Engineering Commons^™

Characterization Of The High Frequency Alternating Current Block In The Rat Sciatic Nerve Using Cuff Electrodes And Macro-Sieve Electrodes, Soumyajit Ray

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Tripolar cuff electrodes were designed, fabricated and non-chronically implanted in the sciatic nerve of two-month-old Lewis rats. A proximal constant current stimulus to the nerve was blocked by applying a high frequency sinusoidal signal to the distally placed tripolar cuff electrode. The frequency voltage characteristic of the blocking signal was obtained. Complete block was not achieved using variants of the tripolar cuff design and bipolar cuff electrodes. Single and dual macro-sieve electrode assemblies were designed, fabricated and chronically implanted in the sciatic nerve of Lewis rats. After a four-month period for regeneration four different electrode configurations were tested to enable …

Crack Healing In 304l Stainless Steel Using Additive Manufacturing And Friction Stir Processing (Fsp), Cameron Scott Gygi

Theses and Dissertations

Continuing an investigation on using FSP to heal stress corrosion cracks (SCC) in welds on nuclear reactors, this study seeks to use AM in addition to FSP to aid crack repair. Previous studies address that current repair technology on nuclear reactors involves the use of TIG welding which can allow helium atoms to aggregate and form voids at the grain boundaries. This weakens the material and renders the repair ineffective. Another previous study evaluated the effectiveness of FSP alone in repairing SCC which did have defects depending on the parameters used during FSP. This study evaluated the use of AM …

Multi-Objective Two-Stage Stochastic Programming For Adaptive Interdisciplinary Pain Management With Piece-Wise Linear Network Transition Models, Gazi Md Daud Iqbal

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Pain is the most common symptom when a patient visits a physician. People experience pain throughout their lifetime at different degrees. If short term pain is not treated properly, then it can become long term pain, which is also known as chronic pain. The Eugene McDermott Center for pain management at UT Southwestern Medical Center conducts a two-stage pain management program for chronic pain. This research uses a two-stage stochastic programming approach to optimize personal adaptive treatment strategies for pain management. The goal is to generate adaptive treatment strategies using statistics based optimization approaches that can be used by physicians …

A Supervised Approach For Training Gaussian Mixture Model Classifiers, Vineet Dilip Gundecha

Electrical Engineering Theses - Archive

A new method for training Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) classifiers is presented. First, an objective function is defined in terms of the number of clusters, K, per class, the mean vectors, the inverse covariance matrices for each class, and the prior probabilities for each class. For each increment in K, gradients of the objective function improve upon the prior probabilities, mean vectors, and inverse covariance matrices. Improvement in accuracy for different data-sets are shown and results are compared with the EM algorithm.

Multi-Source Uav-Based Object Classification Using Cnn’S And Data Acquisition System For Robotic Skin, Raghavendra Sriram Margasahayam Subrahamanyam

Electrical Engineering Theses - Archive

Autonomous robots are intelligent systems capable of performing tasks in the world by themselves, without explicit human control. Examples range from autonomous helicopters to Roomba, the robot vacuum cleaner to robotic manipulators. The numerous sensors onboard gather data related to the desired actions and this poses several challenges and design constraints in terms of computation and hardware design that can prove to be extremely difficult and expensive to avoid. The objective of this research is to study, develop and implement various Intelligent solutions to help solve several real-world problems with respect to multi agent configurations of unmanned systems. We shall …

Dynamic Rating Of Overhead Transmission Lines Over Complex Terrain Using A Large-Eddy Simulation Paradigm, Tyler Phillips, Ray Deleon, Inanc Senocak

Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Dynamic Line Rating (DLR) enables rating of power line conductors using real-time weather conditions. Conductors are typically operated based on a conservative static rating that assumes worst case weather conditions to avoid line sagging to unsafe levels. Static ratings can cause unnecessary congestion on transmission lines. To address this potential issue, a simulation-based dynamic line rating approach is applied to an area with moderately complex terrain. A micro-scale wind solver — accelerated on multiple graphics processing units (GPUs) — is deployed to compute wind speed and direction in the vicinity of powerlines. The wind solver adopts the large-eddy simulation technique …

