Engineering Commons^™

The Dispersion And Selective Flocculation Of Hematite Ore, Howard James Haselhuhn Iii

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Iron ore is one of the most important ores in the world. Over the past century, most mining of iron ore has been focused on magnetite (Fe3O4). As the name suggests, magnetite is magnetic in nature and is easily separated from gangue (unwanted) minerals through magnetic separation processes. Unfortunately, the magnetite ore bodies are diminishing. Because of this, there has been a recent drive to pursue technology that can economically separate hematite (Fe2O3) from its gangue minerals as hematite is a much more abundant source of iron. Most hematite ore has a very small liberation size that is frequently less …

Molecular Modeling Of Epon 862-Detda / Carbon Composites, Cameron Hadden

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

The thermoset epoxy resin EPON 862, coupled with the DETDA hardening agent, are utilized as the polymer matrix component in many graphite (carbon fiber) composites. Because it is difficult to experimentally characterize the interfacial region, computational molecular modeling is a necessary tool for understanding the influence of the interfacial molecular structure on bulk-level material properties. The purpose of this research is to investigate the many possible variables that may influence the interfacial structure and the effect they will have on the mechanical behavior of the bulk level composite. Molecular models are established for EPON 862-DETDA polymer in the presence of …

Low Impact Development (Lid) Opportunities In The District Of Lamúd, Perú: A Study Of Hydrology, Costs And Maintenance Of Appropriate Stormwater Best Management Practices (Bmps), Olga M. Cano

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

The study aims at identifying opportunities to implement Low Impact Development (LID) Best Management Practices (BMPs) for stormwater management, in the District of Lámud, Perú. Other studies have noted the importance of appropriate stormwater management as part of urban development in developing countries.

Environmental, economic and social aspects were analyzed to identify the most appropriate case. Stormwater Management Model (SWMM) 5.1, was used to obtain runoff results. Ten case scenarios were set up with LID BMP combinations of infiltration trenches, vegetated swales, and retention ponds. Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF) life cost models were used as a reference to calculate …

Mechanical Impedance Of Ankle As A Function Of Electromyography Signals Of Lower Leg Muscles Using Artificial Neural Network, Chen Jia

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

This paper reports on the feasibility of developing a model to describe the nonlinear relationship between the mechanical impedance of the human ankle within a specified range of frequency and the root mean square (RMS) value of the Electromyography (EMG) signals of the muscles of human ankle using Artificial Neural Network (ANN). A lower extremity rehabilitation robot — Anklebot was used to apply pseudo-random mechanical perturbations to the ankle and measure the angular displacement of the ankle to estimate the data of ankle mechanical impedance. Meanwhile, the surface EMG signals from the selected muscles were monitored and recorded using a …

Automated Scour Detection Arrays Using Bio-Inspired Magnetostrictive Flow Sensors, Baibhav Rajbhandari

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Scour is the most common cause of catastrophic bridge failures worldwide. Approximately over 60% of bridge failures reported in the United States from 1966 to 2005 are scour related. To ensure the continued safe operation of bridges, monitoring bridge scour is of paramount importance. Most monitoring regimes that are widely used are based on expensive underwater instrumentation. This research focuses on scour detection using automated remote flow detection arrays based on bio-inspired flow sensors. This study employs an array of bio inspired flow sensors that are inexpensive and robust versions of buried-rod scour sensor arrays, coupled with low-power wireless sensor …

Timetable Management Technique In Railway Capacity Analysis: Development Of The Hybrid Optimization Of Train Schedules (Hots) Model, Hamed Pouryousef

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

There are two general approaches to improve the capacity in a rail corridor, either by applying new capital infrastructure investment or by improving the operation of the rail services. Techniques to evaluate the railway operation include modeling and optimization through the use of commercial timetable management and rail simulation tools. However, only a few of the existing tools include complete features of timetable management techniques (e.g. timetable compression) are equipped with an optimization model for rescheduling and timetable improvement and this is especially true when it comes to the U.S. rail environment that prevalently uses unstructured operation practices.

This dissertation …

Non-Pulsitile Shear Driven Annular Flow-Boiling Investigations, Timothy M. Frasier

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

The main goal of this correlations-based modeling investigation is to undertake a preemptive analysis on expected measurement values (of selected flow variables) that may be realized during the implementation/completion of the ongoing experimental endeavors dealing with non-pulsatile steady operations of the innovative flow boiler. The correlation models do not accurately predict the heat transfer coefficients or pressure drops due to the assumptions lumped into the development of the correlations. At the conclusion of the investigation, a tool was created that provides rough order of magnitude estimates of pressure drop and local heat transfer rates. The approach is also recommended for …

Stabilization Of Iron Mine Tailings Through Microbially Induced Calcite Precipitation, Noah D. Buikema

