Engineering Commons^™

Development Of A Design Method For Bonded Concrete Pavement Overlays, Ahmed Alsabbagh

Theses and Dissertations

Several asphalt pavements prematurely reached the end of their design life due to wheel loading has dramatically increased on highways. Therefore, transportation and highways agencies often endeavor to provide high-performance pavement to ensure the longest life with low maintenance required. Although asphalt pavement overlay (APO) can provide a quick and low-cost option for pavements rehabilitation, it frequently exhibits excessive rutting especially at highway pavement subjected to stop-and-go traffic conditions. Hence, concrete pavement overlays (CPO) is one of the alternative options for rehabilitating deteriorated pavements. The ultra-thin white topping (UTW) is one type of concrete overlay types and is considered a …

Cloud Computing Service Interoperability And Architectural Concepts, Anmar Salih

Theses and Dissertations

Today’s market with a vast number of Cloud-computing providers creates a challenge for practical cooperation between the various provider cloud service platforms. Not only does Cloud interoperability provide this needed cooperation, but it also avoids vendor lock-in and, additionally, saves time and cost. Although there is no established definition for Cloud interoperability, most researchers agree on the purposes of Cloud interoperability. Research and literature have attempted to explain interoperability as transferring data, moving workloads, and migrating virtual machines between Cloud platforms. Transferring data between Clouds refers to objects migrating between provider-specific domains. In comparison, data migration is the most commonly …

Correlation Between Air Quality Index And Traffic Volume Using Internet Of Things (Iot), Omar Sayah Alruwaili

Theses and Dissertations

In highly populated world areas, such as metropolises, hazardous air pollution has been linked to the presence of damaging climate and health issues, which are becoming increasingly common. Indeed, a major problem facing urban areas today is air pollution. Gas emissions from vehicles can be seen as the most important source of this kind of pollution. Pollutant gases emitted as parts of car exhaust consist of chemicals such as carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and sulphur dioxide (SO2), and ozone (O3), as well as particulate matter (PM). In some places in the world, non-governmental and foreign corporations have also …

Cellular Attachment On Poly(Lactic Acid) For Use In Tissue Engineering, Stephen R. Hunter

Masters Theses

Tissue engineering is a promising new method for organ regeneration. This method can be used to repair damaged tissue, or possibly replace a fully functional organ. In summary, a biopsy is taken from a donor, isolated, then grown onto a framework resembling an organ. Once grown; it is then transplanted into the patient. Over time, the body will degrade the scaffold, leaving the organ or tissue in its place. As this scaffold is present in the body for an extended time; factors like biocompatibility, toxicity, immunogenicity, and structural stability must be researched.

Several polymers have already been researched for use …

Experimental Analysis Of Heat Generation In Carbon, Mounisha Ganesan

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The purpose of this research is to study a novel non-covalent functionalization technique of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and to examine the feasibility of using carbon nanotube films as thin film heaters. We developed a unique methodology to synthesize a well dispersed, environmentally friendly solution of CNTs that could be easily spin coated as well as spray coated on different substrates based on the application. Using the produced solutions, thin films of SWCNTs were fabricated on a glass substrate. Two sets of experiments were conducted to study the influence of polyaromatic moiety and the pH on the electro thermal characteristics …

Constrained Motion Analysis Of Spacecraft Trajectory In Restricted Three Body Problem, Harshkumar Patel

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Due to the popularity of libration points, many satellites are being maintained on their desired trajectory. Indian space research organization has planned to launch the Aditya-L1 spacecraft to study about the Sun by 2021. James Webb Space Telescope has also been designed to observe deep space at L2 in the Sun-Earth system by 2021. The combined gravity of the Earth and the Sun keep satellite’s orbit locked at libration points. Though satellites enjoys an uninterrupted view of Sun and Earth all the time, they are affected by the solar radiation pressure (SRP) continuously. Due to the instability of collinear libration …