Preparation, Characterization And Biological Activity Evaluation Of Some Metal Complexes From Novel Schiff Bases Based On Ambroxol Drug, Hoda Ahmed, Walaa H. Mahmoud, Mostafa M.H Khalil, Gehad G. Mohamed, Mostafa A. Radwan

Chemical Engineering

Novel Schiff bases were prepared as the condensation product of reaction of 2- hydroxybenzaldehyde and ambroxol drug (H2L1) and the second one from the reaction of 2-quinoline carbaldehyde with ambroxol (HL2). The synthesized Schiff basses were acted as a tridentate ligand for the preparation of new complexes through reaction with the metal ions of Cd(II) and Sn(II). The newly prepared Schiff bases and their metal complexes were characterized using some physicochemical techniques including elemental analysis, FT-IR, UV–Vis, mass spectrometry, conducti-metric measurements as well as thermal analyses (TGA/DTG),. On the basis of these studies, an octahedral geometry for both Cd(II) and …

Enhancements In Mass Transfer For Carbon Capture Solvents Part I: Homogeneous Catalyst, Leland R. Widger, Moushumi Sarma, Jonathan J. Bryant, David S. Mannel, Jesse G. Thompson, Cameron A. Lippert, Kunlei Liu

Center for Applied Energy Research Faculty and Staff Publications

The novel small molecule carbonic anhydrase (CA) mimic [Co^III(Salphen-COO⁻)Cl]HNEt₃ (1), was synthesized as an additive for increasing CO₂ absorption rates in amine-based post-combustion carbon capture processes (CCS), and its efficacy was verified. 1 was designed for use in a kinetically slow but thermally stable blended solvent, containing the primary amines 1-amino-2-propanol (A2P) and 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol (AMP). Together, the A2P/AMP solvent and 1 reduce the overall energy penalty associated with CO₂ capture from coal-derived flue gas, relative to the baseline solvent MEA. 1 is also effective at increasing absorption kinetics of kinetically fast solvents, such …

Making Public Health Performance Measures For Transportation Accessible To Practitioners, Ziaur Rahman

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Pollutants emitted into the atmosphere from static and mobile sources pose a threat to human health. The detrimental impact associated with air pollution varies by the type of pollutant, the magnitude, frequency and duration of exposure, and the associated toxicity. While stationary sources play an important role in air pollution, motor vehicle exhaust emissions represent the single largest source of regional air pollution in urban areas. Moreover, outdoor physical activity requires an increased oxygen level with an increase in exercise intensity. Research has shown that both the ventilation and deposition fractions increase significantly during outdoor activities, which may lead to …

Integrated Modeling Of Storm Drain And Natural Channel Networks For Real-Time Flash Flood Forecasting And Stormwater Planning And Management In Large Urban Areas, Hamideh Habibi

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Urban flash flooding is a serious problem in large highly populated areas such as the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex (DFW). Being able to monitor and predict flash flooding at a high spatiotemporal resolution is critical to mitigating its threats and for cost effective emergency management. In this reserach, a high-resolution flash flood forecast system which operates in real time is developed for DFW using a gridded distributed hydrologic model and high-resolution quantitative precipitation estimates from the DFW Demostration Network of the Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CASA) Program high-resolution X band radars and the National Weather Service (NWS) NEXRAD radar. …

Building Intelligence In The Automated Traffic Signal Performance Measures With Advanced Data Analytics, Tingting Huang, Subhadipto Poddar, Chris Aguilar, Anuj Sharma, Edward J. Smaglik, Sirisha Kothuri, Peter Koonce

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Automated traffic signal performance measures (ATSPMs) are an effort to equip traffic signal controllers with high-resolution data-logging capabilities and utilize this data to generate performance measures. These measures allow practitioners to improve operations as well as to maintain and operate their systems in a safe and efficient manner. Although these measures have changed the way that operators manage their systems, several shortcomings of the tool, identified by talking with signal operators, are a lack of data quality control and the extent of resources required to properly use the tool for system-wide management. To address these shortcomings, intelligent traffic signal performance …

