Engineering Commons^™

A Spatial Stochastic Model Of Ampar Trafficking And Subunit Dynamics, Tyler Vandyk, Matthew C. Pharris, Tamara L. Kinzer-Ursem

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

In excitatory neurons, the ability of a synaptic connection to strengthen or weaken is known as synaptic plasticity and is thought to be the cellular basis for learning and memory. Understanding the mechanism of synaptic plasticity is an important step towards understanding and developing treatment methods for learning and memory disorders. A key molecular process in synaptic plasticity for mammalian glutamatergic neurons is the exocytosis (delivery to the synapse) of AMPA-type glutamate receptors (AMPARs). While the protein signaling pathways responsible for exocytosis have long been investigated with experimental methods, it remains unreasonable to study the system in its full complexity …

The Effects Of Compaction On Reconstitution Characteristics Of Dairy Powder, Michelle P. Dixon, Rose Prabin Kingsly Ambrose, Dhananjay Ashok Pai

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Milk powders are becoming more ubiquitous within the food industry, and they offer consumers a convenient form for direct intake of dairy. The costs associated with dairy are reduced when products are converted to powder, which markedly increases shelf life at ambient temperatures. Creating compacts from powders further improves cost efficiency by reducing volume. However, milk powders typically possess poor rehydration properties, such as a slow dispersion rate and low solubility, and powder compaction additionally prolongs rehydration time, reducing consumer acceptability. Previous studies have shown that modifying dairy products before or during the drying process can improve rehydration properties, but …

Design A Continuously Tunable Microwave Filter With A Generalized Constant And Frequency Mapping Technique, Josh Shao, Runqi Zhang, Dimitrios Peroulis

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

As the demand for agile and accurate communication increases, the fundamental of communication must be improved to support the needs. Current communication operates on an agreement, that each network company pays government to get licensed a range of frequency on the spectrum, and no others are legally allowed to use. This allows a limited number of users to operates at the same time. As the number of users increase, the spectrum become congested and user experience problem like dropping call. This problem can be solved, if users can be shifted between different licensed frequencies, depending on the capacity of the …

Dynamic Characterization Of Periodic Lattice Of Elastically-Connected Bi-Stable Elements Under Seismic Excitation, Lingwei Meng, Myungwon Hwang, Andres F. Arrieta Ph.D.

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Metamaterials are engineered materials, typically in periodic arrangements, which exhibit unconventional or extreme properties not found in nature. Understanding the dynamics of metamaterials enables the design of structures with specific functionalities. The dynamics of metamaterials in linear regime has been relatively well studied in recent years, however the unique phenomena arising from nonlinearities in metamaterials are yet to be explored. In this paper, we focus on an array of bi-stable elements connected by elastic springs under various forms of external excitations acting on the entire system. The general equations of motion are derived to handle any degree-of-freedom (DoF) systems of …

The Response Of Schwann Cells To Weak Dc Electric Fields, Alexander T. Lai, Jianming Li

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Schwann cells are glial cells that serve the vital role of supporting neurons in the peripheral nervous system. While their primary function is to provide insulation (myelin) for axons, they also help regenerate injured axons by digesting severed axons and providing scaffolding to guide the regeneration process. This specific role of Schwann cells makes them highly important cellular targets following nerve injury. Although some efforts have been made to encourage Schwann cell migration after nerve damage, the use of electric fields to control cell responses remain unexplored; therefore, this experiment serves to characterize the behavior of Schwann cells to weak …

Pilot Performance With Advance Sensor Technlogies Considerations, Erin R. Groll, Nsikak Udo-Imeh, Steven Landry Dr.

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Research on human performance indicates people may discretely shift modes as the difficulty in tasks changes. These modes are referred to as “cognitive control modes.” Cognitive control modes are ways people operate and handle their process of thinking during a series of tasks. However, past work has been confined to subjective reports of these mode changes - objective markers in data of cognitive control modes, which should appear if these mode changes are truly discrete, have not be identified. This work will attempt to identify markers of cognitive control modes in data collected on pilots flying instrument approaches. Specifically, a …

Stability Analysis Of A Flexible Vehicle Model Controlled By Human Pilot Models, Abhishek Ajmani, Anil Bajaj

