Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Implementation Of The Graphical User Interface Of The Parint Package In Java, Gwowen Fu

Masters Theses

The graphical user interface (GUI) of the ParInt interface package provides a convenient and efficient way for users to integrate multivariate functions on a parallel system or a network.

This thesis introduces basic structure of the GUI and gives a detailed description of each class of how the classes communicate with each other and how the connection with the parallel program is made.

Factors Governing The Rate Of Appearance Of Fuels In Monitoring Wells, Bradley A. Green

Masters Theses

Delays in the appearance of free product (e.g. fuels) in groundwater monitoring wells often cause costly delays in site evaluation. Little is known about how monitoring well design and installation affect this rate of appearance. This study examined the effects of well screen open area, filter pack grain size and wettability, and well development methods on the rate of appearance and subsequent thickness of free product in wells.

Laboratory and field results indicate that free product appears faster in hydrophilic filter packs than in hydrophobic filter packs. Hydrophobic filter packs with a finer grain size than the "industry standard", seem …

Vertical Resistivity Electrode Arrays For Detecting Hydrocarbon Movement And Content In Sands, Kirt Elliott

Masters Theses

In many contamination sites where hydrocarbon is involved an accurate thickness of the contaminant can not be achieved through the most commonly used methods. The purpose of this study is to find an alternate method of determining a precise thickness and monitor the contaminant movement in conjunction with the current methods. Vertical resistivity electrode arrays were tested in a lab environment on singular probes and between probes. The arrays tested were the Wenner, dipole dipole, gradient, parallel and down-hole 3-arrays. Electrode pipes were constructed and placed into a sand tank where the hydrocarbon thickness and the water level could be …

Sm-Nd Systematics As Indicators Of Displaced Plutons: A Test In The Idaho Batholith-Boulder Batholith Region, Christine J. Brand

Masters Theses

In east-central Idaho and western Montana a 400km-long Cretaceous and Tertiary magmatic corridor extends from the Wallowa-Seven Devils terrane to the Helena Salient. Three basement provinces underlie this area: Archean basement to the east, Permo-Triassic basement to the west, and Proterozoic basement in-between. Ideally, if Cretaceous plutons were decapitated and translated eastward along thrusts over a different basement province, then the Cretaceous pluton and the in-place Tertiary pluton would show different isotopic signatures. Pluton samples from locations evenly spaced throughout the magmatic corridor were analyzed for ε⁰_Nd, ε^t_Nd, and ¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴³Nd model ages …

A Generic Multi-Electrode Automated/Semi-Automated Field Resistivity System, Douglas D. Werkema

Masters Theses

Geophysical field exploration using electrical resistivity typically employs the use of four electrodes which are progressively relocated to positions that differ from a few meters to hundreds of meters. Consequently, field operations are tiresome and often lead to imprecise locations of electrodes and poor data quality. This project develops an automated field resistivity system.

This automation of resistivity measurements is accomplished by using multiple sets of field electrodes, a programmable switch box, remotely controlling the acquisition instrument and digitally storing the results. Controlling the process is the Acquisition Control^©software, for Windows 95^© .The prototype switch box has …

Reactions Of Modified Silica Gel Surfaces With Organometallic Compounds: Enhancing Olefin Polymerization Catalysts, Richard E. Diebel Iii

Masters Theses

Pretreated silica gels with distinct silica surfaces containing either isolated silanols, vicinal silanols, siloxanes, or some combinations of the three, were reacted with several organometallic compounds to determine how each compound reacted with the different silica surface species. The organometallic compounds used were trimethylaluminum, triethylaluminum, diethylaluminum chloride, ethylaluminum dichloride, methylaluminoxane, dibutylmagnesium, and bis-cyclopentadienyl dimethyl zirconium.

These reacted silica gels were analyzed using diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy and ICP-AES elemental analysis. CH/Metal ratios were calculated using specific peaks in the IR spectra to elucidate the surface bonded species. Elemental analysis was used to determine how much metal was bonded …

An Efficient Library For Parallel Ray Tracing And Animation, John Edward Stone

Masters Theses

"A parallel ray tracing library is presented for rendering high detail images of three dimensional geometry and computational fields. The library has been developed for use on distributed memory and shared memory parallel computers and can also run on sequential computers. Parallelism is achieved through the use of message passing and threads. It is shown that the library achieves almost linear scalability when run on large distributed memory parallel computers as well as large shared memory parallel computers.

