Engineering Commons^™

Kinetic Study Of Tire Carbon Black And Biomass Soot Steam Activation Used For The Removal Of Phenol And Chlorine From Drinking Water, Anna Trubetskaya, Manuel Garcia Perez

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

This study aims to demonstrate a novel method for removing toxic chemicals using soot produced from wood and herbaceous biomass pyrolyzed in a drop tube reactor and tire pyrolytic carbon black. In order to improve the economic performance and reliability of entrained flow gasification, biomass soot has the potential to be captured, activated and further used as a sorbent to remove a broad range of pollutants from wastewater. In recent years, the disposal of waste tires has become an important issue. The liquid hydrocarbons and solid char residue from thermal conversion of waste tires have potential to be used as …

Heat Of Reaction Of Hydrothermal Liquefaction Reactions, Morgane Briand, Geert Haarlemmer, Pascal Fongarland, Anne Roubaud

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Wet waste streams include a wide variety of products such as food processing residues, sewage sludge but also the organic fraction of municipal solid waste. Humidity typically varies from 50 to above 90 %. Dewatering and drying is possible for most feedstocks but at a significant cost. Hydrothermal liquefaction produces a biocrude that can be further upgraded into biofuels. The conversion takes place at temperatures between 250 and 400 °C and at pressures above the saturation pressure to ensure that water remains in the liquid phase, typically above 100 bar [1]. Even though the basic principles of hydrothermal liquefaction are …

Kinetic Of Biobased Bitumen Synthesis From Microalgae Biomass By Hydrothermal Liquefaction, Antoine Rolland, Alain Sarda, Gaël Colomines, Emmanuel Chailleux, Eric Leroy

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

The current worldwide consumption of bitumen is about 100 million tons. A remarkable combination of properties (adhesion, impermeability to water, specific thermo-rheological behavior) makes it a key material in road construction. Today’s bitumen is mostly obtained from petroleum refining, so bioabased alternatives have to be explored for the future. The ALGOROUTE project funded by the French National Agency for Research (ANR) focuses on the use of hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) process for the production of bitumen mimicking binders from microalgae biomass. HTL applied to microalgae is inspired by the geological process of petroleum formation, but on a very short time scale: …

Manipulation Of Product Distributions In Biomass Fast Pyrolysis Using Molten Polymers, Hsi-Wu Wong, Melisa Nallar

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Biomass fast pyrolysis has attracted significant attention due to high yields (> 75 wt%) of liquid products. A major drawback to biomass fast pyrolysis is the diverse product distributions of this liquid fraction, making subsequent upgrading and separation operations expensive. Using catalysts to accelerate pathways to desired products have been actively researched to resolve this problem. A complementary strategy is to suppress undesired pathways via inhibition, which is commonly utilized in enzymatic, combustion, and polymerization reactions but rarely explored in biomass fast pyrolysis.

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Development Of A Framework To Support The Effective Adoption Of Bim In The Public Sector: Lessons For Ireland, Shiyao Kuang, Alan Hore, Barry Mcauley, Roger West

Conference papers

Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been formally adopted by many countries with the promise of creating greater economic, social and sustainability benefits. Several authors and institutions have presented alternative BIM policies and tactics which have been adopted by developed countries. However, there is evidence to indicate that BIM adoption theories are not well established and, in particular, the linkage between BIM public sector adoption strategy outcomes and their contribution to achieving Government policy objectives are underdeveloped. This paper will present the outcome of the first phase of a systematic literature review of published studies (including journal papers and noteworthy international …

Seismic Vulnerability Assessment Of Anchored Block Type Contents Due To Sliding And Overturning, Sereen Majdalaweyh, Weichiang Pang, Amir Safiey, Ershad Ziaei, Keivan Rokneddin, Mohammad Javanbarg, Saurabh Prabhu

