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Description
Demand for biosensor research applications is growing steadily. According to a new report by Frost & Sullivan, the biosensor market is expected to reach $14.42 billion by 2016. Clinical diagnostic applications continue to be the largest market for biosensors, and this demand is likely to continue through 2016 and beyond.

Demand for biosensor research applications is growing steadily. According to a new report by Frost & Sullivan, the biosensor market is expected to reach $14.42 billion by 2016. Clinical diagnostic applications continue to be the largest market for biosensors, and this demand is likely to continue through 2016 and beyond. Biosensor technology for use in clinical diagnostics, however, requires translational research that moves bench science and theoretical knowledge toward marketable products. Despite the high volume of academic research to date, only a handful of biomedical devices have become viable commercial applications. Academic research must increase its focus on practical uses for biosensors. This dissertation is an example of this increased focus, and discusses work to advance microfluidic-based protein biosensor technologies for practical use in clinical diagnostics. Four areas of work are discussed: The first involved work to develop reusable/reconfigurable biosensors that are useful in applications like biochemical science and analytical chemistry that require detailed sensor calibration. This work resulted in a prototype sensor and an in-situ electrochemical surface regeneration technique that can be used to produce microfluidic-based reusable biosensors. The second area of work looked at non-specific adsorption (NSA) of biomolecules, which is a persistent challenge in conventional microfluidic biosensors. The results of this work produced design methods that reduce the NSA. The third area of work involved a novel microfluidic sensing platform that was designed to detect target biomarkers using competitive protein adsorption. This technique uses physical adsorption of proteins to a surface rather than complex and time-consuming immobilization procedures. This method enabled us to selectively detect a thyroid cancer biomarker, thyroglobulin, in a controlled-proteins cocktail and a cardiovascular biomarker, fibrinogen, in undiluted human serum. The fourth area of work involved expanding the technique to produce a unique protein identification method; Pattern-recognition. A sample mixture of proteins generates a distinctive composite pattern upon interaction with a sensing platform consisting of multiple surfaces whereby each surface consists of a distinct type of protein pre-adsorbed on the surface. The utility of the "pattern-recognition" sensing mechanism was then verified via recognition of a particular biomarker, C-reactive protein, in the cocktail sample mixture.
ContributorsChoi, Seokheun (Author) / Chae, Junseok (Thesis advisor) / Tao, Nongjian (Committee member) / Yu, Hongyu (Committee member) / Forzani, Erica (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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Description
A wireless hybrid device for detecting volatile organic compounds (VOCs) has been developed. The device combines a highly selective and sensitive tuning-fork based detector with a pre-concentrator and a separation column. The selectivity and sensitivity of the tuning-fork based detector is optimized for discrimination and quantification of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene,

A wireless hybrid device for detecting volatile organic compounds (VOCs) has been developed. The device combines a highly selective and sensitive tuning-fork based detector with a pre-concentrator and a separation column. The selectivity and sensitivity of the tuning-fork based detector is optimized for discrimination and quantification of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX) via a homemade molecular imprinted polymer, and a specific detection and control circuit. The device is a wireless, portable, battery-powered, and cell-phone operated device. The device has been calibrated and validated in the laboratory and using selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry (SFIT-MS). The capability and robustness are also demonstrated in some field tests. It provides rapid and reliable detection of BTEX in real samples, including challenging high concentrations of interferents, and it is suitable for occupational, environmental health and epidemiological applications.
ContributorsChen, Zheng (Author) / Tao, Nongjian (Thesis advisor) / Chae, Junseok (Committee member) / Forzani, Erica (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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Description
A numerical study of incremental spin-up and spin-up from rest of a thermally- stratified fluid enclosed within a right circular cylinder with rigid bottom and side walls and stress-free upper surface is presented. Thermally stratified spin-up is a typical example of baroclinity, which is initiated by a sudden increase in

