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Full-Text Articles in Mineral Physics
Impact Of Young Biocrust On Dryland Surface Albedo, Rhynhardt Mudde, Rebekah Magness, Raul Roman, Nicole Pietrasiak
Impact Of Young Biocrust On Dryland Surface Albedo, Rhynhardt Mudde, Rebekah Magness, Raul Roman, Nicole Pietrasiak
Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters
More than 40% of the Earth’s surface is covered by drylands. Due to limited availability of water, less surface area is covered by vascular plants. Instead, this space is occupied by microbial communities that exist in close contact with mineral soil, creating a living aggregate on the upper soil layer and are known collectively as biological soil crusts or “biocrusts”. Biocrusts play a vital role in ecosystem functioning in drylands specifically through their influence on hydrological processes (e.g., water retention, infiltration). However, the impact of biocrusts on evaporation is not well understood. Biocrusts have been reported to either increase or …
Characterizing The Mechanical And Visoelastic Properties Of Sodium Alginate, Vesper Evereux
Characterizing The Mechanical And Visoelastic Properties Of Sodium Alginate, Vesper Evereux
Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters
A crucial part of tissue engineering lies in understanding and characterizing the mechanical and viscoelastic properties of various types of biomaterials. Understanding these properties allows better biomaterials to be produced with characteristics more similar to those of the human body and with better biocompatability. In this study, sodium alginate was chemically crosslinked with calcium chloride and subsequently tested for it's instantaneous Elastic Modulus, instantaneous Shear Modulus, and equivalent viscosity using indentation testing methods consisting of a stress-relaxation test and nonlinear curve-fitting analysis. Two and three millimeter indentation tests were performed using a low-cost and portable device built in-lab that resulted …