Publications

Damage to contents and nonstructural components is often the main driver of property losses against smaller earthquakes as evidenced by empirical evidence from past events. In the 2014 South Napa earthquake in California, for example, 56% of the affected buildings reported content damage. The primary modes of content damage include sliding, rocking, and overturning. The FEMA P-58 document provides seismic fragility functions for sliding and overturning of unanchored block content types, but no data is provided for anchored components. The ASCE/SEI 7-16 provides stability guidelines for different types of nonstructural components, but falls short of providing recommendations for the contents …

Pyrolysis Of Lignin-Rich Biomass For Renewable Aromatics, Materials Paul De Wild

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Currently, several national projects are conducted as an activity along the thermochemical horizon towards functionalized aromatics from lignin and lignin-rich biomass sources in the framework of the BIORIZON shared research center in the south of the Netherlands [1]. Regarding the pyrolytic valorization of lignin-rich biomass towards aromatic chemicals for various applications, it is thought that the collection of pyrolysis vapors in separate fractions [2] offers interesting opportunities for valorization, e.g. towards (additives for) bitumen, resins, rubber and specific marine biofuels. For these high market volume – medium market value products, earlier work has revealed that the application of lignin as …

Feedstock Blending As A Strategy For Hydrothermal Liquefaction: Lipid-Rich Scum From Primary Sedimentation And Wastewater Sludge, Justin Billing, Andy Schmidt, Todd Hart, Dan Anderson, Rich Hallen, Lesley Snowden-Swan

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

One salient advantage of hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is the ability to process diverse feedstocks individually or as blends. This creates an opportunity for using wet organic waste feedstocks that in many cases pose a disposal liability. The low cost associated with the feedstock enables cost-effective deployment of smaller, decentralized processing plants that match the geographic availability of wet waste resources. Two underutilized sources of wet waste biomass are wastewater sludge and fats, oils, and greases (FOG). In the United States, these each represent about 20% of the total HTL biocrude production potential from wet wastes. In this study, the selected …

Pyrolysis Of Plastic Waste: Opportunities And Challenges, Anja Oasmaa

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

No Abstract.

The Influence Of Lipids On The Fate Of Nitrogen During Hydrothermal Liquefaction Of Protein-Containing Biomass, Yujie Fan, U. Hornung, N. Dahmen, A. Kruse

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Nitrogen (N) in the bio-crude obtained from hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of protein-containing biomass not only reduces the heating value of fuels, but also increases cost for upgrading to meet the existing fuel standards. Considerable work so far had been focused on N-containing heterocycles formed via Maillard reactions. However, limited information is available on the influence of lipids, as the amides formation could compete with the Maillard reactions, further affecting the fate of N. The objective of this work is therefore to identify the influence of lipids on the nitrogen distribution in the different product phases, with a particular focus on …

Co2 Participation In Cross-Linking Reactions And Char Formation During Bio-Oil Pyrolysis, Farid Chejne, Javier Alonso Ordoñez, Carlos F. Valdes

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

The integration of new CO2 capture and storage technologies into energy generation processes has led to the development and study of the oxy-fuel combustion, in which the nitrogen in the air is replaced by recirculated CO2 that facilitates its capture and storage to reduce polluting emissions. Currently, the integration of oxy-fuel technologies with the use of new fuels such as bio-oil obtained from the pyrolysis of biomass is a topic of interest. In this case, the CO2 content surrounding the bio-oil droplets modifies the pyrolysis mechanism due to barriers in the diffusion of light volatiles at low temperatures (less than …

Production Of Ethyl Acetate From Pyrolysis Of Lignin Model Compound Guaiacylglycerol-Β-Guaiacyl Using Tga-Ms, Mark J. Kelly, Andrew D. Ure, Stephen Dooley

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Due to the complex chemical structure of lignin, the fundamental chemistry underlying its pyrolysis behaviour is poorly understood. A detailed knowledge of this chemistry would allow for the construction of detailed predictive chemical kinetic models, which could be used to maximise the efficiency of the pyrolysis process.

