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Mechanical Engineering Students Sweep Technical Writing Contest | College Of Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Students from the Department of Mechanical Engineering swept the Technical Writing Competition held in February.

Flying The Beam: Navigating The Early Us Airmail Airways, 1917-1941, Henry Lehrer

ERAU Prescott Aviation History Program

We tend to take for granted the infrastructure that makes modern air travel possible. However, the systems, technologies and regulations of civil aviation are in fact the product of decades of experimentation much of it connected to development of airmail as the first sustainable use of airplanes. Hear this fascinating tale from an author, historian, educator and pilot who spent part of his life flying the Transcontinental Airway that stretched from New York City across the nation all the way to San Francisco.

Opening Autonomous Airspace–A Prologue, Samuel M. Vance

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The proliferation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), and in particular small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS), has significant operational implications for the Air Traffic Control (ATC) system of the future. Integrating unmanned aircraft safely presents long-standing challenges, especially during the lengthy transition period when unmanned vehicles will be mixed with piloted vehicles. Integration of dissimilar systems is not an easy, straight-forward task and in this case is complicated by the difficulty to truly know what is present in the airspace. Additionally, there are significant technology, security and liability issues that will need resolution to ensure property and life are protected and …

The Relationship Between Motivation And Job Preferences In Commercial Aviation Graduates, Shayne A. Daku, Robert Stupnisky

Education, Health & Behavior Studies Faculty Publications

The current demand for commercial pilots at regional airlines means that graduates of commercial aviation degree programs have the luxury of choosing a particular place of employment post-graduation. What do the majority of these graduates look for when choosing a place to work after they graduate and meet the minimum hiring requirements? The present research surveyed 134 recent commercial aviation degree students and graduates to determine what motivated their decision to work for a particular regional airline. Student’s and graduate’s motivation was measured using Vallerand et al.’s (1992) Academic Motivation Scale (AMS). Respondents who demonstrated extrinsic – identified motivation style …

Development Of A Flow Duration Curve To Determine Hydropower Feasibility, Susan Estep, Elise Estep, Dr. Jim Nelson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this project was to derive Flow Duration Curves (FDCs) by three separate methods in order to compare the accuracy of these methods. The FDCs would be used to estimate the amount of water that would be consistently available for hydropower.

Effect Of Thickness On Fatigue Life On Creased Thin Pla, Peter Schleede, Larry Howell

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Origami-based engineering creates products that solve problems inherent in other designs. For example, they can compress into smaller volumes, achieve new and unique motions, and lessen or mitigate numbers of welds, fasteners, or other joining methods. However, a weakness of these designs is the necessity of folding them and seams that result from that folding. If viable, 3D printing these designs would eliminate the need for complicated folding machinery or adhesives to close the seams. Since origami is, by its nature, dynamic, this research aims to help designers predict fatigue lives (number of cycles until failure) of thin, printed PLA …

Safety Of Tubular Nylon Webbing: The Effect Of Wet And Cold Environments, Caleb Duncan, Landon Wright, John Salmon

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Tubular nylon webbing is an effective and relatively inexpensive anchoring solution for search and rescue groups, fire departments, canyoners, and rock climbers. As an anchoring solution nylon webbing is vital to the safety of anyone who uses it. Serious injury or death will often occur if an anchor fails.

All commercially available webbing is labeled with a breaking strength so that the end user is aware of its limits. This breaking strength value is obtained by the manufacture after running many tensile pull tests of dry webbing. While the dry breaking strength is reported by the manufacture no information, other …

Electrodynamic Wheel Magnetic Rolling Resistance, Wei Qin, Jonathan Z. Bird

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this paper the concept of magnetic rolling resistance (MRR) is introduced. The MRR is particularly useful when trying to characterize maglev devices that operate with a slip. Approaches to minimize the MRR for an electrodynamic wheel magnetic suspension device are discussed. MRR is calculated from the power losses and it is shown that by using MRR a direct performance comparison with existing modes of transportation can be made. The MRR for a number of different maglev designs is calculated.

