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- Creators: Abbaszadegan, Morteza
- Creators: Gupta, Aakriti
- Creators: Liang, Jianming
Description
The purpose of this study was to determine the applicability of fluorescent microspheres as a surrogate to measure the removal of Cryptosporidium oocysts through the coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, and filtration steps of conventional water treatment. In order to maintain accuracy and applicability, a local water treatment facility was chosen as the system to model. The city of Chandler Arizona utilizes conventional treatment methodologies to remove pathogens from municipal drinking water and thus the water, coagulant, polymer, and doses concentrations were sourced directly from the plant. Jar testing was performed on four combinations of coagulant, polymer, and fluorescent microsphere to determine if the log removal was similar to that of Cryptosporidium oocysts.
Complications with the material properties of the microspheres arose during testing that ultimately yielded unfavorable but conclusive results. Log removal of microspheres did not increase with added coagulant in the predicted manner, though the beads were seen aggregating, the low density of the particles made the sedimentation step inefficient. This result can be explained by the low density of the microspheres as well as the potential presence of residual coagulant present in the system. Given the unfavorable properties of the beads, they do not appear to be a suitable candidate for the surrogacy of Cryptosporidium oocysts in conventional drinking water treatment. The beads in their current state are not an adequate surrogate; however, future testing has been outlined to modify the experiment in such a way that the microspheres should behave like oocysts in terms of physical transportation.
Complications with the material properties of the microspheres arose during testing that ultimately yielded unfavorable but conclusive results. Log removal of microspheres did not increase with added coagulant in the predicted manner, though the beads were seen aggregating, the low density of the particles made the sedimentation step inefficient. This result can be explained by the low density of the microspheres as well as the potential presence of residual coagulant present in the system. Given the unfavorable properties of the beads, they do not appear to be a suitable candidate for the surrogacy of Cryptosporidium oocysts in conventional drinking water treatment. The beads in their current state are not an adequate surrogate; however, future testing has been outlined to modify the experiment in such a way that the microspheres should behave like oocysts in terms of physical transportation.
ContributorsLinks, Alexander Glenn (Author) / Abbaszadegan, Morteza (Thesis advisor) / Alum, Absar (Committee member) / Fox, Peter (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
The ability to profile proteins allows us to gain a deeper understanding of organization, regulation, and function of different biological systems. Many technologies are currently being used in order to accurately perform the protein profiling. Some of these technologies include mass spectrometry, microarray based analysis, and fluorescence microscopy. Deeper analysis of these technologies have demonstrated limitations which have taken away from either the efficiency or the accuracy of the results. The objective of this project was to develop a technology in which highly multiplexed single cell in situ protein analysis can be completed in a comprehensive manner without the loss of the protein targets. This was accomplished in the span of 3 steps which is referred to as the immunofluorescence cycle. Antibodies with attached fluorophores with the help of novel azide-based cleavable linker are used to detect protein targets. Fluorescence imaging and data storage procedures are done on the targets and then the fluorophores are cleaved from the antibodies without the loss of the protein targets. Continuous cycles of the immunofluorescence procedure can help create a comprehensive and quantitative profile of the protein. The development of such a technique will not only help us understand biological systems such as solid tumor, brain tissues, and developing embryos. But it will also play a role in real-world applications such as signaling network analysis, molecular diagnosis and cellular targeted therapies.
ContributorsGupta, Aakriti (Author) / Guo, Jia (Thesis director) / Liang, Jianming (Committee member) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12