Engineering Commons^™

Cost-Benefit Analysis Of Increased Water Treatment Plant Service Goals On Reducing Water Quality Risk, Briton Polen, Kendra Sanner

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

To treat water to make it safe to drink, disinfection processes are used in water treatment plants. These disinfection processes produce disinfection byproducts (DBPs) through the reaction of organic matter and the disinfectant, such as chlorine. DBPs have been shown to pose a cancer risk to consumers. In this report, the focus is on two types of DBPs, trihalomethanes (THMs) and haloacetic acids (HAAs). The cancer risks associated with DBPs are analyzed through ingestion and inhalation pathways. Ingestion and inhalation consist of common water uses like drinking, cooking, or bathing. In addition to this, DBPs have been shown to increase …

Construction Management Outreach Event With The Pedrozzi Foundation, Jennifer Padilla

Construction Management

The construction industry today continues to be a male-dominated field, often lacking diversity. The lack of diversity and inclusion is attributed to the lack of equitable access to the industry. As a result of continued efforts promoting diversity and inclusion, in August 2022, the construction industry reached an all-time high, with 14% of all construction workers in the U.S. being women. This construction management outreach event, in partnership with the Pedrozzi Foundation, was created to expose young scholars to the topic of construction management. At the event, students and their parents were exposed to the topic of construction management, learning …

Covid-19 And Traffic Safety: Exploring Exposure, Crash Frequency And Severity, And Roadway And Network Design, Nicholas N. Ferenchak Ph.D

Data

Early COVID-19 lockdowns in the first half of 2020 largely kept people at home, thereby reducing motor vehicle traffic levels. Theoretically, reduced traffic exposure should have resulted in reduced motor vehicle crashes. However, a variety of factors may have complicated this relationship. In order to better understand the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns on traffic safety outcomes, we explore fatalities, injuries, and total crashes before and during the lockdowns on both the national and state levels. We provide descriptive statistics and create negative binomial regressions exploring the role of vehicle, user, and built environment factors on traffic safety outcomes. Findings suggest …

Covid-19 And Traffic Safety: Exploring Exposure, Crash Frequency And Severity, And Roadway And Network Design, Nicholas N. Ferenchak Ph.D

Publications

Early COVID-19 lockdowns in the first half of 2020 largely kept people at home, thereby reducing motor vehicle traffic levels. Theoretically, reduced traffic exposure should have resulted in reduced motor vehicle crashes. However, a variety of factors may have complicated this relationship. In order to better understand the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns on traffic safety outcomes, we explore fatalities, injuries, and total crashes before and during the lockdowns on both the national and state levels. We provide descriptive statistics and create negative binomial regressions exploring the role of vehicle, user, and built environment factors on traffic safety outcomes. Findings suggest …

Safety In Numbers: Models Of Pedestrian And Bicycle Crash Frequency And Severity At Signalized Intersections In Utah Using Innovative Measure Of Exposure, Ahadul Islam

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Recent trends indicate a dramatic increase in both the number and share of pedestrian and bicyclist injuries and fatalities nationally and in many states. This study aimed at understanding (geometric, traffic, operational, and other) factors associated with pedestrian and bicycle safety and also to assist in the prioritization and selection of countermeasures to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety at signalized intersections. Several negative binomial models were estimated to investigate factors affecting pedestrian and bicycle crash frequency. The models suggested several characteristics of the road network, land use, built environment, and neighborhood sociodemographics were significantly associated with more (or fewer) pedestrian …

Constructing Panoramic High Dynamic Range Image Based On Different Amounts Of Exposures, Quan Wei, Wang Ying, Yanchun Wang, Xuyang Wang, Yunrui Zhu

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: A method of constructing panoramic high dynamic range image was proposed. The classical method about different amounts of exposures was adopted by choosing sampling point carefully to generate better response curves for each child camera of the panoramic camera. Weighted method was applied to obtain panoramic response curve based on six response curves of each child camera. According to characteristics of spatial frequency, a template of panoramic image was selected, so as to complete the synthesis of high dynamic panoramic image. Experiments show that the response curve of panoramic camera can better reflect the characteristics, so the …

Mapping Modeled Exposure Of Wildland Fire Smoke For Human Health Studies In California, Patricia Koman, Michael Billmire, Kirk Baker, Ricardo De Majo, Frank Anderson, Sumi Hoshiko, Brian Thelen, Nancy H. F. French

Michigan Tech Publications

Wildland fire smoke exposure affects a broad proportion of the U.S. population and is increasing due to climate change, settlement patterns and fire seclusion. Significant public health questions surrounding its effects remain, including the impact on cardiovascular disease and maternal health. Using atmospheric chemical transport modeling, we examined general air quality with and without wildland fire smoke PM_2.5. The 24-h average concentration of PM_2.5 from all sources in 12-km gridded output from all sources in California (2007–2013) was 4.91 μg/m³. The average concentration of fire-PM_2.5 in California by year was 1.22 μg/m³ (~25% …

