Engineering Commons^™

Predictive Delivery Man Assignment Problem Using Deep Learning, Rahmadini Payla Juarsa, Taufik Djatna

Makara Journal of Technology

Dispatching is a critical part in current online shopping. It relates to how the delivery man assignment should minimize cost along with the service from a source to an end customer with an appropriate scheduled time. The problem arises as neither enough products to deliver nor delivery men are available for dispatch, resulting in suboptimal service and a waste of money. The study aimed to formulate the cost of restaurant dispatching for inducing a deep learning-based solution with the gated recurrent unit recurrent neural network to receive hourly order data and to engage the result for near feature delivery man …

Feasibility And Impact Of Liquid/Liquid-Encased Dopants As Method Of Composition Control In Laser Powder Bed Fusion, Taylor Matthew Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Additive manufacturing (AM) – and laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) specifically – constructs geometry that would not be possible using standard manufacturing techniques. This geometric versatility allows integration of multiple components into a single part. While this practice can reduce weight and part count, there are also serious drawbacks. One is that the LPBF process can only build parts with a single material. This limitation generally results in over-designing some areas of the part to compensate for the compromise in material choice. Over-designing can lead to decreased functional efficiency, increased weight, etc. in LPBF parts. Methods to control the material …

Evaluating The Effect Of City Ordinances On The Implementation And Performance Of Green Stormwater Infrastructure (Gsi), Liya E. Abera, Cristiane Q. Surbeck, Kristina Alexander

Faculty and Student Publications

The replacement of natural pervious surfaces with impervious surfaces due to urbanization, construction, and development causes excess stormwater runoff and results in cities experiencing localized flooding events. The installation of green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) is one way of reducing flooding events and preventing downstream erosion and damage. In this study, computer rainfall-runoff simulations were performed to analyze GSI's effectiveness in mitigating stormwater runoff when applied to sites with different soil types and for which different design storms were established by regulation. A mixed-use development site was used as a hypothetical site on which to perform the analysis. The study applied …

Ensemble Data Fitting For Bathymetric Models Informed By Nominal Data, Samantha Zambo

Dissertations

Due to the difficulty and expense of collecting bathymetric data, modeling is the primary tool to produce detailed maps of the ocean floor. Current modeling practices typically utilize only one interpolator; the industry standard is splines-in-tension.

In this dissertation we introduce a new nominal-informed ensemble interpolator designed to improve modeling accuracy in regions of sparse data. The method is guided by a priori domain knowledge provided by artificially intelligent classifiers. We recast such geomorphological classifications, such as ‘seamount’ or ‘ridge’, as nominal data which we utilize as foundational shapes in an expanded ordinary least squares regression-based algorithm. To our knowledge …

Catchment Processes Can Amplify The Effect Of Increasing Rainfall Variability, Marc F. Müller, Kevin R. Roche, David N. Dralle

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

By filtering the incoming climate signal when producing streamflow, river basins can attenuate—or amplify—projected increases in rainfall variability. A common perception is that river systems dampen rainfall variability by averaging spatial and temporal variations in their watersheds. However, by analyzing 671 watersheds throughout the United States, we find that many catchments actually amplify the coefficient of variation of rainfall, and that these catchments also likely amplify changes in rainfall variability. Based on catchment-scale water balance principles, we relate that faculty to the interplay between two fundamental hydrological processes: water uptake by vegetation and the storage and subsequent release of water …

An Engineer's Guide To Periodic Discrete Wavelet Transforms And The Periodic Wavelet Balance Method, Simon Jones

Faculty Publications - Mechanical Engineering

This Technical Report aims to explain how to apply the discreteWavelet Balance Method (dWBM) for solving periodic differential equations using periodized Daubechies wavelets. The primary goal is to provide the user sufficient details to implement the technique without extensive mathematical background.

