Engineering Commons^™

Internal Medicine, Keroles Hakem, Robert Trachy, Khanh Tran

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Our objective was to develop a model to predict the length of stay of patients using data from MCV. We conducted our analysis using a dataset of over 130,000 patients described by 66 features. The features contained clinical characteristics (e.g. diagnosis), facility characteristics (e.g. bed type), and socioeconomic characteristics (e.g. insurance type). Our study was focused on patients that stayed in the hospital. To cope with data imperfections, such as missing data, we applied data cleaning methods. Using learned domain knowledge, we identified 9 features to build our predictive models: admit source, primary insurance, discharge disposition, admit unit, iso result, …

Semi-Supervised Approach To Monitoring Clinical Depressive Symptoms In Social Media, Amir Hossein Yazdavar, Hussein S. Al-Olimat, Monireh Ebrahimi, Goonmeet Bajaj, Tanvi Banerjee, Krishnaprasad Thirunarayan, Jyotishman Pathak, Amit Sheth

Computer Science and Engineering Faculty Publications

With the rise of social media, millions of people are routinely expressing their moods, feelings, and daily struggles with mental health issues on social media platforms like Twitter. Unlike traditional observational cohort studies conducted through questionnaires and self-reported surveys, we explore the reliable detection of clinical depression from tweets obtained unobtrusively. Based on the analysis of tweets crawled from users with self-reported depressive symptoms in their Twitter profiles, we demonstrate the potential for detecting clinical depression symptoms which emulate the PHQ-9 questionnaire clinicians use today. Our study uses a semi-supervised statistical model to evaluate how the duration of these symptoms …

A Hybrid Mpi-Openmp Strategy To Speedup The Compression Of Big Next-Generation Sequencing Datasets, Sandino Vargas-Perez, Fahad Saeed

Parallel Computing and Data Science Lab Technical Reports

DNA sequencing has moved into the realm of Big Data due to the rapid development of high-throughput, low cost Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technologies. Sequential data compression solutions that once were sufficient to efficiently store and distribute this information are now falling behind. In this paper we introduce phyNGSC, a hybrid MPI-OpenMP strategy to speedup the compression of big NGS data by combining the features of both distributed and shared memory architectures. Our algorithm balances work-load among processes and threads, alleviates memory latency by exploiting locality, and accelerates I/O by reducing excessive read/write operations and inter-node message exchange. To make the …

An Optimization Strategy For Hexapod Gait Transition, Naga Harika Darbha

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Legged robots often need to move through different terrains as they function. This requires a change of gaits by the robot in order to move with better efficiency. There has been a lot of research done to find out which gait works better for a given terrain so that the robot can change its gait accordingly. A reliable analysis of when exactly should the transition take place in a walking robot is important, so that there can be an assurance of stability in the locomotion of the robot during the transition between different gaits. This work presents analysis performed on …

Women In Science 2017, Clark Science Center's Summer Research Fellows Program

SURF Abstracts (Women in Science)

Ever since its 1967 start, SURF has been a cornerstone of Smith’s science education. Women in Science 2017 summarizes research done by Smith College’s SURF Program participants during the summer of 2017. 151 students participated in SURF (144 hosted on campus and nearby eld sites), supervised by 58 faculty mentor-advisors drawn from the Clark Science Center and connected to its eighteen science, mathematics, and engineering departments and programs and associated centers and units. At summer’s end, SURF participants summarized their research experiences for this publication.

Fabricating Zirconia Parts With Organic Support Material By The Ceramic On-Demand Extrusion Process, Wenbin Li, Amir Ghazanfari, Devin Mcmillen, Andrew Scherff, Ming Leu, Gregory Hilmas

Faculty Publications, Mechanical Engineering

Ceramic On-Demand Extrusion (CODE) is an extrusion-based additive manufacturing process recently developed for fabricating dense, functional ceramic components. This paper presents a further development of this process and focuses on fabricating 3 mol% yttria-stabilized zirconia (3YSZ) components that cannot be fabricated without using support structures. The 3YSZ paste is deposited through the main nozzle, and a polycaprolactone (PCL) pellet feedstock is melted and deposited through an auxiliary nozzle to build support structures. After a green part is printed and dried, the support structures are removed by heating the part to ~70°C to melt the PCL. The part is then sintered …

