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2019 (Fall) Ensi Informer Magazine, Morehead State University. Engineering Sciences Department

ENSI Informer Magazine Archive

The ENSI Informer Magazine published in the fall of 2019.

Factors Affecting Cardiovascular Physiology In Cardiothoracic Surgery: Implications For Lumped-Parameter Modeling, Joshua Kaufmann, Ethan Kung

Publications

Cardiothoracic surgeries are complex procedures during which the patient cardiovascular physiology is constantly changing due to various factors. Physiological changes begin with the induction of anesthesia, whose effects remain active into the postoperative period. Depending on the surgery, patients may require the use of cardiopulmonary bypass and cardioplegia, both of which affect postoperative physiology such as cardiac index and vascular resistance. Complications may arise due to adverse reactions to the surgery, causing hemodynamic instability. In response, fluid resuscitation and/or vasoactive agents with varying effects may be used in the intraoperative or postoperative periods to improve patient hemodynamics. These factors have …

Design And Modeling Of A New Biomimetic Soft Robotic Jellyfish Using Ipmc-Based Electroactive Polymers, Zakai J. Olsen, Kwang J. Kim

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Research

Smart materials and soft robotics have been seen to be particularly well-suited for developing biomimetic devices and are active fields of research. In this study, the design and modeling of a new biomimetic soft robot is described. Initial work was made in the modeling of a biomimetic robot based on the locomotion and kinematics of jellyfish. Modifications were made to the governing equations for jellyfish locomotion that accounted for geometric differences between biology and the robotic design. In particular, the capability of the model to account for the mass and geometry of the robot design has been added for better …

Double-Sided Corrugated Composite Tube And Axle Protective Mechanism For Railway Vehicles, Hozhabr Mozafari

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Structural elements in transportation vehicles are exposed to different types of dynamic loadings and impact scenarios. Protecting passengers against injury and providing mechanisms to avoid impact induced damages to the critical components are the two hot topics in crashworthiness engineering. The presented research work includes two parts. The first part is about designing a novel double-sided composite corrugated tube that can be implemented in front chassis rail of ground vehicles to improve their crashworthiness against collision and car accidents. To maximize the controllable energy absorption of corrugation troughs as observed in the single sided corrugated (SSC) tube, we proposed and …

Modeling Of Buildings With Electrochromic Windows And Thermochromic Roofs, Hua-Ting Kao

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Air conditioning and heating have increased substantially during the past two decades. According to a survey, buildings consume about 73% of the total electricity in the United States, accounting for 41% of all other energy in the world. At the same time, building skin technologies are constantly improving. Electrochromic and thermochromic are two exciting new technologies that can help reduce the energy consumption of a building. The purpose of this work is to increase our understanding of how much the use of electrochromic (EC) and thermochromic (TC) technologies can reduce the energy consumption of residential and commercial buildings in two …

Comprehensive Second-Order Adjoint Sensitivity Analysis Methodology (2nd-Asam) Applied To A Subcritical Experimental Reactor Physics Benchmark: Ii. Effects Of Imprecisely Known Microscopic Scattering Cross Sections, Daniel Gabriel Cacuci, Ruixian Fang

Faculty Publications

This work continues the presentation commenced in Part I of the second-order sensitivity analysis of nuclear data of a polyethylene-reflected plutonium (PERP) benchmark using the Second-Order Adjoint Sensitivity Analysis Methodology (2nd-ASAM). This work reports the results of the computations of the first- and second-order sensitivities of this benchmark's computed leakage response with respect to the benchmark's 21,600 parameters underlying the computed group-averaged isotopic scattering cross sections. The numerical results obtained for the 21,600 first-order relative sensitivities indicate that the majority of these were small, the largest having relative values of O (10(-2)). Furthermore, the vast majority of the (21600)(2) second-order …

The Business Case For Industrial Safety: Revealing The Comprehensive Value Of Ergonomic Investments For Manufacturing Enterprises In Industry 4.0, Shane Stan

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

How can today’s manufacturing enterprises construct, implement, and optimize modern safety initiatives in a manner that will present maximum return on investment and facilitate enterprise growth? Furthermore, how can these manufacturers assure individual ergonomic investments become part of a larger strategy to facilitate organizational change in safety? This work addresses these questions by placing industrial ergonomics in a business improvement context which comprehensively presents the financial returns and growth opportunities poised by modern safety initiatives. Additionally, to further strengthen the business case for industrial safety, an ergonomic action planning framework is established to guide the creation of holistic safety programs …

Vibration Evaluation Of The Driver’S Seat Of Mf 285 Tractor In Conducting The Tillage Operations, Gholamhossein Shahgholi, Sedagat Fazeli, Saleh Harami Mousavi

