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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Poly-3-Hexylthiophene Nanorods As A Donor For Organic Photovoltaics, Dharmesh Patel Dec 2014

Poly-3-Hexylthiophene Nanorods As A Donor For Organic Photovoltaics, Dharmesh Patel

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Poly-3-hexylthiophene functionalized silsesquioxane nanorods (P3HT-NRs) were prepared by direct hydrolysis and condensation of P3HT-silane precursor using the modified Stöber method. The silane precursor was stirred in a mixture of two solvents in the presence of a base under room temperature for three different reaction times. The size, shape, and morphology of these novel nanostructures were visualized using the transmission electron microscope (TEM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The composition of the P3HT-NRs was confirmed by FTIR and its silane by proton NMR. Future work will focus on evaluating photovoltaic performance of these nanorods as a donor for organic photovoltaics.


Reaction Rates Of Amino Acids With Derivatives Of The Anticancer Drug Cisplatin, Celia Jess Whelan Dec 2014

Reaction Rates Of Amino Acids With Derivatives Of The Anticancer Drug Cisplatin, Celia Jess Whelan

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

We are studying reactions of cisplatin derivatives, which differ in both size and shape, with various amino acids. When reaction with DNA occurs, apoptosis is observed, ideally leading to termination of the cancer. Due to the affinity of cisplatin for sulfur-containing amino acids, reaction with proteins may occur prior to access to the DNA, producing a large array of products, which could potentially be toxic to the human body. Both the size and shape of the platinum complexes often affect the reactions with protein targets more so than with DNA targets. By performing reactions of specific amino acids targets with …


Public School Science Education And Geographically-Specific Environmental Sustainability Issues: Implications For Social Work Education, Amanda Gallion Oct 2014

Public School Science Education And Geographically-Specific Environmental Sustainability Issues: Implications For Social Work Education, Amanda Gallion

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The focus of this project was to examine the educational practices of Kentucky-based public school teachers (grades 4th-8th) related to their efforts to incorporate sustainability into the science classroom and specifically related to the teachers’ focus or lack of focus on karst landscape. The major themes that were analyzed were how educators include this content into their classroom material and how this impacts their students in the area of environmental sustainability. The themes analyzed were: environmental sustainability as a lifestyle choice; education about environmental sustainability, the nexus of family, school, and community; the importance of geographical context in regards to …


Mechanochemistry: Pyrene Derivatives In The Detection Of Select Metals, Hillary Asberry May 2014

Mechanochemistry: Pyrene Derivatives In The Detection Of Select Metals, Hillary Asberry

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Metals are found naturally in the environment and expelled through industrial waste. When absorbed through the skin, inhaled, or ingested, many metals have been proven to cause numerous health problems. Mechanochemistry using a mortar and pestle grinding shows promise in capture and detection of toxic metals. This method allows for an on-site, cost effective, simple, solvent free, and environmentally friendly metal coordination. Pyrene derivatives with diethylenetriamine and bis(3-aminopropyl)amine linkers have shown to be successful fluorescent receptors serving as a Lewis bases in the reactions. After coordination, color changes are observed in visible light and UV light. Metal salts that exhibit …


Mercury Bioaccumulation In Bat Populations In Mammoth Cave National Park: Modern, Historical, And Ancient Samples, Stephanie Hagan May 2014

Mercury Bioaccumulation In Bat Populations In Mammoth Cave National Park: Modern, Historical, And Ancient Samples, Stephanie Hagan

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The first human to enter Mammoth Cave passed under its arch about 4,000 years ago, but bats have been calling it home long before humans discovered it. Due to environmental exposure of mercury, these bats potentially show substantial mercury bioaccumulation. Bats now come into contact with mercury through atmospheric deposition from industrial sources. It is expected that the modern bats residing in Mammoth Cave should have measurable levels of mercury in their system which has been determined by guano analysis. Over fifty current samples of bat guano have been analyzed and exhibit mercury levels at the part per billion level. …


Herbal And Holistic Medicine In Latin America, William H. Lyle May 2014

Herbal And Holistic Medicine In Latin America, William H. Lyle

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

A variety of herbal and holistic remedies were used in pre-Columbian cultures, especially in Aztec and Incan cultures. Many different herbs were used to provide medical attention to patients directly, while other herbs were used to supplement shaman[1] medicine, which was particularly common in Inca culture. While there is little scientific basis for shamanism, as a viable healing option in modern culture, most herbal remedies had active chemical ingredients that could be or are used today to treat similar symptoms, and, in some cases, are being applied in different scenarios as well. The methods of usage, active chemicals, and …


Laser Intensity And Ionic Strength Dependence Of The Aqueous Nitrate And Carbonate Ion Raman Spectra, Samuel White May 2014

Laser Intensity And Ionic Strength Dependence Of The Aqueous Nitrate And Carbonate Ion Raman Spectra, Samuel White

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The geometry (and hence vibrational modes) of aqueous nitrate ion, NO3-, is known to depend on the solution composition—concentration, counter ions, etc. If a definite relationship between the vibrational spectrum and ionic strength of the solution could be established, it could be a useful monitor of solution composition over time. This would be valuable in studying the reaction rates and mechanisms of reactions involving nitrate in an aqueous environment, such as its photolysis in snow. Previous work in our lab observed a split peak at the symmetric-stretch mode of nitrate, though this mode does not usually show …


Analysis Of No And Noy In The Low Atmosphere At Mammoth Cave National Park, Jessica Hall May 2014

Analysis Of No And Noy In The Low Atmosphere At Mammoth Cave National Park, Jessica Hall

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxides of nitrogen (NOy) are pollutants produced by automobiles and formed naturally from nitrate ions (NO3-). We are interested in the natural processes and anthroprogenic sources of NO and NOy. To better understand NO and NOy trends in the atmosphere, data from Mammoth Cave National Park (MCNP) was analyzed. The rural location of MCNP leads to the hypothesis that the natural sources of NO to be studied without anthropogenic sources significantly contributing to the overall levels. NO is correlated with factors such as solar radiance and precipitation. …


The Analysis Of Experimental Error In Parity Violation Experiments With Polarized Neutrons, Jonathan Serpico May 2014

The Analysis Of Experimental Error In Parity Violation Experiments With Polarized Neutrons, Jonathan Serpico

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Measurements of parity symmetry violation in nuclear reactions with polarized neutrons can provide valuable information on hadronic weak interaction. We have conducted an analysis of experimental error in the measurement of the parity violating eect in the n3He experiment. several experimental parameters have been optimized to minimize statistical error using numerical simulations. An analysis of systematic error due to diferential cross-section dependence on energy as well as on false parity conserving asymmetries was also conducted. Our results suggest that the proposed parameters of the experiment will suficiently suppress all sources of error under consideration. Furthermore, these approaches may be effectively …