Engineering Commons^™

Drone-Assisted Emergency Communications, Di Wu

Dissertations

Drone-mounted base stations (DBSs) have been proposed to extend coverage and improve communications between mobile users (MUs) and their corresponding macro base stations (MBSs). Different from the base stations on the ground, DBSs can flexibly fly over and close to MUs to establish a better vantage for communications. Thus, the pathloss between a DBS and an MU can be much smaller than that between the MU and MBS. In addition, by hovering in the air, the DBS can likely establish a Line-of-Sight link to the MBS. DBSs can be leveraged to recover communications in a large natural disaster struck area …

Examining Bicycle And Motorized Vehicle Speeds And Their Relationships In The Context Of Urban Roadways, Jaclyn Sue Schaefer

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis presents a compilation of papers exploring passenger car and bicycle speeds through their interactions with each other and with urban roadway factors.

First, following a concern raised in part of the traffic literature that a large mode shift toward bicycling may cause travel time delays and potentially exacerbate congestion instead of alleviate it unless bicycle lanes are installed, an empirical study detailing how the presence of bicycles on urban roads without bicycle lanes may affect passenger car speeds is presented. Pneumatic tube data from six predominantly low speed, low volume roads in Portland, Oregon were utilized to identify …

Use Of Gis To Find Optimum Locations For Anaerobic Digestion Or Composting Facilities In Maine, Usha Humagain

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As per US EPA, in 2017, 41 million tons of food waste was generated, but only 6.3% was diverted from landfills (US EPA, 2020). When landfilled or incinerated, organic waste (food waste, sludge, manure, agricultural waste) causes environmental pollution through greenhouse gas emissions, land, water, and air pollution. In contrast, if we compost or digest organic waste, we can generate soil additives and a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide gas to produce electricity or energy. Both digestion and composting reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve the land through additives, and boost the economy. Many countries are adopting anaerobic digestion and …

Arc Flash In Single-Phase Electrical Systems, John Francis Wade

Doctoral Dissertations

Arc flash and blast are hazards unique to electrical installations. Such events can start fires, destroy equipment, and severely injure or kill workers. NFPA 70E and IEEE 1584 are defining standards for arc flash hazard analysis used during system design, construction, and maintenance. Both focus on three-phase faults for calculations since three-phase power distribution is predominant in utility and industrial applications. However, discussion of arc flash in single-phase systems prevalent in residential and commercial facilities is excluded. Single-phase faults can also occur in a variety of industrial and utility circumstances.

This dissertation explores historic background and treatment of arc flash …

A Methodological Framework To Evaluate Community Perceptions Of Economic And Safety Impacts Attributed To Highway Bypass And Widening Projects, Karla Diaz-Corro

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Transportation practitioners have proposed the construction of highway bypass and widening projects in rural communities to address traffic-related problems that include noise pollution and congestion, among others. In the past, the construction of bypass projects has led community residents to raise concerns about potential decreases in business activity for businesses located along the bypassed road. For transportation organizations, it is essential to understand the economic, social, and safety impacts of transportation projects in terms of public perceptions as public input is a required part of the project planning phase. Moreover, it is recommended that agencies perform retrospective analyses of project …

Puerto Rico’S Electric Power System: An Analysis Of Contemporary Failures And The Opportunity To Rebuild A More Resilient Grid, Including The Development Of A Utility-Scale Solar Farm On The Island Municipality Of Culebra, Federico Sotomayor

International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE)

Puerto Rico’s grid was decimated in 2017 after experiencing back-to-back hurricanes – Maria and Irma. Although the hurricanes caused tremendous damage and hardship to the island, it also created the right circumstances for the local energy landscape to transition toward a more resilient and sustainable model. Through an analysis of recent challenges by the local electric utility PREPA, and subsequent fallout from the hurricanes, we see that they now hold a unique opportunity to redeem themselves by taking advantage of catalyzed resources to rebuild a better system. One region that could greatly benefit from an improved and reimagined grid are …

Diversity And Inclusion In The Workplace: A Comparative Analysis Between A Large And Small Company, Andrew K. Hernandez

Construction Management

The construction industry in recent times have seen an increase in inclusivity and diversity among the workplace. The industry seems to make improvements and steps to create an overall accepting workforce. However, there is still a need to produce a more inclusive work environment. There are many organizations and legal requirements that push for improving diversity throughout companies, but still the industry struggles to do so. Improving diversity in the workforce can reach out to more personnel with talent and skill to possibly attack the trade labor shortage in this industry. Analytical research methods in these reports were used to …

Ventilation And Recirculation Airway Design For An Autonomous, Climate Controlled, Hydroponic Demonstration Unit, Nicholas Cross

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

For this Honors Thesis project, I designed and fabricated a ventilation and recirculation airway sub-system prototype for a hydroponic demonstration unit to be used as an educational demonstration for prospective students, illustrating the capabilities of biological engineers. This thesis focuses on the design of an autonomous air system that toggles between ventilation and recirculation modes based upon sensor output. In the literature review I discuss how ventilation can be used to achieve a targeted climate, the benefits of hands-on projects for education, and the optimum parameters for growing herbs in a hydroponic system.