A numerical study of incremental spin-up and spin-up from rest of a thermally- stratified fluid enclosed within a right circular cylinder with rigid bottom and side walls and stress-free upper surface is presented. Thermally stratified spin-up is a typical example of baroclinity, which is initiated by a sudden increase in rotation rate and the tilting of isotherms gives rise to baroclinic source of vorticity. Research by (Smirnov et al. [2010a]) showed the differences in evolution of instabilities when Dirichlet and Neumann thermal boundary conditions were applied at top and bottom walls. Study of parametric variations carried out in this dissertation confirmed the instability patterns observed by them for given aspect ratio and Rossby number values greater than 0.5. Also results reveal that flow maintained axisymmetry and stability for short aspect ratio containers independent of amount of rotational increment imparted. Investigation on vorticity components provides framework for baroclinic vorticity feedback mechanism which plays important role in delayed rise of instabilities when Dirichlet thermal Boundary Conditions are applied.
ContributorsKher, Aditya Deepak (Author) / Chen, Kangping (Thesis advisor) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Herrmann, Marcus (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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Description
Image processing in canals, rivers and other bodies of water has been a very important concern. This research using Image Processing was performed to obtain a photographic evidence of the data of the site which helps in monitoring the conditions of the water body and the surroundings. Images are captured

Image processing in canals, rivers and other bodies of water has been a very important concern. This research using Image Processing was performed to obtain a photographic evidence of the data of the site which helps in monitoring the conditions of the water body and the surroundings. Images are captured using a digital camera and the images are stored onto a datalogger, these images are retrieved using a cellular/ satellite modem. A MATLAB program was designed to obtain the level of water by just entering the file name into to the program, a curve fit model was created to determine the contrast parameters. The contrast parameters were obtained using the data obtained from the gray scale image mainly the mean and variance of the intensity values. The enhanced images are used to determine the level of water by taking pixel intensity plots along the region of interest. The level of water obtained is accurate to less than 2% of the actual level of water observed from the image. High speed imaging in micro channels have various application in industrial field, medical field etc. In medical field it is tested by using blood samples. The experimental procedure proposed determines the flow duration and the defects observed in these channel using a fluid introduced into the micro channel the fluid being water based dye and whole milk. The viscosity of the fluid shows different types of flow patterns and defects in the micro channel. The defects observed vary from a small effect to the flow pattern to an extreme defect in the channel such as obstruction of flow or deformation in the channel. The sample needs to be further analyzed by SEM to get a better insight on the defects.
ContributorsShasedhara, Abhijeet Bangalore (Author) / Lee, Taewoo (Thesis advisor) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Chen, Kangping (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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Description
A new method of adaptive mesh generation for the computation of fluid flows is investigated. The method utilizes gradients of the flow solution to adapt the size and stretching of elements or volumes in the computational mesh as is commonly done in the conventional Hessian approach. However, in

A new method of adaptive mesh generation for the computation of fluid flows is investigated. The method utilizes gradients of the flow solution to adapt the size and stretching of elements or volumes in the computational mesh as is commonly done in the conventional Hessian approach. However, in the new method, higher-order gradients are used in place of the Hessian. The method is applied to the finite element solution of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations on model problems. Results indicate that a significant efficiency benefit is realized.
ContributorsShortridge, Randall (Author) / Chen, Kang Ping (Thesis advisor) / Herrmann, Marcus (Thesis advisor) / Wells, Valana (Committee member) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Mittelmann, Hans (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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Description
The evolution of single hairpin vortices and multiple interacting hairpin vortices are studied in direct numerical simulations of channel flow at Re-tau=395. The purpose of this study is to observe the effects of increased Reynolds number and varying initial conditions on the growth of hairpins and the conditions under which

The evolution of single hairpin vortices and multiple interacting hairpin vortices are studied in direct numerical simulations of channel flow at Re-tau=395. The purpose of this study is to observe the effects of increased Reynolds number and varying initial conditions on the growth of hairpins and the conditions under which single hairpins autogenerate hairpin packets. The hairpin vortices are believed to provide a unified picture of wall turbulence and play an important role in the production of Reynolds shear stress which is directly related to turbulent drag. The structures of the initial three-dimensional vortices are extracted from the two-point spatial correlation of the fully turbulent direct numerical simulation of the velocity field by linear stochastic estimation and embedded in a mean flow having the profile of the fully turbulent flow. The Reynolds number of the present simulation is more than twice that of the Re-tau=180 flow from earlier literature and the conditional events used to define the stochastically estimated single vortex initial conditions include a number of new types of events such as quasi-streamwise vorticity and Q4 events. The effects of parameters like strength, asymmetry and position are evaluated and compared with existing results in the literature. This study then attempts to answer questions concerning how vortex mergers produce larger scale structures, a process that may contribute to the growth of length scale with increasing distance from the wall in turbulent wall flows. Multiple vortex interactions are studied in detail.
ContributorsParthasarathy, Praveen Kumar (Author) / Adrian, Ronald (Thesis advisor) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Herrmann, Marcus (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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Description
Ten regional climate models (RCMs) and atmosphere-ocean generalized model parings from the North America Regional Climate Change Assessment Program were used to estimate the shift of extreme precipitation due to climate change using present-day and future-day climate scenarios. RCMs emulate winter storms and one-day duration events at the sub-regional level.

