Optimization of a batch reactor process using statistical analysis

Master of ScienceDepartment of Chemical EngineeringJohn R. SchlupA batch reactor is used to remove an environmental concern (EC) from the wastewater stream of an industrial process at Novelis, Inc.’s, Oswego, NY, facility. Between May 2017 and February 2018 major process changes occurred across the machine centers that produce the wastewater. This led to expected decreases in the concentration of EC in the wastewater, how much wastewater was produced, and several other changes. As a result, the process engineer responsible for the reactor decided that the amount of Chemical A and Chemical B, the reactants, added to each batch would be reduced. Additionally, batches are run less frequently, often with smaller volumes. These changes were not expected to have any effects on reactor efficiency. However, after some time it was noted that the reaction was consistently taking longer to complete than previously and the final concentration of B was often higher than before the changes were made. With multiple changes having been made around the same time, to both the source of the wastewater and the reactor, it is difficult to understand which changes, or combination of changes, caused this shift. This report details a series of statistical analyses which were used to gain a better understanding of the connections between the changes observed, the resulting shifts, and optimization of the reactor operation. Through the use of factor analysis it was found that the seven potentially relevant input variables could be reduced to three components. Through ANOVA four variables were determined to have significant impacts on both the length of time for the reaction to complete and the final outcome of the reaction. Based on these findings adjustments were made, additional data was collected, and new analyses were run. From this second round of analyses the following change was recommended: the 42 liters of A and 36 liters of B should be used for every cubic meter of wastewater to be treated

The Created Landscape

Beth DiNatale Johnson writes on the concept of outdoor spaces as created landscapes, and the history and use of such spaces for health and spirituality. Conference paper; originally published in Western Reserve Studies Symposium (14th:1999 : Cleveland, Ohio

Cultural Power and Utopianism in Laurie Halse Anderson\u27s Prom and M.T. Anderson\u27s Feed

Author\u27s abstract: Resourcefully and responsibly obtaining a sense of power is central to quality young adult literature. Laurie Halse Anderson\u27s Prom and M.T. Anderson\u27s Feed show their adolescent protagonists\u27 struggles with identity formation, consumerism, and the adult world. In order to address power relationships, the two novels address the rise of a global electronic and print media system that collapses traditional notions of time and space and the excessive consumption associated with the culture such a system creates. However, these two novels explore postmodern consumer culture from different perspectives. Prom functions as a utopian, revisionist fairy tale in which the consequences of rampant consumerism are combated through individual agency and sustained community involvement, whereas Feed acts as an apocalyptic dystopia in which any quest for agency is thwarted by the rampant consumerism connected to the rise of a transnational, info-age economy. The extent to which these two novels fit within the theoretical framework of utopian/dystopian fiction illuminates their disparate approaches to the power struggles associated with the culture industry

The Battle Against Ecology Nuts : An Examination of Olympic Oil Refinery Proponents

In the early 1970s, the United States was facing an oil embargo that sparked concern in citizens across the nation. In 1973, as the winter months were approaching, gasoline prices continued to skyrocket and rationing heating oil was highly encouraged. Americans struggled to adjust to such abrupt changes after having essentially unrestricted access to petroleum supplies. During this crisis, Aristotle Onassis swooped in and proposed to construct a massive oil refinery on the seacoast of New Hampshire. This plant, his team promised, would bring an abundance of fuel, jobs, and tax revenue to the area. However, a vast number of local residents were against this refinery due to its environmental and aesthetic implications. Through the grassroots activism of seacoast residents from towns such as Durham and Rye, the refinery construction was rejected. Much of the literature published today focuses on the triumphs of those who successfully fought off the industry and there is little mention of those who supported the refinery and wished to see the construction through. In order to understand how the proponents felt about the refinery and what societal conditions shaped their views, I conducted a thematic analysis of primary and secondary resources. Newspaper analysis revealed that economic factors did in fact drive the proponent’s views, but feelings of resentment towards the University of New Hampshire and those associated with it, who were perceived as elitist, was also a significant factor

Composing in Their Own Language: Feminist Pedagogy in Richard LaGravenese’s Freedom Writers

This paper explores Richard LaGravenese’s 2007 film adaptation of Erin Gruwell’s teaching memoir, The Freedom Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around Them. LaGravenese’s adaptation chronicles the challenges and triumphs Gruwell faces as she earns her disenfranchised students’ trust and respect both inside and outside of the classroom. Gruwell uses feminist pedagogical practices in order to transgress institutional practices that seek to silence her “Students’ Right to their Own Language.” My purpose in analyzing this particular popular culture text is to evaluate the specific teaching practices that identify Gruwell not only as a feminist pedagogue, but as an exemplary composition instructor. While a considerable amount of scholarship has analyzed the way educators are both positively and negatively portrayed in film, there has been no attempt to critically assess how feminist pedagogical practices work to challenge traditional educational ideologies in film. My analysis also seeks to identify and evaluate some of Gruwell’s exemplary teaching practices in order to analyze the ways in which feminist pedagogy might enhance other theoretical approaches and pedagogical practices in education.

A study of thirty-eight adult male probationers engaged in intensive casework treatment by the probation department of the Third District Court in the year 1956.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston Universit

Transparency in repeated procurement. When hiding is better

In this paper we study the effect of transparency on the willingness to collude in repeated procurement competitive tenderings. We allow the buyer to postpone the revelation of the winner's identity and show that such a policy may make collusive agreements less stable in both simultaneous and sequential competitive procedures. When the buyer postpones the revelation of the winner's identity in a scenario in which colluding and "honest" (never colluding) firms participate to the same tendering, the threat of a retaliation, by means of an aggressive bidding by the colluding firms, is weakened and collusion is less stable

Impact of age norms and stereotypes on managers' hiring decisions of retirees

Purpose -Our study investigates the role of managers in the re-employment of early retirees and asks what the effect is of managers’ age norms and stereotypes on managers’ employment decisions. Design/methodology/approach- A combination of a factorial study and a survey was conducted. First, information on the age norms and stereotypes was collected. Secondly, profiles of hypothetical retired job applicants were presented to the employers, who were asked to make a specific hiring decision. The information collected during both studies was combined in the analysis and multilevel models were estimated. Findings -The results indicate that higher age norms result in a higher propensity to hire an early retiree. Stereotypes, by contrast, do not influence managers’ decisions. Early retirees’ chances for re-employment are also related to their own circumstances (physical appearance and relevant experience) and organisational forces, as they are hired when organisations face labour force shortages. Research limitation / implications – with the use of vignettes study we deal with hypothetical hiring situation. Originality value- Although the effect of age norms and age stereotypes has been often suggested, not much empirical evidence was presented to support this notion. Our study estimates the effect of age norms and stereotypes on hiring decision. key words: bridge employment; early retirees; age norms; age stereotypes; multilevel models.