Ceas Student Center Expansion, Turner Solterman

Honors Theses

Western Michigan University has had a long-standing tradition of engineering excellence. To keep up with the modern culture and to maintain that Western will be on the forefront of universities providing an excellent engineering education, an expansion to the current CEAS building on the Parkview campus is necessary. Aptly named the CEAS Student Center Expansion, this project will be a space exclusively for student engineering groups to work in a space where collaboration across different engineering disciplines will be as easy as walking across the floor to talk to someone else. Through the floor plans of the different alternatives …

Mechanical Characterization Of Coir Fiber And Cotton Fiber Reinforced Unsaturated Polyester Composites For Packaging Applications, Balaji V, Senthil Vadivu K.

Journal of Applied Packaging Research

The aim of this work is to develop a natural fiber composites that can become a substitute for plywood and medium density fiber boards used in packaging application. In this work, the composite was fabricated with randomly oriented chopped coir and cotton fiber reinforced with unsaturated polyester resin. The different types of composite materials were prepared with different quantity of coir fiber and cotton fiber reinforced with unsaturated polyester by using hand lay-up technique. Mechanical properties such as tensile, flexural, impact and hardness strength are evaluated. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) was conducted on the fabricated composite to analysis the interfacial …

Defining Engineering: Usu Researcher Tackles A Profession’S Identity Crisis | College Of Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Engineering education in the U.S. is not keeping up with the rapidly-evolving paradigm of today’s engineering profession, giving some students an incomplete perspective about what their future careers will actually be.

Aluminum Zinc Oxide (Azo) Optimization Process For Use In Optically Transparent Antennas, Maria Elizabeth Zamudio

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

The importance of having an optimal material for fabricating Optically Transparent Antennas (OTAs) is crucial for designing highly efficient antennas that can be integrated with photovoltaics. Transparent Conductor Oxides (TCOs) are promising for OTA fabrication due to their capability of being simultaneously transparent at optical frequencies and conductive within the radio frequency (RF) range. In this work, a new material was developed and optimized to be used for fabricating an optically transparent antenna on a solar cell. Aluminum and Zinc Oxide were co-sputtered onto Si and onto a polycrystalline photovoltaic cell and then annealed between 350°C and 450°C for 24 …

Droplets Rolling On Superhydrophobic Inclines Simulating Real World Application Environments, Braquel Burnett, Julie Crockett

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Superhydrophobic surfaces offer unique characteristics such as extreme water repellency, drag reduction and enhanced condensation rates. These effects are possible due to a combination of micro/nano-texturing and a hydrophobic chemical coating. With the advent of micro/nano-fabrication, research and development on superhydrophobic surfaces has sky-rocketed due to the potential advantages across multiple industries including lab-on-a-chip technology, micro-electronic cooling and anti-icing applications.

The Influence Of Crystallographic Constraints On Percolation, Jarrod Lund, Oliver Johnson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Within polycrystalline materials (e.g. metals and ceramics), grain boundary networks (GBN) influence the effective properties such as diffusion, conductivity, and crack and creep propagation¹. In precision applications such as jet engine turbine blades and solid oxide fuel cells, understanding and characterizing GBN are essential for better design. Modeling GBN allow for better exploration of the complex space of possible networks (figure 1d)². By modeling grains in a honeycomb lattice (figure 1a), grain boundaries can be identified by their misorientation angle (figure 1b). This can be a key indicator of the grain boundary’s properties. By combining information …

A Frequency Domain Based Approach To Evaluating Manual Tracking Behavior In Parkinson’S Disease, Gabriel A. Parras

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized in part by its neurodegenerative effects, which include bradykinesia, tremor, rigidity, and many other symptoms. While treatments such as Levodopa and deep brain stimulation are available, they both have associated complications. Galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS) is a non-invasive method used to stimulate the vestibular nerves with electric current and it has shown promise as a possible treatment for patients with PD. In order to assess the efficacy of GVS, I examined data collected from a manual pursuit tracking experiment. The experiment involved ten patients with varying severities of PD who were asked to perform a …

Brain Lesions Among Orally Fed And Gastrostomy-Fed Dysphagic Preterm Infants: Can Routine Qualitative Or Volumetric Quantitative Magnetic Resonance Imaging Predict Feeding Outcomes?, Nasser H. Kashou, Irfaan Akram Dar, Mohamed A. El-Mahdy, Charles Pluto, Mark Smith, Ish K. Gulati, Warren Lo, Sudarshan R. Jadcherla

Biomedical, Industrial & Human Factors Engineering Faculty Publications

Introduction: The usefulness of qualitative or quantitative volumetric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in early detection of brain structural changes and prediction of adverse outcomes in neonatal illnesses warrants further investigation. Our aim was to correlate certain brain injuries and the brain volume of feeding-related cortical and subcortical regions with feeding method at discharge among preterm dysphagic infants.