Several applications of parallel rendering are explored including rendering of CAD models, animation, magnetic resonance imaging, and visualization of volumetric flow fields. …

Characterization Of Petroleum Fog Oil And Vegetable Oil Smokes, Andrew Oliver Larouche

Masters Theses

"Deception and concealment to gain tactical advantage in the battlefield has been an integral part of warfare. Smoke has been a common tool used for signaling, concealment of troop movement and weapon deployment. U.S. Armed Forces have made use of smokes in an organized manner since the 1st world war. Since then various materials such as white phosphorus, zinc chloride, diesel fuel and petroleum oil aerosols have been used to obscure military targets. For the past thirty years fog oil (FO) a medium distillate has been extensively used by the U.S. Armed Forces for generation of obscurant smokes (OS). During …

A Comparison Study Of Water Well Grouting Materials, Sherry L. Callaway

Masters Theses

To prevent contamination from occurring in water wells, and thereby groundwater, the annulus between the well casing and borehole wall must be sealed with a grout that is capable of maintaining a proper seal. Several factors and properties determine the integrity of the grout and the seal formed by that grout.

A field study discovered limitations in all of the tested grout types. Most grouts were found to vary greatly in thickness surrounding the well casing. Bentonite slurry grouts settled excessively. Cement and bentoni tecement grouts did not adhere to PVC well casing. Bentonite-cement grout fractured. The granulated bentonite was …

Laboratory Comparison Of Trench Design Options For Recovering Spilled Oil, Renuka Fernando

Masters Theses

The research goal was to improve the performance of drainage trenches used to recover spilled oil in the subsurface. Different trench designs were compared in two laboratory experiments. The first laboratory experiment clearly demonstrates that the performance of a oil recovering drainage trench could be improved by replacing the standard gravel pack sand used around the drain pipe with mixtures of teflon and sand. The effectiveness of a downgradient impermeable 'backstop' also was studied in the first experiment.

In experiment two, four trench designs were compared: perforated drain pipe; wire-wrapped horizontal well screen; perforated sheet pile; and gravel fill with …

A Large Scintillation Detector For Nuclear Physics Experiments At Indiana University Cyclotron Facility, Apurva Pathak

Masters Theses

A new, large, scintillation detector, called the "K" detector has been designed and built for use in a series of nuclear physics experiments being performed at the Indiana University Cyclotron Facility (IUCF). This project describes the design, construction and testing of this scintillation detector. The K detector was designed to augment an existing detector stack at IUCF, and will serve to increase the energy range of previous studies of neutral pion production in proton-proton collisions near threshold. The test data for the current project came from a proton-proton scattering experiment, during which several runs were carried out between the bombarding …

Lithologic And Stratigraphic Analysis Of Glacial Diamictons, Sturgis, Michigan, R. Christopher Gardner

Masters Theses

Seven diamictons are identified in the subsurface glacial drift near Sturgis, Michigan using textural analyses and x-ray diffraction of clay minerals. The clay mineral content is quantified by comparing the 7-A/10- A peak height ratios from x-ray diffraction diffractograms of oriented clay-size particle (< 2um) mounts. Two diamictons occur at the base of the drift. Unit 1 is gray , resembling the shale it overlies. The texture of Unit 1 is sandy clay loam to loam and average 7-A/10-A peak height clay mineral ratios of 0.446 ±0.069. Unit 2 is a yellowish-brown diamicton, it overlies Unit 1, and is a sandy loam to loam with average 7-A/10-A clay mineral ratio of 0.657 ±0.151. Diamicton Units 4 and 5 overlie a thick unit of sand and gravel on top of Unit 2. Units 4 and 5 have similar color and texture, however the 7-A/10-A ratios are 1.059 ±0.090 and 0.810 ±0.072 respectively. Unit 6 is a thin diamicton unit, leached of calcite, and x-ray diffraction suggests that there is a range of weathering horzins between borings. Unit 7 is loamy, whereas Unit 8 generally ranges from sandy clay loam to sandy loam with average 7-A/10-A ratios of 0.865 ±0.090 and 1.195 ±0.189.