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Mine tailings are deposited into large-scale impoundments. Seasonal temperature fluctuations destabilize particles on the impoundment surface. Wind-induced shear stresses on the destabilized particles can in turn result in suspension of micron-sized particles into the atmosphere, creating dust storms that pose hazards to humans and the environment. Thus, efficient and sustainable methods of dust abatement are needed. One novel method for controlling dust emissions is biomodification. For example, Sporosarcina pasteurii can promote biocalcification in soil via ureolysis. However, application of this method to fined grained materials, such as mine tailings, is challenging. The goal of this work was to perform a …

The Use Of Jatropha Curcas To Achieve A Self Sufficient Water Distribution System: A Case Study In Rural Senegal, Alexandra Archer

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

The use of Jatropha curcas as a source of oil for fueling water pumps holds promise for rural communities struggling to achieve water security in arid climates. The potential for use in developing communities as an affordable, sustainable fuel source has been highly recommended for many reasons: it is easily propagated, drought resistant, grows rapidly, and has high-oil-content seeds, as well as medicinal and economic potential. This study uses a rural community in Senegal, West Africa, and calculates at what level of Jatropha curcas production the village is able to be self-sufficient in fueling their water system to meet drinking, …

Modeling And Simulation Of Microstructures, Mechanisms, And Diffraction Effects In Energy Materials: Ferroelectrics And Lithium Ion Battery Cathode Materials, Jie Zhou

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Ferroelectric materials, as a large family exploited for the application of sensors, transducers and random access memories, open up a remarkable ground both for fundamental science and industry. Dielectric and piezoelectric properties are of the most interest in ferroelectric materials, which motivate research to enhance ferroelectric properties based on various application purposes. Among the multitudinous candidates in ferroelectric family, pseudo binary solid solutions with ABO₃ lattice structure attract special attention in virtue of their large strain response when applying external loading. Furthermore, existence of morphological phase boundary (MPB) on their phase diagrams shed light on tuning material compositions to …

A Sub-Basin Water Resource Quantification And Aquifer Productivity Assessment For The Northwest Borehole Scheme Near Opuwo, Namibia, Lucas C. Moilanen

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Namibia is the most arid country in southern Africa, and is classified as experiencing medium-water stress from 2010-2014 by the Water Resources Institute (WRI) (World Bank, 2015) (Gassert, 2013). Increased water-resources management responsibility at the municipal level, population growth and urbanization trends necessitate community-scale quantification of water resources.

An annual water balance for the contributing sub-basin to Opuwo, Namibia was performed. The Behnke and Maxey method was used to estimate PET, and the methodology outlined by Allen, et al was used to determine soil moisture response to individual rainfall events for one hypothetical year. Water balance results indicate that of …

Design And Implementation Of A Mobile Test Cell, Timothy J. Okkema

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

In this thesis, a modular powertrain mounting and instrumentation system is developed to increase engine testing efficiency in the Michigan Technological University Mobile Laboratory (Mobile Lab). This method is specifically designed for use in an on-the-road application with limited space where traditional engine test cell designs are not practical. This system is made to be robust, but simple enough that it can easily be built by future powertrain test engineers. In addition, a wall mounted diesel system was developed to provide common rail injection pressures to add the ability for conversion of mechanical injected diesel engines. And finally, an engine …

Bio-Inspired Optimal Fin Shape And Angle For Maximum Surfboard Stability, Megan S. Macneill

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Wave surfing is a multi-billion dollar industry involving both maneuverability and speed, yet little research has been done regarding optimal fins shape for these competing qualities. The purpose of this master's thesis was to focus on a single fin setup in order to identify a bio-inspired fin shape that maximized lateral stability while minimizing drag forces, in order to increase surfing maneuverability.

The computational fluid dynamic models NX and laboratory experiments performed in a water channel, with lift and drag being directly measured, were used to compare nine fins based on dorsal fins of real fish. To properly compare, fluid …

Application Of Hydrodynamic Models In Simulating The Thermal Regime Of Lake Superior, Rasika K. Gawde

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

In large systems, such as the Great Lakes and coastal oceans, physical processes have a significant influence on chemical and biological phenomena. Hydrodynamic modeling assists in describing these physical characteristics and in recent years, these models have been extensively applied in the Great Lakes basin to study the response of the lake ecosystem to long-term meteorological forcing conditions.