Chapter 2 of this document reviews the discrete Fourier transform using a multivariate regression approach, followed by a review of the discrete Harmonic Balance Method (dHBM) for approximating solutions to periodic differential equations. It is important the reader complete this chapter, even if they are familiar with the topics, since the approaches demonstrated in Chapter 2 with harmonic functions …

Effect Of Temperature On Abrasion Erosion In Particle Based Concentrating Solar Powerplants, Nipun Goel, Tessa Mei-Lin Fong, John P. Shingledecker, Andrew Russell, Michael W. Keller, Siamack A. Shirazi, Todd Otanicar

Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The use of solid particles as a heat transfer medium is being explored for concentrated solar power plants (CSP) to increase their efficiency by achieving operating temperature >700 °C. During operation, these hot particles are expected to move along the various components within the collector system, resulting in material degradation from a combination of high-temperature oxidation and erosion. In the present study, the performance of candidate materials was evaluated through a series of abrasion erosion experiments at room temperature as well as at 800 °C. Wear in metallic and refractory type materials was investigated using CarboBead® HSP 40/70 particles inside …

Life Cycle Impact Assessment Of Biofuels Derived From Sweet Sorghum In The U.S., Karla G. Morrissey, Greg Thoma, Dora E. Lopez

Chemical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background

The objective of this study was to evaluate the environmental impact of the production of a range of liquid biofuels produced from the combination of fermenting sorghum stalk juice (bioethanol) and the pyrolysis/hydrotreatment of residual bagasse (renewable gasoline and diesel). Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) was performed on a farm-to-wheels system that included: (i) sorghum farming, (ii) juice extraction, (iii) juice fermenting, (iv) bagasse pretreatment, (v) bagasse thermochemical treatment (pyrolysis, hydroprocessing, and steam reforming), and (vi) typical passenger vehicle operation. LCIA results were compared to those of petroleum fuels providing the equivalent functional unit—cumulative kilometers driven by spark ignition …

The Effect Of Price-Based Demand Response On Carbon Emissions In European Electricity Markets: The Importance Of Adequate Carbon Prices, Markus Fleschutz, Markus Bohlayer, Marco Braun, Gregor Henze, Michael D. Murphy

Publications

Price-based demand response (PBDR) has recently been attributed great economic but also environmental potential. However, the determination of its short-term effects on carbon emissions requires the knowledge of marginal emission factors (MEFs), which compared to grid mix emission factors (XEFs), are cumbersome to calculate due to the complex characteristics of national electricity markets. This study, therefore, proposes two merit order-based methods to approximate hourly MEFs and applies them to readily available datasets from 20 European countries for the years 2017–2019. Based on the calculated electricity prices, standardized daily load shifts were simulated which indicated that carbon emissions increased for 8 …

Macromodeling And Accelerated Simulations Of Electric Machines, Ajay Pratap Yadav

Electrical Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Electric machines are the most important element in the power grid. Given its centennial legacy and the rise of electric vehicles and distributed energy resources, it is imperative to bring new technologies into this area. This work tries to bridge the gap between electric machines and innovative research domains such as convex optimization and FPGA-based hardware acceleration. Problems of electric machine parameter identification and real-time simulation are considered. A convex optimization-based framework is designed to identify machine parameters. This tool is used to perform the macromodeling of a synchronous machine from its magnetic-equivalent circuit model. Furthermore, it is used to …

Amorphous Silica Based Biomaterials For Musculoskeletal Tissue Regeneration Applications, Kamal Awad

Material Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Musculoskeletal (MSK) injury includes any injuries that affect the bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons, or nerves. Open bone fracture is one of the common types of MSK traumatic injuries which results in not only bone fracture but also damage/loss of associated muscles, nerve, vasculature, endothelium, periosteum, fascia, and connective tissue. Surgical procedures and biological interventions are required to fix the broken bone, and muscle transfer is performed to compensate the skeletal muscle defects. Current treatments include fixative metal implants and regenerative biopolymer scaffolds, then muscle flap procedures to cover the bone. Yet, these treatments are inadequate because the used materials do …

Stress Analysis Of Functionally Graded Materials, Nilabh Krishna

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

A functionally graded material (FGM) is an inhomogeneous material whose material properties vary continuously. Since FGM’s material properties are continuous at the interface of the two materials, unlike conventional composites whose material properties are discontinuous at the interface, it is best suited to prevent catastrophically failure, stress concentration, and residual stresses. Literature reviews revealed that most of the research on FGMs was a 2-D analysis, especially on FGM plates and beams. This research focuses on 3-D stress analysis for an elastic medium that contains a spherical inclusion made of an FGM embedded in a matrix phase. To the best of …