Inspire E-News 1 2017, College Of Engineering And Applied Sciences

College of Engineering and Applied Sciences News

• Entrepreneurs of all ages pitch their products at 9th annual Innovation Day
• WMU partnership with Japanese corporation forged more than two decades ago
• Award to speed 3-D metal printer toward commercialization
• College Snapshot

An Out-Of-Core Gpu Based Dimensionality Reduction Algorithm For Big Mass Spectrometry Data And Its Application In Bottom-Up Proteomics, Muaaz Awan, Fahad Saeed

Parallel Computing and Data Science Lab Technical Reports

Modern high resolution Mass Spectrometry instruments can generate millions of spectra in a single systems biology experiment. Each spectrum consists of thousands of peaks but only a small number of peaks actively contribute to deduction of peptides. Therefore, pre-processing of MS data to detect noisy and non-useful peaks are an active area of research. Most of the sequential noise reducing algorithms are impractical to use as a pre-processing step due to high time-complexity. In this paper, we present a GPU based dimensionality-reduction algorithm, called G-MSR, for MS2 spectra. Our proposed algorithm uses novel data structures which optimize the memory and …

Gpu-Pcc: A Gpu Based Technique To Compute Pairwise Pearson’S Correlation Coefficients For Big Fmri Data, Taban Eslami, Muaaz Gul Awan, Fahad Saeed

Parallel Computing and Data Science Lab Technical Reports

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) is a non-invasive brain imaging technique for studying the brain’s functional activities. Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient is an important measure for capturing dynamic behaviors and functional connectivity between brain components. One bottleneck in computing Correlation Coefficients is the time it takes to process big fMRI data. In this paper, we propose GPU-PCC, a GPU based algorithm based on vector dot product, which is able to compute pairwise Pearson’s Correlation Coefficients while performing computation once for each pair. Our method is able to compute Correlation Coefficients in an ordered fashion without the need to do post-processing reordering …

Mechanical And Aerospace Engineering, 2016-2017, College Of Engineering And Applied Sciences

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering News

• Letter from the Department Chair
• Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Wins Grant from DENSO North America Foundation
• NSF $452,399 award to bring state-of-the-art instrument to WMU
• Faculty Research
• Faculty Summer Research
• Research in Fluid Mechanics and Aerodynamics
• Auto lab upgrades make it a premier teaching and research facility
• MAE faculty

Seismic Retrofit Case Study Of Reinforced Concrete Bridges With Buckling Restrained Braces, Michael K. Miotke

Civil and Environmental Engineering Master's Project Reports

Many highway bridges in Oregon have been designed with minimal considerations for seismic hazard and are in need of retrofit. Although buckling restrained braces (BRBs) are not necessarily a new concept, using them to seismically retrofit bridges is. This case study investigates the BRB retrofit concept as compared to traditional retrofit measures for a sample of typical vulnerable bridges in Oregon. The objectives of evaluating these cases were to determine the feasibility of the concept both in terms of performance as well as construction costs. This study builds on the ongoing research at Portland State University into the development of …

Feasibility Determination Guide For The Road Diet Plus: A Five/Four-Lane To Two-Lane Road Diet, Michael Williams

Civil and Environmental Engineering Master's Project Reports

Road diets are a popular tool for corridor improvement. Road diets are normally defined as the conversion of a four-lane undivided road to a three-lane undivided road made up of two through lanes separated by a center two-way-left-turn-lane (known as a TWLTL). This new configuration has similar vehicular capacity, greater safety and frees up right-of-way for other uses.

This work examines the possibility of going one step, or one lane, further. What is the possibility of reducing five- or four-lane roads to two-lanes? If this is possible, what are the corridor characteristics within which this process would be feasible?

The …

Synthesis Of Discrete Transition Metal (Ni, Fe, Co, Mn) Phosphide Nanoparticles: Compositional Effect On Catalytic And Magnetic Properties, Da Li

Wayne State University Dissertations

This dissertation research is focused on the synthesis, characterization of binary and ternary transition metal (Ni, Co, Fe, Mn) phosphide nanomaterials and their catalytic and magnetic properties.

