Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Improving Biomass Logistics Cost Within Agronomic Sustainability Constratints And Biomass Quality Targets, Kevin L. Kenney, J. Richard Hess, William A. Smith, David J. Muth Jr.

David J. Muth

Equipment manufacturers have made rapid improvements in biomass harvesting and handling equipment. These improvements have increased transportation and handling efficiencies due to higher biomass densities and reduced losses. Improvements in grinder efficiencies and capacity have reduced biomass grinding costs. Biomass collection efficiencies (the ratio of biomass collected to the amount available in the field) as high as 75% for crop residues and greater than 90% for perennial energy crops have also been demonstrated. However, as collection rates increase, the fraction of entrained soil in the biomass increases, and high biomass residue removal rates can violate agronomic sustainability limits. Advancements in …

Economics Of Residue Harvest: Regional Partnership Evaluation, David W. Archer, David J. Muth Jr., Jacob J. Jacobson, Douglas L. Karlen

David J. Muth

Economic analyses on the viability of corn (Zea mays, L.) stover harvest for bioenergy production have largely been based on simulation modeling. While some studies have utilized field research data, most field-based analyses have included a limited number of sites and a narrow geographic distribution. An Iowa case study is developed illustrating the use of data extracted from a database of geographically distributed field studies for a region-specific economic analysis. The analysis utilizes grain and residue yield and associated management information from two Iowa field research sites that are Sun Grant Regional Partnership locations associated with the Corn Stover Regional …

Economics Of Residue Harvest: Regional Partnership Evaluation, David W. Archer, David J. Muth Jr., Jacob J. Jacobson, Douglas L. Karlen

Douglas L Karlen

Photolithographic Surface Micromachining Of Polydimethylsiloxane (Pdms), Weiqiang Chen, Raymond H. W. Lam, Jianping Fu

Weiqiang Chen

A major technical hurdle in microfluidics is the difficulty in achieving high fidelity lithographic patterning on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). Here, we report a simple yet highly precise and repeatable PDMS surface micromachining method using direct photolithography followed by reactive ion etching (RIE). Our method to achieve surface patterning of PDMS applied an O2 plasma treatment to PDMS to activate its surface to overcome the challenge of poor photoresist adhesion on PDMS for photolithography. Our photolithographic PDMS surface micromachining technique is compatible with conventional soft lithography techniques and other silicon-based surface and bulk micromachining methods. To illustrate the general application of our …

Overview Of Corn-Based Fuel Ethanol Coproducts: Production And Use, Kurt A. Rosentrater

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Modern societies face many challenges, including growing populations, increased demands for food, clothing, housing, consumer goods, and the raw materials required to produce all of these. Additionally, there is a growing need for energy, which is most easily met by use of fossil fuels (e.g., coal, natural gas, petroleum). For example, in 2008, the overall U.S. demand for energy was 99.3 x 1015 Btu (1.05 x 1014 MJ); 84% of this was supplied by fossil sources. Transportation fuels accounted for 28% of all energy consumed during this time, and nearly 97% of this came from fossil sources. Domestic production of …

Developing Criteria For Evaluating The Sustainability Of Emerging Energy, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Elif Kongar

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Over the last decade, the interest in and production of biofuels has grown rapidly. Renewable transportation fuels can be produced from a variety of substrates, using various processing strategies. Feedstock preference and factory scale are geographic dependent. However, it is important to understand the implications of deploying these types of systems on a large scale, both throughout the U.S. as well as globally. To assess the sustainability of various biofuel options, it is crucial to evaluate their performance according to a number of attributes. This has been done using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Even so, comparisons among biofuel options are …

Optimal Control Of Switched Autonomous Systems In Microbial Fed-Batch Cultures, Chongyang Liu, Enmin Feng