Effect Of Thermal Conductivity, Reynolds Number, Aspect Ratio And Packing Arrangement On Radial Heat Transfer In Packed Beds, Nishith Gorla

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The key motivation for this research is to study heat transfer developments in packed beds. The radial heat transfer enhancement of a packed bed in the laminar flow region is one of the major areas of ongoing research in mechanical, aerospace and chemical industries, especially the response of a packed bed during conjugate heat transfer with the fluid-solid interaction. This computational study focuses on the impact of packing size, thermal conductivity, and arrangement on the radial heat transfer performance as a function of Reynolds number. A simple annular tube packed with circles (2D) and spheres (3D) is utilized for this …

Modeling The Effect Of In Situ Nozzle-Integrated Compression Rolling On The Mechanical And Fracture Behavior Of Fused Filament Fabrication (Fff) 3d Printed Parts, Momen Mohammad Qasaimeh

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Fused filament fabrication (FFF) is one of the most common additive manufacturing/3D printing techniques where continuously extruded semi-molten filaments are deposited in a layer-by-layer manner. The quality of the manufactured part depends on some major factors such as filament-filament contact and adhesion as well as the void fraction. Filament to filament adhesion affects the part strength under transverse load. In our earlier work, we studied the effect of in situ ball rolling on the thermal and mechanical properties of the printed parts. It was found that when printing/rolling parameters are correctly tuned and in situ compression rolling is appropriately applied …

Set-Theoretic Frameworks For Online Optimization, Estimation, And Control, Dignata Bhattacharjee

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

This research is primarily focused on developing online frameworks, which are suited to real-time implementation, for performance optimization, estimation, and control of dynamical systems using set-theoretic concepts and/or having set-theoretic interpretations. First, two perturbation-based extremum seeking control schemes, based on the classical setup and equipped with novel adaptation laws for the perturbation signal amplitudes, are proposed for general single input single output nonlinear systems. The proposed schemes are able to extremize steady-state system output in a practical asymptotic sense, i.e., the system is driven to an arbitrarily small set centered at the true steady-state optimal operating point. The next development …

Uncertainty Propagation, Control, And Estimation Of Stochastic Dynamic Systems Using Generalized Polynomial Chaos Expansion, Rajnish Bhusal

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

In recent years, uncertainty propagation has emerged as an important research area in the field of dynamical systems. The growing interest in this area arises out of the need to develop computationally efficient approaches to predict the evolution of a system subject to uncertainties. To this end, this dissertation is focused on developing computational frameworks for uncertainty propagation, control, and state estimation of stochastic dynamical systems using the generalized polynomial chaos (gPC) expansion technique. In the first part of this dissertation, the construction of gPC expansion is presented in general. The novelty of this dissertation lies in developing a mixed …

Computational Investigation Of Energy Dissipation Through Progressive Failure In Tailored Composite Structures Via Explicit Finite Element Analysis, Anirudh Srinivas

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

In this study, energy dissipation in structures implementing a previously developed, analytically modeled, and experimentally validated composite tailoring concept is investigated using an explicit finite element approach. The tailored composite structures consist in a series connection of parallel alternate load paths of tailored length and thickness. The advantage of the tailored structure when compared to an untailored conventional structure is that when subjected to a tensile load, the response of the tailored composite structure is characterized by progressive failure of the load paths resulting in increased energy dissipation. The tailored composite structure is modeled for IM7-8552 composite material using a …

Laminar Swept And Cross Shockwave/Boundary-Layer Interactions, Jiss Jacob Sebastian

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Shockwave/boundary-layer interactions are considered one of the most complex problems in high-speed gas dynamics, and numerous studies have been carried out for more than eighty years to understand the fundamental physics. A numerical study was performed using fin-plate configurations to study the three-dimensional swept and cross shockwave/ laminar boundary-layer interactions. All the interactions studied were strong enough for the boundary layer to separate. In the first part, swept shock interactions between a laminar boundary layer and the shockwave induced by a sharp fin mounted perpendicularly on a flat plate were studied. Different flow conditions were investigated at freestream Mach numbers …