Fiber Element Simulation Of Interaction Behavior Of Local And Global Buckling In Axially Loaded Rectangular Concrete-Filled Steel Tubular Slender Columns Under Fire Exposure, Ghanim Mohammed Kamil, Qing Quan Liang, Muhammad N. S Hadi

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part B

Slender rectangular thin-walled concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) columns in composite building structures exposed to fire may experience the interaction of local and global buckling. Numerical investigations on the interaction buckling responses of such columns under fire exposure have been rarely reported. This paper describes a fiber-based computational model for the prediction of the fire-resistance and interaction responses of local and global buckling of concentrically-loaded slender CFST columns made of rectangular sections exposed to fire. The thermal analysis is undertaken to calculate the distribution of temperatures in the column cross-section considering the effects of the air gap between concrete and steel, …

Exposure Assessment Of Citizens To Traffic Related Air Pollutants In A Long-Range Transportation Plan, Amir Poorfakhraei

Civil Engineering ETDs

A large body of evidence links fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) exposure with a wide range of negative health outcomes. Research finds that about 30% of individuals’ exposure to particulate matter in urban areas come from mobiles sources. Evaluating regional transportation plans and estimating how they impact air quality and exposure to PM_2.5 in the future is thus of major concern.

There are two major concerns about the current practice of evaluating regional transportation plans also known as long-range transportation plans (LRTPs). First, how LRTPs affect future air quality are at best evaluated by estimating the change in …

The Fabrication Of High-Aspect Ratio Gratings For Talbot Interferometer With Medical Imaging Application., Vikaram Singh

LSU Master's Theses

X-ray Phase contrast-based Talbot interferometer creates high contrast between weak and strong absorbing materials, which makes it effective in imaging soft tissues. However, its performance is bounded by the aspect-ratio, features and symmetry of its gratings. For 40 KeV energy X-rays, the analyzer grating thickness should be 100 µm or more to achieve > 90% absorption in order to obtain high contrast images. Moreover, the smaller period in grating is desired for higher resolution. Therefore, researchers are exploring various fabrication techniques to achieve greater aspect-ratio gratings. Utilizing modern LIGA techniques, the aspect-ratio of gratings can be improved with a simplified …

Analyzing A Shopper’S Visual Experience In A Retail Store And The Impact On Impulse Profit, Bradley Robert Guthrie

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The retail industry in the U.S. contributed 1.14 trillion in value added (or 5.9%) to the GDP in 2017, an increase of 3.7% from the previous year. While store closures have dominated the news in the recent past (e.g., Toys-R-Us, Sears, and Bon-Ton) due to ineffective supply chain practices, inadequate in-store experiences, and competition from e-tailers, other retailers such as Ross, T. J. Maxx, Burlington Coat Factory, and Kroger have been expanding their footprint. Brick-and-mortar stores are unique as they allow shoppers the ability to see, touch, and try products, in addition to exploring new products. Kohl’s CEO has even …

Ri56.Pdf, João F. Gomes

João F Gomes

No abstract provided.

Improved Methodology For Developing Non-Motorized Safety Perfomance Functions, Keneth Morgan Kwayu

Masters Theses

This study aimed at improving the methodology for developing statewide non-motorized safety performance functions (SPFs). Due to lack of pedestrian and bicyclist counts, the methodology proposed a procedure for developing statewide surrogate non-motorized exposure measures using data that are available at statewide level. Eleven years non-motorized crashes at signalized urban intersections joining Arterial and Collector roads in Michigan were used to test the procedure.

The study also explored the use of Bayesian approach for modeling non-motorized crashes as an alternative to traditional classical count data models. Classical count data models that were considered as potential fit to the data include; …

Galvanic Corrosion On Monel K-500 And 1018 Carbon Steel Couple, John K. Nnyanzi

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The purpose of this research project was to evaluate galvanic damage on 1018 Carbon Steel coupled to Monel K-500 at varying rotation speeds on a rotating cylinder electrode in an aerated solution of ASTM artificial seawater. The work in this project is and attempt to study corrosion behavior for a Monel fastener coupled to a Carbon Steel plate. Polarization curves of each material at different rotation speeds were created to predict the corrosion behavior for a galvanic couple of Carbon Steel and Monel. The Potentiodynamic sweeps predict an increase in the corrosion current density for the galvanic couple when then …

Supply System’S Technology Configuration As A Contributor To End-User Vulnerability, Lindsay Robertson, Katina Michael, Albert Munoz