Chongyang Liu

A switched autonomous system is proposed to formulate the fed-batch culture process by taking the switching instants between the feed and batch processes as control variables. To maximize the concentration of 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PD) at the terminal time, an optimal control model subject to our proposed switched autonomous system and continuous state inequality constraints is then presented.Acomputational approach is developed to find the optimal switching instants in two aspects. On the one hand, the constraint transcription and smoothing techniques are applied to dealing with the continuous state inequality constraints; on the other hand, the first and the second derivatives of the …

Table Of Contents, David D. Nolte

David D Nolte

Balancing Limiting Factors & Economic Drivers For Sustainable Midwestern Us Agricultural Residue Feedstock Supplies, Wally W. Wilhelm, J. Richard Hess, Douglas L. Karlen, Jane M. F. Johnson, David J. Muth Jr., John M. Baker, Hero T. Gollany, Jeff M. Novak, Diane E. Scott, Gary E. Varvel

David J. Muth

Advanced biofuels will be developed using cellulosic feedstock rather than grain or oilseed crops that can also be used for food and feed. To be sustainable, these new agronomic production systems must be economically viable without degrading the soil and other natural resources. This review examines six agronomic factors that collectively define many of the limits and opportunities for harvesting crop residue for biofuel feedstock in the midwestern United States. The limiting factors include soil organic carbon, wind and water erosion, plant nutrient balance, soil water and temperature dynamics, soil compaction, and off-site environmental impacts. These are discussed in relationship …

Balancing Limiting Factors & Economic Drivers For Sustainable Midwestern Us Agricultural Residue Feedstock Supplies, Wally W. Wilhelm, J. Richard Hess, Douglas L. Karlen, Jane M. F. Johnson, David J. Muth Jr., John M. Baker, Hero T. Gollany, Jeff M. Novak, Diane E. Scott, Gary E. Varvel

Douglas L Karlen

Advanced biofuels will be developed using cellulosic feedstock rather than grain or oilseed crops that can also be used for food and feed. To be sustainable, these new agronomic production systems must be economically viable without degrading the soil and other natural resources. This review examines six agronomic factors that collectively define many of the limits and opportunities for harvesting crop residue for biofuel feedstock in the midwestern United States. The limiting factors include soil organic carbon, wind and water erosion, plant nutrient balance, soil water and temperature dynamics, soil compaction, and off-site environmental impacts. These are discussed in relationship …

Optimal Control Of A Switched System In Microbial Fed-Batch Fermentation Process, Chongyang Liu, Zhaohua Gong, Enmin Feng

Chongyang Liu

The main control goal in fed-batch fermentation process is to get a high concentration of production. In this paper, by taking the feed rate of glycerol as the control function, a nonlinear switched system is proposed to formulate the fed-batch fermentation process of glycerol to 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PD). To maximize the concentration of 1,3-PD at the terminal time, an optimal switching control model subject to constraints of continuous state inequality and control function is presented. A computational approach is developed to seek the optimal solution in two aspects. On the one hand, the control parametrization enhancing transform together with the control …

An Entrepreneurial Approach To Librarianship, Flora G. Shrode, Jennifer R. Duncan, Wendy Holliday

Flora Shrode

Librarians from Utah State University explain recent efforts to encourage subject librarians to take a more holistic view of their roles. We are shifting from a traditional emphasis primarily on collection development and refocusing on natural connections between collections, instruction, liaison, and reference service. The poster provides background about Utah State University’s situation and explains our approach to analyzing local needs and culture to inform development of a new organizational structure. We describe our vision of subject librarianship, the process by which we assessed librarians’ ideas and goals for performing as subject librarians, and the actions we are taking to …

Modeling And Optimal Control Of A Nonlinear Dynamical System In Microbial Fed-Batch Fermentation Process, Chongyang Liu, Zhaohua Gong, Enmin Feng

Chongyang Liu

The mathematical model and optimal control of microbial fed-batch fermentation is considered in this paper. Since it is decisive for increasing the productivity of 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PD) to optimize the feeding rate of glycerol and the switching instants between the batch and feeding processes in the fermentation process, we propose a new nonlinear dynamical system to formulate the process. In the system, the switching instants are variable and the feeding rate of glycerol is regarded as the control function. Some important properties of the proposed system and its solution are then discussed. To maximize the concentration of 1,3-PD at the terminal …

