Engineering Commons^™

Dielectric/Impedance Spectroscopy For In-Line Measurement Of Moisture Content, Sophie Zhou

Discovery Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Research Internship

Pharmaceutical production requires strict moisture content control in order to ensure quality, stability, and efficacy of medicinal products. Moisture content can be manually tested but a rapid and reliable solution for real-time moisture content monitoring was necessary to improve overall efficiency in pharmaceutical manufacturing. This research delved into the practicality of using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) as a dependable technique to determine moisture content. By investigating the electrical properties of materials, we established a robust connection between shifts in electrical properties with variations in moisture levels. We employed an equivalent circuit model to unveil the underlying mechanism which provided valuable …

Scanning Electron Microscopy Analysis Of Murine Renal, Aortic, And Cardiac Tissue, Sarah E. Grev, Luke E. Schepers, Jennifer Anderson, Craig J. Goergen

Discovery Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Research Internship

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is a tool that provides detailed insight into objects invisible to the human eye. As the name suggests, an electron beam is used to create an image down to the nanometer scale. The beam focuses on the surface of a sample using lenses in the electron column. In this project, we use SEM to study three types of murine tissue. First, we examine the glomerulus, found in the kidney, that is primarily responsible for filtering blood. Following a left renal vein (LRV) stenosis, SEM is used to observe changes to the glomeruli. Differences in the left …

Investigations Of Dual-Electrolyte Layer Protonic Ceramic Fuel Cells For Enhanced Electrochemical Performance And Longevity, Abdul-Sommed Hadi

Graduate Theses & Non-Theses

A cermet anode comprising of yttria-doped barium zirconate, BZY and nickel, Ni is now the preferred choice of materials for use in proton conducting fuel cell (PCFC) anodes because of their influence on anode oxidation kinetics. The Ni grains, being in a solid solution with the BZY support, helps improve on the catalytic activity and conductivity, in addition to the relative stability of BZY in steam and hydrocarbon reforming environments, as well as BZY’s excellent protonic conductivity.

Ni-BZY based anodes, sintered onto a ~600-micron electrolyte-supported substrates of BZY, BCZY (yttria- and ceria-doped barium zirconate), and a BZY/BCZY dual electrolyte-layer substrate, …

Development Of Air-Jetting System For Bioprinting Of Alginate Micro-Droplets, Nathan Lingenfelter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Transplantation of organoids has been demonstrated to be a promising cure to many diseases including Type-1 diabetes. However, achieving consistent and robust derivations of mature organoids from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) is challenging. Cellular mechano-transduction, where mechanical stimuli is sensed and converted to biochemical signaling, has been proposed to overcome this challenge. This pathway relies on encapsulating hPSCs in a small volume of a biomaterial such as alginate, which has been widely used as cell encapsulation materials due to its biocompatibility and selective permeability. In this project, we focused on developing an air-jetting based technique to generate small and …

Characterizing Feedlot Feed Using Depth Cameras And Imaging Technology, Jean Niwenshuti

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Imaging technology is a growing field that provides solutions in many areas from manufacturing to agriculture. Through previous research, imaging technologies have been studied in livestock farming to monitor the animal’s health and welfare in the production process. However, the feedlot industry is still behind in validating the feasibility to use some of these technologies nor to adopt such technologies to address challenges the industry is facing, such as lack of skilled labor.This work proposes using novel imaging methods to identify feed types and estimate the amount of feed remaining in a typical Midwestern feedlot feed bunk. These methods have …

Technical Report: A Framework For Confusion Mitigation In Task-Oriented Interactions, Na Li, Robert J. Ross

Articles

Confusion is a mental state that can be triggered in task-oriented interactions and which can if left unattended lead to boredom, frustration, or disengagement from the task at hand. Since previous work has demonstrated that confusion can be detected in embodied situated interactions from visual and auditory cues, in this technique report, we propose appropriate interaction structures which should be used to mitigate confusion. We motivate and describe this dialogue mechanism through an information state-style policy with examples, and also outline the approach we are taking to integrate such a meta-conversational goal alongside core task-oriented considerations in modern data driven …

Discovering The Kinetic Behaviors Of Zeolites Of Mordenite, Ferrierite, Faujasite, Beta, Weixuan Huang