Lifetime Reliability-Based Optimization Of Post-Tensioned Box-Girder Bridges, Tatiana García-Segura, Victor Yepes, Dan M. Frangopol, David Y. Yang

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper presents a lifetime reliability-based approach for the optimization of post-tensioned concrete box-girder bridges under corrosion attack. The proposed approach is illustrated by determining the optimal life-cycle cost and CO2 emissions of several initial designs of post-tensioned box-girder bridges with different objectives, i.e. the lowest initial costs, the longest corrosion initiation time, or the maximum safety. The study was conducted in two steps. Firstly, the Pareto set presents initial designs considering the cross-section geometry, the concrete strength, the reinforcing steel and the prestressing steel. Secondly, the maintenance optimization was conducted with the proposed method, aimed at minimizing the economic, …

Best Practices For Volume Flow Rate Measurements Using Piv At The Exit Of A Turbulent Round Jet, Robert Schaap

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Particle image velocimetry (PIV) is an optical flow measurement technique that is used to measure volume flow rate at the exit of a turbulent, round nozzle. The objective of this thesis is to determine how to best make this measurement. The quality of the measurement is affected by a range of data acquisition parameters and how data are processed. Measurements are made over a range of different flows using the two main types of PIV: Two Component (2C), which uses one camera, and Stereo, which uses two cameras, similar to human eyes. Previous work done for data acquisition and processing …

Versatile Optochemical Quantification With Optical Mouse, Altamash Fakki, Salahaldein Ahmed, Jongwon Park, Chang-Soo Kim

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

There is an ever increasing need for simple, low-cost instruments for ubiquitous medical and environmental measurements in conjunction with networks and Internet-of-things. This work demonstrates that the optical mouse, one of the most common optoelectronic computer peripherals, can be used for chemical quantification. Particularly, we explore the feasibility of using the preassembled optical platform of mouse for oxygen and pH quantification. The image sensor and the light-emitting diode (LED) serve as photodetector and excitation/illumination light source, respectively, while the preinstalled microoptics (e.g., lens and waveguide) provide a fixed optical arrangement convenient for sample analysis. This novel, cost-effective approach demonstrates the …

Recovery Of Phosphate Minerals From Plant Tailings Using Direct Froth Flotation, Ashraf Alsafasfeh, Lana Z. Alagha

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Wastes produced from the phosphate industry presents many challenges due to the high economic and environmental impacts involved with their disposal. However, the relative scarcity of high-grade phosphate ores has driven researchers to recover and recycle these valuable wastes (secondary sources). The goal of this study was to investigate the possibility of upgrading the P₂O₅ content in tailings produced from a phosphorous production plant using direct froth flotation. Characterization assays, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and mineral liberation analysis (MLA), were first conducted to identify the mineralogical and morphological characteristics of …

Realizing Structural Color Generation With Aluminum Plasmonic V-Groove Metasurfaces, W. Wang, D. Rosenmann, D. Czaplewski, Xiaodong Yang, Jie Gao

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

No abstract provided.

Apparatus For Converting Direct Current To Alternating Current Using Multiple Converters, Patrick L. Chapman, Brian T. Kuhn, Robert S. Balog, Jonathan W. Kimball, Philip T. Krein, Alexander Gray

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

An inverter for converting an input direct current (DC) waveform from a DC source to an output alternating current (AC) waveform for delivery to an AC grid includes an input converter, an output converter, and an active filter, each of which is electrically coupled to a bus. The bus may be a DC bus or an AC bus. The input converter is configured to convert the input DC waveform to a DC or AC bus waveform. The output converter is configured to convert the bus waveform to the output AC waveform at a grid frequency. The active filter is configured …

Identifying Corrosion Zones In Coastal Regions For Metal Pipes -- A Gis Approach, Sanjay Tewari, Francis Manning

