Engineering Commons^™

Kinetics Of Photolysis And Photocatalytic Oxidation Of Ammonium Sulfite For Hydrogen Production, Moustafa A. Soliman, Maryam Zakaria

Chemical Engineering

The production of hydrogen via photocatalytic water splitting is one of the most promising technologies for obtaining chemical energy from direct solar energy while maintaining the least possible waste and pollutants. In this paper, we obtain the kinetic parameters necessary for the design of a photoreactor for photolysis and photocatalysis of ammonium sulfite solution. For the case of photolysis, we obtain the kinetics for the effect of changing the pH on the produced amount of hydrogen. For the case of photocatalysis, the intrinsic kinetic parameters of photocatalysis of water splitting reaction of ammonium sulfite and water in the presence of …

Analysis Of A Solar Hybrid Sulfur Ammonia Copper Oxide Thermochemical Cycle For Hydrogen Production, Moustafa A. Soliman, Abdel Moniem Abomosalam, Noran Shedid, Mohamed Othman, Toka Hatem, Marc Samer

Chemical Engineering

Solar energy conversion to hydrogen by water splitting is a promising technique because it is sustainable and environmentally friendly. One option for water splitting is through thermochemical cycles in which one of the steps is electrolytic or photocatalytic. In this paper, the economics of a thermochemical process that combines photocatalysis, photovoltaics, high temperature thermal energy and energy storage to harvest solar energy is assessed. This paper focuses on the standard hybrid sulfur ammonia thermochemical cycle (SA) in which the electrolytic step of the hydrogen production from ammonium sulfite solution is augmented by a photocatalytic step. Trying to make use of …

Variational Inference For Morphological Modification To 3d Geometry : An Application To The Support Generation For Metal Additive Manufacturing, Mugdha Swanand Joshi

Masters Theses

"A key issue in metal additive manufacturing (AM) processes is the optimization of support geometry. Correct selection of support strategy can reduce build time, improve surface finish, reduce support removal time, and maximize build success. Strategies used to design support structure are time consuming and need skilled personnel. In this research we have deployed a deep generative model capable of making morphological modifications to the part. However, it is not similar to topology optimization where the aim is to reduce or eliminate support structure. The proposed model can make necessary changes to the part in order to transform it into …

Design And Development Of A Variable Resistance Hand Exerciser Using A Compliant Mechanism, Jyothi Komatireddy

Masters Theses

"Rehabilitation exercise plays a vital role in recovering from an injury or illness condition by improving flexibility and restoring muscle strength. If not done correctly, exercising can cause more damage to the health condition than in healing. Understanding the muscle’s resistance level while performing an exercise helps design the exercising equipment not to overstrain the muscle during operation. This research presents a methodology to develop a variable-resistance hand exerciser by using a compliant cam-follower mechanism. The proposed design comprised a compliant follower and a rigid cam. The rigid cam is synthesized using the human hand force-deflection profile as an input …

Engineering Students' Preferred Roles: Are They Stable, Are There Gender Differences?, Darren Carthy, S. Craps, Kevin Gaughan, H. Knipprath, Brian Bowe, G. Langie

Conference Papers

Being able to situate oneself in an engineering role is a developmental process. Students may initially have idealized perceptions of a professional role and over time, they make this role more congruent with their own values and goals [1]. In light of this, Higher Education Institutions are being challenged to offer learning experiences and career exploration activities to enable students to clarify their interests, values and competencies in relation to a professional role [2]. This study compared the professional role preferences of more than 700 engineering students at TU Dublin (Ireland) and KU Leuven (Belgium). Professional role preference was measured …

Engineering Students As Co-Creators In An Ethics Of Technology Course, Gunter Bombaerts, Karolina Doulougeri, Shelly Tsui, Erik Laes, Andreas Spahn, Diana Adela Martin

Conference Papers

Research on the effectiveness of case studies in teaching engineering ethics in higher education is underdeveloped. To add to our knowledge, we have systematically compared the outcomes of two case approaches to an undergraduate course on the ethics of technology: a detached approach using real-life cases and a challenge-based learning (CBL) approach with students and stakeholders acting as co-creators (CC). We first developed a practical typology of case-study approaches and subsequently tested an evaluation method to assess the students’ learning experiences (basic needs and motivation) and outcomes (competence development) and staff interpretations and operationalizations, seeking to answer three questions: (1) …

