + NO2), peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN), NOy, and non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHC) were taken at the Greenland Environmental Observatory at Summit (GEOSummit) station, Greenland (72.34° N, 38.29° W; 3212 m a.s.l.), from July 2008 to July 2010. The data set represents the first year-round concurrent record of these compounds sampled at a high latitude Arctic site. Here, the study focused on the seasonal variability of these important ozone (O3) precursors in the Arctic troposphere and the impact from transported anthropogenic and biomass burning emissions. Our analysis shows that PAN is the dominant NOy …

Low-Cost Open-Source Voltage And Current Monitor For Gas Metal Arc Weld 3d Printing, Anthony Pinar, Bas Wijnen, Gerald C. Anzalone, Timothy C. Havens, Paul G. Sanders, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

Arduino open-source microcontrollers are well known in sensor applications for scientific equipment and for controlling RepRap 3D printers. Recently low-cost open-source gas metal arc weld (GMAW) RepRap 3D printers have been developed. The entry-level welders used have minimal controls and therefore lack any real-time measurement of welder voltage or current. The preliminary work on process optimization of GMAW 3D printers requires a low-cost sensor and data logger system to measure welder current and voltage. This paper reports on the development of a low-cost open-source power measurement sensor system based on Arduino architecture. The sensor system was designed, built, and tested …

Slipstream Measurements Of Small-Scale Propellers At Low Reynolds Numbers, Robert W. Deters, Gavin K. Ananda, Michael S. Selig

Publications

The continuing growth in the use of small UAVs has required the need to more fully understand the propellers that power them. Part of this understanding is the behavior of the propeller slipstream. Using a 7-hole probe, the slipstreams of several small-scale propellers (diameters of 4.2, 5, and 9 in) were measured in both static (V∞ = 0) and advancing-flow (V∞ > 0) conditions at several locations downstream. For static conditions, as the slipstream expanded downstream, the maximum values of the axial and swirl velocities decreased. The general shape of the static slipstream was also found to be nearly the same …

The “Stratospheric Cricket Keeper” – Developing A Simple“Life-Support” Payload For High-Altitude Balloon Missions, Lucas Kramer, Chad Serba, James Flaten

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

Exposure to the environmental conditions of “near-space” (AKA the stratosphere) is quickly fatal to nearly all forms of animal life. It is even challenging to build a sealable enclosure that can keep insects (crickets) alive through the dramatic and simultaneous pressure and temperature drops experienced during a high-altitude balloon mission. This poster describes the development of a rugged “cricket keeper” in which we were able to fly crickets to the stratosphere and, quoting the words of JFK, “return (them) safely to the earth!” This “life-support” payload had large windows (for the view!) and included Arduino-logged temperature and pressure sensors, an …

Using Tank Pressure To Determine The Lift Of A Balloon, Sarah M. Biver

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

An important aspect of high altitude ballooning is accuracy regarding the calculation of helium inflation in the balloon. If the balloon is over-filled it will increase rapidly in velocity and burst too quickly to record data. If the balloon is under-filled the rate of ascension will be too slow or not at all. This paper highlights the importance of accuracy in helium inflation by examining a method that uses pressure to control the inflation of a high altitude balloon. On every helium tank there is a pressure gauge, which can be used to monitor the change in pressure. Using that …

Parafoil Recovery Of A High Altitude Balloon Payload, Chelsea Velasquez, Zachariah Benedict

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

The Recovery Guidance System is a subproject of Iowa State Universities’ High Altitude Ballooning Experiments in Technology (HABET) group. The system is designed to avoid common hazards during descent including large area objects such as populated areas and roadways, as well as smaller objects such as trees in a field, with an accuracy within tens of meters. RGS provides guidance for the payload using a two servo system aboard the payload in conjunction with GPS and radio communication. Navigation will be handled by a mixture of GPS and video analysis. For guidance, only longitudinal and directional dynamics of the payload-parafoil …

Autonomous Altitude Control Device For Latex Hab, John W. Siepierski

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

The advent of latex High Altitude Balloons has dramatically reduced the costs associated with conducting research at altitudes reaching the stratosphere. Latex balloons are less expansive than zero-pressure and super-pressure alternatives, but they have an important disadvantage: while zero-pressure and super-pressure balloons can float at a desired altitude for long periods of time, latex balloons ascend continuously, flying only around two hours before reaching a bursting altitude (usually around 100,000 ft) and falling back to earth. Enabling latex High Altitude Balloons to float at a constant altitude for extended (and specifically defined) periods of time could make them significantly more …

Using A High Altitude Balloon Platform To Observe And Measure Seasonal Ozone Flux Over Agricultural Landscapes, Cody Sabo

2017 Academic High Altitude Conference

The concentration of greenhouse gasses (GHGs) in the atmosphere has continued to rise since the industrial era. This issue has had a multitude of negative impacts on all living things. Among the major GHGs are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. Ozone is of particular importance because it not only has the ability to trap heat in the atmosphere, but it also directly impacts organisms by causing harm to both plants and humans. The damage that ozone causes to plants is most closely linked to ozone uptake rather than ozone concentration. So, measuring ozone uptake is becoming critical for …