Lignin is comprised of three monolignols, guaiacyl, p-hydroxyphenyl and syringyl. These are joined together by aryl ether linkages of which β-O-4 is the most common, representing approximately 50% of the linkages found in lignin.^[1] In this study, pyrolysis (20^oC/minute heating rate) was carried out on a lignin model compound, guaiacylglycerol-β-guaiacyl …

Challenges And Progresses Made On The Microkinetic Description Of Lignin Liquefaction: Application Of Group Contribution Methods, Manuel Garcia-Perez, Evan Terrell, Linda Broadbelt

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

In this presentation a comprehensive microkinetic modelling framework and experimental tools are used to describe product yield and composition of direct lignin liquefaction processes with and without solvents (See Figure 1). With the framework proposed we aim to develop a unified theory and models capable of describing both dry (pyrolysis) and wet (hydrothermal and solvolysis) lignin liquefaction processes. An important phenomenon that has been shown to occur during lignin pyrolysis (as well as cellulose) is the formation of a liquid intermediate phase, and subsequent ejection of heavy products (>~250 Da) as aerosols from this intermediate. In our presentation we …

Synergistic Effects Of Bimetallic Mo-W Carbide In Hydrodeoxygenation Of Guaiacol, Serge Kaliaguine, Chi Cong Tran, Arghya Banerjee, Samir H. Mushrif

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Bimetallic MO-W carbide was synthesized via temperature-programmed reduction to generate a β-Mo₂C like phase with bulk morphology in order to investigate the synergistic effects of a combination of molybdenum and tungsten in carbide. The solid was characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), N₂ physisorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), H₂-chemisorption, and ammonia temperature programmed desorption (TPD-NH₃). The bimetallic carbide exhibited a significantly higher density of H₂-activating sites than the corresponding monometallic carbides prepared using the same method. In the HDO of guaiacol at 350^oC, MoWC yielded the highest hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) catalytic …

Re-Annotation Of Cough Events In The Ami Corpus, Paul Leamy, Damon Berry, David Dorran, Ted Burke

Conference papers

Cough sounds act as an important indicator of an individual's physical health, often used by medical professionals in diagnosing a patient's ailments. In recent years progress has been made in the area of automatically detecting cough events and, in certain cases, automatically identifying the ailment associated with a particular cough sound. Ethical and sensitivity issues associated with audio recordings of coughs makes it more difficult for this data to be made publicly available. However, without the public availability of a reliable database of cough sounds, developments in the area of audio event detection are likely to be hampered. The purpose …

Authentication And Sql-Injection Prevention Techniques In Web Applications, Cagri Cetin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation addresses the top two “most critical web-application security risks” by combining two high-level contributions.

The first high-level contribution introduces and evaluates collaborative authentication, or coauthentication, a single-factor technique in which multiple registered devices work together to authenticate a user. Coauthentication provides security benefits similar to those of multi-factor techniques, such as mitigating theft of any one authentication secret, without some of the inconveniences of multi-factor techniques, such as having to enter passwords or biometrics. Coauthentication provides additional security benefits, including: preventing phishing, replay, and man-in-the-middle attacks; basing authentications on high-entropy secrets that can be generated and updated automatically; …

Neurostimulator With Waveforms Inspired By Nature For Wearable Electro-Acupuncture, Jose Aquiles Parodi Amaya

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The work presented here has 3 goals: establish the need for novel neurostimulation waveform solutions through a literature review, develop a neurostimulation pulse generator, and verify the operation of the device for neurostimulation applications.

The literature review discusses the importance of stimulation waveforms on the outcomes of neurostimulation, and proposes new directions for neurostimulation research that would help in improving the reproducibility and comparability between studies.

The pulse generator circuit is then described that generates signals inspired by the shape of excitatory or inhibitory post-synaptic potentials (EPSP, IPSP). The circuit analytical equations are presented, and the effects of the circuit …

Field Performance And Cost Effectiveness Of Crack Sealing In Flexible And Composite Pavements, Momen Ragab Mousa

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Surface cracking is one of the major surface distresses in asphalt concrete (AC) pavement, allowing water infiltration through the cracks, causing stripping in asphalt pavement layers, and weakening and deteriorating the base and/or subgrade. Its treatment, therefore, is one of the major activities in pavement preservation for many state DOTs. Among the various treatment methods currently available to preserve AC pavement with existing surface cracking are various forms of crack sealing. Crack sealing is not a common practice to Louisiana highways since the benefit of such treatment appears to be affected by the elevation of the ground water table. Studies …