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

There is a constant race among automobile manufactures to design safer vehicles while minimizing weight to reduce power consumption. Additionally, organizations like NASA and SpaceX are persistently working toward creating reliable, lightweight rovers to be used on the surface of Mars. However, the lightweight requirement often increases vehicle flexibility, which further develops a tendency toward instability in the lateral (sideways) direction. This investigation develops a mathematical model that represents the dynamics of a flexible vehicle in forward motion, and a heuristic human pilot model is proposed which controls the vehicle. Following such formulation, the combined vehicle and pilot model is …

Secondary Atomization: Drop Breakup In A Continuous Air Jet, Grant S. Sondgeroth, Longchao Yao, Catriona M.L. White, Daniel R. Guildenbecher, Jun Chen, Paul E. Sojka

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Understanding drop breakup will optimize aircraft engine performance, reduce agro-chemical overspray, and improve pharmaceutical tablet efficacy. Large fuel fragments in engines lead to lowered fuel economy and higher pollutant emissions, while small drops yield more agro-spray drift into surrounding residential and environmental zones. Better pharmaceutical tablets will improve drug uptake and patient comfort.

Engineers and scientists are currently unable to predict the number, size, and velocity of fragments formed during important drop breakup processes. Therefore, we are required to measure these quantities. We use digital inline holography (DIH) to record three-dimensional diameter and position data for fragments formed during multi-mode …

Characterization Of Novel Photoresists For Sted-Enhanced Nanolithography, Brandon R. Franz, Paul Somers, Xianfan Xu

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Stimulated emission depletion (STED) applied to nanolithography has greatly improved achievable resolutions and quality of nanoscale structures. The special resin used, called a photoresist, is currently the major limiting factor in further improvement in resolution and structure quality. Characterizing new formulations of photoresists and comparing their performance in STED-enhanced nanolithography to the performance of current formulations will allow for greater resolution and structure quality. With each photoresist, line structures are produced with a two-laser system including a writing, or excitation, laser and a depletion, or STED, laser. The line structures are exposed to the STED laser for a short duration …

Comparison Of Pm-Hip To Cast Alloy 625 For Nuclear Applications, Alexander L. Bullens, Keyou Mao, Janelle P. Wharry, Esteban Bautista

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

PM-HIP, or Powder Metallurgy and Hot Isostatic Pressing, metals have been a low cost alternative to forged and cast structural metals within various industries. The nuclear industry has recently developed interest in PM-HIP alloys, but further research needs to be done to quantify their mechanical properties and characterize the microstructure. Specifically, we must understand the mechanical and microstructural evolution of PM-HIP materials after long-term operation at the elevated temperatures that PM-HIP components will experience in service. We focus on Ni-base alloy Inconel 625, and compare the PM-HIP version to the cast version. Our methodology consists of annealing samples to various …

Comparative Analysis Of Nanoscale Ultrasound Contrast Agents, Elly Y. Lambert, Luis Solorio

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Current ultrasound contrast agents utilize microbubbles as a blood pooling agent, but the size inhibits access to small capillaries. The development of nanoscale ultrasound contrast agents can enter small capillaries of tissues and aid in the detection of diseased states. However, current nano-formulations are flushed from the body over a short period of time. We developed a nanoscale ultrasound contrast agent with increased circulation time to allow for better detection of diseased states in the microvasculature of the body. Characterization (zeta potential, size, echogenicity and stability) and pharmacokinetic analysis were conducted on three nanoscale formulations: 1) Liquid based Bovine Serum …

Comparative Analysis Of Impact Attenuation Properties From Soccer Headgear, Kevin G. Mciver, Goutham N. Sankaran, Justin J. Markel, Tom M. Talavage, Larry J. Leverenz, Eric A. Nauman

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Athletes suffering from long-term neurocognitive deficiency due to subconcussive impacts is a major concern for football and soccer players today. Football players wear helmets that can help reduce injury risks like skull fractures, and these helmets must meet standard criteria that determinines how well a functional helmet should reduce accelerations of the player’s head. Currently no standard exists for testing soccer headgear despite studies demonstrating soccer players experience similar magnitudes of impacts. In this study, a modal impact hammer was used in conjunction with a Hybrid III 50th percentile test dummy head to simulate impacts experienced by soccer players to …

Burning Surface Temperature Measurements Of Propellants And Explosives Using Phosphor Thermography, Ethan A. Whitaker, Alex D. Casey, Steven F. Son