In the design and fabrication process, every …

Enhanced Traffic Incident Analysis With Advanced Machine Learning Algorithms, Zhenyu Wang

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Traffic incident analysis is a crucial task in traffic management centers (TMCs) that typically manage many highways with limited staff and resources. An effective automatic incident analysis approach that can report abnormal events timely and accurately will benefit TMCs in optimizing the use of limited incident response and management resources. During the past decades, significant efforts have been made by researchers towards the development of data-driven approaches for incident analysis. Nevertheless, many developed approaches have shown limited success in the field. This is largely attributed to the long detection time (i.e., waiting for overwhelmed upstream detection stations; meanwhile, downstream stations …

A Parametric Analysis Of A Turbofan Engine With An Auxiliary Bypass Combustion Chamber – The Turboaux Engine, Kaleab Fetahi

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A parametric study of a novel turbofan engine with an auxiliary combustion chamber, nicknamed the TurboAux engine is presented. The TurboAux engine is conceived as an extension of a low-bypass turbofan engine with an auxiliary bypass annular combustion chamber around the core stream. The study presented in this thesis is motivated by the need to facilitate clean secondary burning of fuel at temperatures higher than conventionally realized, from air exiting the low-pressure compressor. The parametric study starts by analyzing the turbojet engine and its performance with and without an afterburner segment attached. Following that, the conventional turbofan and its mixing …

Atmospheric Turbulence Distortion In Video: Restoration Utilizing Sparse Analysis, Benjamin J. Sanda

Dissertations

The removal of atmospheric turbulence (AT) distortion in long range imaging is one of the most challenging areas of research in imaging processing with an immediate need for solutions in several applications such as in military and transportation systems. AT exacerbates distortion due to non-linear geometric blur and scintillations in long-distance images and videos, severely reducing image quality and information interpretation. AT negatively impacts both human and computer vision systems, compromising visibility essential for accurate object identification and tracking.

In this dissertation, a novel sparse analysis framework is developed to address efficient AT blur and scintillation removal in video. Operating …

Personality And Mood For Non-Player Characters: A Method For Behavior Simulation In A Maze Environment, Noah L. Paige

Master's Theses

When it comes to video games, immersion is key. All types of games aim to keep the player immersed in some form or another. A common aspect of the immersive world in most role-playing games -- but not exclusive to the genre -- is the non-playable character (NPC). At their best, NPCs play an integral role to the sense of immersion the player feels by behaving in a way that feels believable and fits within the world of the game. However, due to lack of innovation in this area of video games, at their worst NPCs can jar the player …

Designing Next-Generation Transportation Systems With Emerging Vehicle Technologies, Zhiwei Chen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recent advances in computing and artificial intelligence have enabled the development of various emerging vehicle technologies, e.g., autonomous vehicles (AV) and modular autonomous vehicles (MAV). These technologies bring new scientific and engineering problems challenging transportation researchers and practitioners. This dissertation aims to develop a suite of scalable computational and analytical tools for designing and analyzing next-generation transportation systems with the MAV technologies. Also, we intend to empirically study the system impacts in terms of the quality of service, energy implications, and inequality impacts.

For MAV system design, we develop a methodological framework centering at theoretical properties of the optimal system …

Methodologies To Quantify Transit Performance Metrics At The System-Level Using High-Resolution Gps, Stop-Level, And Gtfs Archived Transit Data, Travis Bradley Glick

Dissertations and Theses

Performance metrics have typically focused at two main scales: a microscopic scale that focuses on specific locations, time-periods, and trips; and, a macroscopic scale that averages metrics over longer times, entire routes, and networks. When applied to entire transit systems, microscopic methodologies often have computational limitations while macroscopic methodologies ascribe artificial uniformity to non-uniform analysis areas. These limitations highlight the need for a middle approach.

This dissertation presents a mesoscopic analysis based around timepoint-segments, which are a novel application of an existing system for many transit agencies. For this research, routes are divided into a consecutive group of bus stops …

The Energy Efficiency Of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ship (Mass), Dang Cuong Nguyen

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Application Of Renewable Energy Supply In A Port Container Terminal : Bandar Abbas Port Container Terminal Case Study, Zhila Gordani

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Development Of An Operational Kpi For Energy Efficiency Ship Operation, Danuja Wijayanto

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Feasibility Study Of The Implementation Of An Effective And Eco-Friendly Energy Management System : Case Study Of Palermo's Fincantieri Shipyard, Bryan Singer Asturias