Professor Katina Michael

Individuals requiring goods and services essential to their mode of living, are increasingly vulnerable to failures of the complex, interlinked, and inhomogeneous technological systems that supply those needs. Extant analysis techniques do not adequately quantify, from an end-user’s perspective, the vulnerability that is contributed by such technological systems. This study explores the significance of inherent weaknesses of inhomogeneous technological systems and proposes an approach for measuring vulnerability as the individual end-user ‘exposure level’ for each service. The measure of "exposure" that is developed, is mapped directly from the configuration of a technological system. This measure of exposure allows quantitative evaluation …

Isolating Corrosion Of Steel Plates Coupled With Titanium, Anil Patnaik, X. Shan, M. Adams, T. Srivatsan, Craig Menzemer, Joe Payer

Craig Menzemer

Over twenty six percent of the bridges in the United States are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. Corrosion of steel used in structures like bridges and buildings is a problem that has gained increased interest and focused concern. Steel is often the metal that is preferred for use in such applications due to a synergism of ease of availability, acceptable mechanical properties and cost effectiveness. Through the years, titanium has grown in strength, stature and significance to be recognized as an emerging high performance metal that is both stronger and lighter than steel. A distinctive property of titanium and its …

Isolating Corrosion Of Steel Plates Coupled With Titanium, Anil Patnaik, X. Shan, M. Adams, T. Srivatsan, Craig Menzemer, Joe Payer

Anil Patnaik

Over twenty six percent of the bridges in the United States are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. Corrosion of steel used in structures like bridges and buildings is a problem that has gained increased interest and focused concern. Steel is often the metal that is preferred for use in such applications due to a synergism of ease of availability, acceptable mechanical properties and cost effectiveness. Through the years, titanium has grown in strength, stature and significance to be recognized as an emerging high performance metal that is both stronger and lighter than steel. A distinctive property of titanium and its …

The Impact Of Boundary Conditions On Surface Curvature Of Polypropylene Mesh In Response To Uniaxial Loading, William Barone, Rouzbeh Amini, Spandan Maiti, Pamela Moalli, Steven Abramowitch

Rouzbeh Amini

Exposure following pelvic organ prolapse repair has been observationally associated with wrinkling of the implanted mesh. The purpose of this study was to quantify the impact of variable boundary conditions on the out-of-plane deformations of mesh subjected to tensile loading. Using photogrammetry and surface curvature analyses, deformed geometries were accessed for two commercially available products. Relative to standard clamping methods, the amount of out-of-plane deformation significantly increased when point loads were introduced to simulate suture fixation in-vivo. These data support the hypothesis that regional increases in the concentration of mesh potentially enhance the host׳s foreign body response, leading to exposure.

Risk Characterization From Multipathway Exposure Associated With Land Applying Biosolids By Accounting For Multimedia Mass Loss, Karthik Kumarasamy

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

There continues to be concern among communities living in the vicinity of biosolids land application sites about potential adverse health effects from the chemical contaminants present in biosolids. This study describes a procedure that will help answer questions about the risks involved in biosolids land application at the site level, thus, this study will provide a crucial communication tool for wastewater treatment facilities and biosolids land appliers to address the concerns of the public. Specifically, the study quantifies the exposure concentrations that a human being can become exposed to during their lifetime from the practice. Crucially, it takes a quantitate …

Cell Stimulation And Calcium Mobilization By Picosecond Electric Pulses, Iurii Semenov, Shu Xiao, Dongkoo Kang, Karl H. Schoenbach, Andrei G. Pakhomov

Bioelectrics Publications

We tested if picosecond electric pulses (psEP; 190 kV/cm, 500 ps at 50% height), which are much shorter than channel activation time, can activate voltage-gated (VG) channels. Cytosolic Ca²⁺ was monitored by Fura-2 ratiometric imaging in GH3 and NG108 cells (which express multiple types of VG calcium channels, VGCC), and in CHO cells (which express no VGCC). Trains of up to 100 psEP at 1 kHz elicited no response in CHO cells. However, even a single psEP significantly increased Ca²⁺ in both GH3 (by 114 +/- 48 nM) and NG108 cells (by 6 +/- 1.1 nM). Trains of …

N-Nitrosamine Rejection By Reverse Osmosis: Effects Of Membrane Exposure To Chemical Cleaning Reagents, Takahiro Fujioka, Stuart Khan, James Mcdonald, Annalie Roux, Yvan Poussade, Jorg Drewes, Long Nghiem

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

No abstract provided.