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Transportation agencies often allow metal pipes as an option for cross drains under/along roads and highways. Metal culverts can corrode over time at various rates based on their environmental conditions (e.g., corrosive nature of coastal soils, high water table and saltwater intrusion). This paper focuses on applying readily available soil data such as spatial distribution of soil types and soil characteristics (e.g., pH and conductivity) towards creating a geospatial information system (GIS) based approach to identifying corrosion zones in the coastal regions. A combination of data, obtained from field surveys provided by the Louisiana Transportation Research Center and Web Soil …

The Influence Of The Electrode Dimension On The Detection Sensitivity Of Electric Cell–Substrate Impedance Sensing (Ecis) And Its Mathematical Modeling, Xudong Zhang, William Wang, Anis Nurashikin Nordin, Fang Li, Sunghoon Jang, Ioana Voiculescu

Publications and Research

Detection sensitivity is a crucial criterion in the design and application of ECIS sensors. The influence of sensing electrode dimension on detection sensitivity is investigated in this paper. Eight types of ECIS sensors were fabricated, and their experimental results reveal that smaller-radius working electrodes generate more sensitive impedance shift to cell density change. Also, the smaller radius of working electrodes yield higher impedance values, which improves signal-to-noise ratio. In a range from 1.0 mm to 3.5 mm, the distance between the working and counter electrodes does not affect impedance measurements. However, the distance should be large enough to prevent the …

Stress-Based Topology Optimization Of Steel-Frame Structures Using Members With Standard Cross Sections: Gradient-Based Approach, Navid Changizi, Mehdi Jalalpour

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

This article presents a computationally efficient methodology for stress-based topology optimization of steel frame structures with cross-sectional properties that are mapped from I-beam sections of a design manual. To account for the natural variability of the data, this mapping is achieved via quantile regression to derive continuous relationships between cross-sectional area (the design variable) and other section properties. These relationships are used for deriving the gradient of structural performance, which allows using computationally efficient gradient-based optimization schemes. Three frame structures are designed using the proposed algorithm, the resulting designs are compared with traditional compliance-based topology optimization algorithms, and changes in …

Magnetic Control Of Lateral Migration Of Ellipsoidal Microparticles In Microscale Flows, R. Zhou, C. A. Sobecki, J. Zhang, Yanzhi Zhang, Cheng Wang

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Research & Creative Works

No abstract provided.

On-Chip Training Of Memristor Crossbar Based Multi-Layer Neural Networks, Raqibul Hasan, Tarek M. Taha, Christopher Yakopcic

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Memristor crossbar arrays carry out multiply-add operations in parallel in the analog domain, and so can enable neuromorphic systems with high throughput at low energy and area consumption. On-chip training of these systems have the significant advantage of being able to get around device variability and faults. This paper presents on-chip training circuits for multi-layer neural networks implemented using a single crossbar per layer and two memristors per synapse. Using two memristors per synapse provides double the synaptic weight precision when compared to a design that uses only one memristor per synapse. Proposed on-chip training system utilizes the back propagation …

Development Of Empirical And Virtual Tools For The Study Of Bicycle Safety, Brent Kostich

Masters Theses

Bicycles have been used as a form of non-motorized transportation for several hundred years. Recently, their use in the transportation realm has been reinvigorated because of growing population densities and efforts to improve environmental sustainability. However, a large deterrent for public use of the bicycle is concern over its level of safety in the transportation environment. The goal of this thesis is to develop two complementary research tools that advance the study of bicycle safety factors.

First, an instrumented probe bicycle (IPB) is constructed from the ground up. The bicycle is outfitted with an array of sensors that are integrated …

2017 Safety Belt Usage Survey In Kentucky, Kenneth R. Agent, Eric R. Green, Erin Lammers-Staats

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The use of safety belts and child safety seats is a proven means of reducing injuries to motor vehicle occupants involved in traffic crashes. The objective of the survey summarized in this report was to establish a statewide safety belt usage rate in Kentucky for 2017. This rate can be compared to those determined from previous surveys. The 2017 statewide survey documents the continued increase in usage associated with the change in the law to allow primary enforcement and related education and enforcement.