An Approach To Mapping The Development Of Professional Skills In A Structural Engineering Programme, Patrick Crean, Dervilla Niall, Una Beagon, Aimee Byrne, Darren Carthy, Caitríona De Paor, Louise Lynch

Conference Papers

Engineers of the future will be presented with complicated, complex problems and their role in the development of sustainable solutions to global problems will become even more critical. Recent literature highlights the need for the development of a set of professional skills in order to address these challenges. These skills include technical, non-technical and attitudinal skills. This paper describes a case study of a whole-of-programme review of teaching and assessment of professional skills in a structural engineering programme. In a systematic process, lecturing staff mapped the modules they teach against a set of professional skills, which were distilled from literature …

A Fuzzy Clustering Methodology To Analyze Interfaces And Assess Integration Risks In Large-Scale Systems, Josh Henry Goldschmid

Doctoral Dissertations

“Interface analysis and integration risk assessment for a large-scale, complex system is a difficult systems engineering task, but critical to the success of engineering systems with extraordinary capabilities. When dealing with large-scale systems there is little time for data gathering and often the analysis can be overwhelmed by unknowns and sometimes important factors are not measurable because of the complexities of the interconnections within the system. This research examines the significance of interface analysis and management, identifies weaknesses in literature on risk assessment for a complex system, and exploits the benefits of soft computing approaches in the interface analysis in …

Phase Formation And Thermal Conductivity Of Zirconium Carbide, Yue Zhou

Doctoral Dissertations

“This research focused on the synthesis and phase formation of zirconium carbide with different carbon contents, and lattice thermal conductivity of zirconium carbide with different carbon vacancy, hafnium, and oxygen contents.

Nominally pure phase ZrC_x was synthesized by solid-state reaction of zirconium hydride (ZrHs) and carbon black at a temperature as low as 1300°C. The powder synthesized at 1300C was carbon deficient ZrC_x . Carbon stoichiometry of the as- synthesized powders increased as the synthesis temperature increased. As the synthesis temperature increase, the oxygen content of ZrC_x decreased due to the increasing C site occupancy. Low stoichiometry …

Modeling And Prioritizing Interventions Using Pollution Hotspots For Reducing Nutrients, Atrazine And E. Coli Concentrations In A Watershed, Olufemi Abimbola, Aaron Mittelstet, Tiffany L. Messer, Elaine Berry, Ann Van Griensven

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Excess nutrients and herbicides remain two major causes of waterbody impairment globally. In an attempt to better understand pollutant sources in the Big Sandy Creek Watershed (BSCW) and the prospects for successful remediation, a program was initiated to assist agricultural producers with the implementation of best management practices (BMPs). The objectives were to (1) simulate BMPs within hotspots to determine reductions in pollutant loads and (2) to determine if water-quality standards are met at the watershed outlet. Regression-based load estimator (LOADEST) was used for determining sediment, nutrient and atrazine loads, while artificial neural networks (ANN) were used for determining E. …

What Are The Dominant Flow Regimes During Carbon Dioxide Propagation In Shale Reservoirs’ Matrix, Natural Fractures And Hydraulic Fractures?, Sherif Fakher, Youssef Elgahawy, Hesham Abdelaal, Abdulmohsin Imqam

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) injection in low permeability shale reservoirs has recently gained much attention due to the claims that it has a large recovery factor and can also be used in CO₂ storage operations. This research investigates the different flow regimes that the CO₂ will exhibit during its propagation through the fractures, micropores, and the nanopores in unconventional shale reservoirs to accurately evaluate the mechanism by which CO₂ recovers oil from these reservoirs. One of the most widely used tools to distinguish between different flow regimes is the Knudsen Number. Initially, a mathematical analysis of …

Layer-To-Layer Feedback Control For Direct Energy Deposition Additive Manufacturing, Michelle Gegel