A phase-control strategy enabling the arrested-precipitation synthesis of nanoparticles of Ni5P4 and NiP2 is presented. The composition and purity of the product can be tuned by changing key synthetic levers, including the metal precursor, the oleylamine (OAm) and Trioctylphosphine (TOP) concentrations, temperature, time and the presence or absence of a moderate temperature soak step to facilitate formation of Ni and/or Ni-P amorphous nanoparticle intermediates.

New CoxFe2-xP nanoparticles (0 ≤ x ≤ 2), Co2-xMnxP …

Antibody-Nanoparticle Conjugates To Enhance The Sensitivity Of Elisa-Based Detection Methods., Margaret M Billingsley, Rachel S. Riley, Emily S Day

Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering Departmental Research

Accurate antigen detection is imperative for clinicians to diagnose disease, assess treatment success, and predict patient prognosis. The most common technique used for the detection of disease-associated biomarkers is the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). In an ELISA, primary antibodies are incubated with biological samples containing the biomarker of interest. Then, detectible secondary antibodies conjugated with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) bind the primary antibodies. Upon addition of a color-changing substrate, the samples provide a colorimetric signal that directly correlates to the targeted biomarker concentration. While ELISAs are effective for analyzing samples with high biomarker content, they lack the sensitivity required to …

Experimental Verification Of A Generalized Control Method For Constant Switching Frequency Three Phase Pwm Boost Rectifier Under Extremely Unbalanced Operating Conditions, Divin Sujatha Krishnan

ETD Archive

This thesis presents experimental verification of a generalized control method for constant switching frequency Three-phase PWM Boost Type Rectifier under extremely unbalanced operating conditions in the power system. In this model, a hysteresis current controller has been implemented using a high-speed micro-controller to generate the gate signals. Even though a constant switching frequency was achieved in the previous model, while in simulation using MATLAB/Simulink, it wasn’t achieved experimentally due to the low processing speed of the DSpace processor ds1104. This problem has been resolved by using the “C2000 Delfino MCUs F28377S Launchpad ” from Texas Instruments to implement Hysteresis Current …

Connected Fpga Thermal Monitoring, John Schultz

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) are configurable integrated circuits. One area that is very important in integrated circuits is temperature control. Improper heat control can lead to a decreased lifespan and possible failure of the device. Many different circuits can be created on the FPGA to suit a specific project or need. Due to FGPAs being configurable, it is hard to create efficient cooling methods. Our project seeks to monitor the FGPA's temperature with different configurations to eventually increase the efficiency of the thermal management system. To accomplish this, we programmed a system on the chip system onto the FPGA …

P1: Using Modified Dean Flow Designs To Increase Mixing Performance, Joshua Clark

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

We are using numerical solutions for the Navier-Stokes equations and the concentration - diffusion equation to model fluid flow and reactant distribution in serpentine type channels for micromixers/microreactors development. These mixers exploit centripetal forces on the fluid to induce cross-sectional fluid mixing, aka Dean flows. Various modifications are used to increase the mixing character of these crosssectional flows. We found that the performance of these mixers exceeds that of unmodified channels and we currently assess their performance relative to other state of the art methodologies used to induce mixing on the microscale.

P2: Implementation Of Groove Based Designs For Engineering Fluid Flow In Micromixers, Tahir Butt

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Mixing on microscale is important for the development of miniaturized chemical reactors that use small quantities of reactants and allow better control over the reaction conditions and products. Nevertheless, achieving rapid mixing in this type of micro-reactors is challenging due to the lack of turbulence and slow diffusion on the microscale. In this work we implement micromixers designs based on surface groove/ridge patterns targeted at inducing cross-sectional flows that both extend the interface between the different reactants, as well as induce chaotic advection. We discuss the fabrication of these structures using soft-lithography in PDMS employing a mold and their optical …

Going Green: Experimental Adaptation Of Scenedesmus Dimorphus To Marine Conditions, Mohammed Khalil

