Engineering Commons^™

Truck Routing Issues, Kenneth R. Agent

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Commercial vehicle drivers selecting inappropriate routes where the handling characteristics (e.g., off-tracking) and dimensions of their trucks are not consistent with a roadway’s cross section and geometrics can damage the vehicle, harm adjacent property, or result in crashes. Analysis of crashes that involve the use of inappropriate routes indicate a significant number are caused by drivers receiving faulty directions from in-truck GPS units or adhering to incorrect directions provided by their companies. The Kentucky Transportation Center (KTC) investigated strategies to ensure truck drivers are given correct directions when traveling on Kentucky roadways. As part of this effort, this report reviews …

Degradation Of Bisphenol-A By Dielectric Barrier Discharge System: Influence Of Polyethylene Glycol Stabilized Nano Zero Valent Iron Particles, Jimoh O. Tijani, Massima E.S. Mouele, Ojo O. Fatoba, Omotola O. Babajide, Leslie F. Petrik

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this study we report the synthesis and catalytic properties of polyethylene glycol stabilized nano zero valent iron particles (PEG-nZVI) added to the dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) system to induce photo-Fenton process in the degradation of bisphenol A (BPA) in aqueous solution. The influence of operating parameters such as solution pH, initial concentration of the modelled pollutant and PEG-nZVI dosage on the extent of BPA degradation was investigated. The residual concentration of BPA and its intermediates were determined using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS). The high-resolution scanning electron microscope (HRSEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller …

Dpm Dispersion Inside A Single Straight Entry Using Dynamic Mesh Model, Yi Zheng, Ying Li, Magesh Thiruvengadam, Hai Lan, Jerry C. Tien

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Three-dimensional simulations of diesel particulate matter (DPM) distribution inside a single straight entry for the Load-Haul-Dump loader (LHD)-truck loading and truck hauling operations were conducted by using ANSYS FLUENT computational fluid dynamics software. The loading operation was performed for a fixed period of 3 min. The dynamic mesh technique in FLUENT was used to study the impact of truck motion on DPM distribution. The resultant DPM distributions are presented for the cases when the truck was driving upstream and downstream of the loading face. Interesting phenomena were revealed in the study including the piston effect, layering of DPM in the …

The Effects Of Chemical Coagulants On The Decolorization Of Dyes By Electrocoagulation Using Response Surface Methodology (Rsm), Erick B. Butler, Yung-Tse Hung, Oliver Mulamba

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

This study assessed the efficiency of electrocoagulation (ECF) coupled with an addition of chemical coagulant to decolorize textile dye. Tests were conducted using Box Behnken methodology to vary six parameters: dye type, weight, coagulant type, dose, initial pH and current density. The combination of electrocoagulation and chemical coagulation was able to decolorize dye up to 99.42 % in 30 min of treatment time which is remarkably shorter in comparison with using conventional chemical coagulation. High color removal was found to be contingent upon the dye type and current density, along with the interactions between the current density and the coagulant …

Chaos-Based Encryption Keys And Neural Key-Store For Cloud-Hosted Data Confidentiality, N.N Mosola, M.T Dlamini, Jonathan Blackledge, J.H.P Eloff, H.S Venter

Conference papers

Cloud computing brings flexible and cost-effective services. However, security concerns plague the cloud. Data confidentiality is one of the security concerns inhibiting the adoption of cloud computing. This concern stems from various cyberattacks directed towards gaining unauthorised access to cloud-bound or cloud-hosted data. This paper proposes a clientend encryption and key management system to curb cyberattacks that target compromising data confidentiality on the cloud.