Hypersonic Heat Transfer Load Analysis In Star-Ccm+, Robert Comstock

Master's Theses

This thesis investigates the capabilities of STAR-CCM+, a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software owned by Siemens, in predicting hypersonic heat transfer loads on forward-facing surfaces. Results show that STAR-CCM+ predicted peak heat transfer loads within +/- 20% of experimental data on the leading edge of a delta wing design from the X-20 Dyna-Soar program with 73^o of sweep. Steady-state laminar simulations were run as replications of wind tunnel tests documented in NASA CR-535, a NASA technical report that measured and studied the hypersonic pressure and heat transfer loads on preliminary X- 20 wing designs across a wide range of …

Comparison Of Classification Algorithms And Undersampling Methods On Employee Churn Prediction: A Case Study Of A Tech Company, Heather Cooper

Master's Theses

Churn prediction is a common data mining problem that many companies face across industries. More commonly, customer churn has been studied extensively within the telecommunications industry where there is low customer retention due to high market competition. Similar to customer churn, employee churn is very costly to a company and by not deploying proper risk mitigation strategies, profits cannot be maximized, and valuable employees may leave the company. The cost to replace an employee is exponentially higher than finding a replacement, so it is in any company’s best interest to prioritize employee retention.

This research combines machine learning techniques with …

The Implementation And Comparison Of Fuzzy Logic Control Systems To Modern Control Methods On Low-Cost Hardware, Cristian A. Barron

Theses and Dissertations

Modern control engineering provides many options to automate systems for which a mathematical model is required. Another control does not rely on the mathematical model of the system and is known as fuzzy logic control. In this study, a literature review is conducted on existing control systems strategies such as proportional integral and derivative (PID), linear quadratic regulator (LQR), and fuzzy logic controller (FLC), the complexity of the systems they control, and their strengths and weaknesses. In addition, a series of experiments are conducted, both through simulations in MATLAB Simulink and using their implementation using the actual physical hardware to …

Optimizing A Railroad Bearing Condition-Monitoring Algorithm For Use With An Onboard Wireless Low-Power Sensor Module, Jonas Regan Leano Cuanang

Theses and Dissertations

An algorithm that utilizes vibration measurements was developed by the UTRGV Center for Railway Safety to monitor the condition of railroad bearings. This algorithm uses the data collected from accelerometers on the bearing adapters to determine if there is a defect, where the defect is within the bearing, and the approximate size of the defect. Laboratory testing was performed on the UTCRS single bearing test rig. A four-second sample window of the recorded vibration data is used by the algorithm to reliably identify the defective component inside the bearing with up to a 100% confidence level. However, considerable computational power …

Effect Of Adding Palm Fiber To Thermal Conductivity Of Quick Set Concrete, Monica Garcia

Theses and Dissertations

As climate change becomes a more dire issue and more readily accepted by those in power, the demand for local and systemic solutions grows louder. In urban environments, one issue of concern is the contribution of anthropogenic heat from buildings which contributes to localized warming of the environment. A method that can reduce anthropogenic heat is decreasing the thermal conductivity of building materials. The objective of this study is to examine the possibility of using palm fibers to reduce the thermal conductivity of quick-set concrete samples. The data gathered in this study are used to determine the thermal conductivity value …

The Design, Fabrication, And Testing Of A Cooling Garment, Richard James Garza

Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this research is to design a device or technology capable of cooling the user – such as a college student walking to class, for example – in a manner as convenient as putting on a jacket. The idea is to use the peltier effect – a phenomenon in which two dissimilar semi-conductors heat up and cool down with the application of an electric current – as the source of heat absorption used to cool the user. In this research it will be determined whether or not it is feasible to use such a phenomenon to keep the …

Assessing The Performance Of Reconditioned Railroad Tapered-Roller Bearings Used In Freight Rail Service, Veronica Valeria Hernandez

