Engineering Commons^™

Xps Studies Of Lscf Interfaces Afer Cell Testing, Gianfranco Digiuseppe, Venkatesh Boddapati, Hiten Mothikhana

Mechanical Engineering Publications

The motivation of this investigation is to explore the possibility of using the depth profile capability of XPS to study interfaces after SOFC button cell testing. The literature uses XPS to study various cathode materials but has devoted little to the understanding of various cathode interfaces especially after testing. In this work, an SOFC button cell is first tested, and then, the LSCF cathode, barrier layer, and electrolyte are sputtered away to study the behavior of different interfaces. This work has shown that some elements have moved into other layers of the SOFC cell. It is argued that the migration …

Aerial Imagery Gives Insight Into Water Trends | College Of Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

With an ever-growing human population and its inherent demand for water, there is a critical need to monitor water resources.

Usu Students Present At 41st Annual Astronautical Conference, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Five engineering students from Utah State University attended the 41st Annual AAS Guidance, Navigation and Control Conference in Breckenridge, Colo.

Mechanical Properties And Flame Retardancy Of Surface Modified Magnesium Oxysulfate (5mg(Oh)2·Mgso4·3h2o) Whisker For Polypropylene Composites, Eui-Su Kim, Ye Chan Kim, Jungwoo Park, Youngjun Kim, Sung-Hoon Kim, Kwang Jin Kim, Jonghwan Suhr, Youngkwan Lee, Seong Hoon Lee, Dae-Sik Kim, Soo-Hyun Kim, Ju-Ho Yun, In-Kyung Park, Jae-Do Nam

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Research

Magnesium oxysulfate (MOS) whisker is considered as a promising inorganic material recently attracting a great attention for being used as a reinforcing filler for polymer composites due to high aspect ratio and extremely-low bulk density. In this study, the MOS was treated with 3-methacryloyloxypropyl-trimethoxy silane (MPS) via sol-gel condensation reactions, which successfully allowed melt mixing with polypropylene (PP) up to 30 wt% of MOS. The tensile strength at yield and modulus of the MOS/PP composites were substantially increased by 50.8% and 362%, respectively, when compared with the pristine PP. As a novel finding, the flame retardancy of MOS was proved …

The Santa Clara, 2018-02-08, Santa Clara University

The Santa Clara

No abstract provided.

Muscle Activity During Maximal Isometric Forearm Rotation Using A Power Grip, Joseph Scott Bader, Michael R. Boland, Desney Greybe, Arthur J. Nitz, Timothy L. Uhl, David A. Pienkowski

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications

This study aimed to provide quantitative activation data for muscles of the forearm during pronation and supination while using a power grip. Electromyographic data was collected from 15 forearm muscles in 11 subjects while they performed maximal isometric pronating and supinating efforts in nine positions of forearm rotation. Biceps brachii was the only muscle with substantial activation in only one effort direction. It was significantly more active when supinating (µ = 52.1%, SD = 17.5%) than pronating (µ = 5.1%, SD = 4.8%, p < .001). All other muscles showed considerable muscle activity during both pronation and supination. Brachioradialis, flexor carpi radialis, palmaris longus, pronator quadratus and pronator teres were significantly more active when pronating the forearm. Abductor pollicis longus and biceps brachii were significantly more active when supinating. This data highlights the importance of including muscles additional to the primary forearm rotators in a biomechanical analysis of forearm rotation. Doing so will further our understanding of forearm function and lead to the improved treatment of forearm fractures, trauma-induced muscle dysfunction and joint replacements.

