Engineering Commons^™

A Lean Six Sigma Approach For Improving Utilization Of Walk-In Tutors, Sandra Furterer, Kellie Schneider, Michael Key, Yusheng "Johnny” Zhang

International Conference on Lean Six Sigma

The purpose of this study is to improve the utilization of walk-in tutors at the University of Dayton.

Lean Six Sigma In Academic Institutions—Uk Vs. Rest Of The World, Stephen Anthony, Jiju Antony

International Conference on Lean Six Sigma

The main purpose of this paper is to illustrate examples of the current maturity of universities both in the UK and abroad when implementing a continuous improvement programme or change agenda using techniques such as Lean Six Sigma.

Designing For Standardizing On Six Sigma Education, Jing Lu, Chad Laux, Aswathy Suresh

International Conference on Lean Six Sigma

This study evaluated differing sources of the Lean Six Sigma body of knowledge with the purpose of standardizing on learning outcomes for a Black Belt graduate level course.

Computational Modeling Of Electrical And Phonon Properties Of Skutterudites And Two-Dimensional Transition Metal Dichalcogenides, Izaak Gene Williamson

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation documents the computational modeling of skutterudite and two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenide (2D TMD) materials for energy and electronic applications by analyzing the effects of materials doping and heterostructure formation on structural, energetic, electrical, phonon, and thermal properties. These topics remain largely unexplored and can accelerate materials development by providing insight on structure-properties-performance relationships.

Skutterudites are commonly studied for thermoelectric applications because they are low-cost, easy to process, and offer good intrinsic transport properties. They also exist as large, open structures which can be altered through filler atoms or substitutional dopants. A density functional theory (DFT)-based investigation of dopant …

Em Wave Interaction With A Bounded Plasma Column Supporting An Electron Beam, Asmelash Teshome Beshah

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In this thesis, the disruption of an incoming external transverse electromagnetic wave by an inhomogeneous plasma with energetic electron beam is examined. The plasma-beam characteristics are motivated by theory and experiment. Wave-plasma interactions and wave propagation and reflection in and from a plasma medium is studied. Physical sources such as the plate current density are considered. The inhomogeneity of the plasma slab supporting the energetic electron beam is partially built into the supported fields. The wave-plasma-beam interaction is examined over a wide parameter space. Absorption or reflection of electromagnetic waves can be achieved by changing the plasma number density, collision …

High Early-Age Strength Concrete For Rapid Repair, Matthew O. Maler

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The aim of this research was to identify High Early-Age Strength (HES) concrete batch designs, and evaluate their suitability for use in the rapid repair of highways and bridge decks. To this end, two criteria needed to be met; a minimum compressive strength of 20.68 MPa (3000 psi) in no later than 12 hours, and a drying shrinkage of less than 0.06 % at 28 days after curing. The evaluations included both air-entrained, and non-air-entrained concretes.

The cement types chosen for this study included Type III and Type V Portland cement and “Rapid Set” − a Calcium Sulfoaluminate (CSA) cement. …

Design, Fabrication And Testing Of A Capacitive Sensor Using Delta-Sigma Modulation, Charikleia Tsagkari

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Capacitive sensing is a popular technology employed in billions of products and millions of applications. This Thesis details the design, layout and characterization of an Integrated Circuit (IC) that employs Delta-Sigma Modulation (DSM) for sensing capacitance. The chip, measuring 1.5 mm x 1.5 mm, was designed in On Semiconductor’s C5 process and was manufactured by MOSIS.

The sensing circuit links linearly the ratio of a “test” to a “reference” capacitance to the output of a Delta-Sigma Modulator. The equations that describe the operation of the sensing circuit are derived. Besides the sensing circuit, there is a non-overlapping clock generator that …

In Vivo Multi-Parametric Imaging Of Metastatic And Non-Metastatic Breast Cancer, Raisa B. Rasul

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

A current issue in cancer therapy is the characterization of metastatic tumors, which can increase ease of treatment and patient trials. We present an in vivo study of metastatic (4T1) and non-metastatic (4T1-TWIST KO) breast tumor sister cell lines to understand their metabolic behavior, determine differences in two modes of imaging (reflection & transmission), and observe effect of breathing higher oxygen percentage on vascular hemoglobin oxygen saturation. After injection of 10,000 cells into mice dorsal window chambers, the glucose intake and hemoglobin oxygen saturation was measured using a fluorescent glucose analog (2-NBDG) and hyperspectral trans-illumination imaging from 520-620 nm at …

