Engineering Commons^™

Design And Construction Of A Biogas Burner, David O. Obada

Palestine Technical University Research Journal

This paper details the design and fabrication of a burner system, operating on biogas, for use in remote or rural regions of developing countries such as Nigeria. A desirable use for such a system in these areas is domestic cooking, and the burner has been designed with this need in mind, focusing on characteristics such as simplicity, cost effectiveness, efficiency and safety. Mild steel, brass and galvanized pipe sourced locally were selected for the construction. An empirical version of Bernoulli’s theorem was used to derive the flow rate of gas. The different components of the burner design were shown. Also …

Economic Performance Of Organic Vs Conventional Vegetables Production In Gaza Strip, Ahmad Shaban

Palestine Technical University Research Journal

Organic farming has achieved significant growth in developing countries. However, it is still in some areas such as Gaza strip at embryonic stage. Introduction and promotion of organic farming would need more information about economic feasibility of shifting from the existing conventional farms to organic farming system. This is the main aim of this study. Data was collected from 100 randomly selected farmers in southern area of Gaza strip using standard questionnaire. Additional focus group discussions were conducted for further qualitative analyses. Data was also collected from the organic farm of Safe Agriculture Association where vegetables are organically produced and …

Rapd For Assessment Of Thymes Genetic Diversity In Palestine, Raed Alkowni

Palestine Technical University Research Journal

Several thymes species were grown in Palestine and have socio-economical values. Traditionally, morphological features are used for their taxonomy and discrimination. However, these methods fail to provide an accurate for discrimination and authentication, suggesting the use of other method inevitable. In this study, RAPD method was used for genotypes identification and characterization of five most socio-economical Palestinian thymes: Thymus syriacus, Thymus fruticosus, Thymus incanus, Thymus majorana, and Thymus capitatus. Eight out of ten decamer primers were tested for their ability to generate polymorphism from selected thyme species using RAPD-PCR, and the obtained data were analyzed. …

أثر أزمة المياه على المزارع الفلسطيني في ري المزروعات المحمية, Basel Natsheh

Palestine Technical University Research Journal

تعاني الأراضي الفلسطينية من نقص المياه بشكل عام، حيث أنه علاوة على محدودية الموارد المائية، فإن سيطرة الاحتلال الإسرائيلي على هذه الموارد تؤدي إلى حرمان الفلسطينيين من نصيبهم الشرعي من المياه. من هنا تأتي أهمية توفير بيانات إحصائية دقيقة, كما يأتي هذا البحث ضمن الجهد الذي يبذله مركز الأبحاث التقنية في جامعة فلسطين التقنية-خضوري بالتعاون مع وزارة الزراعة الفلسطينية في إيجاد بيانات حول الزراعة في فلسطين وتحديدا احتياجات المزارعين من المياه والمحافظة على المصادر المائية, حيث تسعى هذه الأبحاث إلى توفير البيانات اللازمة لوصف واقع المصادر المائية في الأراضي الفلسطينية وخصوصا وضع المزارع الفلسطيني من مصادر المياه. تهدف هذه الأستبانة …

Investigation Of The Presence Of Halogenated Bi-Products Formation In The Drinking Water Network In Tulkarm District / Palestine, Saed Khayat, Basel Natsheh, Tahseen Sayara, Nawaf Abukhalaf, Yamen Hamdan

Palestine Technical University Research Journal

The problem of pollutants in drinking water networks is neglected in many places all over the developing countries. This problem is normally caused by either direct pollution source such as organic carbon, or from the maceration pollutants of network materials. The heavy metals in the network facilities and the DOC from the wastewater leakage on the formation of toxic by-product in the water network and the rate of halogenated hydrocarbons formation in the drinking water network was studied. Results showed that water has the same constituents of pollutants similar to that before its being stored for relatively long periods. The …

The Effect Of Local Fungicides On Conidial Germination Of Spilocaea Oleagina In Palestine, Mohammad Jawabrih, Mazen Salman

Palestine Technical University Research Journal

Olive leaf spot (OLS) disease or peacock disease is caused by the fungus Spilocaea oleagina, it is the most destructive disease on olive trees in most regions of Palestine. The disease is controlled by application of copper containing fungicides. Currently, there are more than 20 different fungicides sold in the Palestinian market. The efficacy of these fungicides was not tested on OLS in Palestine. The aim of this work was to test the efficacy of three major fungicides used against the disease. Fungicide solutions containing Fungran, Copper Antracol, and Kocide®101 were prepared by dissolving 0.5 g of each in 200 …