A Localized Meshless Technique For Generating 3-D Wind Fields, Darrell W. Pepper, Maria Ramos Gonzalez

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Research

A localized meshless method is used to simulate 3-D atmospheric wind fields for wind energy assessment and emergency response. The meshless (or mesh-free) method with radial basis functions (RBFs) alleviates the need to create a mesh required by finite difference, finite volume, and finite element methods. The method produces a fast solution that converges with high accuracy, establishing 3-D wind estimates over complex terrain. The method does not require discretization of the domain or boundary and removes the need for domain integration. The meshless method converges exponentially for smooth boundary shapes and boundary data, and is insensitive to dimensional constraints. …

Direct Numerical Simulation Of Transverse Ripples: 1. Pattern Initiation And Bedform Interactions, ‪Nadim Zgheib, J. J. Fedele, D. C. J. D. Hoyal, M. M. Perillo, S. Balachandar

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

We present results of coupled direct numerical simulations between flow and a deformable bed in a horizontally periodic, turbulent open channel at a shear Reynolds number of Reτ = 180. The feedback between the temporally and spatially evolving bed and the flow is enforced via the immersed boundary method. Using the near-bed flow field, we provide evidence on the role of locally intense near-bed vortical structures during the early stages of bed formation, from the emergence of quasi-streamwise streaks to the formation of incipient bedform crestlines. Additionally, we take a new look at a number of defect-related bedform interactions, …

Direct Numerical Simulation Of Transverse Ripples: 2. Self-Similarity, Bedform Coarsening, And Effect Of Neighboring Structures, ‪Nadim Zgheib, J. J. Fedele, D. C. J. D. Hoyal, M. M. Perillo, S. Balachandar

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Coupled bed-flow direct numerical simulations investigating the early stages of pattern formation and bedform (ripple) interactions were examined in a previous paper (Part 1), making use of the resolved flow field. In this paper (Part 2), we compare our results to published experimental data and provide an extensive quantitative analysis of the bed using spectral analysis and two-point correlations. The effect of the mobile rippled bed on the flow structure and turbulence is investigated locally (at specific streamwise locations) and over the entire computational domain. We show that developing ripples attain a self-similar profile in both the shape and the …

Effect Of Knit And Print Parameters On Peel Strength Of Hybrid 3-D Printed Textiles, Ayushi Narula, Christopher M. Pastore, David Schmelzeisen, Sara El Basri, Jan Schenk, Subin Shajoo

Kanbar College Faculty Papers

The influence of knit fabric structure on the adhesion of three-dimensional (3-D) printed textiles was examined. 3-Dprinting was applied to different elastic knitted fabrics with different amounts of prestretch, typical for 4-D fabric construction. The quality of the bond was measured in terms of peel strength. Peel strength was measured by pulling the fabric at 180 degrees from the printed plastic to delaminate the 2 and recording the 10 highest peak values observed during the test. The printed width, the ratio of fabric width of print width, fabric washing, and fabric structure were varied. The specimens were then evaluated for …

Exploring Technology Forecasting And Its Implications For Strategic Technology Planning, Yonghee Cho

Dissertations and Theses

As the importance of R&D has been growing in economic growth, the accountability and effectiveness of R&D programs are highly emphasized. Especially, in times of economic downturn, the evaluation of performance in a firm is needed to justify R&D investment. In response, various attempts have been made to improve success rates of R&D projects, gain competitive advantage, and achieve a firm's growth in profitability. In particular, in industries where technological innovation is significant, strategic technology planning and R&D capabilities may be the lead ones in defining the dynamic capabilities of a firm. In addition, technology forecasting (TF) in technology planning …

Analysis Of Cross-Cultural Training Provided To United States Air Force Civil Engineer Officers, And How Engineering Efforts Are Affected On Overseas Air Force Installations: A Delphi Study, Bianca E. Boney

Theses and Dissertations

U.S. military personnel perform a wide array of roles and missions at locations all over the world. As such, this research investigates and describes the current process of cultural training, its adequacy, and examines how cultural differences and collaboration efforts may impede or enhance project management and engineering efforts. This qualitative analysis is conducted through a Delphi study of U.S. Air Force officers consisting of 15 subject matter experts (SMEs) with experiences from 13 different countries. All reported to have daily to weekly interactions with locals and foreign partners due to job requirements; however, no set standard of cultural training …

Supramolecular Aptamer Nano-Constructs For Receptor-Mediated Targeting And Light-Triggered Release Of Chemotherapeutics Into Cancer Cells, Deepak K. Prusty, Volker Adam, Reza M. Zadegan, Stephan Irsen, Michael Famulok