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Promoting Maritime Safety Through ‘Findings’ Of Accident Investigations, Surveys And Audits In The Pacific : The Case Of Papua New Guinea, Conny Ralph Hauseng

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Accident Analysis And Prevention : Application Of Hfacs In Maritime Casualty Investigation Reports Of Ecuador, David Guevara Haro

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

An Inferential Study Of The Potential Consumer Value Of Free Charging For Users Of Public Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure, Divyamitra Mishra

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although there is economic and marketing evidence of consumers assigning additional benefits to free products and bundles, there is limited research into the behavioral consequences of offering public electric vehicle charging for free. Previous exploratory research by Maness and Lin analyzed possible economic and environmental benefits from offering free public charging infrastructure and policy. Their work found that providing free public charging infrastructure could increase plug-in electric vehicle sales and cause decreased reliance on fossil fuels in the personal transportation sector. However, their study assumed the increased value which consumers would place on free charge events. This project proposes to …

Using Spatial Analysis And Machine Learning Techniques To Develop A Comprehensive Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Consolidation Model, Samira Soleimani

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The safety of highway-railroad grade crossings (HRGC) is still an issue in the United States of America (USA). The grade crossing is where a railroad crosses a road at the same level without any over or underpass. To improve the safety of crossings, the crossings’ condition should be explored from several aspects such as engineering design (speed limit, warning signs, etc.), road condition (number of lanes, surface markings, etc.), rail design (the type of track, ballast, etc.), temporal variables (weather, visibility, time of day, lightning, etc.), social variables (population, race, etc.), and last but not least, spatial variables (the type …

An Equity Focused Study On The Trip Temporal Distributions Of Vulnerable Road Users, Santiago Espinosa Wild

Civil and Environmental Engineering Master's Project Reports

The United States is a megadiverse nation with a transportation system that, for decades, was designed to serve primarily able-bodied, white, male motorists. This legacy creates a situation in which varying socio-demographic groups experience the transportation system differently with contrasting safety, accessibility, and convenience outcomes. This project introduces descriptive statistics and binary logistic models that provide transportation professionals and policy makers with a quantitative understanding on how, why, and when certain socio-demographic groups are more likely to engage in a trip. This project provides tools to measure and understand the equity implications of a wide array of transportation policy decisions. …

Investigating The Combined Effects Of Whole Body Vibration And Vestibular Stimulation On Spasticity And Dystonia In Cerebral Palsy, Peter A. Michael

Dissertations

This study identifies and addresses three voids and potential shortcomings associated with the classification, assessment and management of Cerebral Palsy (CP). These concerns should not undermine the significant advancement that has been made in this specific branch of rehabilitation, but addressing them is necessary. Cerebral Palsy is a group of motor impairments due to hypoxic-ischemic brain damage around the time of birth and very commonly manifests as excessive muscle tone and poor motor control. There are classifications within CP including spasticity and dystonia.

First, a level of discrepancy is present in the classification of CP between the clinical and research …

Comparison Of Longitudinal Changes In Resting State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Between Alzheimer’S And Healthy Controls, Berk Can Yilmaz

Theses

Resting State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (rs-fMRI) is a technique that is widely used for analyzing brain function using different approaches and methods. This study involves rs-fMRI analysis of Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) signals acquired from Alzheimer’s disease (AD) Patients and Healthy Controls (HC). Each subject in the study had both functional and anatomical images with at least one rs-fMRI scan with their Anatomical (T1) scans. Previous rs-fMRI studies have demonstrated that AD shows differences in Amplitude of Low Frequency (<0.1 Hz) Fluctuations (ALFF), and Regional Homogeneity (ReHo) measures according to HCs.

The aim of the study is to investigate individual and group level differences using ReHo and mALFF related …

Navigation Risk Evaluation Of The Northeast Passage Based On The Entropy Weight Topsis Model, Fengde Qu

Maritime Safety & Environment Management Dissertations (Dalian)

No abstract provided.

Research On Quantity Discount Pricing By Container Liner Shipping, Runzhe Zhao

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Risk Perception Affacting The Performance Of Shipping Company, Yubing Wang

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Spillover Effects Between The Cargo Market And Shipping Market: The Case Of The Dry Bulk Market, Yifeng Li

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Microrna Gene Expression States Underlying Individual Variation In Aging And Lifespan In Isogenic C. Elegans, Holly Kinser

McKelvey School of Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Average lifespan differs greatly between species, but lifespan among same-species individuals is also highly variable. While much effort has been devoted to uncovering longevity-associated traits and lifespan-extending perturbations in humans and model organisms, how differences in lifespan arise between individuals is unknown. Studies of human identical twins demonstrate that surprisingly little of the variation in lifespan between individuals can be explained by genetics and shared environment. Furthermore, even genetically identical C. elegans reared in highly homogeneous environments display a degree of variability in lifespan similar to that of outbred human populations. Thus, longevity must be determined at least in part …