Theses and Dissertations

The rail industry currently utilizes two wayside detection systems to monitor the health of freight railcar bearings in service: The Trackside Acoustic Detection System (TADS™) and the wayside Hot-Box Detector (HBD). Bearings that are removed from service are sent to specialized facilities where they undergo a reconditioning process before the bearings can be returned to rail service. The reconditioning process has been used for decades although there has been no previous study on the effectiveness of the reconditioning process on defective bearings that were removed from service. This persuaded the researchers from the University Transportation Center for Railway Safety (UTRCS) …

Electromagnetic Interference Shielding Effectiveness Of Interlayered Systems Containing Metal-Oxide, Conducting Polymer And Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Polymeric Composites, Shaik Merkatur Hakim Marjuban

Theses and Dissertations

The Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) Shielding Effectiveness (SE) has become one of the important requirements for the devices associated with telecommunication systems consisting of large frequency bands. The degradation of the quality of transmitting signal influenced by frequencies emitting from external sources can be reduced by covering the circuits of the devices by EMI Shielding materials like polymer composites, metal-based nanofiber mats, the metal of oxide films, etc. The investigation strives for the attenuation of EMI by introducing two composite mats from conducting polymer-based, multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) coated Nylon 6 nanofiber composites. Two other composite mats are also developed by …

Traffic Time Headway Prediction And Analysis: A Deep Learning Approach, Saumik Sakib Bin Masud

Theses and Dissertations

In the modern world of Intelligent Transportation System (ITS), time headway is a key traffic flow parameter affecting ITS operations and planning. Defined as “the time difference between any two successive vehicles when they cross a given point”, time headway is used in various traffic and transportation engineering research domains, such as capacity analysis, safety studies, car-following, and lane-changing behavior modeling, and level of service evaluation describing stochastic features of traffic flow. Advanced travel and headway information can also help road users avoid traffic congestion through dynamic route planning, for instance. Hence, it is crucial to accurately model headway distribution …

Cyber Security Evaluation Of Centos Red Hat Based Operating System Under Cyber Attack With Increasing Magnitude, William E. R. Rivas

Theses and Dissertations

The increasing interest in ‘always-connected’ devices and the Internet of Things has led to electronic devices with Internet connectivity becoming a staple in modern household and workplace. Consequently, this increase has also led to an increase in vulnerable devices, ripe for hijacking by a malicious third party. Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks have consistently been an issue since the birth of the Internet. With the large number of devices available today, the strength and consistency of these attacks has only grown and will continue to grow. Since, depending on certain variables, these DDoS attacks can effectively render a target …

Fabrication And Flow Dynamics Analysis Of Micromixer For Lab-On-A-Chip Devices, Md Fazlay Rubby

Theses and Dissertations

The miniaturized systems designed for lab-on-a-chip (LOC) technologies are generally implemented with a micro-scale mixer to provide intimate contact between the reagent molecules for interactions and chemical reactions. The exponential increase of research in microfabrication and microfluidic applications highlights the importance of understanding the theory and mechanism that governs mixing at the microscale level. In this study, the fabrication of an active and passive micromixer was discussed. The optimized state of art soft lithography and 3D printing was used as a microfabrication technique. The challenges at different fabrication steps were presented along with the modifications. Microelectrodes were integrated with the …

Security Evaluation Of Microsoft’S Windows Under Cyber-Flood Attacks, Christina Y. Navarro

Theses and Dissertations

Cyberattacks are quite common occurrences today as such can compromise entire networks producing collective vulnerabilities. As shown herein, manifold experimental findings exhibit ramifications for a cyberattack victim during multiple simulations. All experiments were conducted with Apple’s iMac, the victim system, and different editions of Microsoft Windows 10 and Windows 8.1.

Cyberattacks herein categorize as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks including Smurf, Ping Flood, Transmission Control Protocol-Synchronize (TCP-SYN) Flood, and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) Flood attacks. Experimental results from each cyberattack are recordings of computer activities such as memory consumption, disk utilization, and overall processor utilization.