Impulse, Matt Schmidt, Lora Berg, Christine Delfanian, Dave Graves, Heidi Kronaizl, Emily Weber, Micayla Standish

Impulse (Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering Publication)

[Page] 2 Better Equipped
[Page] 4 Flashback Summer Scholars
[Page] 6 Biomedical Engineering
Ryan Mahutga is the third mechanical engineering graduate in five years to receive a prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.
Nigerian native John Asiruwa is working with associate professor Stephen Gent on a mechanical engineering project to help Sanford Health build better heart stents.
Electrical engineering graduate Bruce Lutz has selected the biomedical engineering program as a target for his future giving.
[Page] 9 Programs Accredited
[Page] 10 Fast Wheels
[Page] 12 Five Unforgettable Weeks
[Page] 14 Second in the Nation
[Page] 16 Athletes and Engineering …

Direct Numerical Simulation Of Turbulent Katabatic Slope Flows With An Immersed-Boundary Method, Clancy Umphrey, Ray Deleon, Inanc Senocak

Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

We investigate a Cartesian-mesh immersed-boundary formulation within an incompressible flow solver to simulate laminar and turbulent katabatic slope flows. As a proof-of-concept study, we consider four different immersed-boundary reconstruction schemes for imposing a Neumann-type boundary condition on the buoyancy field. Prandtl’s laminar solution is used to demonstrate the second-order accuracy of the numerical solutions globally. Direct numerical simulation of a turbulent katabatic flow is then performed to investigate the applicability of the proposed schemes in the turbulent regime by analyzing both first- and second-order statistics of turbulence. First-order statistics show that turbulent katabatic flow simulations are noticeably sensitive to the …

A Systems-Based Framework For Design And Analysis Of An R And D Structure, Polinpapilinho F. Katina, Charles B. Keating, Luna M. Magpili

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

A critical challenge for managerial effectiveness and competitive advantage in research and development (R and D) organizations is developing an appropriate structural configuration. However, in finding an appropriate structural configuration, R and D managers are faced with unprecedented levels of uncertainty, ambiguity, and accelerating complexity, coupled with demands for increased productivity. This paper develops a systems-based framework to support rigorous design, analysis, and transformation of the structure for R and D organizations. The framework development includes: (1) a review of the literature for the nature and role of the structure in R and D management; (2) setting of the R …

Llogaritja E Aftësisë Mbajtëse E Objektit Afaristbanesor B+P+10 Në Gjilan, Endrit Muçiqi

Theses and Dissertations

Kjo temë paraqet matjen e aftësisë mbajtëse të tokës në objektin afaristë në Gjilan. Në këtë temë janë paraqitur shpimet në tokë sipas dimensioni mit të objektit , ku janë marr mostrat e dheut për nxjerrjen e parametrave fiziko-mekanik, që janë të domosdoshëm për llogaritjen e aftësisë mbajtës të tokës, Llogaritjet janë kryer sipas thellësive prej 0.5-5.0m me anë të dy metodave metoda sipas Terzak-ut dhe metoda sipas Meyerhof-it të paraqitur si me poshtë në tabelën nr (25,26,27)

Impact Of Surface Ozone Interactions On Indoor Air Chemistry: A Modeling Study, M. Kruza, A. C. Lewis, G. C. Morrison, N. Carslaw

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

An INdoor air Detailed Chemical Model was developed to investigate the impact of ozone reactions with indoor surfaces (including occupants), on indoor air chemistry in simulated apartments subject to ambient air pollution. The results are consistent with experimental studies showing that approximately 80% of ozone indoors is lost through deposition to surfaces. The human body removes ozone most effectively from indoor air per square meter of surface, but the most significant surfaces for C6-C10 aldehyde formation are soft furniture and painted walls owing to their large internal surfaces. Mixing ratios of between 8 and 11 ppb of C6-C10 aldehydes are …

Effects Of Loading Rate On Gas Seepage And Temperature In Coal And Its Potential For Coal-Gas Disaster Early-Warning, Chong Zhang, Xiaofei Liu, Guang Xu, Xiaoran Wang

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The seepage velocity and temperature externally manifest the changing structure, gas desorption and energy release that occurs in coal containing gas failure under loading. By using the system of coal containing gas failure under loading, this paper studies the law of seepage velocity and temperature under different loading rates and at 1.0 MPa confining pressure and 0.5 MPa gas pressure, and combined the on-site results of gas pressure and temperature. The results show that the stress directly affects the seepage velocity and temperature of coal containing gas, and the pressure and content of gas have the most sensitivity to mining …

Impact Of Coalbed Incidence Angle On Methane Enrichment Zone In Longwall Gob, Shengyong Hu, Ao Zhang, Guorui Feng, Shuwen Guan, Xiangqian Guo, Chao Li, Guang Xu