Due to its role in mediating physical, biological and chemical processes in lake environments, water temperature (and the attendant thermal regime) has been the parameter of interest in many of these mathematical modeling studies and was adopted as the primary metric for …

Structures, Properties And Functionalities Of Magnetic Domain Walls In Thin Films, Nanowires And Atomic Chains: Micromagnetic And Ab Initio Studies, Liwei D. Geng

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Structures, properties and functionalities of magnetic domain walls in thin film, nanowires and atomic chains are studied by micromagnetic simulations and ab initio calculations in this dissertation. For magnetic domain walls in thin films, we computationally investigated the dynamics of one-dimensional domain wall line in ultrathin ferromagnetic film, and the exponent α = 1.24 ± 0.05 is obtained in the creep regime near depinning force, indicating the washboard potential model is supported by our simulations. Furthermore, the roughness, creep, depinning and flow of domain wall line with commonly existed substructures driven by magnetic field are also studied. Our simulation results …

Development Of A Fundamental Rating System For Identifying Sprawl: A Case Study Utilizing Small Cities In Michigan, Jonathan T. Riehl

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Urban sprawl research generally fits into one or more of four realms including definitions, causes, components, and consequences. Although research on consequences continues to thrive, research on components is in its adolescence, primarily due a lack of consensus on definition. Recent studies such as Ewing et al. 2014 have narrowed the list of sprawl metrics to about 20 within four factors including development density, land use mix, activity centering, and street accessibility.

This main product of this research is a Sprawl Scorecard for small Michigan cities varying in size from Traverse City, nearly 50,000 people in the urban cluster, down …

The Influence Of Passive Ankle Joint Power On Balance Recovery, Stephanie E. Hamilton

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Over one–third of Americans over the age of 65 fall each year, costing more than $19 billion in health care costs in 2000. Many adults 65+ who have not experienced a fall still fear falling, and fear can decrease quality of life and increase the likelihood of falls. Several factors such as muscle strength, power, stiffness and tendon properties change in the human body with age affecting balance, which has been tagged as a fall risk predictor. Additionally, balance recovery strategies also differ between young and older adults, with young adults primarily utilizing their ankle joint and older adults utilizing …

Mechanical Properties Of Graphene Nanoplatelet/Epoxy Composites, Danielle René Klimek-Mcdonald

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Due to their high specific stiffness, carbon-filled polymer composites are commonly used in the construction of structural components of subsonic fixed-wing aircrafts, such as the fuselage and control surfaces. In this work, neat epoxy (EPON 862 with EPIKURE Curing Agent W) was fabricated along with 1- 6 wt% of three types of GNP available from XG Sciences Inc. and 1-4 wt% of another type of GNP available from Asbury Carbons added to epoxy. The curing cycle for this epoxy was 121 °C for 2 hours followed by 177 °C for two hours.

GNP are short stacks of individual layers of …

Modeling Of Biomass Torrefaction And Pyrolysis And Its Applications, Jordan L. Klinger

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Utilizing biomass provides a possible near-term alternative solution for fossil energy dependence in both electricity generation and transportation. Though thermochemical conversion can produce solid/liquid fuels that are compatible in existing infrastructure, detailed scientific chemical and mechanistic understanding are still being developed. In contribution to these efforts, this work is focused on development of a semiempirical, lumped parameter, chemical kinetic model to describe the degradation of woody biomass.

The initial kinetic model was developed in the torrefaction region to describe the gas-phase evolution of products (water, organic acids, permanent gases, and furfural) through a three consecutive reaction model. In this model, …

Section 2: Materials, Design & Manufacturing, Ectc Coordinating Committee

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the 15th Annual Early Career Technical Conference, November 7, 2015. School of Engineering, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama; pp. 37-64

Development Of Rigorous Electromagnetic Simulation Tools For Anisotropic Structures, Jose Luis Enriquez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Many times, mankind's creative nature has pushed the envelope beyond what was deemed physically possible at the time. People have engineered ways for us to fly, communicate across the globe in seconds, landed on the moon, and more recently discovered ways to make an object invisible. Unfortunately, there are times that this creativeness is hindered by funding, access to required tools or a combination of both. While this work cannot provide funding, it does provide a tool that one could use to model and simulate a variety of media. The media can vary from devices already being implemented to more …

Evaluation Of Sixteen Reference Evapotranspiration Methods Under Sahelian Conditions In The Senegal River Valley, Koffi Djaman, Alpha B. Balde, Abdoulaye Sow, Bertrand Muller, Suat Irmak, Mamadou K. N'Diaye, Baboucarr Manneh, Yonnelle D. Moukoumbi, Koichi Futakuchi, Kazuki Saito

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Study region: Reference evapotranspiration (ETo) plays a key role in irrigation sys-tems design, water management under irrigated and rainfed production. Underthe sahelian conditions in the Senegal River Valley that receives less than 300 mmannual rainfall, rice crop water use should be estimated for the sustainability of theresource. Study focus: However the Penman–Monteith (PM) equation is revealed the mostaccurate one; it necessitates several climatic parameters that are not always avail-able mostly in the developing countries. The objective of this study was to evaluatethe performance of 16 ETo equations against the ASCE-PM equation under thesahelian conditions at Ndiaye and Fanaye …