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Platforms for targeted drug-delivery must simultaneously exhibit serum stability, efficient directed cell internalization, and triggered drug release. Here, using lipid-mediated self-assembly of aptamers, we combine multiple structural motifs into a single nanoconstruct that targets hepatocyte growth factor receptor (cMet). The nanocarrier consists of lipidated versions of a cMet-binding aptamer and a separate lipidated GC-rich DNA hairpin motif loaded with intercalated doxorubicin. Multiple 2′,6′-dimethylazobenzene moieties are incorporated into the doxorubicin-binding motif to trigger the release of the chemotherapeutics by photoisomerization. The lipidated DNA scaffolds self-assemble into spherical hybrid-nanoconstructs that specifically bind cMet. The combined features of the nanocarriers increase serum nuclease …

Battle Of The Blooms | Sustainable Waste-To-Bioproducts Engineering Center, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Harmful algal blooms or HABs for short are a growing problem in the United States and many parts of the world.

Prevalence Of Infection-Competent Serogroup 6 Legionella Pneumophila Within Premise Plumbing In Southeast Michigan, Brenda G. Byrne, Sarah Mccolm, Shawn P. Mcelmurry, Paul E. Kilgore, Joanne Sobeck, Rick Sadler, Nancy G. Love, Michele S. Swanson

Department of Pharmacy Practice

Coinciding with major changes to its municipal water system, Flint, MI, endured Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks in 2014 and 2015. By sampling premise plumbing in Flint in the fall of 2016, we found that 12% of homes harbored legionellae, a frequency similar to that in residences in neighboring areas. To evaluate the genetic diversity of Legionella pneumophila in Southeast Michigan, we determined the sequence type (ST) and serogroup (SG) of the 18 residential isolates from Flint and Detroit, MI, and the 33 clinical isolates submitted by hospitals in three area counties in 2013 to 2016. Common to one environmental and four …

Characterization Of Wellbore Microannuli, Serafin Garcia Fernandez

Civil Engineering ETDs

Wellbore integrity is a principal concern for the safe and efficient underground storage of hydrocarbons, disposal of various wastes and in oil and gas production. Poor wellbore integrity can lead to leakage and loss of extracted or stored material, and the potential for contamination of groundwater. The microannuli, which is the space between the steel casing and the cement sheath has been identified as a common and critical leakage pathway. There are no data of the actual size or character of microannuli; however, it is possible to estimate the hydraulic aperture of the microannulus from flow measurements at the wellhead. …

No-Releasing Polymers And Uses Thereof, Megan C. Frost, Genevieve Romanowicz

Michigan Tech Patents

The present invention provides stable, photosensitive polymers that release NO response to intensity and wavelength of light, methods of making such polymers and methods using such polymers.

Base Pressure Control Using Micro-Jets In Supersonic Flow Regimes, Vigneshvaran Sethuraman, Sher Afghan Khan

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Base pressure plays a vital role in aerospace-related applications and its control is essential in reduction of drag and improving fuel consumption. Low pressure at the base of Rockets, Missiles, bombs and shells are a very common problem happening at transonic and supersonic speeds. In most of the cases there is a significant dip in pressure at the base region which will have implications on the design of aerospace vehicles. This paper presents an experimental investigation carried out for flow control at supersonic regimes. Experiments were conducted to measure the base pressure in the base region and wall pressure distribution …

Mechanical And Geometrical Determinants Of Wall Stress In Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms: A Computational Study, Dara Azar, Donya Ohadi, Alexander Rachev, John F. Eberth, Mark J. Uline, Tarek Shazly

Faculty Publications

An aortic aneurysm (AA) is a focal dilatation of the aortic wall. Occurrence of AA rupture is an all too common event that is associated with high levels of patient morbidity and mortality. The decision to surgically intervene prior to AA rupture is made with recognition of significant procedural risks, and is primarily based on the maximal diameter and/or growth rate of the AA. Despite established thresholds for intervention, rupture occurs in a notable subset of patients exhibiting sub-critical maximal diameters and/or growth rates. Therefore, a pressing need remains to identify better predictors of rupture risk and ultimately integrate their …

Monte Carlo Simulations Of Three-Dimensional Electromagnetic Gaussian Schell-Model Sources, Milo W. Hyde Iv, Santasri Bose-Pillai, Olga Korotkova