Metabolic Response To Stress Differentiates Heterogeneous Cancer Cells With Varying Metastatic Potential, Kinan Alhallak

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Intratumoral heterogeneity is ubiquitously present within primary tumors and contributes to intractable behaviors such as metastasis and mutability spatiotemporally. Mounting evidence has shown that heterogeneous cell populations can adversely affect cell metabolism and metastatic potential. The cell’s only fluorescent molecules within the electron transport chain, flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH), can allow the quantitation of cell metabolism. We demonstrate the use of the optical redox ratio (FAD/(NADH+FAD)) to determine the metabolic behaviors of a heterogeneous panel of cells with varying metastatic programs at normal conditions and following acute hypoxia. At normal conditions, we reveal an attenuation …

Role Of Trpv4 In Astrocyte Extracellular Matrix Production, Abby Terlouw

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is an alteration of brain pathology following damage of the central nervous system (CNS) by an external force. In the CNS, glial scar formation often occurs following TBI, and astrocytes are widely believed to contribute to this scar formation. While the role of astrocytes in extracellular matrix (ECM) production is known, the exact mechanism(s) for this event remain unclear. One possible method is the activation of transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4). TRPV4 is a channel protein found in the astrocyte membrane which has been shown to generate intracellular calcium ions following mechanical stimulation. Previous research …

Characterization Of Murine Breast Cancer Cell Lines For Anti-Cancer Vaccine, Haven N. Frazier

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women and the second leading cause of cancer death among women in the United States (1). While treatments involving radiation and chemotherapy currently exist, disease must be detected early in order for the treatments to be somewhat effective, and there is no effective treatment after metastasis occurs (2). Additionally, current therapies do not mitigate tumor immunosuppression. Decreasing the tumor-associated immunosuppressive conditions while activating antitumor immunity could prevent recurrence and metastasis, possibly leading to an effective treatment for cancer (3). Tumor cell vaccines could possibly address this issue and have become a …

Monitoring Heart Rate Variability In Relation To Sleep Quality, Yi-Tzu Wang

Theses and Dissertations

The development and analysis of heart rate variability for sleep quality monitoring have been concerned for many years in human being. Sleep is a physiological process that is essentially maintaining the function of human body. Heart rate variability have undergone much-needed development to assess the effects such as sleep disorder, insomnia, high blood pressure, stress and even diabetes. Accurately evaluating physiological signals that are practical to measure the sleep quality in individuals monitoring heart rate variability is an important activation of diverse biological systems during sleep. A noteworthy role of measuring the heart rate variability is played by the autonomic …

The Impact Of Different Propagation Environments On The Performance Of Wireless Sensor Networks, Abdallah Mubark Aldosary

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents a methodology for evaluating the performance of wireless sensor network (WSN) protocols in different propagation environments. To create this methodology, practical RF propagation models that include many of the substantial features of different propagation environments are utilized, and radio energy models for different propagation environments are developed. Accurate environment-specific radio frequency (RF) propagation models should be utilized in order to improve the overall process of decision-making during pre-deployment of WSNs, to facilitate the deployment of the WSN, and to enhance the battery efficiency of sensing nodes so that the network lifetime can be prolonged. The investigating of …

Application-Driven Traffic Sensor System Acceptance Tests For Intelligent Transportation Systems, Thiago Goncalves Pereira Mendonca

Theses and Dissertations

Transportation agencies strive to keep people and goods moving. Operation and maintenance of transportation infrastructure is key to accomplish their objectives. Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) applications rely on massive detection grids that collectively demand significant maintenance resources. Resource constraints force transportation agencies to look for innovative ways to optimize their operational and maintenance costs while serving their users at intended performance levels. This paper presents a Systems Engineering (SE) view to derive traffic detection sensor requirements for components and subsystems based on application-specific needs. The goal of the approach is to obtain stakeholders view of an acceptable performance based on …

An Extrinsic Fabry-Perot Interferometric Sensor Using Intermodal Phase Shifting And Demultiplexing Of The Propagating Modes In A Few-Mode Fiber, Julius Chatterjee

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation demonstrates a fiber-optic phase shifted Fabry-Perot interferometer (PS-FPI) as a sensor using modal demultiplexing. Single wavelength Fabry-Perot interferometers suffer from fringe ambiguity and loss of sensitivity at fringe extremes. These hindrances cause it to be a secondary choice when being selected for a measurement task at hand, and more often than not, white light based sensors are selected in favor of the single wavelength Fabry-Perot sensors. This work aims to introduce a technique involving the demultiplexing of the propagating linearly polarized (LP) modes in few mode fibers to obtain two fringe systems from the same sensing cavity. This …