Targeting G-Quadruplexes Within The Adam-15 Promoter: A Novel Therapeutic Approach For Breast Cancer, Rachel L. Jenkins

Honors Theses

ADAM-15 is a protein that is up-regulated in many diseases, particularly breast cancer; its over-expression is correlated with more aggressive and invasive phenotypes. The critical core promoter region of ADAM-15 is capable of forming a secondary DNA structure known as a G-quadruplex. The stabilization of this G-quadruplex has the potential to decrease the transcription of the over-expressed ADAM-15 protein. Six hundred forty compounds were screened for their ability to cause a shift in the melting temperature of an ADAM-15 oligonucleotide using FRET melt. Two compounds, NSC 146771 and NSC 260594, produced a significant shift in the melting temperature; further experimentation, …

Chemical Process Optimization For Dummies, Troy Mannino

Honors Theses

Chemical process optimization is a daunting task. The purpose of this work is to summarize and organize successful approaches which may be employed by the chemical process engineer when confronted with optimization problems. In general, optimization is making any process better; common goals are to increase the efficiency or maximize the economic potential of a process. The improvements made to a process during optimization are generally measured in terms of an objective function. Since the purpose of any industrial chemical process is to be profitable, objective functions most often have units of dollars. The objective function is dependent upon changes …

Optimization Of An Ethylbenzene Process, Garrison Padgett Morgan

Honors Theses

In industry, chemical plants should be running at optimal performance in order to maximize profit. However, this is frequently not the case. Optimization is the process of improving an existing situation, device, or, in the case of chemical engineers, a chemical process. Furthermore, there are numerous strategies to optimize a chemical process, and it is up to the engineer to decide what to change in order to make the optimization worthwhile. Last semester, I was able to show my knowledge of optimization by applying changes to an existing ethylbenzene producing plant. I simulated the base case for this plant and …

We All Go Home! The Evolution Of Firefighter Accountability Systems, Jeremy Roy

Honors Theses

Accountability is arguably the single most important tool that a fire department has at its disposal. Although accountability systems have been used throughout history, one thing is proven: when there is no accountability system in place, it is only a matter of time before firefighters will get injured, or worse, lose their lives. This work will discuss the history of fire department methodology dealing with the creation of incident management accountability systems. In order to provide historical evidence that lack of an accountability system can cause injury or death, case studies of multiple fire departments that have reported line of …

A Look Into Process Optimization, Joshua Hunter Lambert

Honors Theses

The goal for this paper is to inform the reader on the optimization process in chemical engineering design. The reader will gain knowledge about the step-by-step process as well as terminology of the optimization journey. Optimization takes a great amount of work, and it can be a daunting task if one gets caught up in the minute details. However, I will show that looking at the big picture will drastically ease the process and make optimizing much simpler. A base case will first be presented. The base case should be modeled using a process simulator, and then an economic analysis …

Delivery Of A Fatty Acid Signal Via Rtil For Biofilm Dispersion, Rachaud M. Keyes

Honors Theses

A number of proposed applications for ionic liquids involve ionic liquid/water interfaces, such as, chemical separations or drug delivery systems. Therefore, an understanding of the solubility and micellar behavior of ionic liquids in an aqueous environment is critical fundamental knowledge. The long term goal of our study was ionic liquids for delivery of biological active agents; therefore, we chose the anion, bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (Tf2N) since it promotes water stability and forms water immiscible RTILs. The study then paired the Tf2N-anion with three different classes of cations. By adding apolar substituents (-CH2-) to the cation, the size of the molecule increases in …

Multi-Scale Visualization Of Molecular Architecture Using Real-Time Ambient Occlusion In Sculptor, Manuel Wahle, Willy Wriggers

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

The modeling of large biomolecular assemblies relies on an efficient rendering of their hierarchical architecture across a wide range of spatial level of detail. We describe a paradigm shift currently under way in computer graphics towards the use of more realistic global illumination models, and we apply the so-called ambient occlusion approach to our opensource multi-scale modeling program, Sculptor. While there are many other higher quality global illumination approaches going all the way up to full GPU-accelerated ray tracing, they do not provide size-specificity of the features they shade. Ambient occlusion is an aspect of global lighting that offers great …

Modeling, Dynamics And Control Of Spacecraft Relative Motion In A Perturbed Keplerian Orbit, Mohamed Okasha, Brett Newman

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

The dynamics of relative motion in a perturbed orbital environment are exploited based on Gauss' and Cowell's variational equations. The inertial coordinate frame and relative coordinate frame (Hill frame) are used, and a linear high fidelity model is developed to describe the relative motion. This model takes into account the primary gravitational and atmospheric drag perturbations. Then, this model is used in the design of a navigation, guidance, and control system of a chaser vehicle to approach towards and to depart from a target vehicle in proximity operations. Relative navigation uses an extended Kalman filter based on this relative model …