Materials and methods: Using a retrospective observational study design, we examined MRI data among 43 (22 male; born at 31.5 ± 0.8 week gestation) infants who went home on oral feeding or gastrostomy feeding (G-tube). MRI scans were segmented, and volumes of brainstem, …

Airline Quality Rating 2017, Brent D. Bowen, Dean E. Headley

Airline Quality Rating Report

The results of the 27th annual national Airline Quality Rating (AQR). The most comprehensive study of the performance quality of the 12 largest airlines in the United States, the AQR is conducted by researchers at the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State University and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Prescott, Ariz., campus. Airline performance, as presented by AQR researchers, encompasses a multifactor look at the overall quality of the airlines. It includes on-time performance, denied boardings, mishandled baggage and customer complaints. AQR is the longest running and most established measure of airline quality. AQR researchers use a combination of …

Who R U? Identity Theft And Unl Students, Marcia L. Dority Baker, Cheryl O'Dell

Information Technology Services: Publications

How can academic institutions help educate their students about the risks of identity theft? Or teach students to better understand how one’s online presence can hold so much joy and angst? For one campus, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, the opportunity came from a middle school teacher engaging his students in a future problem-solving activity. UNL had the opportunity to create a 45-minute presentation on identity theft for local public school students who would be spending the day on campus researching this topic.

While preparing the presentation, we realized a top 10 list on identity theft for UNL students would be …

Shear Driven Micro-Fluidic Pump For Cardiovascular Applications, Nihad E. Daidzic

Aviation Department Publications

A valveless shear-driven micro-fluidic pump design (SDMFP) for hemodynamic applications is presented in this work. One of the possible medical and biomedical applications is in-vivo hemodynamic (human blood circulation) support/assist. One or more SDMFPs can be inserted/implanted into vascular lumens in a form of a stent/duct in series and/or in parallel (bypass duct) to support blood circulation in-vivo. A comprehensive review of various micro-pump designs up to about mid 2000’s is given in [1,2]. Many of micropump designs considered are not suitable for in-vivo or even in-vitro medical/biomedical applications.

Operating principles, design, and SDMFP features are given in [3]. A …

Faculty Promotions 2017 | College Of Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

The College of Engineering at Utah State University extends its congratulations to seven newly-promoted faculty members.

A Usability Study For Electronic Flight Bag (Efb) Flight Planning Applications On Tablet Devices For Ab-Initio Pilots, Jeff Schwartzentruber

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The proliferation of mobile technology has prompted the use of tablet devices in the cockpit and during ground operations in general aviation. Due to the increase in affordable and reliable hardware (i.e. iPads etc.), the development of pilot-specific software has led to the creation of a commercial-of-the-shelf (COTS), electronic flight bag (EFB) market. EFBs have many advantages, such as reducing the space requirements for flight documents, enabling faster searching and indexing of files, providing useful tools for flight planning, and providing automatic updates. The increase in availability of mobile technology and flight applications has allowed general aviation enthusiast and ab-initio …

High-Throughput Tensile Testing Reveals Stochastic Properties In Additively Manufactured Steel, Bradley C. Salzbrenner

Mechanical Engineering ETDs

An adage within the Additive Manufacturing (AM) community is that “complexity is free”. Complicated geometric features that normally drive manufacturing cost and limit design options are not typically problematic in AM. While geometric complexity is usually viewed from the perspective of part design, this advantage of AM also opens up new options in rapid, efficient material property evaluation and qualification. This Thesis demonstrates how 100’s of miniature tensile bars can be produced and tested for comparable cost and in comparable time to a few conventional tensile bars. With this technique, it is possible to evaluate the stochastic nature of mechanical …

Oxidation Of Substituted Catechols At The Air-Water Interface: Production Of Carboxylic Acids, Quinones, And Polyphenols, Elizabeth A. Pillar, Marcelo I. Guzman