Pan, Ppn And Mpan Measurements And The Systematic Relationship Between Mpan And Macr At A Semi-Rural Site In Tennessee, George Nouaime

Masters Theses

Simultaneous measurements of peroxymethacryloyl nitrate (MPAN) and its primary and secondary precursors, methacarolein (MACR) and isoprene, were carried out for the first time in July 1995 at a semi-rural site southeast of Nashville. In addition to these compounds, peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN), peroxypropionyl nitrate (PPN), other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and supporting measurements were also collected in collaboration with other research groups. The mean concentrations of PAN, PPN, MPAN and MACR were found to be 485 pptv, 50 pptv, 30 pptv and 0.290 ppbv respectively. MP AN levels, which closely tracked those of MACR during the day, peaked and dropped earlier …

Elucidation Of The Pathway Required For The Stimulation Of G6pdh Gene Expression By Insulin And Its Mimetics, Asavari Wagle

Masters Theses

Insulin, an anabolic hormone, exquisitely controls cellular physiology and metabolism by modulating the activity of key proteins which regulate metabolic and mitogenic events. Insulin activates several cytosolic proteins via a phosphorylation cascade, but only some of these proteins are required for its specific action. We have elucidated the insulin signal transduction cascade in primary rat hepatocytes, and outlined some of the events that are required for the insulin induced stimulation of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) gene expression. Using well-characterized and structurally different inhibitors, we show that insulin stimulation of the gene requires the IRS-1/P13K pathway and not the RAS/RAF/MAPK pathway. Gene …

Extraction Of Premafloxacin Radiolabeled With Carbon Fourteen From Loam Soil, Steven Gregory Staskiewicz

Masters Theses

Premafloxacin is a fluoroquinolone antibiotic being developed by Pharmacia & Upjohn for veterinary indications. Since the parent drug and possibly metabolites will be applied to soil through the deposition of animal excreta, many regulatory agencies will require environmental assessment testing. In order to determine if ¹⁴C-premafloxacin would biodegrade in the soil, loam soil was extracted with solvents and C18 solid phase columns were used to isolate the compound after three weeks of incubation. In addition to extracting the soil, production of ¹⁴CO₂ was monitored by trapping the degradation by-product in 2 N NaOH. Liquid scintillation counting of …

Reservoir Characterization Of Crystal Field And Analysis Of The Tow#1-3 Hd-1 Well, Montcalm County, Michigan, Heidi Wines

Masters Theses

The goal of this project was to characterize the Dundee reservoir of Crystal oil field using the newly drilled Tow #1-3 well data in conjunction with historical well records to evaluate heterogeneity of facies and their controls on oil production.

From the Tow# 1-3 HD-1 well, three major facies were identified in the reservoir. A non-fractured intertidal grainstone facies provides storage of fluids with its uniform permeability and excellent intercrystalline porosity. The supratidal fractured micrites and open marine fractured biomicrites are interbedded with the grainstone facies providing conduits for fluid migration between the facies. Facies are important controls on oil …

Geophysical Characterization Of A Jp-4 (Lnapl) Contaminated Site At The Wurtsmith, Air Force Base, Oscoda, Michigan, Kristina C. Sprietzer

Masters Theses

The detection of hydrocarbon contamination in the subsurface using geophysical techniques has been based on the known physical properties of high electrical resistivities (ρa) (low conductivities). However, geophysical field investigations at uncontrolled spill sites yield measurements of low resistivity (high conductivity). The purpose of this study is to test that in the natural environment some hydrocarbon spills (in the case of LNAPLs), can exhibit changes with time due to biodegradation, from electrically resistive to conductive. Since time is an important factor, this hypothesis was tested at a site where the time when a hydrocarbon release occurred is known and where …

Synthesis Of Biologically Active Substituted Chalcones, Kiel Steven Hoff

Masters Theses

Two different synthetic routes to poly-hydroxylated chalcones are investigated. The wittig synthesis and protection of the hydroxyl functionalities by forming the methyl ether followed by the base catalyzed Claissen-schmidt reaction and then deprotection were investigated. It was demonstrated that the protection-condensation- deprotection route was more efficient. The antiviral activity of 2,2', 4' - trihydroxychalcone against the HIV virus is also presented.