Modeling In Microbial Batch Culture And Its Parameter Identification, Zhaohua Gong, Chongyang Liu, Enmin Feng

Chongyang Liu

In this paper, the nonlinear dynamical system of batch fermentation is investigated in the bioconversion of glycerol to 1,3-propanediol(1,3-PD) by Klebsiella pneumoniae. Taking account of the kinetic behavior and experimental results in the batch cultures, we propose a two-stage dynamical system to formulate the fermentation process. Then some properties of the proposed system are proved. In view of the big errors between observations and numerical simulation results, we subsequently establish a parameter identification model to identify parameters in the system. The identifiability of the model is also discussed. Finally, in order to find the optimal parameters of the identification model, …

Computational Method For Inferring Objective Function Of Glycerol Metabolism In Klebsiella Pneumoniae, Zhaohua Gong, Chongyang Liu, Enmin Feng, Qingrui Zhang

Chongyang Liu

Flux balance analysis (FBA) is an effective tool in the analysis of metabolic network. It can predict the flux distribution of engineered cells, whereas the accurate prediction depends on the reasonable objective function. In this work, we propose two nonlinear bilevel programming models on anaerobic glycerol metabolism in Klebsiella pneumoniae (K. pneumoniae) for 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PD) production. One intends to infer the metabolic objective function, and the other is to analyze the robustness of the objective function. In view of the models’ characteristic an improved genetic algorithm is constructed to solve them, where some techniques are adopted to guarantee all chromosomes …

Modelling And Optimal Control For Nonlinear Multistage Dynamical System Of Microbial Fed-Batch Culture, Chongyang Liu, Zhaohua Gong, Enmin Feng, Hongchao Yin

Chongyang Liu

In this paper, we propose a new controlled multistage system to formulate the fed-batch culture process of glycerol bio-dissimilation to 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PD) by regarding the feeding rate of glycerol as a control function. Compared with the previous systems, this system doesn’t take the feeding process as an impulsive form, but a time-continuous process, which is much closer to the actual culture process. Some properties of the above dynamical system are then proved. To maximize the concentration of 1,3-PD at the terminal time, we develop an optimal control model subject to our proposed controlled multistage system and continuous state inequality constraints. …

Optimal Control And Properties Of Nonlinear Multistage Dynamical System For Planning Horizontal Well Paths, Zhaohua Gong, Chongyang Liu, Enmin Feng

Chongyang Liu

The goal of planning a horizontal well path is to obtain a trajectory that arrives at a given target subject to various constraints. In this paper, the optimal control problem subject to a nonlinear multistage dynamical system (NMDS) for horizontal well paths is investigated. Some properties of the multistage system are proved. In order to derive the optimality conditions, we transform the optimal control problem into one with control constraints and inequality-constrained trajectories by defining some functions. The properties of these functions are then discussed and optimality conditions for optimal control problem are also given. Finally, an improved simplex method …

Optimal Control For Nonlinear Dynamical System Of Microbial Fed-Batch Culture, Chongyang Liu

Chongyang Liu

In fed-batch culture of glycerol bio-dissimilation to 1, 3-propanediol (1, 3-PD), the aim of adding glycerol is to obtain as much 1, 3-PD as possible. So a proper feeding rate is required during the process. Taking the concentration of 1, 3-PD at the terminal time as the performance index and the feeding rate of glycerol as the control function, we propose an optimal control model subject to a nonlinear dynamical system and constraints of continuous state and non-stationary control. A computational approach is constructed to seek the solution of the above model in two aspects. On the one hand we …

A Quantitative Taqman Mgb Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction Based Assay For Detection Of The Causative Agent Of Crayfish Plague Aphanomyces Astaci, Torstein Tengs