Emirates Journal for Engineering Research

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the tractor speed on the tractors’ seat vibration and to assess the level of comfort of the driver during the agricultural operation using moldboard and disc plows. Experiments were conducted on sandy loamy soil in a factorial experiment based on randomized complete block design with three replications. The effect of the type of tillage implement using the moldboard and disc plows, the velocity of advance in four levels of 4.5, 6 and 8.8 km/h and vibration was measured and evaluated at three directions of longitudinal (x), lateral (y) and …

First Principles Investigation Of Anomalous Pressure-Dependent Thermal Conductivity Of Chalcopyrites, Loay Flalfy, Denis Music, Ming Hu

Faculty Publications

The effect of compression on the thermal conductivity of CuGaS2, CuInS2, CuInTe2, and AgInTe2 chalcopyrites (space group I-42d) was studied at 300 K using phonon Boltzmann transport equation (BTE) calculations. The thermal conductivity was evaluated by solving the BTE with harmonic and third-order interatomic force constants. The thermal conductivity of CuGaS2 increases with pressure, which is a common behavior. Striking differences occur for the other three compounds. CuInTe2 and AgInTe2 exhibit a drop in the thermal conductivity upon increasing pressure, which is anomalous. AgInTe2 reaches a very low thermal conductivity of 0.2 W·m−1 ·K −1 at 2.6 GPa, being beneficial …

Enviromentally Conscious Industrial Renewable Energy Storage Design, Kouroush Jenab, Travis C. Porter

Posters-at-the-Capitol

The storage of energy on an industrial scale is the biggest obstacle we face regarding renewable energy sources; which, until the past decade has been at a miniscule scale. Since 2012, the capability and emphasis on finding solutions to this problem have grown exponentially, fueled by a spike in technology advancements. This has led to a growth of over fifteen hundred percent in scalable renewable energy storage, globally. Finding an easily scalable solution to industrial scale renewable energy storage is an important issue that needs to be addressed to mitigate the effect on our environment. This would be a massive …

Device For Imaging Cross-Section Of Post-Tensioned Structural Tendons In The Field, David Dukeman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With increasing use of grouted post-tensioned tendons in structures, there is a critical need for equipment to determine deficient grouting. Inadequate grouting can cause dangerous corrosion of the high-strength post-tensioning steel in the tendons. Evaluation should be non-destructive, and early detection is needed to take timely remedial actions to repair or replace any tendons that are affected before catastrophic failure occurs. In particular, there is need for an imaging method that shows the cross-section of the tendon being tested and flag any deficiencies present relative to the location of the strands in the cross section. The method should be rapid, …

Mechanical Engineering News, Georgia Southern University

Mechanical Engineering: News & Publications (2013-2023)

• Undergraduate Awarded for Combustion Research at Conference

Extending The Bandwidth Of Intensity-Based Sound Power Estimates, Michael C. Mortenson

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Sound power is often measured using the intensity-based engineering standard ANSI S12.12-1992:R2017. Traditional methods for intensity-based sound power estimation are limited in bandwidth at low frequencies by phase mismatch between microphones and at high frequencies by microphone spacing—with errors occurring well below the spatial Nyquist frequency. The Phase and Amplitude Gradient Estimation (PAGE) method has been used to extend the bandwidth of intensity calculations [1]. This thesis examines the efficacy of the PAGE method in overcoming bandwidth limitations in estimating sound power. Specifically, the sound fields from three sources—a blender, vacuum cleaner, and reference sound source—were measured according to ANSI …

Distributed Spatiotemporal Control And Dynamic Information Fusion For Multiagent Systems, Dzung Minh Duc Tran

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The first objective of this dissertation is to develop novel distributed control architectures allowing spatiotemporal control of multiagent systems as applied to formation control. In addition, its second objective is to introduce distributed estimation frameworks for dynamic information fusion for addressing the heterogeneity in sensor networks.

Changing the spatial and temporal properties of agent teams in a distributed manner and in real-time is an open problem in the control system literature as multiagent systems are often required to complete tasks with ever-increasing complexity in adverse conditions and dynamic environments. Motivated by this standpoint, this dissertation aims to address challenges related …

Experimental Results Of A Model Reference Adaptive Control Approach On An Interconnected Uncertain Dynamical System, Kemberly Cespedes

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this thesis is to show the experimental validation of recently proposed adaptive control architecture for uncertain dynamical systems. The experimental validation is conducted on a benchmark mechanical system setup composed of two carts, one actuated and one unactuated, physically interconnected through a spring.