Theses - ALL

Fossil fuels have played a significant role in the development of nations. However, they have also given rise to various societal problems. In this context, Gamma-Valerolactone (GVL) emerges as a potential solution as a fuel additive and feedstock for the production of gasoline, jet fuel, and other products. GVL can undergo decarboxylation reactions facilitated by zeolite catalysts. Surprisingly, it has been observed that reactions taking place on different zeolites, despite having similar Brønsted acid site densities, exhibit distinct simulated initial rates. This research aims to compare the initial rate trends of mordenite and its poisoned derivatives with those of the …

Discovering The Kinetic Behaviors Of Zeolites Of Mordenite, Ferrierite, Faujasite, Beta, Weixuan Huang

Theses - ALL

Fossil fuels have played a significant role in the development of nations. However, they have also given rise to various societal problems. In this context, Gamma-Valerolactone (GVL) emerges as a potential solution as a fuel additive and feedstock for the production of gasoline, jet fuel, and other products. GVL can undergo decarboxylation reactions facilitated by zeolite catalysts. Surprisingly, it has been observed that reactions taking place on different zeolites, despite having similar Brønsted acid site densities, exhibit distinct simulated initial rates. This research aims to compare the initial rate trends of mordenite and its poisoned derivatives with those of the …

Potential Of Mirnas In Plasma Extracellular Vesicle For The Stratification Of Prostate Cancer In A South African Population, Dada Oluwaseyi Temilola, Martha Wium, Juliano Paccez, Azola Samkele Salukazana, Hasan H. Otu, Giuseppina M. Carbone, Lisa Kaestner, Stefano Cacciatore, Luiz Fernando Zerbini

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common cause of cancer death among African men. The analysis of microRNAs (miRNAs) in plasma extracellular vesicles (EVs) can be utilized as a non-invasive tool for the diagnosis of PCa. In this study, we used small RNA sequencing to profile miRNAs cargo in plasma EVs from South African PCa patients. We evaluated the differential expression of miRNAs between low and high Gleason scores in the plasma EVs of South African patients and in the prostatic tissue from data available in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Data Portal. We identified 7 miRNAs differently expressed in …

Modeling Of Signals And Spectra: 5g And Beyond, Xianzhen Yang

Dissertations and Theses

The collection of papers addresses various aspects of spectra and signals in RF wireless systems for 5G and beyond. The first paper focuses on the nonlinear effects of amplified dual-band OFDM signals, providing a spectrum model for intermodulation and cross-modulation. The second paper extends this analysis beyond bandwidth restrictions, enabling accurate prediction of amplified dual-band spectrum. The third paper emphasizes the significance of out-of-band intermodulation products and derives an analytical expression using third-order intercept points. The fourth paper presents a unified spectrum expression for OFDM, FBMC, and F-OFDM, facilitating comparative insights into these signals. The fifth paper explores second-order intermodulation …

An Introduction To Bipolar Pythagorean Refined Sets, R. Janani, A. Francina Shalini

Neutrosophic Systems with Applications

The aim of this paper is to introduce the new concept of a Bipolar Pythagorean refined set by combining the two notions called a Bipolar Pythagorean set and a Pythagorean refined set. Also, the basic operations and algebraic properties of the Bipolar Pythagorean refined set are discussed with suitable examples.

Flex-Ro: Development And Testing Of A Semi-Autonomous Robotic Planter, Ian Tempelmeyer

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The need for more crop production with minimal negative environmental impact is a continuing pursuit around the world. As the population continues to increase at an exponential rate, the demand for food, fiber, fuel, and energy also increases. Robotics and automation are seen as one of the useful technology tools to increase field productivity. This work specifically focuses on addressing labor challenges for one of the most important field operations, planting. A robotic planter unit was designed as part of this work that mounted on unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) to perform autonomous planting operation in a 1 ha (2.5 acre) …

An Introduction To Bipolar Pythagorean Refined Sets, R. Janani, A. Francina Shalini

Neutrosophic Systems with Applications

The aim of this paper is to introduce the new concept of a Bipolar Pythagorean refined set by combining the two notions called a Bipolar Pythagorean set and a Pythagorean refined set. Also, the basic operations and algebraic properties of the Bipolar Pythagorean refined set are discussed with suitable examples.