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Algae has gained some interest as the need for alternative fuels becomes more pressing. Reliance on fossil fuels is causing our environment and economy harm, and is not sustainable moving forward. Lipid rich algae strains can be used in the production of biofuels, and provide an alternative fuel source. One challenge facing the prospect of algae as a fuel source is that lipid rich algae grows exclusively in freshwater. Considering the scarcity and cost to use freshwater for algae growth, interest has grown in the possibility of adapting lipid rich, freshwater algae to a seawater environment. Seawater can have up …

Evaluation Of Cetane Values Of Glycerolipids Extracted From Algae Scenedesmus Dimorphus Grown In Various Salinity Concentrations Using Gas Chromatography And Mass Spectrometry (Gc-Ms), Paul Lin, Chandana Mannem

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Algae's ability to store lipids, renewability, and potentially safer for the environment has made it a promising alternative fuel source. An industry rating for a biofuel's potential is the cetane value, which is a measure of a fuel's quality related to various glycerolipid concentrations. Growing conditions will affect lipid profile in algae, thereby affecting the cetane value. This project will attempt to identify changes in the centane value of the algae Scenedesmus dimorphus grown in various salinity concentrations. Scenedesmus dimorphus is the algae chosen for this experiment because of its ability to rapidly grow under harsh conditions. In this experiment …

P1: Salt Concentration And Ph Affect The Size Of Elastin-Like Polypeptide Nanoparticles, Bryce Noe, Ilona Tsuper, Daniel Terano, Richard Schmitt

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

The transport of therapeutic drugs to specific tissues in the body can be accomplished using nanoparticles that encapsulate the drugs. Elastin-like polypeptides (ELP) is a class of materials that can reversibly form such nanoparticles in response to environmental cues. FLPs transition from soluble compounds to a phase separated system under particular solution conditions and have been used to produce temperature responsive surfactants. When these ELP surfactants are above their transition temperature, they spontaneously form energetically stable spherical micelles. When the temperature drops below the transition temperature, the micelles break apart and the ELP goes into solution. The size of these …

P2: Light Scattering Study Of The Size And Shape Of Mixed Elastin-Like Polypeptide Micelles, Ilona Tsuper, Daniel Terrano, Bryce Noe

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Elastin-Like Polypeptides (ELP) can be used to form thermoreversible vehicles for drug delivery systems. The ELP nanoparticles are composed of three-armed star polypeptides. Each of the three arms extending from the negatively charged foldon domain include 20 repeats of the (GVGVP) amino acid sequence. In addition, linear constructs composed of 40 repeats of the same (GVGVP) sequence are introduced into the system. The mixed ELP polymer system is soluble at room temperature and becomes insoluble at the transition temperature (~ 50°C) forming micelles with the foldons on the exterior and linear constructs at the core. Above the transition, the size …

P2: Dispersion Stability Of Dna-Wrapped Carbon Nanotubes In Biological Media, Fjorela Xhyliu

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are among the most widely studied artificial nanomaterials. Their dispersion stability in biological media is a prerequisite for applications development in biomedical imaging and sensing. This project investigates the dispersion stability of DNA-wrapped SWCNTs in RPMI cell culture media with and without fetal bovine serum (FBS). The synthetic SWCNT mixtures were purified into semiconducting enriched fractions and various single species including (11,1), (9,4), and (7,3) using recognition DNA sequences by a polymer aqueous two-phase (ATP) separation method. The near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence, vis-NIR absorption, and pH of DNA-SWCNT dispersions in different biological media were monitored over time. …

Spurious Grain Formation Due To Convection At Cross-Section-Changes During Directional Solidification, Noah Weber, Masoud Ghods

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Turbine blades are a critical component in high powered gas turbine engines. These components are directionally solidified to have a single grain orientation, which allows them to operate under high temperature and stress conditions. Spurious grain formation is a major concern when forming these turbine blades. The purpose of this study was to study the effect convection has on forming these defects within turbine blades. Two alloys, Pb-5.8%Sb (solutally unstable) and Al-19%Cu (solutally stable) were directionally solidified upward in a positive thermal gradient (thermally stable) in a graphite crucible having abrupt cross-sectional area change from 3.2 mm diameter to 9 …