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

To control methane emissions in gob into longwall working faces, it is necessary to understand the distributions of methane enrichment zones (MEZ) around mined coal seams with different incidence angles. In this paper, FLAC^3D software is used to calculate the three-dimensional stress distributions in MEZ in gobs with coalbed incidence angles ranging from 0° to 50°. The results show that MEZ consistently exhibit a "hexagon" shape, and rotate in a clockwise direction as the coalbed angle increases. The MEZ range above the mined seam is larger than that below the mined seam. As the coalbed angle increases, the MEZ …

Degradation Of 2-Nitrophenol By Dielectric Barrier Discharge System: The Influence Of Carbon Doped Tio2 Photocatalyst Supported On Stainless Steel Mesh, J. O. Tijani, M. E.S. Mouele, T. C. Tottito, O. O. Fatoba, L. F. Petrik

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This study investigated the degradation of 2-nitrophenol (2-NP) in aqueous solution by dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) system alone and its combination with supported TiO₂ photocatalysts. The TiO₂ photocatalyst supported on a stainless-steel mesh was synthesized using sol–gel solution of 8% polyacrylonitrile (PAN)/dimethylformamide/TiCl4 followed by pyrolysis in the furnace under N2 atmosphere at temperatures of 300, 350, or 400 °C for 3 h holding time. The supported catalysts were characterized for their morphologies, functional groups, crystallinity, surface areas and elemental chemical states by high resolution scanning electron microscope (HRSEM), Fourier transform infrared, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area, …

Spiraling Light With Magnetic Metamaterial Quarter-Wave Turbines, J. Zeng, T. S. Luk, Jie Gao, Xiaodong Yang

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

No abstract provided.

Streamlined Project Closeout For Construction At Kytc, Tyler A. Johnson, Dominic A. Michaels, Roy E. Sturgill, Timothy R. B. Taylor

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Project closeout is the period between the end of construction and when a contract is finalized. During closeout, resources are held in encumbered funds intended for the project and in the contractor’s bonding capacity. Although the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s (KYTC) stated goal is to close out projects within 240 days of their ending, in 2016 the average duration of project closeout was 366 days. This report analyzes the Cabinet’s project closeout procedures, summarizes project closeout best practices adopted by other state transportation agencies, and recommends ways to improve KYTC’s practices. Streamlining project closeouts would free up sufficient funds to resurface …

Cfrp Strengthening Of Ky 583 Over The Bluegrass Parkway Bridge In Hardin Country, Abheetha Peiris, Issam E. Harik

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The report details the planning, design, and construction of the retrofit measure on the KY 583 Bridge (047B00072N), which traverses the Bluegrass Parkway in Hardin County, Kentucky. Reinforced concrete girders within the span over the eastbound Bluegrass Parkway of the bridge had cracks that led to concrete delamination and deterioration of the girders.

To remedy the problem, triaxial carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) fabric sheets were selected to perform a retrofit due to their strength, conformability, and flexibility. The concrete surface, over which the fabric sheets were applied, were first prepared by removing all spalling and deteriorated concrete, which exposed …

Kytc Maintenance Overview And Budget Analysis, Nancy Albright, Bryan Gibson, Steven Douglas Kreis

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) manages over 27,500 miles of the state’s roadways and is responsible for preserving many assets in a good state of repair, including bridges, traffic signals, lighting features, traffic signs, and guardrails. The Cabinet’s Maintenance function, which encompasses maintenance (e.g., patching potholes, repainting roadway lines and markings, cleaning bridges, mowing) and operations (e.g., plowing and salting roadways; keeping signs, traffic signals, and roadway signals functional), had a budget in FY 2018 of roughly $350 million. This report describes core maintenance functions and reviews their importance for preserving Kentucky’s roadway network and analyzes trends in KYTC’s maintenance …

Early Empirical Evidence For The Effects Of Adaptive Ramp Metering On Measures Of Travel Time Reliability, Travis Charles Low