Faculty Publications

This article presents a method to simulate a three-dimensional (3D) electromagnetic Gaussian-Schell model (EGSM) source with desired characteristics. Using the complex screen method, originally developed for the synthesis of two-dimensional stochastic electromagnetic fields, a set of equations is derived which relate the desired 3D source characteristics to those of the statistics of the random complex screen. From these equations and the 3D EGSM source realizability conditions, a single criterion is derived, which when satisfied guarantees both the realizability and simulatability of the desired 3D EGSM source. Lastly, a 3D EGSM source, with specified properties, is simulated; the Monte Carlo simulation …

H.264 Video Decoder Implemented On Fpgas Using 3×3 And 2×2 Networks-On-Chip, Ian Barge, Cristinel Ababei

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

In this paper, we present the design and verification of the H.264 video decoder algorithm on FPGAs. The primary difference compared to previously reported designs is that the communication between the decoder modules is done via a network-on-chip in our case. The proposed design is a complete system level hardware design described in VHDL and Verilog. We report experimental results for two different implementations. The first implementation uses a 3×3 network-on-chip and is validated on the DE4 development board, which uses Altera's Stratix IV GX FPGA chip. The second implementation uses a 2×2 network-on-chip and is validated on the Cyclone …

In Situ Uv-Visible Assessment Of Iron-Based High-Temperature Water-Gas Shift Catalysts Promoted With Lanthana: An Extent Of Reduction Study, Basseem B. Hallac, Jared C. Brown, Eli Stavitski, Roger G. Harrison, Morris D. Argyle

Faculty Publications

The extent of reduction of unsupported iron-based high-temperature water-gas shift catalysts with small (< 5 wt %) lanthana contents was studied using UV-visible spectroscopy. Temperature- programmed reduction measurements showed that lanthana content higher than 0.5 wt % increased the extent of reduction to metallic Fe, while 0.5 wt % of lanthana facilitated the reduction to Fe₃O₄. In situ measurements on the iron oxide catalysts using mass and UV-visible spectroscopies permitted the quantification of the extent of reduction under temperature-programmed reduction and high-temperature water-gas shift conditions. The oxidation states were successfully calibrated against normalized absorbance spectra of visible light using the Kubelka-Munk theory. The normalized absorbance relative to the fully oxidized Fe₂O₃ increased as the extent of reduction increased. XANES suggested that the average bulk iron oxidation state during the water-gas shift reaction was Fe^{+2.57 …}

A Constellation Of Cubesats For The Measurement Of Thermospheric Density, Kimberly Wright, James Flynn, Susannah Miller

Undergraduate Research Symposium

The ODU CubeSat is part of a multi-university collaborative project that aims to build a constellation of three small satellites that are shaped in the form of a cube with dimensions of 10 x 10 x 10 cm and will be deployed into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to study phenomena that influence the varying thermosphere density. Variations in the density of the thermosphere fluctuate due to seasonal differences, changes in solar activity, solar radiation, and geomagnetic variations, along with temperature and altitude. These factors lead to uncertainties in current atmospheric drag models, which are a major source of error in …

Stabilization Of Lead (Pb) And Zinc (Zn) In Contaminated Rice Paddy Soil Using Starfish: A Preliminary Study, Deok Hyun Moon, Inseong Hwang, Agamemnon Koutsospyros, Kyung Hoon Cheong, Yong Sik Ok, Won Hyun Ji, Jeong Hun Park

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications

Lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) contaminated rice paddy soil was stabilized using natural (NSF) and calcined starfish (CSF). Contaminated soil was treated with NSF in the range of 0-10 wt.% and CSF in the range of 0-5 wt.% and cured for 28 days. Toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) test was used to evaluate effectiveness of starfish treatment. Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX) analyses were conducted to investigate the mechanism responsible for effective immobilization of Pb and Zn. Experimental results suggest that NSF and CSF treatments effectively immobilize Pb and Zn in treated rice paddy soil. TCLP levels for …

Evaluation Of Route Changes Utilizing High-Resolution Gps Bus Transit Data, Travis Bradley Glick