A Method For Economic Expansion Planning Of Transmission Networks Using Heuristic Rules And Non-Linear Optimization Model, Maged Gamal Lotfy, Mahmoud Ali Farrag, Mohamed Shibl Albags, Ahmed Hamdy Khalil

Mansoura Engineering Journal

This paper presents a method for economic planning of transmission networks in an iterative manner. The method is capable of solving large scale networks where the most "worst" new lines are deleted iteratively using heuristic rules. In each iteration, a relatively small size non-linear mathematical Programming model is built to enhance the deletion process. The non-linear model is based on full AC load flow where only the reactive power injected from different available reactive power sources are controlled plus the reference bus voltage magnitude. The deletion process is stopped when the deleting of any line from the rest set of …

Efficient Scopeformer: Toward Scalable And Rich Feature Extraction For Intracranial Hemorrhage Detection, Yassine Barhoumi, Nidhal Carla Bouaynaya, Ghulam Rasool

Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering Departmental Research

The quality and richness of feature maps extracted by convolution neural networks (CNNs) and vision Transformers (ViTs) directly relate to the robust model performance. In medical computer vision, these information-rich features are crucial for detecting rare cases within large datasets. This work presents the “Scopeformer,” a novel multi-CNN-ViT model for intracranial hemorrhage classification in computed tomography (CT) images. The Scopeformer architecture is scalable and modular, which allows utilizing various CNN architectures as the backbone with diversified output features and pre-training strategies. We propose effective feature projection methods to reduce redundancies among CNN-generated features and to control the input size of …

Integration Of Meta-Multi-Omics Data Using Probabilistic Graphs And External Knowledge, Handan Can, Sree K. Chanumolu, Barbara D. D., Sophie Alvarez, Michael J. Naldrett, Gülhan Ünlü, Hasan H. Otu

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Multi-omics has the promise to provide a detailed molecular picture of biological systems. Although obtaining multi-omics data is relatively easy, methods that analyze such data have been lagging. In this paper, we present an algorithm that uses probabilistic graph representations and external knowledge to perform optimal structure learning and deduce a multifarious interaction network for multi-omics data from a bacterial community. Kefir grain, a microbial community that ferments milk and creates kefir, represents a self-renewing, stable, natural microbial community. Kefir has been shown to have a wide range of health benefits. We obtained a controlled bacterial community using the two …

Inkjet-Printed Morphogenesis Of Tumor-Stroma Interface Using Bi-Cellular Bioinks Of Collagen-Poly(N-Isopropyl Acrylamide-Co-Methyl Methacrylate) Mixture, Cih Cheng, Naomi Deneke, Hye-Ran Moon, Sae Rome Choi, Natalia Ospina-Munoz, Bennett D. Elzey, Chelsea S. Davis, George T.-C Chiu, Bumsoo Han

Purdue University Libraries Open Access Publishing Fund

Recent advances in biomaterials and 3D printing/culture methods enable various tissue-engineered tumor models. However, it is still challenging to achieve native tumor-like characteristics due to lower cell density than native tissues and prolonged culture duration for maturation. Here, we report a new method to create tumoroids with a mechanically active tumor-stroma interface at extremely high cell density. This method, named “inkjet-printed morphogenesis” (iPM) of the tumor-stroma interface, is based on a hypothesis that cellular contractile force can significantly remodel the cell-laden polymer matrix to form densely-packed tissue-like constructs. Thus, differential cell-derived compaction of tumor cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) can …

Leveraging Steric Moieties For Kinetic Control Of Dna Strand Displacement Reactions, Drew Lysne, Tim Hachigian, Chris Thachuk, Jeunghoon Lee, Elton Graugnard

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

DNA strand displacement networks are a critical part of dynamic DNA nanotechnology and are proven primitives for implementing chemical reaction networks. Precise kinetic control of these networks is important for their use in a range of applications. Among the better understood and widely leveraged kinetic properties of these networks are toehold sequence, length, composition, and location. While steric hindrance has been recognized as an important factor in such systems, a clear understanding of its impact and role is lacking. Here, a systematic investigation of steric hindrance within a DNA toehold-mediated strand displacement network was performed through tracking kinetic reactions of …

Sel4 On Risc-V - Developing High Assurance Platforms With Modular Open-Source Architectures, Michael A. Doran Jr

Masters Theses

Virtualization is now becoming an industry standard for modern embedded systems. Modern embedded systems can now support multiple applications on a single hardware platform while meeting power and cost requirements. Virtualization on an embedded system is achieved through the design of the hardware-software interface. Instruction set architecture, ISA, defines the hardware-software interface for an embedded system. At the hardware level the ISA, provides extensions to support virtualization.