DDoS attack simulations include …

Examining The Role Of Spatial Skills And Mathematics Motivation On Middle School Mathematics Achievement, Kinnari Atit, Jason R. Power, Norma Veurink, David H. Uttal, Sheryl Sorby, Grace Panther, Camille Msall, Logan Fiorella, Martha Carr

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Background: Spatial skills and mathematical ability have been repeatedly identified as critical for achievement in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Previous studies have identified correlations between spatial skills and mathematical achievement; however, questions remain regarding improvements in non-spatial areas associated with STEM achievement. The current study examined whether competency in spatial skills could be related to individuals’ motivation for mathematics. Measures of spatial skills and mathematics motivation were completed by 1056 seventh grade students. Results: Using hierarchical linear modeling, spatial skills and math motivation were examined relative to students’ performance on a state standardized mathematics subtest. Results indicate that …

Diversity And Inclusion In The Workplace: A Comparative Analysis Between A Large And Small Company, Andrew K. Hernandez

Construction Management

The construction industry in recent times have seen an increase in inclusivity and diversity among the workplace. The industry seems to make improvements and steps to create an overall accepting workforce. However, there is still a need to produce a more inclusive work environment. There are many organizations and legal requirements that push for improving diversity throughout companies, but still the industry struggles to do so. Improving diversity in the workforce can reach out to more personnel with talent and skill to possibly attack the trade labor shortage in this industry. Analytical research methods in these reports were used to …

Oasis Church: Designing And Building A Pergola For The Discipleship Home, Logan Keil Smith

Construction Management

The senior project idea for building a pergola, fire-pit, and paver hardscape was designed and executed by Andreas Rasmussen and Logan Smith. With the necessary background knowledge in landscape construction and the required funding, the Discipleship Home in Oceano, California, gave these two construction management students the opportunity to build an outdoor aesthetic area for residents of the Discipleship Home. This document provides information regarding the design, acquired funding, construction process, lessons learned and conclusion after the project was finished. The purpose of the project is to provide a peaceful place in which the residents of the Discipleship Home can …

Analysis Of Working From Home Vs Working At The Office, As A Construction Company In The Bay Area, Kyle M. Ruff

Construction Management

In 2020, working from home has become an increasingly popular trend amongst construction offices across the Bay Area to combat the spread of COVID-19. This meant that employees who used to commute were now able to work from home. This paper analyzes the impacts working from home has on the productivity, work-life-balance, and overall well-being of a Bay Area construction office employees . A survey was issued to the estimating department of a large general contractor in the Bay Area, with the intent of finding the impact working from home had on the three aspects of working life, as previous …

Making Commuting Satisfying For The Employees By Allocating Them To The Proximate Jobsite, Yoo H. Kim

Construction Management

Building a structure is a long process and it is the construction manager’s job to verify and be prepared for any curve balls that can occur. However, construction managers can often get busy and get carried away by their responsibilities and inevitably pay less attention for employee's life after work. For my Senior Project, I have put together a website that can be used by the construction managers to allocate work not only based the skillset but also based on proximity. The name of the website is ✦Proximate and it uses Google Earth Outreach (free tool) to make allocation possible. …

Synthesis, Characterization, Spectroscopic, And Mesomorphic Studies Of New Schiff Base Ligands And Titanium, Cobalt, Nickel And Copper Metal Centers, Raj K. Gurung

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

Transition metal complexes with Schiff base ligands offer a wide application in the field of development of catalysis and material. The straightforward synthesis allowed the structural modification and helped to optimize in various application of such complexes. Titanium-containing complexes have been reported to be important for their catalytic and material applications through the coordination of a tetradentate Schiff base ligand, viz. N, N’-ethylene bis(salicylideneiminate) dianion (salen). Studies reporting the characterization of achiral titanium(IV) salen complexes are scarce due to their intricate nature. Such complexes would be comparatively less expensive and easier to prepare synthetically and thus could represent an …