Doctoral Dissertations

"Additive manufacturing (AM) has garnered much attention in recent years, some calling it the fourth industrial revolution. It was first used to create rapid prototypes, although recent efforts have been made to advance the technology towards production of functional parts. This requires advancement in the materials used in AM, as well as the ability to produce quality parts repeatably. More specifically, direct energy deposition (DED) of metal powders is a process capable of producing and repairing parts with complex geometries; however, it is not widely used in industry due to challenges with quality control. In this process, metal powder is …

Smart And Emerging Technologies: Shaping The Future Of The Industry And Offsite Construction, Rayan H. Assaad, Islam H. El-Adaway, Makarand Hastak, Kim La Scola Needy

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The interest in smart, emerging technologies and offsite construction methods continues to grow. While previous studies investigated different offsite construction aspects, there is still lack of research work that explored the current and future use of smart and emerging technologies, especially those used in offsite construction. This study addresses this knowledge gap through a multi-step research methodology. First, a list of 24 technologies was identified. Second, a survey was distributed to study the current use and the experts' future perceptions of the identified technologies in offsite construction. Third, descriptive statistics and computational clustering analysis were used to quantify and classify …

A Simulation Model For Optimal Bidding Decisions, Rayan H. Assaad, Muaz O. Ahmed, Islam H. El-Adaway, Amr Elsayegh

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The lowest bid approach is the most used technique in the US construction procurement environment since competitive bidding is a legal requirement in the public sector. Despite that many research studies were directed to help contractors in taking different bidding decisions, there is still insufficient research efforts that equipped contractors with decision-support tools to decide on optimal bid values. Hence, this paper takes previous research works a step further by developing a simulation model that can be adopted to determine the bid decision that would result in winning more projects. To this end, a methodology composed of multiple steps was …

A Model For Crafting Diversity, Inclusion, Respect, And Equity (Dire) Policy Statements Toward Catalyzing Organizational Change, Carolyn Gentle-Genitty, Breanca Merrit, Ann C. Kimble-Hill

Founder’s College - Scholarship and Professional Work

In light of the Black Lives Matter movement, the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) community has had to reflect on how their organizations can address their disparities in identity representation. To that end, the ACS Committee on Minority Affairs (CMA) has been called upon to advise various levels of the chemistry enterprise in their interventions, such as structured and actionable policy statements. As a result, this work was created to provide a model for all organizations to write catalytic diversity, inclusion, respect, and equity (DIRE) policy statements. The model herein acknowledges active tensions and leverages theory, analysis, and practical …

Integrating The Humanities With Engineering Through A Global Case Study Course, Kirsten A. Davis, Siddhant S. Joshi, Lori Czerwionka, Francisco Montalvo, Gabriel O. Rios-Rojas, Joe Tort, Jennifer Marston William, E. Nauman

Journal of International Engineering Education

As the world becomes more connected and globalized, the problems that engineers are called upon to solve are increasingly complex and interdependent. Unfortunately, engineering coursework has traditionally focused on abstract and closed-ended problem solving, offering few opportunities for students to develop these skills. In this practice paper, we argue for the importance of integrating the humanities and engineering to understand the multiple and intersecting layers of context in an engineering project. We then describe the Humanities-Informed Engineering Projects course, which we developed to help students acquire this perspective. The course was piloted in Spring 2021 in response to the obstacles …

Combined Coagulation-Microfiltration Process For Dye Wastewater Treatment, Alexander Ekenatanse Eguagie, Yung-Tse Hung, Howard Hao-Che Paul

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

The performance of combined coagulation-microfiltration process for the removal of dyes in a binary mixture of dye wastewater of varied concentrations and fruit drink wastewater at three different strengths; low (10ppm), medium (50ppm) and high (100ppm) was investigated. Synthetic dye wastewater was prepared in the laboratory while fruit drink wastewater was purchased from the grocery store. Color removal efficiency was also investigated for the three coagulants; Ferric Chloride, Aluminum Sulfate and Ferrous Sulfate. Transmittance and Absorbance values were used as indices to measure the efficacy of the combined coagulation- microfiltration process.