In addition to an ISA that supports hypervisor extensions it is equally important to provide a hypervisor completely capable of exploiting the benefits of virtualization for securing modern embedded systems. Currently there does …

Influence Of Forming Forces On Torsional, Tensile, And Compressive Deformation Of Paperboard Packages, Arvo Niini, Panu Tanninen, Juha Varis, Ville Leminen

Journal of Applied Packaging Research

Paperboard packages were tested mechanically to investigate influence of forming forces on torsional, tensile, and compressive deformation. The packages were paperboard trays which were press formed with different pressing forces and blank holder forces. Deformation of the trays was observed with torsion, compression, and tensile tests. A statistical analysis of test results was conducted to derive optimal forming forces. Increased pressing force yielded desirable deformation characteristics with the trays. Blank holder force had largest impact on the compressive deformation. Interaction of the pressing force and the blank holder force influenced the torsional and the compressive deformation. The optimal forming forces …

Thermomechanical Properties Of Neutron Irradiated Al3Hf-Al Thermal Neutron Absorber Materials, Donna Post Guillen, Mychailo B. Toloczko, Ramprashad Prabhakaran, Yuanyuan Zhu, Yu Lu, Yaqiao Wu

CAES Energy Policy Institute Faculty Publications and Presentations

A thermal neutron absorber material composed of Al₃Hf particles in an aluminum matrix is under development for the Advanced Test Reactor. This metal matrix composite was fabricated via hot pressing of high-purity aluminum and micrometer-size Al₃Hf powders at volume fractions of 20.0, 28.4, and 36.5%. Room temperature tensile and hardness testing of unirradiated specimens revealed a linear relationship between volume fraction and strength, while the tensile data showed a strong decrease in elongation between the 20 and 36.5% volume fraction materials. Tensile tests conducted at 200 °C on unirradiated material revealed similar trends. Evaluations were then …

Smart Cities-A Structured Literature Review, Jose Sanchez Gracias, Gregory S. Parnell, Eric Specking, Edward A. Pohl, Randy Buchanan

Industrial Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Smart cities are rapidly evolving concept-transforming urban developments in the 21st century. Smart cities use advanced technologies and data analytics to improve the quality of life for their citizens, increase the efficiency of infrastructure and services, and promote sustainable economic growth. Smart cities integrate multiple domains, including transportation, energy, health, education, and governance, to create an interconnected and intelligent urban environment. Our research study methodology was a structured literature review using Web of Science and Google Scholar and ten smart city research questions. The research questions included smart city definitions, advantages, disadvantages, implementation challenges, funding, types of applications, quantitative techniques …

Development And Characterization Of Coal-Based Thermoplastic Composite Material For Sustainable Construction, Haibin Zhang, Wenyu Liao, Genda Chen, Hongyan Ma

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The exploitation of coal and the disposal of waste plastic present significant environmental and economic challenges that require sustainable and profitable solutions. In response, we propose a renewable construction composite material of coal-based thermoplastic composite (CTC) that can be made from low-grade coal and plastic waste. We developed and tested the hot-press fabrication method for this CTC, using coal with a maximum particle size of 4.75 mm and recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE). The effects of the coal fraction (50–80 wt.%) on compressive properties, thermal properties, microstructure, and ecological and economic efficiencies of the CTC were investigated. Test results revealed that …

Moving Lab-Based In-Person Training To Online Delivery: The Case Of A Continuing Engineering Education Program, Catherine Maware, David M. Parsley Ii, Kun Huang, Gerry M. Swan, Nelson Akafuah

Institute of Research for Technology Development Faculty Publications

Background: Online learning has recently surged due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Because of the pandemic, many universities were forced to move to online learning, and various online teaching and learning environments emerged, both asynchronous and synchronous.

Objective: This study explores how a large university in the Southeastern United States of America converted an in-person Lean Manufacturing professional course into synchronous online learning for industry participants.