A Parametric Analysis Of A Turbofan Engine With An Auxiliary Bypass Combustion Chamber – The Turboaux Engine, Kaleab Fetahi

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A parametric study of a novel turbofan engine with an auxiliary combustion chamber, nicknamed the TurboAux engine is presented. The TurboAux engine is conceived as an extension of a low-bypass turbofan engine with an auxiliary bypass annular combustion chamber around the core stream. The study presented in this thesis is motivated by the need to facilitate clean secondary burning of fuel at temperatures higher than conventionally realized, from air exiting the low-pressure compressor. The parametric study starts by analyzing the turbojet engine and its performance with and without an afterburner segment attached. Following that, the conventional turbofan and its mixing …

Parametric Study Of Residual Stresses In Wire And Arc Additive Manufactured Parts, Hisham Khaled Jamil Abusalma

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Wire and Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) is a cost-effective additive manufacturing process due to its capability to fabricate large metal parts with high deposition rate and low equipment cost. Although this method is gaining popularity in manufacturing industry, more research is needed to understand process parameters’ effects on residual stress (RS) distribution and part distortion. As such, a 3D thermo-elastic-plastic transient model was established in ABAQUS and employed to investigate the effect of process parameters such as the torch speed, the deposition power and the interlayer dwell time on RS distribution and distortion in WAAM part. The numerical model utilized …

An Investigation On The Effectiveness Of A Problem Structuring Method In A Group Decision-Making Process, Ying Thaviphoke

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

There is no shortage of methods to address messy problems. A messy problem is a system of problems with multiple stakeholders who may hold different views of what is feasible or desirable. Decision-makers in a messy problem are prone to committing an error – especially the Type III error. One of the ways to mitigate the chance of committing the error in a messy problem is to reach a group consensus. Problem Structuring Methods (PSM) are the collections of participatory modeling methods that aim to tackle a messy problem. Despite the positive reports, literature indicates some challenges and criticisms of …

Detailed Modeling Of The Flash Hydrolysis Of Algae For Biofuel-Production In Comsol Multiphysics, Noah Joseph Legrand

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Algae-derived biofuels are being commercialized as an important renewable energy source. Like any new technology, conversion improvements are desired, including reductions in process complexity and better utilization of the entire microalgae feedstock. The Old Dominion Biomass Laboratory has focused on flash hydrolysis for algae biofuel production. That process involves rapidly heating algae and water mixed as a slurry to a subcritical state. Results from small-scale bench tests are promising, but process scale up is a challenge. Currently there exists a pilot laboratory scale system utilizing induction heating in order to reach controlled reaction temperatures with a reaction duration of 10 …

Conical Orbital Mechanics: A Rework Of Classic Orbit Transfer Mechanics, Cian Anthony Branco

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Simple orbital maneuvers obeying Kepler’s Laws, when taken with respect to Newton’s framework, require considerable time and effort to interpret and understand. Instead of a purely mathematical approach relying on the governing relations, a graphical geometric conceptual representation provides a useful alternative to the physical realities of orbits. Conic sections utilized within the full scope of a modified cone (frustum) were employed to demonstrate and develop a geometric approach to elliptical orbit transformations. The geometric model in-question utilizes the rotation of a plane intersecting the orbital frustum at some angle β (and the change in this angle) in a novel …

Numerical Analysis Of A Roadway Piezoelectric Harvesting System, Abdul Rahman Badawi

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Highways, streets, bridges, and sidewalks with heavy traffic dissipate a considerable amount of waste mechanical energy every day. Piezoelectric energy harvesting devices are a very promising technology that can convert the waste mechanical energy to clean and renewable energy to enhance the sustainability of infrastructures. Research efforts in large-scale energy harvesting have led to the advancement of piezoelectric devices to the point that large-scale implementation is starting to become more feasible. The energy harvested by these devices can be used in many ways such as providing heating or cooling, melting ice, monitoring structural conditions in bridges and tunnels, and powering …