Identity-Based Chameleon Hashing And Signatures Without Key Exposure, Xiaofeng Xiaofeng Chen, Fangguo Zhang, Willy Susilo, Haibo Tian, Jin Li, Kwangjo Kim

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

The notion of chameleon hash function without key exposure plays an important role in designing secure chameleon signatures. However, all of the existing key-exposure free chameleon hash schemes are presented in the setting of certificate-based systems. In 2004, Ateniese and de Medeiros questioned whether there is an efficient construction for identity-based chameleon hashing without key exposure. In this paper, we propose the first identity-based chameleon hash scheme without key exposure based on the three-trapdoor mechanism, which provides an affirmative answer to the open problem. Moreover, we use the proposed chameleon hash scheme to design an identity-based chameleon signature scheme, which …

Tem Analysis As A Tooll For Toxicology Assessment Of Occupational Exposure To Airborne Nanoparticles From Welding, João F. Gomes

João F Gomes

No abstract provided.

Characterizing The Variability In Respirable Dust Exposure Using Johnson Transformation And Re-Examining 2010 Proposed Changes To The U.S. Underground Coal Mine Dust Standard, Al I. Khan

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

Coal workers’ pneumoconiosis (CWP), commonly referred to as black lung, is a chronic lung disease that results from the inhalation and deposition of coal dust in the lungs. While this disease continues to afflict coal miners, its prevalence has steadily declined over three decades since 1970. Based on a voluntary X-ray surveillance program, conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), this downward trend, however, ended in 2000 and has actually begun to rise. The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) instituted a Comprehensive Initiative to “End Black Lung” to combat the reported upturn in black …

Radiation Exposure And Mission Strategies For Interplanetary Manned Missions, C Cougnet, N Crosby, C Foullon, D Heynderickx, S Eckersley, V Guarnieri, C Lobascio, S Masiello, P Parodi, M A. Perino, R Rampini, Susanna Guatelli, Maria G. Pia, A Holmes-Siedle, P Nieminen, G Parisi, V Tamburini, P Spillantini, E Tracino

Susanna Guatelli

Cosmic radiation is an important problem for human interplanetary missions. The ‘‘Radiation Exposure and Mission Strategies for Interplanetary Manned Missions–REMSIM’’ study is summarised here. They are related to current strategies and countermeasures to ensure the protection of astronauts from radiation during interplanetary missions, with specific reference to: radiation environment and its variability; radiation effects on the crew; transfer trajectories and associated fluences; vehicle and surface habitat concepts; passive and active shielding concepts; space weather monitoring and warning systems.

Slides: Air Monitoring And Litigation Update, John Jacus

Air Quality Impacts from Oil and Gas Development (January 27)

Presenter: John Jacus, Partner, Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP, reviews recent litigation aimed at oil and gas development activities with respect to air emissions impacts, and also several recent and ongoing studies and ambient monitoring efforts focused upon air emissions from oil and gas activities

23 slides

Slides: Hydrofracking: Air Issues And Community Exposure, Debra A. Kaden

Air Quality Impacts from Oil and Gas Development (January 27)

Presenter: Debra Kaden, Ph.D., Toxicologist, ENVIRON International Corporation, discusses air concentrations of chemicals of potential health concern surrounding oil and gas development activities, as well as temporal and spatial patterns of these chemicals in the ambient environment. Such information is necessary to evaluate possible health impacts of the drilling process on air in surrounding communities.

19 slides

Comparison Of Deposited Surface Area Of Airborne Ultrafine Particles Generated From Two Welding Processes, João F. Gomes

João F Gomes

No abstract provided.

Behaviour Of Frp Confined Concrete Cylinders Under Different Temperature Exposure, Muhammad N. S Hadi, B A. Louk Fanggi

Faculty of Engineering - Papers (Archive)

Bridge structures are exposed to the elements with a high variation in temperature. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of different high temperatures on the behaviour of concrete cylinders wrapped with Fibre Reinforced Polymer (FRP). Twelve concrete cylinders made of 60 MPa having 100 mm diameter and 200 mm height were cast and tested. The cylinders were divided into four groups: cylinders wrapped with a single CFRP layer, cylinders wrapped with two CFRP layers, cylinders wrapped with a single GFRP layer, and cylinders wrapped with two GFRP layers. Each group was exposed to temperatures of 20°C, …

Determination Of Airborne Nanoparticles From Welding Operations, João F. Gomes

João F Gomes

The aim of this study is to assess the levels of airborne ultrafine particles emitted in welding processes (tungsten inert gas (TIG), metal active gas (MAG) of carbon steel and friction stir welding (FSW) of aluminium) in terms of deposited area in pulmonary alveolar tract using a Nanoparticle Surface Area Monitor (NSAM) analyzer. The obtained results showed the dependence from process parameters on emitted ultrafine particles and demonstrated the presence of ultrafine particles compared to background levels. Data indicated that the process that resulted in the lowest levels of alveolar deposited surface area (ADSA) was FSW, followed by TIG and …