Changes In Channel Morphology And Flood-Plain Ecosystems Of The Green River Between The Flaming Gorge Dam, Utah And The Gates Of Lodore, Colorado, Gloria Christine Celeste Britton

Masters Theses

Closure of Flaming Gorge Dam in 1962 reduced the flow rate and variability of discharge on the Green River below this dam. These changes, coupled with the decreased sediment load due to stilling and sporadic peaking in response to demand for hydroelectric power and controlled releases of up to 4500 cfs to cope with snowmelt have impacted the channel morphology and ecosystems of the main stem Green River between the Dam and the Gates of Lodore. Detailed comparative analysis of channel shape and riparian ecosystems or pre-dam and post-dam aerial photographs revealed that significant changes occurred after closure. Channel width …

Geophysical Investigation Of Anomalous Conductivity Associated With A Hydrocarbon Contamination Site, Mike S. Nash

Masters Theses

The high electrical conductivity measured from chemical analyses from ground water below a hydrocarbon contaminated site was the focus of this study. Most theoretical studies have indicated that the electrical conductivity of hydrocarbon contamination is lower than that of the surrounding medium. Geochemical studies at other sites have shown that areas of dissolved fuel oil plume have a higher electrical conductivity. Six methods: Self Potential, Mise-a-la-Masse, Vertical Electrical Sounding, Dipole-Dipole Resistivity Profiling, Electromagnetic Induction, and Ground Penetrating Radar were all used in an attempt to see which method( s) could identify regions of high conductivity.

The findings of this study …

Well Screen Characteristics Which Constrain Hydraulic Conductivity Calculated From Slug Tests, Christopher G. Amore

Masters Theses

With the growing concern over ground water protection and waste water management, interest in the use of slug tests to characterize hydraulic properties of aquifers has increased. While slug tests offer an inexpensive alternative to pump tests, problems arise with collection of the tests and the interpretation of the results. Field tests and mathematical studies show that both positive and negative biases of formation properties have been obtained. The resulting errors can be traced to improper analytical techniques, incorrect assumptions of well configuration and aquifer properties, poor well installation and data gathering. Most of these problems can be corrected by …

Prototype Implementation Of The Comprehensive Parallel Integration Tool Parint, Jay Ball

Masters Theses

The ParInt project allows users to integrate multivariate functions using parallel computers via different methods encompassed in an easy to use interface. This thesis describes the initial version of the ParInt package. Various pop up windows of the graphical user interface, program procedures, programming paradigms, integration theory, and future considerations are all described.

Analysis Of Organic Nitrates In Artic Outflow, Deanna Elyea-Piper

Masters Theses

The Arctic Outflow Study (AOS) was a project funded by the National Science Foundation to assess the impact of tropospheric ozone concentrations by the measurement of oxidized nitrogen. Measurements of arctic outflow were made to assess the seasonal cycle of compounds in arctic air and the partitioning of NOy during transport to the North Atlantic region. These photochemically active compounds are elevated in the arctic during the winter and spring because of the lack of photochemical processes to destroy them.

Measurements of PAN, Alkyl nitrates, NOy, NO, NO₂, CO, HNO₃, O₃, and particulate nitrate …

Thermal Characterization Of Ground And Surface Waters At The Upjohn Company's Portage Road Manufacturing Facility, William K. Hunsberger

Masters Theses

This study focused on thermal characteristics of the ground water and recharged surface water at The Upjohn Company's (now Pharmacia and Upjohn) Portage Road manufacturing facility. Major objectives were: (a) a compilation and graphical evaluation of historical lower aquifer ground water temperatures; (b) estimates of thermal energy introduced into the ground water system through recharge from Upjohn Pond, and predictions of future production well discharge temperatures; (c) an evaluation of hydraulic conductivity related to changes in water density and viscosity influenced by variable temperature; and (d) the stratigraphy beneath Upjohn Pond.