Master's Theses

Adaptive ramp metering (ARM) is a critical component of smart freeway corridors under an active traffic management portfolio. While improving capacity through smart corridors and application of proactive traffic management solutions is less costly and easier to deploy than freeway widening, conversion to smart corridors still represents a sizable investment for a state department of transportation. Early evidence of improvements following these projects can be valuable to agencies. However, in the U.S. there have been limited evaluations, of smart corridors in general and ARM in particular, based on real operational data. This thesis explores travel time reliability measures for the …

Delayed Hypersensitivity To Nanosecond Pulsed Electric Field In Electroporated Cells, Sarah D. Jensen, Vera A. Khorokhorina, Claudia Muratori, Andrei G. Pakhomov, Olga N. Pakhomova

Bioelectrics Publications

We demonstrate that conditioning of mammalian cells by electroporation with nanosecond pulsed electric field (nsPEF) facilitates their response to the next nsPEF treatment. The experiments were designed to unambiguously separate the electroporation-induced sensitization and desensitization effects. Electroporation was achieved by bursts of 300-ns, 9 kV/cm pulses (50 Hz, n = 3–100) and quantified by propidium dye uptake within 11 min after the nsPEF exposure. We observed either sensitization to nsPEF or no change (when the conditioning was either too weak or too intense, or when the wait time after conditioning was too short). Within studied limits, conditioning never caused desensitization. …

Damage-Free Peripheral Nerve Stimulation By 12-Ns Pulsed Electric Field, Maura Casciola, Shu Xiao, Andrei G. Pakhomov

Bioelectrics Publications

Modern technologies enable deep tissue focusing of nanosecond pulsed electric field (nsPEF) for non-invasive nerve and muscle stimulation. However, it is not known if PEF orders of magnitude shorter than the activation time of voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSC) would evoke action potentials (APs). One plausible scenario requires the loss of membrane integrity (electroporation) and resulting depolarization as an intermediate step. We report, for the first time, that the excitation of a peripheral nerve can be accomplished by 12-ns PEF without electroporation. 12-ns stimuli at 4.1-11 kV (3.3-8.8 kV/cm) evoked APs similarly to conventional stimuli (100-250 mus, 1-5 V, 103-515 V/m), …

Quantifying Roadside Assessment For Highway Safety, Reginald R. Souleyrette, Michael A. Fields, Heather Hunt

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Many of Kentucky’s two-lane rural roads pose an above average risk for fixed object crashes. In Kentucky, run-off-road (ROR) collisions with fixed objects account for 18.9% of all crashes and 41.6% of fatal crashes. Accordingly, ROR crashes are a significant public safety hazard that must be addressed through judicious investments in safety improvements. Until recently, transportation engineers and planners have mostly leveraged qualitative metrics to prioritize safety investments, however, qualitative methodologies are problematic because they may rely excessively on subjective opinion and intuition. This study applied methodologies and software from the U.S. Road Assessment Program (usRAP) to develop quantitative, objective …

Long-Term Corrosion Protection Of Bridge Elements Reinforcing Materials In Concrete, Christopher W. Van Dyke, Bobby W. Meade, Danny Wells, Sudhir Palle, Theodore Hopwood Ii

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Preventing or mitigating the corrosion of reinforcing steel in bridge decks is a major challenge for state transportation agencies. With agency budgets stretched thinner every year, they must implement strategies to extend the service lives of bridges and other critical structures. As such, it is imperative for them to adopt cost effective materials and maintenance practices to delay the onset of bridge corrosion. To assist the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) in its efforts to improve the condition of its bridges as well as its construction and maintenance practices, researchers at the Kentucky Transportation Center (KTC) investigated the use and performance …

Can Deep Learning Techniques Improve The Risk Adjusted Returns From Enhanced Indexing Investment Strategies, Anthony Grace

Dissertations

Deep learning techniques have been widely applied in the field of stock market prediction particularly with respect to the implementation of active trading strategies. However, the area of portfolio management and passive portfolio management in particular has been much less well served by research to date. This research project conducts an investigation into the science underlying the implementation of portfolio management strategies in practice focusing on enhanced indexing strategies. Enhanced indexing is a passive management approach which introduces an element of active management with the aim of achieving a level of active return through small adjustments to the portfolio weights. …

Large-Scale Testing Of Low-Strength Cellular Concrete For Skewed Bridge Abutments, Tyler Kirk Remund

