The development of microfluidic devices for heavy metal extraction is presented in this dissertation. Various research areas, covering subjects from photochromic compound syntheses to microchip fabrication techniques are explored to develop microfluidic devices capable of extracting heavy metal ions from drinking water. Through integration of the beneficial characteristics of both...
Potato varieties characterized by non-conventional skin and flesh colors (purple, red, yellow) have the potential to revitalize consumer demand for fresh market potatoes because of their unique appearance and health benefits. Red and purple potatoes contain anthocyanins, which are flavonoids responsible for red, blue, and purple pigments in plants. Yellow...
Reactor modeling is largely limited by the computational time required to perform accurate full core calculations. There are many different methods and techniques employed in different reactor simulation codes, but properly modeling all of the physics that takes place in the system requires extensive computational effort. The Coarse Mesh Finite...
Two improvements to the established procedures for synthesis and response detection of ion-selective optical sensors (optodes) were introduced.
The first improvement addresses the drawback of organic dye (optode-localized chromoionophore) photobleaching. This positively impacts fluorescence response and allows for (1) direct measurement of hydrogen ion activity upon binding with the dye,...
Spike morphology characteristics and the free-threshing habit of wheat have been extensively investigated because of their evolutionary significance and practical importance. Several genetic systems that govern these traits have been reported. Some studies suggest polygenic inheritance while others have identified major genes. This study was conducted to identify and locate...
Azaspiracid-1, a novel marine toxin that contains 9 rings and 20 stereogenic centers, has drawn considerable attention from synthetic groups worldwide due to its structural complexity, which includes a unique trioxabisspiroketal fused to a tetrahydrofuran ring (ABCD rings), a piperidine-tetrahydrofuran spiroaminal system fused to a 2,9-dioxabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane system (FGHI rings), a...
Strawbreaker foot-rot is a major limiting factor to cost efficient winter wheat
production in the Pacific Northwest. Development of resistant cultivars has been
hindered by the lack of adequate levels of genetic resistance and screening techniques
which can consistently detect desired genotypes.
Studies were conducted to determine if the reported...
The consumption of seafood in the United States has increased rapidly in recent years due to high quality protein and health benefits of seafood. Seafood can be a carrier for bacteria normally distributed in the marine environment and, in some cases, can be contaminated by human pathogens. Therefore, there is...
β-chitin/chitosan extracted from newly utilized jumbo squid (Dosidicus gigas) pens were investigated in respect to their physicochemical properties, polymeric structures, deacetylation and depolymerization characteristics, and antioxidant and antibacterial activities. These functional properties were further compared with α-chitin/chitosan prepared from shrimp shells. Due to the low mineral content (< 1%) and...
A method for isolating the salt gland (SG) from the larval brine
shrimp has been developed. This extra-renal organ is removed from 5-10%
of Stage Inauplii by vortexing after incubating the animals at 37°C for
8 hours in a saline solution buffered with 100 mM sodium phosphate at pH
7.6....