Role Of Overwintering Forms Of Erysiphe Necator In Epidemiology Of Grapevine Powdery Mildew In Palestinian Vineyards, Ruba Abuamsha, Mazen Salman

Palestine Technical University Research Journal

The overwintering modes of E. necator were studied on Palestinian vineyards, through observations on the differentiation and maturation of cleistothecia and on the occurrence of flag-shoots (deriving from overwintering mycelium) in vineyards. Field surveys were carried out in 17 vineyards for the presence of Flag shoots and cleistothecia, both forms were not observed. Genetic structure and composition of E. necator populations were investigated by application of already available SCAR (Sequence Characterized Amplified Region) primers specific for the "flag-shoot" and "ascospore" biotypes. These primers were used to evaluate the dynamics of the spatial and temporal distribution of the two biotypes, into …

Visible/Near Infrared (Vis/Nir) Spectroscopy And Multivariate Data Analysis (Mvda) For Identification And Quantification Of Olive Leaf Spot (Ols) Disease, Nawaf Abukhalaf, Mazen Salman

Palestine Technical University Research Journal

Early detection of plant disease requires usually elaborating methods techniques and especially when symptoms are not visible. Olive Leaf Spot (OLS) infecting upper surface of olive leaves has a long latent infection period. In this work, VIS/NIR spectroscopy was used to determine the latent infection and severity of the pathogens. Two different classification methods were used, Partial Least Squared-Discrimination Analysis (PLS-DA) (linear method) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) (non-linear). SVM-classification was able to classify severity levels 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 with classification rates of 94, 90, 73, 79, 83 and 100%, respectively The overall classification rate was …

Bc-Dunet-Based Segmentation Of Fine Cracks In Bridges Under A Complex Background, Tao Liu, Liangji Zhang, Guoxiong Zhou, Weiwei Cai, Chuang Cai, Liujun Li

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Crack is the external expression form of potential safety risks in bridge construction. Currently, automatic detection and segmentation of bridge cracks remains the top priority of civil engineers. With the development of image segmentation techniques based on convolutional neural networks, new opportunities emerge in bridge crack detection. Traditional bridge crack detection methods are vulnerable to complex background and small cracks, which is difficult to achieve effective segmentation. This study presents a bridge crack segmentation method based on a densely connected U-Net network (BC-DUnet) with a background elimination module and cross-attention mechanism. First, a dense connected feature extraction model (DCFEM) integrating …

A Neural Network-Based Multivariate Seismic Classifier For Simultaneous Post-Earthquake Fragility Estimation And Damage Classification, Xinzhe Yuan, Genda Chen, Pu Jiao, Liujun Li, Jun Han, Haibin Zhang

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A scalar intensity measure (IM) could be insufficient to represent the earthquake intensity and variety in fragility estimation. Introducing multiple IMs to conventional regression of fragility functions can be computationally demanding and require priori assumptions of functional forms. In this study, multivariate seismic classifiers with multiple IMs as inputs are developed based on artificial neural networks (ANNs) to address the above disadvantages of traditional regression approaches. Case studies of a four-story code-conforming benchmark building indicate that fragility estimates from multi-IM ANN classifiers lead to higher accuracy (5.0% to 7.7%) in system-level and element-level damage classification than the single-IM traditional fragility …

Understanding Effects Of Permafrost Degradation And Coastal Erosion On Civil Infrastructure In Arctic Coastal Villages: A Community Survey And Knowledge Co-Production, Min Liew, Ming Xiao, Louise Farquharson, Dmitry Nicolsky, Anne Jensen, Vladimir Romanovsky, Jana Peirce, Lilian Alessa, Christopher Mccomb, Xiong Zhang, Benjamin Jones

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This paper presents the results of a community survey that was designed to better under-stand the effects of permafrost degradation and coastal erosion on civil infrastructure. Observations were collected from residents in four Arctic coastal communities: Point Lay, Wainwright, Utqiaġvik, and Kaktovik. All four communities are underlain by continuous ice-rich permafrost with varying degrees of degradation and coastal erosion. The types, locations, and periods of observed permafrost thaw and coastal erosion were elicited. Survey participants also reported the types of civil infrastructure being affected by permafrost degradation and coastal erosion and any damage to residential buildings. Most survey participants reported …

Modeling Cyanobacteria Vertical Migration, Corina Christina Mae Overman, Scott A. Wells