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Temperature measurements of propellants and explosives are necessary to create accurate models which lead to better understanding of energetic characteristics such as burning rate. Previous attempts at measuring surface temperatures of burning propellants and explosives using thermocouples have suffered from large uncertainty. Thermographic phosphor thermography employs ceramic powders called phosphors whose spectroscopic properties can be used to remotely and nearly non-intrusively measure temperature. Improved methods were developed for application of this technique to energetic materials to yield more accurate, two-dimensional temperature measurements. In this study, zinc oxide doped with gallium, a thermographic phosphor, was mixed into HMX and RDX powder, …

Two-Color Polarization Spectroscopy Measurement Of Nitric Oxide, Ziqiao Chang, Aman Satija, Robert P. Lucht

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Nitric Oxide (NO) is a greenhouse gas that contributes to smog and acid rain. Commercial combustion engines and turbines are significant sources of NO emission. Two-color Polarization Spectroscopy (PS) will be used to measure the collision-induced resonances of NO in gas mixtures. The effect of collision partners, such as He and Ar, on the line-shape of NO molecule will be studied. This experiment requires the use of two dye laser systems to generate 226nm beam from frequency mixing of 355nm and 622nm. This enhanced the scan range and improved the ease of operation. One dye laser will be used to …

Improving Methods Of Doping On Black Phosphorus, Yuqin Duan, Adam Charnas, Jingkai Qin, Peide Ye

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Black phosphorus (BP) is a 2D semiconducting material with high carrier mobility. It is usually p-type due to oxidation states near its valence band. Although achieved through other growth methods, n-type doping has not yet been accomplished through the modern chemical vapor transport (CVT) growth method. To address this issue, small amounts of tellurium were added to Red Phosphorus to act as a dopant during the CVT growth process in addition to tin(Sn) and tin(IV) iodide, which facilitate growth. The chemicals are heated up to 600°C and precisely cooled in a 21-hour process, during which BP crystals should form. After …

A Feature-Based Structural Measure: An Image Similarity Measure For Face Recognition, Noor A. Shnain, Zahir Hussain, Song F. Lu

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Facial recognition is one of the most challenging and interesting problems within the field of computer vision and pattern recognition. During the last few years, it has gained special attention due to its importance in relation to current issues such as security, surveillance systems and forensics analysis. Despite this high level of attention to facial recognition, the success is still limited by certain conditions; there is no method which gives reliable results in all situations. In this paper, we propose an efficient similarity index that resolves the shortcomings of the existing measures of feature and structural similarity. This measure, called …

Effect Of Moment Gradient And Load Height With Respect To Centroid On The Reliability Of Wide Flange Steel Beams Subject To Elastic Lateral Torsional Buckling, Christopher D. Eamon, Alexander W. Lamb, Kapil Patki

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research Publications

The reliability of doubly-symmetric wide flange steel beams designed to the AISC Specification for Structural Steel Buildings subjected to elastic lateral torsional buckling was evaluated when considering variation in moment gradient and load height. The analysis considers continuous loads on spans subjected to various end moments with supports that are torsionally fixed and laterally supported, without additional intermediate restraints. Dead load, occupancy live load, and beam resistance random variables were considered. Beam lateral torsional buckling resistance was evaluated from numerical solution of a fundamental differential equation that accounts for the effect of moment gradient and load height. In some cases, …

On The Stability Of Metal Nanoparticles Synthesized By Laser Ablation In Liquids, Gerardo Palazzo, Marcella Dell’Aglio, Gabriele Valenza, Alessandro De Giacomo

Association in Solution IV

Nanoparticles (NPs) synthesized through chemical routes are stabilized by a surface layer of capping agents.

These molecules, beside avoid the infinite growth of the solid phase, impart steric or electrostatic repulsive inter- particle interactions.

The technique known as “Laser ablation in liquid” (LAL) is an alternative technique to synthesize capping agents-free metal nanoparticles.1 LAL involves focused laser pulsed irradiation of a bulk metal target in a liquid and consist of four stages . Laser-matter interaction, plasma induction, cavitation bubble formation and particle release in solution. Strikingly, LAL leads to the formation of very stable “naked” NPs that are long standing …

Shopping For Food In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L.J. Mcelravy, Timothy Meyer, Vanessa Wielenga

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

Rural Nebraskans purchase their food from a variety of stores. Almost four in ten buy most of their food from a supercenter (like Wal-Mart or Costco). Just over three in ten typically shop at a supermarket and just under three in ten buy most of their food at a small grocery store. Differences in the type of store most utilized occur by community size. Persons living in or near larger communities are more likely than persons living in or near smaller communities to purchase the majority of their food from either a supermarket or supercenter.