Design, Operation And Maintenance Of Direct And Indirect Evaporative Cooling Systems In Data Center Thermal Management, Ashwin Siddarth

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Evaporative cooling is an alternative data center cooling solution that presents significant energy cost savings in acquisition and operation when compared to conventional air conditioning and mechanical refrigeration systems. This research focuses on developing a deeper understanding in implementing, operating and maintaining evaporative cooling systems integrated with air-side economization to realize the energy savings potential in data center cooling. The goal of the research is to develop a comprehensive guide to assess and contrast different approaches of evaporative cooling being used in data center cooling and provide guidance in improving water and energy efficiency. An air handling unit (AHU) serves …

Design Of Streamline-Traced Inlets And Their Integration With Rotating Detonation Engines, Malcolm Lee Branch

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Theses - Archive

This thesis has two parts: 1) design of the streamline-traced inlets (STIs); and 2) integration of STIs with rotating detonation engines (RDEs). The STI design starts with a two-dimensional, isentropic compression flowfield as the parent flowfield. The method of characteristics was used to generate the flowfield throughout the entire STI. For a given flight altitude 18 km, freestream Mach number M?=3.0, and inlet exit-plane Mach number M?=1.2, a parametric sweep of the initial deflection angle ?1=4.0--11.0 deg and the Mach number at the entrance of the internal compression system M3=1.3--1.7 was performed to determine the STI performance sensitivity as a …

Haptic Interface Optimization For Virtual Anastomosis Surgery Training, Kangji Huang

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Theses - Archive

Virtual anastomosis surgery study allows surgeons to perform or practice suturing in virtual reality using a commercial haptic device. The haptic device can generate force feedback so that the user can feel the real touch sensation of the object in virtual reality. The virtual anastomosis surgery study has two requirements which are that the haptic device must be fixed on the operating table and haptic device location must be suitable for different surgeons. The goal is to use a commercially available haptic device for this purpose, rather than design a new device for each possible surgery that must be performed. …

Design And Cfd Analysis Of Bimetallic Based Passive Dynamic Cold Plate For High Power Direct-To-Chip Liquid Cooling, Apurv Pravin Deshmukh

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Theses - Archive

Rising demand for high-performance chips results in the need for advanced and efficient cooling technologies like direct to chip liquid cooling. Cold plates based utilizing direct liquid cooling is one of the most efficient and the most investigated cooling technology since the 1980s. Major data services and cloud providers like IBM, Microsoft, and Google had already started a shift towards liquid-cooled data centers for their high computational servers. At the chip level nowadays, the processors are divided into several cores and each of these cores continuously works at varying computational demands. This creates a non-uniform heat distribution across the processor, …

Simulation Of A Soft Body Non-Grasp Manipulator Using A Spring-Mass-Damper Cloth Model, Cristian Almendariz

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Theses - Archive

Simulation and modeling are well known and important tools in the field of robotics, being used to validate design and in the development of robotic control systems. Traditionally, robotic systems have been primarily rigid body systems and used in well controlled environments where interactions are highly predictable, and exceptions are minimized. With the ever-increasing adoption of robotics in the medical field, typical robotic environments are becoming highly unpredictable and requiring the modeling and simulation of not only rigid body systems but soft systems and interactions between the two. This work addresses model improvement of a “soft and hard” robotic system …

Development Of Virtual Simulation For Evaluation Of Robotic Assistive Environment, Shubham Raosaheb Gunjal

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Theses - Archive

Robotics research in virtual simulation has the advantage of reduced testing time, verification of algorithms on different systems before implementation, and cost-saving. Today’s simulation softwares are capable of providing the physics of the simulation such as torque requirements of the joints which aid in the selection of appropriate hardware. In this research, Webots, an open-source physics-based simulation, and visualization software is evaluated and then used to study and evaluate the performance of two robotic systems for a robotic assistive environment for persons with upper limb disabilities. This includes a wheelchair, a table with objects, and two robotic arms attached to …

Investigating A Finite Element Model Updating Methodology For Characterizing Mechanical Properties Of Ncf Composites, Pasworn Chanchai