P1: Assessment Of Metabolism-Induced Hepatotoxicity On A 384-Pillar Plate, Yana Sickar, Soo-Yeon Kang, Pranav Joshi, Kyeong-Nam Yu

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Microarray bioprinting technology has been explored to create miniaturized 3D cell cultures on a 384-pillar plate, which were combined with drug metabolizing enzymes (DMEs) and test compounds in a 384-well plate for metabolism-induced toxicity assays. Our goal in this study was to demonstrate rapid assessment of metabolism- induced toxicity on the 384-pillar plate and obtain reliable and highly predictive information on compound's hepatotoxicity in vivo. Briefly, human cells including Hep3B human hepatoma cell line as well as human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK 293) cell were encapsulated in alginate-Matrigel on the 384-pillar plate. Test compounds and six different DMEs including cytochromes …

P2: Construction Of Weather Station For Measuring Wind Using A Hovering Drone Network, Adam Stead, Mark Travis, Rishi Maheshwari

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Our research aims to build and test the effectiveness of the Sparkfun® Weather Station in its ability to record meaningful data while streaming to a remote device in real-time. This is motivated by our plans to utilize a hovering-drone system to collect meteorological data, such as wind speed, wind direction, humidity, pressure, and temperature. This data is essential to evaluate the wind profiles of a given area and assess available wind resource. The weather station was first calibrated by comparing measurements of the cup anemometer against a standard pitot tube in the lab. We found that the measured wind speed …

Development And Verification Of A Mechanical Loading Device For Microfluidics, Stefan Habean, Erin Tesny

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Establishing the role that mechanics play in nerve cell (e.g. neurons) function requires experimental testing. Microfluidic based experiments are commonly used to study neuron growth and function, and studies have found mechanics to play an important role in neuron health. External loads can be applied to a microfluidic device using a motor, which presumably influences the mechanical environment of the cells. While a motor can easily apply known displacements, a “load cell” is necessary to measure corresponding forces. In an existing prototype microfluidic loading device, a load cell was integrated and verified. The manufacturer's calibration of the load cell was …

Buddy: A Virtual Reality Based Computer System For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Missy Montague, Gabriel Madison

Undergraduate Research Posters 2017

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurological and developmental disorder, and it has two essential domains of symptoms: (1) restrictive and repetitive behaviors, such as having a lasting and intense interest in certain topics, and sensory challenges; (2) social impairment and communication difficulties. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 in 68 children has been identified with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and the prevalence increased by 119.4% from 2000 to 2010. In the US alone, there are more than 3.5 million people who suffer from ASD and autism services cost $236-262 billion annually. In this …

Improving Walkability Through Control Strategies At Signalized Intersections, Sirisha Murthy Kothuri, Andrew Kading, Edward J. Smaglik, Christopher Sobie

TREC Final Reports

As cities and communities nationwide seek to develop Complete Streets that foster livability and accommodate all modes, signal timing control strategies that include pedestrians in the operational decision process are gaining importance. This research tested several efficiency-focused pedestrian treatments – coordination, actuated-coordination, free operation, short cycle lengths – and safety-focused treatment including leading pedestrian intervals and Barnes Dance. Using a software-in-the-loop simulation, the operational impacts of these treatments on all users (vehicles, heavy vehicles, bicyclists and pedestrians) at an intersection were evaluated. Results showed that among the efficiency-based treatments, free operation was most beneficial for reducing minor-street pedestrian delays. Both …

Variable Oxidation & Defects In Ti-6al-4v Material In Electron Beam Melting Additive Manufacturing, Edward Patton Clark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Powder-based metal in additive manufacturing (AM) is advantageous for rapid prototyping of parts and components, with the benefit of reusing powder to reduce production costs. A common driver in the aerospace industry is free-form complex geometries which can be created using CAD software to optimize specifications with strength-to-weight ratios in components. Weight optimization of aircraft components using additive manufacturing reduces material, which significantly reduces production cost in comparison to cast and wrought metallic products. Large biomedical and aerospace industries heavily invest in feedstock metal powders that have low density under structural stresses and high temperatures, resulting in superior resistance to …