Method: The study analysed the performance of 212 in-person and 43 online industry participants and examined the views of online participants about the training. Paired t-tests, one-way multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA), and univariate …

A Robust Model Reduction For The Optimal Boundary Feedback Stabilization Of Magnetizable Piezoelectric Beams, Md Rafi As Sadeq Ibn Emran

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The one-dimensional Partial Differential Equation (PDE) model of the wave equation, which describes wave dynamics of a wide-range of controlled mechanical systems, with a state feedback controller at its boundary is known to have exponentially stable solutions. Moreover, it is also reported that the several model reductions of the wave equation by the standard Finite Differences and Finite Elements approximations suffer from the lack of exponential stability (and exact observability without a state feedback controller) uniformly as the discretization parameter tends to zero. This is due to the loss of a uniform gap among the high-frequency eigenvalues as the discretization …

Fatigue And Fracture Of Electron Beam Melting Ti-6al-4v, William A. Grell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For applications in the aerospace field, selection of materials for a given design requires an understanding of critical properties, like fatigue and fracture, in addition to static mechanical and physical properties. With the ongoing advancements in metallic additive manufacturing techniques and the interest in applying the process to aerospace applications, there is a clear need to fully characterize properties. Arguably, the most attractive alloy for applications in aerospace is the Ti-6Al-4V alloy. The current dissertation examines the mechanical properties of the alloy, made by the Electron Beam Melting (EBM) Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) method. As illustrated in this work, the …

Hemodynamic Assessment Of Y-Incision Aortic Root Enlargement Using Computational Simulations, Astitwa Ghimire

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Yang procedure is a new aortic root enlargement technique used to enlarge the aortic annulus by multiple valve sizes. The procedure prevents patient prosthesis mismatch and establishes a viable platform for future valve-in-valve implantation. This study used the Yang procedure to investigate the hemodynamics in the aortic root and bioprosthetic valve regions after aortic root enlargement. Results indicate the velocity magnitude at the sinus regions of a patient who underwent the Yang procedure was slower, indicating risks of flow stasis and thrombosis. Simulation results denote computational models can be created for optimization of surgical procedures.

Consensus-Based Active And Reactive Power Control And Management Of Microgrids, Shruti Singh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Microgrids incorporating distributed generation and renewable energy sources offer potential solutions to the energy crisis while modernizing traditional grids. Despite cost-effectiveness in some technologies, financial support remains crucial for expensive ones like PV, fuel cells, and storage technologies. Microgrids bring economic benefits, efficiency, reduced emissions, and improved power quality. Their success hinges on cost reductions in renewables, storage, reliability, and energy management systems, enabling operation both with and without the utility grid.

Economic Dispatch optimizes system costs, considering all constraints. Various methods tackle this problem, including quadratic convex functions, Lagrangian relaxation, and quadratic programming. For microgrids with distributed generators, seamless …

Controllable Language Generation Using Deep Learning, Rohola Zandie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The advent of deep neural networks has sparked a revolution in Artificial Intelligence (AI), notably with the creation of Transformer models like GPT-X and ChatGPT. These models have surpassed previous methods in various Natural Language Processing (NLP) tasks. As the NLP field evolves, there is a need to further understand and question the capabilities of these models. Text generation, a crucial part of NLP, remains an area where our comprehension is limited while being critical in research.

This dissertation focuses on the challenging problem of controlling the general behaviors of language models such as sentiment, topical focus, and logical reasoning. …

Health-Care And Supportive Services In General Population Disaster Shelters, Ashlea Bennett Milburn, Charleen C. Mcneill, Lauren Clay, Janice Springer, Mary Casey-Lockyer

Industrial Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Objectives:

The Communication (C), Maintaining Health (M), Independence (I), Services, Support and Self-Determination (S), and Transportation (T) is a framework (C-MIST) for identifying functional needs in an emergency response. A C-MIST documentation tool provides shelter staff with a list of potential client needs and actions to address them. This retrospective review describes the needs and actions indicated on completed C-MIST documentation tools (ie, records) within domestic general population shelters following Hurricane Florence in 2018.

Methods:

A convenience sample of 1209 records completed by shelter disaster health services personnel was provided by the American Red Cross. The records correspond to client …