Specifically, an approach has been recently proposed to stabilize an overall interconnected system in the presence of unknown physical interconnections as well as system uncertainties in the context of model reference adaptive control. This uncertain dynamical system consists of actuated and unactuated portions physically interconnected to each other. In addition, the previous work enforces …

Deficiencies In The Physics Of Existing Operational Wave And Surge Models, D. T. Resio

Ocean Waves Workshop

No abstract provided.

A New Real-Time Ocean Observing Station On Ship Shoal On Louisiana Shelf, Chunyan Li, Peter Luo, Brian Milan, Wei Huang

Ocean Waves Workshop

One of the major challenges that we are facing in the northern Gulf of Mexico coastal area is the need of a better and reliable offshore met-ocean real time data collection system that supports the mission of Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and other federal and local agencies for coastal management, protection, and restoration, especially along the Louisiana coast. This area has a suite of environmental problems that require the acquisition of real time data for immediate assessment or model-based assessment and predictions that rely on this kind of data. One such system providing this kind of data is …

Update In Us Navy Global Wave Model Forecasting, J. D. Dykes, W. E. Rogers, D. Wang

Ocean Waves Workshop

No abstract provided.

Ocean Waves Workshop 2019 Session 2 Notes, Kaus Raghukumar, Sam Mcwilliams

Ocean Waves Workshop

No abstract provided.

Directional Spectrum Measurements By The Spotter: A New Developed Wave Buoy, Kaus Raghukumar, Grace Chang, Frank Spada, Tim Jannsen

Ocean Waves Workshop

The Spotter is an accurate, low-cost, easily deployable and robust solar powered wave buoy recently developed by Sofar Technologies (formerly Spoondrift). Spotter reduces costs and complexity of surface wave and current measurements, which can be useful for academic, military, and commercial research into surface wave and wave-driven dynamics. We performed a series of validation tests and research experiments with the Spoondrift Spotter. The low-cost and compact Spotter makes it easy to deploy arrays of wave buoys which was previously not feasible (or cost prohibitive) with traditional wave buoys. A well-designed array can provide a direct measurement of the directional wave …

Innovations In Metocean Sensors, Pieter Smit, T. T. Janssen

Ocean Waves Workshop

Real-time observations are critical to understand, predict and estimate the impact of extreme weather events such as extratropical hurricanes and storms. Remote sensing, moored wave buoys and advances in predictive models have greatly advanced understanding and predictive capability of extreme ocean weather. However, due to cost and complexity of traditional moored buoys, in-situ networks are typically sparse and often close to shore and not well suited to drive predictive models over meaningful geophysical scales. Here we will discuss ongoing efforts to extend the capability of the Sofar Spotter to measure marine boundary layer dynamics. With the advancement to more portable …

Ndbc Ocean Wave Observation System Update, Rodney Riley, Randy Stewart, Steven Dinapoli

Ocean Waves Workshop

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) is modifying its ocean wave observation system due to parts obsolescence. The modified system is named Ocean Wave Linux (OWL). OWL will replace the NDBC’s older and now obsolete Digital Directional Wave Module (DDWM). Once OWL completes operational verification, the DDWM will be phased out of the NDBC’s operational weather buoy network.

Beyond The Toolpath: Site-Specific Melt Pool Size Control Enables Printing Of Extra-Toolpath Geometry In Laserwire-Based Directed Energy Deposition, Brian T. Gibson, Bradley S. Richardson, Tayler W. Undermann, Lonnie J. Love

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

A variety of techniques have been utilized in metal additive manufacturing (AM) for melt pool size management, including modeling and feed-forward approaches. In a few cases, closed-loop control has been demonstrated. In this research, closed-loop melt pool size control for large-scale, laser wire-based directed energy deposition is demonstrated with a novel modification, i.e., site-specific changes to the controller setpoint were commanded at trigger points, the locations of which were generated by the projection of a secondary geometry onto the primary three-dimensional (3D) printed component geometry. The present work shows that, through this technique, it is possible to print a specific …

Transport Phenomena In The Knudsen Layer Near An Evaporating Surface, Eric Bird, Zhi Liang

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Using the Combination of the Kinetic Theory of Gases (KTG), Boltzmann Transport Equation (BTE), and Molecular Dynamics (MD) Simulations, We Study the Transport Phenomena in the Knudsen Layer Near a Planar Evaporating Surface. the MD Simulation is First Used to Validate the Assumption Regarding the Anisotropic Velocity Distribution of Vapor Molecules in the Knudsen Layer. based on This Assumption, We Use the KTG to Formulate the Temperature and Density of Vapor at the Evaporating Surface as a Function of the Evaporation Rate and the Mass Accommodation Coefficient (MAC), and We Use These Vapor Properties as the Boundary Conditions to Find …