Records reveal increasing ground water temperatures through time in …

Thermal Studies Of Complex Formations Of First Row Transition Metals With Phenolic Compounds In Aqueous Solution, Nabil Adnan Amro

Masters Theses

The coordination chemistry of protocatechuic acid and catechols with the first row of transition metals was studied as a model for the more complicated natural humic substance.

The reaction between Mn²⁺, Fe³⁺, Co²⁺, Ni²⁺, Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺ and the phenols, catechol and protocatechuic acid in aqueous solution was studied by the spectrophotometric method. The composition of the complexes formed was determined by continuous variation, iso-molar series and molar ratio methods. The presence of complexes with metal:ligand ratio of 1:1, 1:2 and 1:3 was established in the pH range 3 to …

Potential Underground Gas Storage Reservoirs In Latvia, Santis Limezs

Masters Theses

The Baltic state of Latvia, produces no natural gas; all natural gas consumed is imported. In order to address future gas needs in Latvia, this study was undertaken to provide geological background and select sites with the best gas storage potential and reduce costs of more detailed field analyses in the next phase of gas storage development. Russia is the sole natural gas supplier and delivers the gas to Latvia via transmission pipelines. The Inchukalns underground gas storage field is the only underground gas storage field in the Baltic states. Although this structure accommodates current needs, projections show additional storage …

Induced Acceleration Of Phosphine Exchange In Metal Carbonyls By Pendant Groups Of Coordinated Polyphosphines, Ping Ye

Masters Theses

The kinetics and thermodynamics of isomerization of (OC)₅CrPPh₂CH₂CH(PPh₂)₂ to its linkage isomer, (OC)₅CrPPh₂CH(PPh₂)CH₂PPh₂, in chloroform-d have been studied with ³¹P{¹H} NMR.

(OC)₅Cr[η¹-PPh₂CH₂CH(PPh₂)₂] ⇄ (OC)5Cr[η¹-PPh₂CH(PPh₂)CH₂PPh₂]

The equilibrium constants for the reaction are 3.60, 2.61, 2.04, and 1.67 at 10 °C, 25 °C, 40 °C, and 53 °C, respectively. The forward reaction becomes more favorable as the temperature …

An Expeditious Synthesis Of Β,Γ-Unsaturated Δ-Lactones: Useful Pharmacological Synthetic Intermediates, Li Xiong

Masters Theses

Two-carbon ring expansions of vinyl β-lactones, were carried out by Lewis acids (BF₃-Et₂O or Et₂AlCl) via an ionization/cation rearrangement. β,γ-unsaturated δ-lactones were produced as efficient protocols for the synthesis of bioactive substances.

Vinyl β-lactones were prepared via ring closure of corresponding unsaturated β-hydroxy acids. Differently structured substrates were examined to study the influence of the substituents on the rearrangement. Other factors, such as temperature, solvent and catalyst were also studied in search of suitable reaction conditions.

This method is moderately successful in providing fused-ring δ-lactones, but higher yields (so far total yield of 24.8%) …

Identification Of Organosulfur Compounds In Illinois Coal, Mandy N. Amin

Masters Theses

The goal of this research was to identify representative organosulfur compounds in Illinois coal which are removed by a mild, chemical desulfurization procedure. Pyridine was used to extract three raw Illinois coals. Coal with a significant amount of elemental sulfur was treated with 1:1 HCl/HF followed by lithium aluminum hydride before pyridine extraction. Pyridine soluble extracts were extracted with tetrahydrofuran. Nickel boride desulfurization was performed on the soluble extracts of the three coals. The before and after desulfurized THF soluble extracts were fractionated and purified by liquid chromatography and the eluents were anlyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to characterize the …

Constancy Of Bond Dissociation Energy Ratios For Ab₂/Ab Systems, Danyu Xu

Masters Theses

G2 and G2(MP2) theories have been used to study the bond dissociation energies D⁰_m of a series of AB₂, AB₂⁺, AB₂^-, AB, AB⁺ and AB^- systems. A total of fifty-four molecules and ions have been examined, for which B = O, S or Se and A = C, S, Ge, N⁺, P⁺, As⁺, B^-, Al^- or Ga^-. Each triatomic system has sixteen valence electrons and each diatomic system has ten valence electrons. Both triplet and singlet spin …