Theses and Dissertations

Low-strength cellular concrete consists of a cement slurry that is aerated prior to placement. It remains a largely untested material with properties somewhere between those of soil, geofoam, and typical controlled low-strength material (CLSM). The benefits of using this material include its low density, ease of placement, and ability to self-compact. Although the basic laboratory properties of this material have been investigated, little information exists about the performance of this material in the field, much less the passive resistance behavior of this material in the field.In order to evaluate the use of cellular concrete as a backfill material behind bridge …

Teaching Professional Skills In Engineering Programmes: The Academic Perspective, Una Beagon

Other resources

My interest in preparing engineering students for a successful career in industry stems from personal experience of recruiting, mentoring and managing graduates in civil and structural engineering consultancies. The range of skills, abilities and values of each graduate was varied, and it became apparent that academic achievement, whilst important, was not the defining skill for achieving early responsibility or promotion within the company. More often, the graduate who could communicate well and self-direct his/her work was given more responsibility and opportunity.

The intent in this paper is to present a plan for a PhD research study in order to elicit …

Kytc Sidewalk And Curb Ramp Inventory For Ada Compliance, Reginald R. Souleyrette, Brian K. Howell, William Nicholas Staats

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) requires that all public and private organizations providing services to the public ensure their facilities and infrastructure comply with regulations set forth therein. The ADA requires that a transition plan “identify physical obstacles in the public entity’s facilities that limit the accessibility of its programs or activities to individuals with disabilities.” In the first phase of Kentucky’s transition plan to become ADA compliant, KTC researchers inventoried sidewalks along all state-maintained roads in Kentucky to determine the presence or absence of pedestrian facilities. This sidewalk inventory was used to query Kentucky’s intersection database …

Analysis Of Traffic Crash Data In Kentucky (2012-2016), Eric R. Green, Kenneth R. Agent, Jerry G. Pigman, Paul A. Ross

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report documents an analysis of traffic crash data in Kentucky for the years of 2012 through 2016. A primary objective of this study was to determine average crash statistics for Kentucky highways. Rates were calculated for various types of highways and for counties and cities. Difference criteria were used for exposure.

The other primary objective of this study was to provide data that can be used in the preparation of the problem identification portion of Kentucky’s Annual Highway Safety Plan. County and city crash statistics were analyzed. A summary of results and recommendations in several problem identification areas is …

Feature Extraction And Parallel Visualization For Large-Scale Scientific Data, Lina Yu

School of Computing: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Advanced computing and sensing technologies enable scientists to study natural and physical phenomena with unprecedented precision, resulting in an explosive growth of data. The unprecedented amounts of data generated from large scientific simulations impose a grand challenge in data analytics and visualization due to the fact that data are too massive for transferring, storing, and processing.

This dissertation makes the first contribution to the design of novel transfer functions and application-aware data replacement policy to facilitate feature classification on highly parallel distributed systems. We design novel transfer functions that advance the classification of continuously changed volume data by combining the …

Chiral Metamaterial-Based Microwave Sensors, Nantakan Wongkasem, Amornthep Sonsilphong, Mario Gonzalez

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

A significant resonance shift is found in both reflection and transmission coefficients from both parallel and perpendicular excitations in a helical structure. The responses from the perpendicular excitation show better sensitivity than those from the parallel excitation at 480 MHz-560 MHz for 0.2 circumference difference. Additional electromagnetic properties of a helical structure, such as chirality, optical rotatory dispersion and circular dichroism can also further combine to enhance the sensing performance.

A Fast Fpga Implementation For Triple Des Encryption Scheme, Edni Del Rosal, Sanjeev Kumar

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

In cryptography, the Triple DES (3DES, TDES or officially TDEA) is a symmetric-key block cipher which applies the Data Encryption Standard (DES) cipher algorithm three times to each data block. Electronic payment systems are known to use the TDES scheme for the encryption/decryption of data, and hence faster implementations are of great significance. Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) offer a new solution for optimizing the performance of applications meanwhile the Triple Data Encryption Standard (TDES) offers a mean to secure information. In this paper we present a pipelined implementation in VHDL, in Electronic Code Book (EBC) mode, of this commonly …