Dr. Torstein Tengs

Here we present the development and first validation of a TaqMan minor groove binder (MGB) real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method for quantitative and highly specific detection of Aphanomyces astaci, the causative agent of crayfish plague. The assay specificity was experimentally assessed by testing against DNA representative of closely related oomycetes, and theoretically assessed by additional sequence similarity analyses comparing the primers and probe sequences to available sequences in EMBL/GenBank. The target of the assay is a 59 bp unique sequence motif of A. astaci found in the internal transcribed spacer 1 of the nuclear ribosomal gene cluster. A standard …

Quantifying Total And Sustainable Agricultural Biomass Resources In South Dakota—A Preliminary Assessment, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Dennis Todey, Russell Persyn

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Conversion of biomass is considered the next major advance in biorenewable fuels, energy, and products. Wholesale conversion to biomass utilization could result in removal of current crop residues from agricultural fields (on prime agricultural lands) or even implementation of different crops and cropping strategies (i.e., switchgrass on marginal lands). To date, the driver for biomass processing has been economics and limitations on the conversion of the lignocellulose. Over the last forty years significant investments and resultant changes in management practices in the agricultural sector have focused on soil and water conservation. One of the major efforts has focused on conservation-till …

Properties Of Solvent Extracted Low-Oil Corn Distillers Dried Grains With Solubles, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Jennifer A. Saunders

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Corn-based ethanol is exponentially growing in the US, as is the need for valuable uses for coproducts of the production process, such as distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS). Currently, DDGS is used as livestock feed, thereby replacing some corn components in animal diets. As the industry continues to grow, there will be an increased need to find additional uses for DDGS. Physical and chemical properties of coproduct streams are becoming increasingly investigated, as these characteristics affect many aspects of utilization, such as target species, optimal dietary substitution rates, transportation, flowability, and behavior during storage. Potential avenues for future use …

Design Properties For Molded, Corn-Based Ddgs-Filled Phenolic Resin, R. A. Tatara, Kurt A. Rosentrater, S. Suraparaju

Kurt A. Rosentrater

With the rapid growth in the ethanol fuel industry in recent years, considerable research is being devoted to maximizing the use of processing coproducts, such as distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS), typically for livestock diets. Because these residues contain high fiber levels, they may be amendable to incorporation into polymers as well, which is an option that could garner greater economic returns. Thus, the goal of this study was to demonstrate the viability of using corn-based DDGS as a biofiller with phenolic resin, in order to produce a novel biomaterial. DDGS was blended with phenolic resin at four levels …

Review Of Biocd Physics And Technology, David D. Nolte

David D Nolte

Spinning biodisks have advantages that make them attractive for specialized biochip applications. The two main classes of spinning biodisks are microfluidic disks and bio-optical compact disks BioCD. Microfluidic biodisks take advantage of noninertial pumping for lab-on-a-chip devices using noninertial valves and switches under centrifugal and Coriolis forces to distribute fluids about the disks. BioCDs use spinning-disk interferometry, under the condition of common-path phase quadrature, to perform interferometric label-free detection of molecular recognition and binding. The optical detection of bound molecules on a disk is facilitated by rapid spinning that enables high-speed repetitive sampling to eliminate 1/ f noise through common-mode …

Modeling The Effects Of Value-Added Processing And Logistics Using Arena, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Elif Kongar

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Scarcity and cost of nonrenewable fossil fuels have been a growing focus of many energy-dependent nations, including the U.S., for the past couple of decades. There are mainly two ways to approach these problems: (1) reducing the energy dependency and/or (2) developing alternative means of energy production. Utilizing biofuels, which are renewable sources of energy, is a promising way to produce energy. But, as this industry grows, so too does the quantity of byproducts, which are known as DDGS. This paper discusses a model that has been developed to analyze the economic viability of DDGS processing, and includes both deterministic …

Optimal Switching Control For Microbial Fed-Batch Culture, Chongyang Liu, Zhaohua Gong, Enmin Feng, Hongchao Yin