Persons living in or …

Spectroscopic Contrast Of Diarylethene Molecules On Octanethiol Monolayer, Arramel Arramel, Tibor Kudernac, Nathalie Katsonis, Bernard Lucas Feringa, Bart Jan Van Wees

Makara Journal of Technology

We present a systematic scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) study of bias-dependent imaging of disulfur diarylethene (2S-DE) molecules on octanethiol (C8) monolayer at room temperature. In a rigid confinement of the C8 matrix, we did not observe any significant variation in the appearance of the 2S-DE. On the contrary, a reversal in the apparent height of the 2S-DE was present when the molecule was situated on a gold vacancy island. We attributed this finding to the presence of a new electronic state that became accessible for a tunneling event. In addition, the C8 surface structure underwent a reversible phase transformation from …

Endothelial Function Is Associated With White Matter Microstructure And Executive Function In Older Adults, Nathan F. Johnson, Brian T. Gold, Christopher A. Brown, Emily F. Anggelis, Alison L. Bailey, Jody L. Clasey, David K. Powell

Physical Therapy Faculty Publications

Age-related declines in endothelial function can lead to cognitive decline. However, little is known about the relationships between endothelial function and specific neurocognitive functions. This study explored the relationship between measures of endothelial function (reactive hyperemia index; RHI), white matter (WM) health (fractional anisotropy, FA, and WM hyperintensity volume, WMH), and executive function (Trail Making Test (TMT); Trail B - Trail A). Participants were 36 older adults between the ages of 59 and 69 (mean age = 63.89 years, SD = 2.94). WMH volume showed no relationship with RHI or executive function. However, there was a positive relationship between RHI …

Residual Stress Measurements On The Tig Weld Joint Of 57fe15cr25ni Austenitic Steel For Structural Material Applications By Means X-Ray Diffraction Techniques, Parikin Parikin, Agus Hadi Ismoyo, Riza Iskandar, Arbi Dimyati

Makara Journal of Technology

Measurements of residual stress on the 57Fe25Cr15Ni steel plate with no-filler TIG-welding process were carried out. This work was conducted to determine the nature of weld ability in synthesized steel. The bulks were formed in a dimension of 30x20x7 mm3 to ease data retrieval. Results show that the largest residual stress occurred in the weld metal area, amounting to 82.40 MPa with lattice stretching of 0.18%. Conversely, the values decreased to 65.92 MPa and a stretch of 0.14% in the HAZ area. This residual stress is a tensile stress that can reduce the mechanical strength of the material since it …

An Efficient Palladium-Thiourea Catalysed Heck Cross-Coupling Reaction For Molecular Electronic Interest, Wan M. Khairul, Mohd Shahrul Shahmi Md Shariff, Rafizah Rahamathullah, Adibah Izzati Daud, Mustaffa Shamsuddin, Siti Kamilah Che Soh

Makara Journal of Technology

The synthesis and utilization of C-C bonds formation are concerned about the key steps for the building of several conducting molecular electronics involving many asymmetric catalysts approached, which is an essential task that most researchers would ignore in preparing these materials to enhance the production yield of cross-coupling materials. Despite the enormous progress, there still remains a great demand for economic and practicable cross-coupling processes involving ultra-low catalyst loadings with high turnover numbers due to the employment of conventional metal catalyst. Thus, there has been an excessive interest to cultivate non-phosphine palladium catalysts for excellent achievement of activity, stability, and …

A Study On Dielectric Properties Of The Cellulose Derivative-Nh4br-Glycerol- Based The Solid Polymer Electrolyte System, Nur Muhitul Jalilah Rasali, Saifful Kamaluddin Muzakir, Ahmad Salihin Samsudin

Makara Journal of Technology

The characterization of biopolymer-based solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) has been carried out in this present work. Cellulose derivative was chosen due to its superior physical attributes. In this work, NH4Br-doped glycerol plasticized carboxyl methylcellulose-based SPEs were successfully prepared via the solution casting method. The conductivity and dielectric properties of the prepared films were investigated using the impedance analysis which presented ~1.91×10-3 Scm-1 (with addition of 6 wt% of glycerol). In addition, the studied SPE system shows a non-Debye behaviour without a single relaxation time. The findings of the research indicate that the complexes of NH4Br and glycerol in the cellulose …