Transmittance and absorbance values of 99.8% and 0.001 respectively …

Algae-Based Beneficial Re-Use Of Carbon Emissions Using A Novel Photobioreactor: A Techno-Economic And Life Cycle Analysis, Michael H. Wilson, Aubrey Shea, John Groppo, Czarena Crofcheck, David Quiroz, Jason C. Quinn, Mark Crocker

Center for Applied Energy Research Faculty and Staff Publications

Despite the many advantages of microalgae, the feasibility of large-scale cultivation requires significant amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) to enable high growth rates. A synergistic union typically proposed for the supply of CO2 is the coupling of algal cultivation with emissions from power plants. This study investigates the sustainability of a novel microalgae platform coupled with coal-based flue gas. The proposed system consists of a novel photobioreactor (PBR) for the production of biomass followed by a two-stage dewatering process. A systems model, which quantifies the CO2 and energy consumption of the proposed system, was developed, and the minimum biomass selling …

Energy Consumption And Lifecycle Assessment Comparison Of Cutting Fluids For Drilling Titanium Alloy, Navneet Khanna, Prassan Shah, Jwalant Wadhwa, Anjali Pitroda, Julius M. Schoop, Franci Pusavec

Institute for Sustainable Manufacturing Faculty Publications

This study analyzes four cutting conditions (dry, flood, Liquid CO 2 (LCO2), and Liquid N2 (LN 2)) based on energy consumption and ecological impacts for drilling VT-20, a Titanium alloy. The lower cutting and total energy have been consumed for LCO2 as compared to others. The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) analysis has been performed using ReCiPe 2016 midpoint (H) to identify the impact of cutting conditions on ecosystem, human health, and natural resources. Cryogenic environment with LN 2 has been found as the most ecological cutting condition next to dry machining, while flood coolant has 94-99% of total impact considering …

Low Frequency Oscillations Of Hemodynamic Parameters As A Novel Diagnostic Measure For Traumatic Brain Injury, Andrea Gomez Carrillo

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

There is a need to improve methods of monitoring patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) in hospital settings. Current monitoring techniques and diagnosis methods are expensive, invasive, do not provide continuous measures, expose the patient to radiation, are ambiguous in the information they provide, and/or cannot be implemented at the bedside. These techniques measure imperative markers of brain function including intracranial pressure (ICP), cerebral blood flow (CBF), and oxygenation in the brain, among others. Hospitals not only require a practical method for real-time monitoring of patients at the bedside, but also meaningful metrics that characterize TBIs, since the variety of …

Hardware Security And Side Channel Power Analysis For 16x16 Booth Multiplier In 65nm Cmos Technology, Kanchan Vissamsetty

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

As feature size is scaling down, dynamic power consumption reduces but static power consumption increases. Due to the increase of static power, leakage currents as a source, the information can be exploited successfully as a side-channel to recover the secrets of the cryptographic implementations. An attacker who has access to the hardware fabrication can insert a Trojan to the design to steal or alter information. In this thesis, a post-fab static voltage variation/detection technique is developed to detect the potential fabrication process Trojan insertion. The technique is, dividing the designed circuit into N equal segments, where each segment would have …

Analysis Of Classifier Weaknesses Based On Patterns And Corrective Methods, Nicholas Skapura

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Classification is an important branch of machine learning that impacts many areas of modern life. Many classification algorithms (classifiers for short) have been developed. They have highly different levels of sophistication and classification accuracy. Classification problems often have highly different levels of hardness and complexity. Practitioners of classification modeling need better understanding of those algorithms in order to select the optimal algorithm for given classification problems. Researchers of classification need new insight on how given classifiers are weak and how they can be improved by correcting their classification errors. This dissertation introduces new tools and concepts to analyze classifier weakness …

Ab Initio Methylammonium Orientation And Monolayer Effects In Hybrid Perovskite Solar Cells, Jacob M. Artz