Chongyang Liu

In fed-batch culture of glycerol bio-dissimilation to 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PD), the aim of adding glycerol is to obtain as much 1,3-PD as possible. Hence, a proper feed strategy is required during the process. In this paper, we present an optimal switching control model based on our proposed controlled switching system. Some properties of the controlled switching system are obtained. Subsequently, we prove the existence of optimal control. In order to deduce the optimality conditions, we transcribe the optimal switching control model into an equivalent one with fixed switching instants and parameters. Finally, the optimality conditions of the equivalent problem are investigated …

Identification Of Intracellular Kinetic Parameters In Continuous Bioconversion Of Glycerol By Klebsiella Pneumoniae, Enmin Feng, Chongyang Liu, Zhaohua Gong, Yaqin Sun

Chongyang Liu

In this paper, we propose a hybrid nonlinear dynamical system to describe the concentration changes of extracellular and intracellular substances of glycerol bioconversion to 1,3- propanedol (1,3-PD) in microbial continuous cultures. It is proved that the solution to the system exists and is continuous with respect to kinetic parameters. Subsequently, a novel quantitative definition of biological robustness is investigated. We present a performance index based on experiment data of extracellular concentrations and biological robustness. Taking the proposed hybrid nonlinear dynamical system as a constraint, we establish an identification model to determine the most reasonable metabolic pathway and optimal kinetic parameters. …

Compression Molding Of Phenolic Resin And Corn-Based Ddgs Blends, Kurt A. Rosentrater, R. A. Tatara, S. Suraparaju

Kurt A. Rosentrater

With the rapid growth in the ethanol fuel industry in recent years, considerable research is being devoted to optimizing the use of processing coproducts, such as distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS), in livestock diets. Because these residues contain high fiber levels, they may be amendable to incorporation into bio-based composites. Thus, the goal of this study was to demonstrate the viability of using corn-based DDGS as a biofiller with phenolic resin, in order to produce a novel biomaterial. DDGS was blended with phenolic resin at 0, 10, 25, 50, 75, and 90%, by weight, and then compression molded at …

The Importance Of Emerging Biobased Industries To Engineering And Technology, Kurt A. Rosentrater, R. Balamuralikrishma

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Our society has developed an insatiable demand for energy and material goods. Historically, these needs have been met primarily by fossil fuels and other non-renewable raw materials. As environmental concerns grow, however, renewable resources are gaining increased attention. This paper examines the emergence and importance that biobased industries are increasingly beginning to play. A biobased enterprise, similar in concept to a traditional refinery or factory, utilizes conversion technologies to produce various products. These operations are rapidly increasing both in number as well as in capacity throughout this country, and are poised to add significantly to the nation’s energy and material …

The Global Relevance Of Bio-Based Industries To Engineering And Technology Education, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Radha Balamuralikrishma

Kurt A. Rosentrater

The society in which we live has developed an insatiable demand for energy and material goods. In particular, recent data reveals that the aggressive pursuit of improved standards of living in the highly populated countries of India and China has contributed to increased demand for fossil fuels, which has exacerbated the recent spike in energy costs. Historically, these needs have been met primarily by fossil fuels and other non-renewable raw materials. As environmental concerns grow, however, renewable resources are gaining increased attention. This paper examines the emergence and importance that bio-based industries are increasingly beginning to play. A bio-based enterprise, …

Renewable Energy Alternatives—A Growing Opportunity For Engineering And Technology Education, Kurt A. Rosentrater

Kurt A. Rosentrater

A hallmark of the United States’ economic growth is an ever-increasing demand for energy, which has traditionally been met primarily by combusting the hydrocarbons found in fossil fuels. As national security and environmental concerns grow, renewable energy resources are gaining increased attention. Unfortunately, there is currently a dearth of renewable energy coverage in engineering and technology curricula. The objectives of this paper are to examine historical energy data for both traditional as well as alternative energy sources, and to motivate educators to address this gap. Even with the progressive developments of non-traditional energy sources over the years, the U.S. still …