Planar Electromagnetic Band Gap For Broadband Switching Noise Mitigation In High-Speed Pcb, Kevin H. Nguyen

Theses and Dissertations

Electromagnetic band gap (EBG) structure with novel meandered lines for mitigation of simultaneous switching noise (SSN) from multiple switch mode power supplies on a high speed digital circuit card assembly is investigated. The electromagnetic band gap structure is designed for a wideband operation from 200 MHz to 15 GHz. The application interest for this planar structure can be used as high impedance surfaces to suppress EMI noise for EMC compliance in Mil-Std-461, which is an electromagnetic compatibility standard for military equipment operating in the frequency range from 10 KHz to 18 GHz. ANSYS HFSS was used for simulation of these …

Cfd Analysis Of Resistance Characteristics Of High-Speed Displacement Hull Forms Fitted With Hull Vane®, Venkata Karthik Avala

Theses and Dissertations

Improving the performance and resistance of a high-speed monohull forms has been of interest to Naval Architects for several decades. A considerable amount of research has been carried out in this area by using stern flaps and other appendages. This research thesis investigates the resistance characteristics of high-speed round bilge hull forms fitted with a Hull Vane® in the stern region of the vessel. The Hull Vane® is a fixed foil located below the waterline at the aft of the stern of the vessel. The Hull Vane® reduces the generation of waves at the aft and improves the vessel's motions. …

Optimization Framework For Deployment Of Wireless Sensor Networks, Tajudeen Olawale Olasupo

Theses and Dissertations

In order to tackle the problem of network connectivity and sensing coverage in random placement of sensor nodes over an area of interest, this research presents an optimization and visualization framework for characterization and prediction of optimal deployments of large-scale wireless sensor networks (WSNs). This study presents efficient image processing algorithms for classification of deployment terrain in order to optimize deployment and connectivity coverage with required minimum number of nodes and transmission power. It reports formation of efficient models for WSN signal propagation under different terrain conditions. The study describes the developmental approach of the WSN optimization framework and visualization …

Effect Of Surface Modifying Biopolymers On Sand Cohesion, Connor H. Ligeikis

Honors Scholar Theses

Coastal erosion is a substantial problem in the United States and throughout the world. A novel approach to mitigating this problem is through the application of surface-modifying biopolymers to sand on beaches. Field research conducted by Dr. Amine Dahmani has shown that these organic complexes can coat granular sediments and increase sediment cohesion, thereby decreasing the erodability of the sediment. The goal of this thesis is to quantify the impact of proprietary surface-modifying biopolymer formulations on sand cohesion in order to better engineer this innovative solution for sand retention and potentially contaminated sediment sand cap stabilization. The impact of the …

Formation Of Nanostructured Epoxy Networks Containing Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxane (Poss) And Silica Nanoparticles, Amit K. Sharma

Dissertations

This dissertation is focused on structure-property-processing relationship studies based on well-defined polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) modified epoxy networks to present a comprehensive understanding of hybrid network behavior. In this research, a monoamine functional POSS molecule is incorporated into the epoxy monomer as pendant unit to mimic common epoxy structures and then crosslinked to form well-defined epoxy hybrid networks. The POSS cages behave as nanosized pendant unit in the epoxy matrices, while the mass fraction of POSS cages is varied and the effects on physical properties are examined with respect to changes in network architecture.

A novel continuous reactor method is …

Design And Synthesis Of Polymer Brush Surfaces With Complex Molecular Architectures And Morphologies, Wei Guo

Dissertations

The combination of surface-initiated polymerization (SIP) and postpolymerization modification (PPM) is a powerful technique for the fabrication of functional soft surfaces. Better understanding the influence of the aforementioned factors on the PPM effectiveness is valuable for fulfilling the potential of the PPM approach for the fabrication of functional soft surfaces. Specifically, by carefully balancing modification reactivity and limitation of mass transport, polymer brush with composition heterogeneity and gradient along the normal direction of the surface otherwise unattainable by methods of direct polymerization can be fabricated via the PPM approach which opens doors to new routes to polymer brush with complex …

Supervisory Controls Strategy To Reduce Utility Factor Weighted Criteria Emissions For A Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle, Thomas Francis Gorgia Iii