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Cyanobacteria often cause harmful algal blooms and release toxic substances that can harm humans and animals. Accurately modeling these phytoplankton is a step towards predicting, preventing, and controlling such blooms. Certain cyanobacteria species are known to migrate vertically in the water column on a daily cycle. Capturing this behavior is one aspect of modeling their dynamics. Previous studies on modeling cyanobacterial vertical migration are reviewed and summarized. Several models of cyanobacteria vertical movement are tested using data from field studies. These models are applied using both continuum and particle-tracking frameworks. Models range in complexity from simple functions of time to …

Encouraging Voluntary Government Action Via A Solar-Friendly Designation Program To Promote Solar Energy In The United States, Xue Gao, Casey I. Canfield, Tian Tang, Hunter Hill, Morgan Higman, John Cornwell

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Sustainable development requires an accelerated transition toward renewable energy. In particular, substantially scaling up solar photovoltaics (PV) adoption is a crucial component of reducing the impacts of climate change and promoting sustainable development. However, it is challenging to convince local governments to take action. This study uses a combination of propensity score matching (PSM) and difference-in-differences (DID) models to assess the effectiveness of a voluntary environmental program (VEP) called SolSmart that targets local governments to engage in solar-friendly practices to promote the local solar PV market in the United States. Via specific designation requirements and technical assistance, SolSmart simplifies the …

An Accurate And Computationally Efficient Method For Battery Capacity Fade Modeling, D. M. Ajiboye, Jonathan W. Kimball, R.(Robert) G. Landers, John (T.) Park

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The Industry Demand for Accurate and Fast Algorithms that Model Vital Battery Parameters, E.g., State-Of-Health, State-Of-Charge, Pulse-Power Capability, is Substantial. One of the Most Critical Models is Battery Capacity Fade. the Key Challenge with Physics-Based Battery Capacity Fade Modeling is the High Numerical Cost in Solving Complex Models. in This Study, an Efficient and Fast Model is Presented to Capture Capacity Fade in Lithium-Ion Batteries. Here, the High-Order Chebyshev Spectral Method is Employed to Address the Associated Complexity with Physics-Based Capacity Fade Models. its Many Advantages, Such as Low Computational Memory, High Accuracy, Exponential Convergence, and Ease of Implementation, Allow …

Morphology Of Mos2 Nanosheets And Its Influence On Water/Oil Interfacial Tension: A Molecular Dynamics Study, Yang Feng, Jirui Hou, Yulong Yang, Shuting Wang, Dongsen Wang, Tingting Cheng, Zhenjiang You

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Plate-shaped nanoparticles exhibit huge potential for a broad range of cutting-edge applications in interfacial-based science and technology, such as enhanced oil recovery in hydrocarbon reservoirs, owing to their remarkable features in superior affinity toward interfaces. Understanding the adsorption behavior of nanosheets (NSs) self-assembled at the water/oil interface (W/O interface) is crucial to elucidate the variation of interfacial tension (IFT) and establish special design criteria for efficient industrial use of NSs. Here we present a molecular dynamics study to reveal the morphology of carbon-chain modified molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) nanosheets. The stress exerted on a nanosheet is analyzed. The simulation …

Secure Hardware Constructions For Fault Detection Of Lattice-Based Post-Quantum Cryptosystems, Ausmita Sarker

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The advent of quantum computers and the exponential speed-up of quantum computation will render classical cryptosystems insecure, as that can solve current encryptions in minutes, resulting in a catastrophic failure of privacy preservation and data security. Through the standardizing of quantum-resistant public-key cryptography algorithms, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is evaluating potential candidates to thwart such quantum attacks. In this dissertation, countermeasures against fault attacks are proposed to secure various lattice-based cryptosystems, one of the most promising post-quantum cryptosystems. Fault detection architectures for crucial building blocks of lattice-based cryptosystems, i.e., number-theoretic transform, ring polynomial multiplication, and ring …

Modeling Of Temperature Swing Adsorption-Oxidation Of Volatile Organic Compounds, Busuyi O. Adebayo, Fateme Rezaei

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this work, we simulated a single-bed 4-step temperature swing adsorption-oxidation (TSAO) process for capture and in situ oxidation of benzene, as a model VOC, over Ni/ZrO₂-SiO₂, as a dual-function material (DFM). The TSAO cycles consisted of adsorption, preheating, desorption/oxidation, and cooling steps. The model sensitive parameters were estimated via parameter estimation and validated against experimental data. Extensive parametric analysis was carried out to investigate the effects of key process variables on the TSAO performance. Model results revealed relatively good prediction of the process. Under the conditions investigated, adsorption, oxidation and total removal efficiencies were estimated …