Droop Control In Dq Coordinates For Fixed Frequency Inverter-Based Ac Microgrids, Mohamed Toub, Mehrzad Mohammadi Bijaieh, Wayne Weaver, Rush D. Robinett Iii, Mohamed Maaroufi, Ghassane Aniba

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

This paper presents a proof-of-concept for a novel dq droop control technique that applies DC droop control methods to fixed frequency inverter-based AC microgrids using the dq0 transformation. Microgrids are usually composed of distributed generation units (DGUs) that are electronically coupled to each other through power converters. An inherent property of inverter-based microgrids is that, unlike microgrids with spinning machines, the frequency of the parallel-connected DGUs is a global variable independent from the output power since the inverters can control the output waveform frequency with a high level of precision. Therefore, conventional droop control methods that distort the system frequency …

Pressure Effect On An Ocean-Based Humidification-Dehumidification Desalination Process, Yingchen Yang

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

A new humidification-dehumidification (HDH) desalination process is proposed and analyzed. Being ocean based, the process does not produce any brine. It is largely powered jointly by solar energy, wind energy, and various types of ocean energies in a nearly natural way. A vacuum pump is employed to drive the air circulation throughout the HDH process. It is the only unit that consumes electricity. The HDH process is analyzed under various conditions, including using a low pressure (as low as to 0.2 atm) for humidification and the ambient pressure for dehumidification, running the entire HDH process around a low pressure (as …

Performance Evaluation Of Ce3+ Doped Flexible Pvdf Fibers For Efficient Optical Pressure Sensors, Carlos Hernandez, Santosh K. Gupta, Jose P. Zuniga, Jorge Vidal, Rene Galvan, Misael E. Martinez, Hector Guzman, Lilian N. Chavez, Yuanbing Mao, Karen Lozano

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Highlights

• Centrifugally spun cerium doped nonwoven fibrous mat are explored as a non-contact optical pressure sensor.

• The developed sensor depicted wide linear dynamic range and good pressure sensitivity.

• The sensor properties are based on the spectral shift, broadening and intensity enhancement.

• β-phase in doped fibers increases when compared to undoped PVDF.

• Cerium nitrate doped fiber exhibits a high-pressure sensitivity (dλ/dP ≈ 0.28 nm/GPa) with no luminescence quenching.

Abstract

This work proposes a highly novel centrifugally spun lanthanide doped nonwoven fibrous mat as a non-contact optical pressure sensor with a wide linear dynamic range and good pressure sensitivity. The sensor …

Forcespun Polydiacetylene Nanofibers As Colorimetric Sensor For Food Spoilage Detection, Marisol Valdez, Santosh K. Gupta, Karen Lozano, Yuanbing Mao

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Highlights

• PDA nanofiber mats are fabricated by Forcespinning® technique.

• The PDA nanofibers can monitor and assess meat deterioration and freshness.

• The PDA nanofibers possess fast response, excellent sensitivity and long shelf life.

• PDA nanofibers made from ECDA monomer have superior performance.

Abstract

Due to health and economic concerns, increasing attention has been attracted to the safety and quality control of food, particularly meat and seafood. Ammonia and biogenic amines (BAs), such as trimethylamine, putrescine and cadaverine, are released during the decomposition of meat protein. Therefore, the sensitive detection of the released BAs is crucial to the assessment of the safety …

Open Source Waste Plastic Granulator, Arvind Ravindran, Sean Scsavnicki, Walker Nelson, Peter Gorecki, Jacob Franz, Shane Oberloier, Theresa K. Meyer, Andrew Barnard, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

In order to accelerate deployment of distributed recycling by providing low-cost feed stocks of granulated post-consumer waste plastic, this study analyzes an open source waste plastic granulator system. It is designed, built, and tested for its ability to convert post-consumer waste, 3D printed products and waste into polymer feedstock for recyclebots of fused particle/granule printers. The technical specifications of the device are quantified in terms of power consumption (380 to 404 W for PET and PLA, respectively) and particle size distribution. The open source device can be fabricated for less than $2000 USD in materials. The experimentally measured power use …

Assessment Of Various Parametric Effects On The Performance Of A Commercial Grade Photovoltaic Solar Panel, Susanta K. Das, David Frank

Mechanical Engineering Publications

This paper presents the implementation of an integrated photovoltaic solar panel model which includes all the necessary parameters in order to simulate and analyze using Matlab/Simulink software. The integrated photovoltaic model is validated with Matlab/Simulink simulation for a commercially available 100W photovoltaic solar panel module. Using the commercial solar panel specifications, such as solar irradiation, panel temperature, etc. the integrated model solved with Matlab/Simulink returns an I-V and PV performance characteristics under various conditions which enabled detailed analysis, assessment of parametric effect on the performance of the solar panel. According to the model simulation results for a commercial RNG-100D solar …