Ten regional climate models (RCMs) and atmosphere-ocean generalized model parings from the North America Regional Climate Change Assessment Program were used to estimate the shift of extreme precipitation due to climate change using present-day and future-day climate scenarios. RCMs emulate winter storms and one-day duration events at the sub-regional level. Annual maximum series were derived for each model pairing, each modeling period; and for annual and winter seasons. The reliability ensemble average (REA) method was used to qualify each RCM annual maximum series to reproduce historical records and approximate average predictions, because there are no future records. These series determined (a) shifts in extreme precipitation frequencies and magnitudes, and (b) shifts in parameters during modeling periods. The REA method demonstrated that the winter season had lower REA factors than the annual season. For the winter season the RCM pairing of the Hadley regional Model 3 and the Geophysical Fluid-Dynamics Laboratory atmospheric-land generalized model had the lowest REA factors. However, in replicating present-day climate, the pairing of the Abdus Salam International Center for Theoretical Physics' Regional Climate Model Version 3 with the Geophysical Fluid-Dynamics Laboratory atmospheric-land generalized model was superior. Shifts of extreme precipitation in the 24-hour event were measured using precipitation magnitude for each frequency in the annual maximum series, and the difference frequency curve in the generalized extreme-value-function parameters. The average trend of all RCM pairings implied no significant shift in the winter annual maximum series, however the REA-selected models showed an increase in annual-season precipitation extremes: 0.37 inches for the 100-year return period and for the winter season suggested approximately 0.57 inches for the same return period. Shifts of extreme precipitation were estimated using predictions 70 years into the future based on RCMs. Although these models do not provide climate information for the intervening 70 year period, the models provide an assertion on the behavior of future climate. The shift in extreme precipitation may be significant in the frequency distribution function, and will vary depending on each model-pairing condition. The proposed methodology addresses the many uncertainties associated with the current methodologies dealing with extreme precipitation.
ContributorsRiaño, Alejandro (Author) / Mays, Larry W. (Thesis advisor) / Vivoni, Enrique (Committee member) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
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Description
Spirometry is a type of pulmonary function test that measures the amount of air volume and the speed of air flow from a patient's breath in order to assess lung function. The goal of this project is to develop and validate a mobile spirometer technology based on a differential pressure

Spirometry is a type of pulmonary function test that measures the amount of air volume and the speed of air flow from a patient's breath in order to assess lung function. The goal of this project is to develop and validate a mobile spirometer technology based on a differential pressure sensor. The findings in this paper are used in a larger project that combines the features of a capnography device and a spirometer into a single mobile health unit known as the capno-spirometer. The following paper discusses the methods, experiments, and prototypes that were developed and tested in order to create a robust and accurate technology for all of the spirometry functions within the capno-spirometer. The differential pressure sensor is set up with one inlet measuring the pressure inside the spirometer tubing and the other inlet measuring the ambient pressure of the environment. The inlet measuring the inside of the tubing is very sensitive to its orientation and position with respect to the path of the air flow. It is found that taking a measurement from the center of the flow is 50% better than from the side wall. The sensor inlet is optimized at 37 mm from the mouthpiece inlet. The unit is calibrated by relating the maximum pressure sensor voltage signal to the peak expiratory flow rate (PEF) taken during a series of spirometry tests. In conclusion, this relationship is best represented as a quadratic function and a calibration equation is computed to provide a flow rate given a voltage change. The flow rates are used to calculate the four main spirometry parameters: PEF, FVC, FEV1, and FER. These methods are then referenced with the results from a commercial spirometer for validation. After validation, the pressure-based spirometry technology is proven to be both robust and accurate.
ContributorsMiller, Dylan (Author) / Forzani, Erica (Thesis advisor) / Trimble, Steve (Committee member) / Xian, Xiaojun (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
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Description
Gas turbines have become widely used in the generation of power for cities. They are used all over the world and must operate under a wide variety of ambient conditions. Every turbine has a temperature at which it operates at peak capacity. In order to attain this temperature in the