Snow And Ice Removal Route Optimization In Kentucky, Benjamin L. Blandford, Erin Lammers-Staats, Eric R. Green

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Each year the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) spends $40-$80 million removing snow and ice from the state’s roadways. Snow and ice removal are accomplished through a system of snow and ice removal routes that are designed to account for location and the attributes of trucks, facilities, materials, and roadways. To identify strategies that will improve and optimize KYTC’s snow and ice removal operations, Kentucky Transportation Center (KTC) researchers used ArcGIS and its Network Analyst extension to study the performance of the Cabinet’s current routing procedures. Building from this investigation, researchers developed optimized snowplow routings for four counties located in KYTC …

Simulation And Prediction Of The Groundwater Level In The Surrounding Area Of The Nebraska Management System Evaluation Area Site In Central Nebraska., Cesar Augusto Gomez Peña

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

An efficient water budget is necessary to develop sustainable practices in irrigated lands and determine future trends. Despite a lack of detailed knowledge, climate change is found to profoundly influence groundwater resources through changes in groundwater recharge, groundwater elevation, and groundwater flow processes. Prediction of the groundwater level (GWL) under a changing climate is essential to improve agricultural management.

The goal of this research is to predict the GWL from 2056 to 2060 in the surrounding area of the MSEA. In order to achieve the target, the first research task is to develop a groundwater flow model and then simulate …

Deep Learning And Transfer Learning In The Classification Of Eeg Signals, Jacob M. Williams

School of Computing: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Deep learning is seldom used in the classification of electroencephalography (EEG) signals, despite achieving state of the art classification accuracies in other spatial and time series data. Instead, most research has continued to use manual feature extraction followed by a traditional classifier, such as SVMs or logistic regression. This is largely due to the low number of samples per experiment, high-dimensional nature of the data, and the difficulty in finding appropriate deep learning architectures for classification of EEG signals. In this thesis, several deep learning architectures are compared to traditional techniques for the classification of visually evoked EEG signals. We …

Exploring The Telecommunications Properties Of The Human Nervous System: Analytical Modeling And Experimental Validation Of Information Flow Through The Somatosensory System, Natalie Hanisch

School of Computing: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The growing field of Body Area Networks (BANs) is providing solutions to the wireless connectivity of wearable and implantable devices with applications in medicine, entertainment, fitness, and military, amongst others. While electromagnetic wave propagation has been the main BANs' enabling technology, the increasingly pervasive nature of these devices encourages novel solutions with added bio-compatibility and sustainability. In this thesis, a novel communication system is proposed for BANs based on the natural propagation of tactile stimuli through the nervous system. This system is composed of a tactile stimulator coupled to an ElectroEncephaloGraphy (EEG) system, and realizes the propagation of somatosensory signals …

A Comparative Analysis Of Feed And Environmental Factors On Broiler Growth In The United States, Alexandra Gulli

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Broiler production in the United States has become an important industry within the last half century. As the demand for poultry continues to increase and the concern of climate change also increases, it will become an important part of the industry to become more sustainable. This study uses a feed optimization model, a broiler growth model, and a life cycle assessment (LCA) to determine how feed ingredients and the barn environment can affect the broiler’s growth and production emissions. A multi-criteria ration optimization model is used to produce feeds based on carbon footprint and cost. A growth model is used …

Evaluating Thermal Comfort Of Broiler Chickens During Transportation Using Heat Index And Simulated Electronic Chickens, Kaushik Luthra

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Broilers experience high physiological stress during pre-slaughter transport, especially under extremes of thermal environment. Characterization of thermal environment on the trailer is crucial to identify stress-prone regions during transportation. At the same time, Broilers experience high physiological stress during pre-slaughter transport, especially under extremes of thermal environment. Characterization of thermal environment on the trailer is crucial to identify stress-prone regions during transportation. At the same time, quantification of heat loss of the broilers loaded on trailers is important in understanding the well-being of the broilers. We have developed four electronic chickens (E-chickens) to simulate the sensible heat loss of live …