Urban Drainage Management And Flood Control Improvement Using The Duflow Case Study: Aur Sub Catchment, Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Charlotte De Fraiture, Robiyanto Hendro Susanto, F.X. Suryadi, Harrini Mutiara Hapsari Wahyu

Makara Journal of Technology

Urban flooding often times staggers the livelihood in an urban area, which most likely happens in the lowland urban area. Therefore, the existing urban drainage system should be improved in order to tackle the upcoming urban flooding events, which are more than likely to be more devastating than those in the previous years. The research location is in Palembang, Sumatra, Indonesia, where 30% of its urban part is a lowland area. The selected Aur Sub Catchment is located in Silaberanti. The main objective of this research is to improve the current drainage system in order to achieve the optimal design …

Ethanol Purification Using Activated Natural Zeolite, Chandra Wahyu Purnomo, Nelliza Putri, Indra Perdana, Hirofumi Hinode

Makara Journal of Technology

Bio ethanol is one of the potential fuels in the future. However, ethanol in water mixture has an azeotropic concentration of 95.6 wt. %, which makes it difficult to purify further. The common method of purification is by using an azeotropic distillation column, which requires an intensive energy and an addition of specific solvent. In this study, ethanol purification is done using an adsorption column packed with zeolite Raschig rings. The natural zeolite ring was modified beforehand using the NaOH solution to enhance the material’s water adsorption performance. The ethanol purity can reach more than 99% with the modified zeolite …

Physical And Mechanical Properties Of Palm Kernel Oil-Based Polyester Polyurethane/Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotube Composites, Khairul Anuar Mat Amin, Muhammad Alif Zailani, Nurul Nabilah Zulkifli, Khairiah Haji Badri

Makara Journal of Technology

In this study, polyurethane (PU) films from palm kernel oil-based polyester (PKO-p) incorporated multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) are prepared via a evaporative casting method. Nanoparticle fluid dispersions containing 0.02%, 0.03%, and 0.05% wt. of MWNTs are added into PKO-p based resin and mixed by digital probe sonicator for 30 min followed by mixing with isocyanate to produce PU-MWNTs composite films. The mechanical properties, swelling, water vapour transmission rate (WVTR) and conductivity of the PU-MWNTs composite films are examined. Results show that the toughness (T) or flexibility, the tensile strength (TS), and Young’s modulus (YM) values of PU-MWNTs composite films increase …

Personality Trait Based Intervention For Workplace Accident Prevention, Yassierli Yassierli, Nurhayati Nurhayati, Marisa Anatasia, Shamsul Bahri

Makara Journal of Technology

Previous research has suggested that some traits may be useful as the predictors of risk behaviours behaviors. Therefore, personality traits seem to play a role in accident involvement. The purpose of this study is was to explore the relationship between the personality traits based on the Big Five Inventory (BFI) and worker accident experiences in order to elaborate personality traits based intervention for workplace accident prevention. A cross cross-sectional study was conducted among 173 workers in a cement company using a set of questionnaires consisting of respondents’ characteristics, BFI, and self-reported accident experience. The correlations were computed using Goodman Kruskal’s …

Breaking Into The Vault: Privacy, Security And Forensic Analysis Of Android Vault Applications, Xiaolu Zhang, Ibrahim Baggili, Frank Breitinger

Electrical & Computer Engineering and Computer Science Faculty Publications

In this work we share the first account for the forensic analysis, security and privacy of Android vault applications. Vaults are designed to be privacy enhancing as they allow users to hide personal data but may also be misused to hide incriminating files. Our work has already helped law enforcement in the state of Connecticut to reconstruct 66 incriminating images and 18 videos in a single criminal case. We present case studies and results from analyzing 18 Android vault applications (accounting for nearly 220 million downloads from the Google Play store) by reverse engineering them and examining the forensic artifacts …

Viscoelastic Analysis And Fatigue Characterization Of Bituminous Materials In Two Length Scales Under The Influence Of Aging, Santosh Reddy Kommidi

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Fatigue cracking in asphalt concrete (AC) is of immense importance to pavement design and analysis because it is one of the most important forms of distress that can lead to structural failure in pavement. Once started, these types of cracks can be combined with other environmental factors leading to detrimental effects such as faster rates of pavement deterioration and shortened pavement life and functionality.

Currently AASHTO TP101, also known as linear amplitude sweep (LAS) specification, is being widely used to evaluate the ability of an asphalt binder to resist fatigue. The LAS method, although mechanistic in its approach, has certain …