An Evaluation Of Tractors Tested At The Nebraska Tractor Test Lab And The Effect Of Epa Emission Standards Based Upon Average Pto Horsepower And Fuel Efficiency, Dalton Erickson

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Newly released tractor models are tested to ensure they meet advertising claims. This thesis utilizes tractor test data to analyze performance trends in tractors based upon their power take off (PTO) horsepower and fuel efficiency and it evaluates how the average fuel efficiency of tractors was affected by the introduction of emission standards by the United States Environmental Protection Agencies. In conclusion, tractors have shown continuous improvement and growth in both fuel efficiency and PTO horsepower, and emission standards have had a small, positive effect on tractors’ average fuel efficiency.

The Effect Of Store-To-Store Energy Transfers On The Global Dynamics Of Aircraft, Guilherme Mainieri Eymael

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This study analyzes the energy transfer mechanisms when nonlinear devices (stores) are attached to a linear model airplane. For that, a reduced-order model (ROM) was derived to simulate the first two flexible modes of vibration of the primary structure (aircraft) with one store in each wing. Each store can either be locked or unlocked. When locked, it only contributes as mass-effect, and when unlocked, it adds nonlinearity to the system. Simulations were then performed with either both stores locked, one store unlocked, or both stores unlocked. It was found that the attachment of nonlinear stores in the ROM changes the …

Evaluation Of Hydrodynamic Effects Of Waterway Restoration On An Estuarine Ecosystem, Megan Kramer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Estuaries are hydrodynamically complex for they are influenced by tidal forces, freshwater flows, salinity variations, and often intricate coastal land morphology. Furthermore, many estuaries are subject to constant anthropogenic stresses due to dense coastal populations, which are expected to be exacerbated by changing climate trends. The 1,800 home residential Manchester Waterway (MW) community located in Charlotte Harbor (along the Gulf of Mexico in Southwest Florida), is interested in improving boat access by restoring a previous connection between the local waterway and the harbor, separated by a barrier peninsula. The proposed connections aim to reduce boat traffic and travel time through …

Humanoid Robot Motion Control For Ramps And Stairs, Tommy Truong

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Humanoid robot research and development have been an ongoing effort since the 1900sand can be broken down to two problems. A mechanical problem, getting a humanoid robot to move human-like or a software problem, getting a humanoid robot to behave human-like. These problems of moving and behaving human-like can be often solved using control theory as research advances. For the premise of this research, we explore how to balance and walk on non-flat terrain for the humanoid robot Darwin-Op. Since the focus was on the control theory, the vision control to detect the non-flat terrain was a side objective. The …

Efficient Information Retrieval For Software Bug Localization, Saket Khatiwada

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Software systems are often shipped with defects. When a bug is reported, developers use the information available in the associated report to locate source code fragments that need to be modified to fix the bug. However, as software systems evolve in size and complexity, bug localization can become a tedious and time-consuming process. Contemporary bug localization tools utilize Information Retrieval (IR) methods for automated support to minimize the manual effort. IR methods exploit the textual content of bug reports to capture and rank relevant buggy source files. However, for an IR-based bug localization tool to be useful, it must achieve …

Computational Study Of The Reactions Of Heteroatomic Compounds On Ceo2, Suman Bhasker Ranganath

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The mechanisms of ambient-temperature reactions of heteroatomic compounds catalyzed by ceria (CeO₂), an archetypical reducible oxide, for enzyme mimetics, environmental protection, and chemical synthesis are investigated in this dissertation using theoretical methods. CeO₂ is modeled with thermodynamically stable low-index surfaces exposed by commonly studied ceria thin films and nano particles. To understand phosphatase-like dephosphorylation activity, stable adsorption states and surface reactions of model phosphates are examined. Binding of the central P-atom to surface lattice oxygen (O_latt) supplemented by phosphoryl O-Ce interaction is the only stable adsorption state for the un-dissociated molecule. Deprotonation of phosphate monoesters, …

Thermomechanics Of Semiconducting Polymers And Their Morphological Phenomena, Luke Galuska

Dissertations

In contrast to conventional silicon-based electronics, semiconducting polymers show great promise for emerging applications in soft, flexible, and ductile electronic technologies. This is due to their polymeric nature, tailorable structure, and sub-100 nm device thickness. Despite this mechanical novelty, there remains a poor understanding of their structure-property-processing relationships, which has hindered growth within the field. This dissertation elucidates these relationships through investigation of their thermomechanics, and morphological phenomena. This was accomplished through the following projects:

1) To demonstrate the impact of backbone rigidity on semiconducting polymer thermomechanics, we varied the backbone rigidity of an NDI-based polymer by inserting flexible methylene …

Gen. Thomas P. Stafford Archive Dedication Program, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

Stafford Archives Dedication Documents

On March 11th, 2022, the Al Harris Library hosted the dedication of the General Thomas P. Stafford Archives.