Steady State Hydroplaning Risk Analysis And Evaluation Of Unsteady State Effects, Menna Yassin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hydroplaning is a major concern on high speed roadways during heavy rainfall events. Hydroplaning tools are widely used by designers to reduce their roadway’s hydroplaning potential, therefore reducing the possibilities of severe crashes. This dissertation presents two methodologies for improving the prediction of hydroplaning potential.

The first phase focused on improving an existing widely used software called PAVDRN. Using multiple datasets from the Florida Department of Transportation, the author filtered the data using specific criteria to leave only truly dynamic hydroplaning crashes. The author then evaluated PAVDRN’s prediction capabilities and assessed its reliability in predicting a hydroplaning crash. Using past …

Conference Program, Franco Berruti, Anthony Dufour, Wolter Prins, Manuel Garcia-Pérez

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

No abstract provided.

Biofuels From Waste To Road Transport, Marine Peyrot, Johnny Stuen, Robbie Venderbosh, Wolfgang Hofer, Hank Vleeming, Mauro F. Sgroi, Yves Schuurman, Duncan Akporiaye

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Biofuels from Waste to Road (WASTE2ROAD) is an EU funded project under the Grant Agreement No. 818120 within the LC-SC3-RES-21-2018 call, “Development of next generation biofuels and alternative renewable fuel technologies for road transport”, as a Research and Innovation Action of the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Programme. The project started in the fall 2018 and will run for 4 years.

In 2014, total waste production in the EU amounted to 2.5 billion tons. From this total only a limited (albeit increasing) share (36%) was recycled, while the rest was landfilled or burned, of which some 600 million tons could have …

Achieving Tiered Model Quality In 3d Structure From Motion Models Using A Multi-Scale View-Planning Algorithm For Automated Targeted Inspection, Trent Okeson, Benjamin Barrett, Samuel Arce, Cory Vernon, Kevin W. Franke, John Hedengren

Faculty Publications

This study presents a novel multi-scale view-planning algorithm for automated targeted inspection using unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). In industrial inspection, it is important to collect the most relevant data to keep processing demands, both human and computational, to a minimum. This study investigates the viability of automated targeted multi-scale image acquisition for Structure from Motion (SfM)-based infrastructure modeling. A traditional view-planning approach for SfM is extended to a multi-scale approach, planning for targeted regions of high, medium, and low priority. The unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) can traverse the entire aerial space and facilitates collection of an optimized set of views, …

Engineering Students’ Perceptions Of Belongingness In Civil Engineering, Lisa Benson, Candice Bolding, Jennifer Harper Ogle, Catherine Mcgough Spence, Joseph Murphy, Rachel Lanning

Integrated Engineering Department Publications

Prior research shows that engineering students with low feelings of belongingness tend to switch to non-technical majors. With the understanding that aspects of student motivation, identity, and personality, as well as their academic performance, affect their sense of community in engineering, this study seeks to assess these student attributes over time. The context for this study is a single civil engineering program that is undergoing both curricular and cultural changes as part of an NSF-funded project. The data and findings presented here are part of a larger study of how student attitudes and beliefs change during their experiences in a …

Happy Hours Are A Godsend, Krishna Pakala, Diana Bairaktarova, Samantha Schauer

Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Office hours that happen in a virtual environment are called virtual office hours. This type of student-faculty interaction can be easily hosted from a faculty computer/mobile device/tablet. With an invitation, students can login to the online session and join their instructor and peers in a virtual space. Using mobile technologies, students can join virtual office hours from a variety of locations including a library, outdoors, on a commute ride home, while caring for children, eating dinner, and even while grocery shopping. Virtual office hours allow for more flexibility of student-faculty interaction. They are an alternative to traditional office hours. This …

Work In Progress: First-Year Engineering College Students: Value Created From Participating In A Living/Learning Community, Krishna Pakala, Kim M.B. Tucker, Samantha Schauer

Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This Work in Progress paper examines how to capture the perceived value obtained from firstyear engineering college students (FYECS) from participating in the Engineering and Innovation Residential College (EIRC), a living learning community (LLC). People are social by nature and thrive through collaborating and living with others who share similar passions; however, oftentimes FYECS do not have a community of like-minded peers where support, innovation, discourse, and collaboration can take place. Adding to FYECS struggles is the fact that many do not have a mentor in their related field and are unable to start building their professional repertoire, network, technical …

An Examination Of Professional Identity Development In Hbcu Construction Students, Andrea Nana Ofori-Boadu, Victor Ofori-Boadu, Iyshea Borders-Taylor, Lewis Waller, Paul Akangah

Faculty Publications

Workforce shortages, lack of diversity, and challenging student transitions from college into the construction profession remain a huge concern. There is the need for construction educators to target, attract, and prepare minority students who persist into construction professional roles and contribute to industry advancements. Identity theories emphasize that students' lived experiences shape their professional identity development processes and career decisions; and, in the long-term, influence students' persistence and career success. Construction students with strong professional identities are likely to persist and have smoother transitions into construction professions (CPs). However, little is known about the lived experiences of construction students, particularly …

Using Reflection To Facilitate Writing Knowledge Transfer In Upper-Level Materials Science Courses, Jennifer C. Mallette, Harold Ackler

English Literature Faculty Publications and Presentations

When students enter upper-level engineering courses, they may bring with them unclear or inconsistent approaches to writing in engineering. Influenced by their past experiences with writing, students encountering engineering genres such as reports and proposals may struggle to write successfully. They may struggle in part because of the messiness inherent in writing knowledge transfer: a student who successfully completed freshman composition may still be unable to transfer skills, habits of mind, and approaches to writing from that setting to engineering because the rhetorical situations look drastically different. Yancey, Robertson, and Taczak define transfer as a “dynamic rather than a static …

Contractual Guidelines For Contractors Working Under Projects Funded By Southeastern Us Dots, Islam H. El-Adaway, Amr Elsayegh, I. S. Abotaleb, C. Smith, M. Bootwala, S. Eteifa

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Transportation projects in the infrastructure sector contribute to approximately 42% of the total expenditures on public construction projects in the US. The main source of funding of these projects is the taxpayer's hard-earned money. The ever-growing problem by transportation projects is that the available funds are less than those required to have a stable and well maintained transportation network. Unnecessary costs in these projects are mainly caused by Conflicts, Claims and Disputes (C2D). According to recent reports, C2D in construction is greatly attributed to poor contract administration. The goal of this paper is to provide better understanding and utilization of …

Work In Progress: Mastery-Based Grading In An Introduction To Circuits Class, Noah Salzman, Kurtis D. Cantley, Gary L. Hunt

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Circuits is often the first required course in an electrical engineering curriculum that demands application of multiple concepts from prerequisite math and physics courses. This integration of knowledge can be a challenge for many students. Effective teaching methods can enhance the overall learning experience, increase program retention, and improve student understanding of foundational topics in electrical engineering. This paper outlines a mastery-based grading structure implemented in a sophomore-level circuits class. The focus is placed at this level because the course is a critical prerequisite for many other courses in the electrical and computer engineering (ECE) curriculum. The knowledge that students …

Easing Students’ Transitions To University Via A Summer Bridge And Outdoor Experience Program, Noah Salzman, Ann Delaney, Catherine Rose Bates, Donna C. Llewellyn

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this Complete Evidence-based Practice paper, we describe the development and evolution of a combined academic summer bridge program and outdoors experience program designed to support the academic success and development of incoming STEM majors at Boise State University. First-time, first-year students’ transitions to university can be challenging for a wide variety of reasons, including increased independence, leaving behind parents and friends while simultaneously struggling to form new peer groups, and adapting to more rigorous coursework with less externally imposed structure than prior learning experiences. These challenges, especially those related to students’ sense of belonging and connection to other students, …