PSU Transportation Seminars

Congestion and travel delay on urban roadways can influence operating costs and service attractiveness. This research uses high resolution bus data to examine sources of delay on urban arterials. A set of tools was created to help visualize trends in bus behavior and movement; this allowed larger traffic trends to be visualized along urban corridors and urban streets. By using buses as probes and examining aggregated bus behavior, contoured speed plots can be used to understand the behavior of roadways outside the zone of influence of bus stops. Speed plots can be utilized to discover trends and travel patterns with …

Piezocone Penetration Testing Device, Chung R. Song, Benyam M. Bekele, Brian Sawyer

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

Hydraulic characteristics of soils can be estimated from piezocone penetration test (called PCPT

hereinafter) by performing dissipation test or on-the-fly using advanced analytical techniques. This

research report presents a method for fast estimation of hydraulic conductivity of overconsolidated soils

based on the piezocone penetration test. The method relies on an existing relationship developed for the

determination of hydraulic conductivity of normally consolidated soils on-the-fly. The present research

revises this relationship so that it can be applied for overconsolidated soils by incorporating a proper

correction equation. The revised relationship provides a pore pressure representing the hydraulic

conductivity of a hypothetical “equivalent …

Patent Keyword Extraction Algorithm Based On Distributed Representation For Patent Classification, Jie Hu, Shaobo Li, Yong Yao, Liya Yu, Guanci Yang, Jianjun Hu

Faculty Publications

Many text mining tasks such as text retrieval, text summarization, and text comparisons depend on the extraction of representative keywords from the main text. Most existing keyword extraction algorithms are based on discrete bag-of-words type of word representation of the text. In this paper, we propose a patent keyword extraction algorithm (PKEA) based on the distributed Skip-gram model for patent classification. We also develop a set of quantitative performance measures for keyword extraction evaluation based on information gain and cross-validation, based on Support Vector Machine (SVM) classification, which are valuable when human-annotated keywords are not available. We used a standard …

Aerobic Method For The Synthesis Of Nearly Size-Monodisperse Bismuth Nanoparticles From A Redox Non-Innocent Precursor, Hayden Winter, Elena Christopher-Allison, Anna L. Brown, Andrea M. Goforth

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Herein, we report an aerobic synthesis method to produce bismuth nanoparticles (Bi NPs) with average diameters in the range 40-80 nm using commercially available bismuth triiodide (BiI₃) as starting material; the method uses only readily available chemicals and conventional laboratory equipment. Furthermore, size data from replicates of the synthesis under standard reaction conditions indicate that this method is highly reproducible in achieving Bi NP populations with low standard deviations in the mean diameters. We also investigated the mechanism of the reaction, which we determined results from the reduction of a soluble alkylammonium iodobismuthate precursor species formed in situ …

A Method For Characterizing Essential Tremor From The Shoulder To The Wrist, Daniel W. Geiger, Dennis Eggett, Steven K. Charles

Faculty Publications

Background

Despite the pervasive and devastating effect of Essential Tremor (ET), the distribution of ET throughout the upper limb is unknown. We developed a method for characterizing the distribution of ET and performed a preliminary characterization in a small number of subjects with ET.

Methods

Using orientation sensors and inverse kinematics, we measured tremor in each of the seven major degrees of freedom (DOF) from the shoulder to the wrist while ten patients with mild ET assumed 16 different postures. We described the tremor in each DOF in terms of power spectral density measures and investigated how tremor varied between …

Thermal Analysis Of Cold-Formed Steel Wall Assemblies, American Iron And Steel Institute

American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) Specifications, Standards, Manuals and Research Reports (1946 - present)

For building envelope assemblies, thermal bridging through conductive components can greatly reduce the overall thermal resistance of that assembly. Steel stud assemblies are particularly susceptible to thermal bridging due to the high thermal conductivity of the steel components. Being able to accurately capture these impacts can provide designers with more realistic information to drive better design decisions in regards to building thermal performance and building energy use.

The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) is developing a simplified calculation methodology for determining the thermal performance of generic steel stud assemblies that includes the impacts of thermal bridging. While hot-box testing …