Unless stated otherwise within this repository collection, all materials are shared under the following Creative Commons license: [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License].

Quantification Of Reynolds Shear Stress Wave-Phase Dependence In Fixed-Bottom Offshore Wind Turbine Via Quadrant Analysis, Cerrina Mouchref

University Honors Theses

As the need for a reliable renewable energy supply is increasing, many have looked to offshore wind because they hold more potential for power production than onshore wind. Interests in expanding offshore wind energy has brought along many challenges when it comes to understanding the complex dynamics experienced offshore, including the relationship between the wind-turbine generated wakes and ocean waves. This experimental study characterizes the relationship between Reynolds shear stress and the phase of surface waves above the air-sea interface in the wind-turbine wake region. The experimental setup combines a wave tank, wind tunnel, and a fixed-bottom wind turbine. Particle …

Seismic Performance Design Criteria Of Existing Bridge Bent Plastic Hinge Region And Rapid Repair Measures Of Earthquake Damaged Bridges Considering Future Resilience, A K M Golam Murtuz

Dissertations and Theses

The main objective of this research was to evaluate the seismic performance of existing sub-standard reinforced concrete (RC) bridge column-spread footing subassemblies and to quantify the material strain limits through a full-scale experimental program. A total of six column-footing test specimens with pre-1990 construction details were subjected to reverse cyclic lateral loading, utilizing a conventional three-cycle symmetric loading protocol and a protocol representing the demands expected from a CSZ earthquake. Additionally, the tests were designed so that variable axial loading could be applied to simulate the secondary load effects experienced during an earthquake in a column that is part of …

Use Of Halide Radicals In Water Treatment, Madhusudan Kamat

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The increasing population and a reduction in freshwater resources has made the reuse of water imperative [1-3]. Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) enable the safe reuse of wastewater through the removal of persistent pollutants. The highly reactive nature of reactive species, like hydroxyl radicals is limited by their reactivity with ubiquitous compounds like dissolved organic matter (DOM)[4, 5]. The use of halide radicals can help improve the efficiency of UV-based AOPs.

This thesis investigates the mechanism of halide radicals in three different systems: a) the use of iodine radicals in functionalized fullerenes b) the use of UV/chlorine as an advanced oxidation …

A Statistical Principal Component Regression-Based Approach To Modeling The Degradative Effects Of Local Climate And Traffic On Airfield Pavement Performance, Evan M. Fortney, Steven J. Schuldt, Sarah L. Brown, James P. Allen, Justin D. Delorit

Faculty Publications

Airfield pavement systems support the global economy, passenger travel, and national defense. Accurate pavement degradation predictions are critical inputs for maintenance and repair decisions, and when skillful, they may reduce the need for time-intensive, costly physical inspections that disrupt airfield operations. Existing airport pavement management systems (APMS) compute expected degradation as a function of pavement type and age, but they do not account for local climate and traffic conditions and they are not built to adapt to future changes in either mode of variability. This paper implements a bias-reduced statistical model that reveals the effects of local conditions using observed …

Polarization-Sensitive Optical Responses From Natural Layered Hydrated Sodium Sulfosalt Gerstleyite, Ravi P. N. Tripathi, Xiaodong Yang, Jie Gao

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Multi-element layered materials have gained substantial attention in the context of achieving the customized light-matter interactions at subwavelength scale via stoichiometric engineering, which is crucial for the realization of miniaturized polarization-sensitive optoelectronic and nanophotonic devices. Herein, naturally occurring hydrated sodium sulfosalt gerstleyite is introduced as one new multi-element van der Waals (vdW) layered material. The mechanically exfoliated thin gerstleyite flakes are demonstrated to exhibit polarization-sensitive anisotropic linear and nonlinear optical responses including angle-resolved Raman scattering, anomalous wavelength-dependent linear dichroism transition, birefringence effect, and polarization-dependent third-harmonic generation (THG). Furthermore, the third-order nonlinear susceptibility of gerstleyite crystal is estimated by the probed …