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Criteria emission reduction techniques are being more sought out in the automotive industry due to current government regulation for light duty vehicles. Parallel-series plug in hybrid electric vehicles can have multiple strategies to balance emissions and fuel consumption. Common controls strategies in industry target fuel economy by using a large electric vehicle range, known as charge depletion, followed by maintaining a state of charge after a specific vehicle threshold, or charge sustaining. A charge preserve strategy works by running an engine at an optimal loading condition, the engine will burn the fuel more complete reducing criteria emissions. Charge preserve will …

Discrete Element Analysis Of Scb Variability: Asphalt Mixtures, David Saul Renteria

Theses and Dissertations

The Semi-Circular Bending (SCB) test was modeled using the Discrete Element Method (DEM) implemented in numerical software Particle Flow Code (PFC). The fracture analysis of the SCB was studied using two mixtures gradation, Superpave and Coarse Matrix High Binder. The aggregate phase in the model was achieved by using two-dimensional aggregate images with different angularity indexes. The study of the variability of the SCB extends to the random generation of aggregate particles and air voids in the model, in addition to changing the properties at the interface between the aggregate and mastic phases. Results indicate the strong influence of the …

Bs News May/June

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

Multidisciplinary Shape Optimization Of A Composite Blended Wing Body Aircraft, Charles Maxwell Boozer

Theses and Dissertations

A multidisciplinary shape optimization tool coupling aerodynamics, structure, and performance was developed for battery powered aircraft. Utilizing high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics analysis tools and a structural wing weight tool, coupled based on the multidisciplinary feasible optimization architecture; aircraft geometry is modified in the optimization of the aircraft’s range or endurance. The developed tool is applied to three geometries: a hybrid blended wing body, delta wing UAS, the ONERA M6 wing, and a modified ONERA M6 wing. First, the optimization problem is presented with the objective function, constraints, and design vector. Next, the tool’s architecture and the analysis tools that are …

The Development Of A Vacuum Forming System For Kydex® And Other Thermoplastic Sheet, Andrew G. Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Vacuum forming is a popular, cost effective method amongst large and small scale applications. The method is used to mold a material to the surface of a mold/pattern in order to create a negative copy for reproduction or an object in positive form. The prototype vacuum forming system developed and documented herein is of a membrane-seal type that consists of three (3) principle parts: radial platen, Hinged Frame and Platen Support Assembly, and a PVC surge tank. Each part is described in detail through design, manufacturing, and testing processes. The design supports functional versatility, small scale molding, and uses readily …

In Situ Electron Microscopy Of Plasmon-Mediated Nanocrystal Synthesis, Peter Sutter, Ying Li, Christos Argyropoulos, Eli A. Sutter

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Chemical processes driven by nonthermal energy (e.g., visible light) are attractive for future approaches to energy conversion, synthesis, photocatalysis, and so forth. The growth of anisotropic metal nanostructures mediated by excitation of a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) is a prototype example of such a reaction. Important aspects, notably the growth mechanism and a possible role of plasmonic “hot spots” within the metal nanostructures, remain poorly understood. Here, we use in situ electron microscopy to stimulate and image the plasmon-mediated growth of triangular Ag nanoprisms in solution. The quantification of the time-dependent evolution of the lateral size and thickness of …

Using An Altimeter-Derived Internal Tide Model To Remove Tides From In Situ Data, Edward D. Zaron, Richard D. Ray

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Internal waves at tidal frequencies, i.e., the internal tides, are a prominent source of variability in the ocean associated with significant vertical isopycnal displacements and currents. Because the isopycnal displacements are caused by ageostrophic dynamics, they contribute uncertainty to geostrophic transport inferred from vertical profiles in the ocean. Here it is demonstrated that a newly developed model of the main semidiurnal (M2) internal tide derived from satellite altimetry may be used to partially remove the tide from vertical profile data, as measured by the reduction of steric height variance inferred from the profiles. It is further demonstrated that the internal …

Contactless Charging Adapter, Kevin Nguyen, Emmett Stetz, Joseph Pacheco

Electrical Engineering

Currently, most cell phones utilize wired adapters to charge, which cause a minor hassle when one frequently needs to unplug and replug their device whenever they pick it up to use while it is charging. The charging adapter is a pad that phones can be placed on to wirelessly charge the device. The charging adapter consists of two components: the wireless charging platform to supply and transmit the power, and the wireless charging receiver for phones that do not already have an internal receiver included, specifically targeting newer generation iPhones that utilize a lightning port (i.e. iPhone 5, 6, 6s, …

2017 Spring Graduate Recognition Program, Propulsion Research Center, Robert Frederick

PRC Graduate Recognition

This program includes the graduate recognition program for spring 2017. Includes photographs, upcoming events, recent publications, and student profiles.