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Methylammonium lead triiodide (MAPbI3) has garnered attention due to their high solar cell efficiencies and low cost to manufacture, but commercialization is not yet possible owing to poor environmental stability. Thus, researchers seek ways which optimize the performance of the MAPbI3 solar cell by modifying the architecture and through interfacial engineering of the charge transport layers. Difficulties in understanding these devices arise from ion migration, charge separation and recombination, and metastable, thermally active precessions of the methylammonium (MA) moiety in the lead iodide framework. In this work, focus is given to the perovskite and an adsorbed monolayer, 2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorothiophenol (C6F5SH), which …

Altered Skeletal Muscle Excitation-Contraction Coupling In The R6/2 Transgenic Mouse Model For Huntington's Disease, Daniel R. Miranda

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Huntington’s disease (HD) has classically been categorized as a neurodegenerative disorder. However, the expression of the disease-causing mutated huntingtin gene in skeletal muscle may contribute to the symptoms of HD, namely those that involve involuntary muscle contraction. In the R6/2 transgenic mouse model of HD, we previously observed ion channel defects that could contribute to involuntary muscle contraction. Here, in R6/2 muscle we investigated the consequence of these ion channel defects on action potentials (APs), the first step in excitation-contraction (EC) coupling. We found that the ion channel defects were associated with depolarizing the baseline membrane potential during AP trains. …

Orientation And Social Influences Matter: Revisiting Neutralization Tendencies In Information Systems Security Violation, Frank Curtis King

CCAC Theses and Dissertations

It is estimated that over half of all information systems security breaches are due directly or indirectly to the poor security practices of an organization’s employees. Previous research has shown neutralization techniques as having influence on the intent to violate information security policy. In this study, we proposed an expansion of the neutralization model by including the effects of business and ethical orientation of individuals on their tendencies to neutralize and compromise with information security policy. Additionally, constructs from social influences and pressures have been integrated into this model to measure the impact on the intent to violate information security …

Harrisburg University’S Face Shield Response For Health Care Workers, Matthew A. Walters

Experiential Learning Projects

This project was inducted into the Harrisburg University Digital Common's with a submittal event. The recording for this event can be accessed here: Harrisburg University’s Face Shield Response for Health Care Workers Submittal Event Recording

The pandemic has most definitely been a significant factor in how people operate throughout the past few years. The pandemic was first introduced at the end of 2019 and is still a current issue at the end of 2021. Close to the beginning of the pandemic, health care workers had found themselves with a shortage of protective gear to fight against the virus while working …

Biom 4110/6110: The Science Of Medicine (Syllabus), Bradford D. Pendley

Biomedical Engineering Syllabi Archive

Course Description: Integration of fundamental principles from physics, chemistry, biology and mathematics, and applications of these principles to solve problems in medicine.

Biom 1720: Introduction To Biomedical Engineering Tools (Syllabus), Stephen Strain

Biomedical Engineering Syllabi Archive

Course Description: Use of computer tools for data analysis, presentation, documentation; introduction to programming; individual and group design projects.

Implementation Of Model-Free Adaptive Power Flow Control For Dual-Active-Bridge-Based Ac-Dc Converters, Qinghang Shen

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

With the rising energy consumption and environment destruction problems worldwide, the development of renewable energy and energy recapture methods to improve the energy utilization rate has become more important as two of the most efficient processes to solve those problems. Bidirectional AC/DC converter and its modulation strategies are widely used as the essential part of implementing bidirectional power conversion between power grid and energy storage systems. To improve the efficiency and accuracy of the power conversion within AC/DC converters, a stable, robust power flow control system with quick response and disturbance rejection ability is desired. This thesis proposes a model-free …

Mechanical Properties And Spectral Vibrational Response Of Si-O-C With And Without Graphene Toughening, Anthony Vozza

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The mechanical behavior of silicon oxycarbide polymer derived ceramics (SiOC-PDC) without and with a graphene toughening phase was studied under uniaxial compressive load with zero dwell time and with 200 second dwell time step loading in combination with in-situ Raman spectroscopy to determine spectral vibrational response of SiOC under compressive stress. SiOC without and with graphene ceramic samples were produced through the replica templating technique. The compressive strengths of SiOC without and with a graphene toughening phase measured with zero dwell time was determined to be equal to 165.65 (SD 54.21) and 163 (SD 24.2) MPa, respectively, while compressive strengths …