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Theses - Archive

Composite materials have been a key breakthrough in developing aircraft structures. Their superior strength and stiffness-to-density ratio, which are unmatched by no other materials, allow engineers to create high strength and ultra-lightweight aircraft structures. Recently, non-Crimp Fabric (NCF) composites have emerged as attractive alternatives to traditional autoclave pre-impregnated composites allowing for lower production costs, better handling and improved shelf life while maintaining excellent in-plane mechanical properties compared to other types of textile composites. NCF out-of-plane mechanical properties can also be enhanced by stitching a high tensile strength yarn throughout their entire laminate thickness, improving the resistance to delamination. However, stitch-reinforced …

Surface Modification Of Titanium By Electrolytic Plasma Processing And In-Vitro Studies, Wisanu Boonrawd

Material Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Electrolytic plasma processing (EPP) can be operated in two modes, namely plasma electrolytic saturation (PES) and plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO). In this study, the PES was used to create hydrophilic surface profiles on titanium (Ti). The wettability, surface morphology characteristics and chemical composition of the treated samples were studied as a function of PES processing parameters. The PES profiled surfaces comprised of a characteristic “hills and valleys” morphology because of continuous surface melting and freezing cycles. A bimodal surface profile was produced with 2-3 µm height hills and valleys with nano-roughness (= 200 nm). The produced profile resulted in a …

Poly(Lactic-Co-Glycolic Acid) Nanoparticle Delivery Of Notch Intracellular Domain Plasmid To Restore Notch Signaling, Victoria L. Messerschmidt

Bioengineering Dissertations - Archive

Notch signaling is a highly conserved signaling system that is required for embryonic development and regeneration of organs. When the signal is lost, maldevelopment occurs and leads to a lethal state. Delivering exogenous genetic materials encoding Notch into cells can reestablish downstream signaling and rescue cellular functions. Here, we utilized the negatively charged and FDA approved polymer poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) to encapsulate Notch Intracellular Domain-containing plasmid in nanoparticles. We show that primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) readily uptake the nanoparticles with and without specific antibody targets. We demonstrated in vitro that our nanoparticles are nontoxic, stable over time, and …

Utilizing Load Tests And Site Investigation Data To Predict Design Load Capacities For Drilled Shafts In Different Geologic Formations, Hosam Salman

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Precise predictions of the design capacities of drilled shafts on weak rock formations is vital for a better design of foundations. Irregularities in rock formations due to weathering cause discrepancies in actual bearing capacities and evaluating the bearing capacity typically requires frequent in-situ testing, using load test shafts at smaller intervals, which is time consuming and expensive. The typical design in Texas currently utilizes in-situ design charts that are developed based on Texas Cone Penetrometer (TCP) blow counts. This approach is found to have limitations related to maximum number of blows, rock characterization, and difficulty in incorporating influential parameters. Problematic …

Localized Treatment Of Malignant Melanoma Using A Modified Cellulose-Based Hydrogel Loaded With Temozolomide With Increased Safety Of Human Dermal Fibroblasts And The Mechanisms Behind The Effect, Joseph Wolf

Bioengineering Dissertations - Archive

Melanoma pathophysiology is highly varied, and the initial cause of tumorigenesis is still unknown, but it is likely a combination of both epigenetic and genetic means. Further, melanoma tumors have one of the highest mutational burdens of all cancers and are largely composed of varied subpopulations within the same tumor. These two factors provide insight into why melanoma is so difficult to treat medicinally. Dacarbazine is the gold-standard of metastatic melanoma treatment, yet only has an overall response rate of 22% and no impact on survival. Temozolomide (TMZ), an analog of dacarbazine, is often viewed as a more ideal choice …

Evaluation Of A Personal Mobile Trainer System Designed For Facilitating Exercise Therapy For Traumatic Brain Injury Patients, Ahmad Fawzi G Turki

Bioengineering Dissertations - Archive

There are no effective pharmacological agents that can prevent or treat post-TBI cognitive deterioration. Previous research has shown that exercise can be an effective means of enhancing the patients condition with mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, compliance with the prescribed exercise regimen has been low, as TBI patients often suffer from poor executive function and need assistance with complying with their prescribed exercise program. This study aims to design, build, and test a system based on a wearable exercise tracker to assist and encourage patients by facilitating doing the prescribed exercises at a place and time that is convenient …