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Anthropogenic activities contribute benzene, toluene, and anisole to the environment, which in the atmosphere are converted into the respective phenols, cresols, and methoxyphenols by fast gas-phase reaction with hydroxyl radicals (HO(•)). Further processing of the latter species by HO(•) decreases their vapor pressure as a second hydroxyl group is incorporated to accelerate their oxidative aging at interfaces and in aqueous particles. This work shows how catechol, pyrogallol, 3-methylcatechol, 4-methylcatechol, and 3-methoxycatechol (all proxies for oxygenated aromatics derived from benzene, toluene, and anisole) react at the air-water interface with increasing O3(g) during τc ≈ 1 μs contact time and contrasts their …

Activity Of Pgm-Free Electrocatalysts For Oxygen Reduction Reaction: Ph And Co-Catalysis Effects, Mario Santiago Rojas Carbonell 8148369

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

Fuel cells offer a source to the current and always increasing demand for electric power. But as any new technology, there are challenges that need to be addressed to render it feasible for the market place. One of this challenges is finding the appropriate materials to catalyze the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) that occurs in the cathode. Oxygen is used as an oxidant in a significant portion of the fuel cells due to its readily availability and high reduction potential. Now, one the bottlenecks that stops the large-scale adoption is the expensive and rare metals that have been used as …

Testing Effectiveness Of Aqueous Phases From Struvite And Hydroxyapatite Mineral Precipitation As Algal Nutrient Sources, Aaron Lyons

Virginias Collegiate Honors Council Conference

As interest in algal biofuel grows, the need to explore diverse nutrient sources for growing algae becomes apparent. Struvite and Hydroxyapatite (HAP) were precipitated after flash hydrolysis. The leftover aqueous phase (AP) could serve as nutrients source for algae cultivation and the potential reuse of this waste stream is promising. To test this, 12 bottles of Scenedemus sp., four of Struvite, four of HAP, and four control AM-14 synthetic media were cultivated. 10% of the Phosphorus in the synthetic media was replaced with phosphorous from the struvite AP, and 10% of the nitrogen in the synthetic media was replaced …

Residential Code Review For The 2017 Florida Building Energy Code, Florida Solar Energy Center, Jeffrey Sonne

FSEC Energy Research Center®

The project reviews provisions of the proposed 2017 residential Florida building energy code in order to make a determination if it meets or exceeds the 2015 IECC code.

Improving Doping And Minority Carrier Lifetime Of Cdte/Cds Solar Cells By In-Situ Control Of Cdte Stoichiometry, Vamsi Krishna Evani

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) is a leading thin film photovoltaic (PV) material due to its near ideal bandgap of 1.45 eV and its high optical absorption coefficient. Advancements in efficiencies of CdTe/CdS solar cells over the past few decades have come from improving the short circuit current (JSC) and Fill Factor (FF) but the Open Circuit Voltage (VOC) has been stagnant. Further improvements in efficiencies should come from increased VOC’s. VOC’s can be improved by increasing the acceptor concentration and minority carrier lifetime. Both these parameters can be controlled by manipulating the native defect concentration in CdTe which can be achieved …

Industrial-Grade Monitoring Solution: Hoistcam, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Safety and productivity are top priorities for contractors and industrial operations. Improving either makes a company more profitable and competitive. Technology advancements that can do both are important for every company to consider. HoistCam^TM industrial-grade video monitoring solutions can improve employees’ productivity and workplace safety in the construction industries. HoistCam also improves efficiency of operations and reduces job site accidents resulting in substantial cost savings to a contractor.

HoistCam™ is an integrated, wireless video system. The use of HoistCam eliminates blind lifts, blind spots and can share the live video with anyone, anywhere with solid security and easy control. …

Method And Shear-Driven Micro-Fluidic Pump, Nihad E. Daidzic

Aviation Department Publications

United States Patent Application, Publication Number US 2017/0096990 A1, Publication Date April 6, 2017.

An example includes an apparatus to pump a fluid. The apparatus includes a housing extending along a length defining an elongate interior, an actuator in the housing, conforming to the elongate interior, the actuator including a plurality of lumens, each having a length extending substantially parallel to the elongate interior, each from around 10 to 200 micrometers across and an actuator configured to oscillate the actuator in the actuator housing along the length of the elongate interior with a rate differential between movement in a first …

Powered-Lift Aircraft Category: What Is It?, Nihad E. Daidzic

Aviation Department Publications

FAA Safety Seminar (GL1574995) held at Minnesota State University, Mankato at 18:00 CST on Thursday, April 6, 2017.