Gas turbines have become widely used in the generation of power for cities. They are used all over the world and must operate under a wide variety of ambient conditions. Every turbine has a temperature at which it operates at peak capacity. In order to attain this temperature in the hotter months various cooling methods are used such as refrigeration inlet cooling systems, evaporative methods, and thermal energy storage systems. One of the more widely used is the evaporative systems because it is one of the safest and easiest to utilize method. However, the behavior of water droplets within the inlet to the turbine has not been extensively studied or documented. It is important to understand how the droplets behave within the inlet so that water droplets above a critical diameter will not enter the compressor and cause damage to the compressor blades. In order to do this a FLUENT simulation was constructed in order to determine the behavior of the water droplets and if any droplets remain at the exit of the inlet, along with their size. In order to do this several engineering drawings were obtained from SRP and studies in order to obtain the correct dimensions. Then the simulation was set up using data obtained from SRP and Parker-Hannifin, the maker of the spray nozzles. Then several sets of simulations were run in order to see how the water droplets behaved under various conditions. These results were then analyzed and quantified so that they could be easily understood. The results showed that the possible damage to the compressor increased with increasing temperature at a constant relative humidity. This is due in part to the fact that in order to keep a constant relative humidity at varying temperatures the mass fraction of water vapor in the air must be changed. As temperature increases the water vapor mass fraction must increase in order to maintain a constant relative humidity. This in turn makes it slightly increases the evaporation time of the water droplets. This will then lead to more droplets exiting the inlet and at larger diameters.
ContributorsHargrave, Kevin (Author) / Lee, Taewoo (Thesis advisor) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Chen, Kaangping (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
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Description
Wind measurements are fundamental inputs for the evaluation of potential energy yield and performance of wind farms. Three-dimensional scanning coherent Doppler lidar (CDL) may provide a new basis for wind farm site selection, design, and control. In this research, CDL measurements obtained from multiple wind energy developments are analyzed and

Wind measurements are fundamental inputs for the evaluation of potential energy yield and performance of wind farms. Three-dimensional scanning coherent Doppler lidar (CDL) may provide a new basis for wind farm site selection, design, and control. In this research, CDL measurements obtained from multiple wind energy developments are analyzed and a novel wind farm control approach has been modeled. The possibility of using lidar measurements to more fully characterize the wind field is discussed, specifically, terrain effects, spatial variation of winds, power density, and the effect of shear at different layers within the rotor swept area. Various vector retrieval methods have been applied to the lidar data, and results are presented on an elevated terrain-following surface at hub height. The vector retrieval estimates are compared with tower measurements, after interpolation to the appropriate level. CDL data is used to estimate the spatial power density at hub height. Since CDL can measure winds at different vertical levels, an approach for estimating wind power density over the wind turbine rotor-swept area is explored. Sample optimized layouts of wind farm using lidar data and global optimization algorithms, accounting for wake interaction effects, have been explored. An approach to evaluate spatial wind speed and direction estimates from a standard nested Coupled Ocean and Atmosphere Mesoscale Prediction System (COAMPS) model and CDL is presented. The magnitude of spatial difference between observations and simulation for wind energy assessment is researched. Diurnal effects and ramp events as estimated by CDL and COAMPS were inter-compared. Novel wind farm control based on incoming winds and direction input from CDL's is developed. Both yaw and pitch control using scanning CDL for efficient wind farm control is analyzed. The wind farm control optimizes power production and reduces loads on wind turbines for various lidar wind speed and direction inputs, accounting for wind farm wake losses and wind speed evolution. Several wind farm control configurations were developed, for enhanced integrability into the electrical grid. Finally, the value proposition of CDL for a wind farm development, based on uncertainty reduction and return of investment is analyzed.
ContributorsKrishnamurthy, Raghavendra (Author) / Calhoun, Ronald J (Thesis advisor) / Chen, Kangping (Committee member) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Fraser, Matthew (Committee member) / Phelan, Patrick (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013