Geopolymer cements present a unique opportunity to make concrete binders almost entirely out of waste stream materials. Geopolymers made from fly ash, a waste product of coal power generation, as the aluminosilicate source and caustic activating solution were the focus of this study. However, the use of waste stream materials presents many challenges. One major stumbling block is that fly ash is inherently variable in composition and difficult to comprehensively characterize. The purpose of this work was to clarify the relationship between fly ash composition and reactivity in geopolymer cements. Ten fly ashes comprising a wide compositional spectrum were selected for the study and were characterized using quantitative x-ray diffraction and multispectral image analysis (MSIA) of x-ray maps coupled with point compositional analysis. The fly ashes were mixed into geopolymer mortars to determine their reactivity when activated as geopolymers. I hypothesized that the fly ashes that performed well under geopolymer formation conditions would have similarities in the glassy phases identified in them. The fly ashes that resulted in geopolymers with high compressive strengths did have several glassy phases in common. The phases were typically high in calcium, high in silicon, and somewhat low in aluminum. To determine whether the common phases were soluble and therefore likely to be dissolved, a dissolution method was used in which fly ash was mixed with concentrated caustic solution and continuously agitated; after 7 d and 28 d, the solid residues from the dissolution were studied using MSIA. The results showed that most of the glassy phases hypothesized to react were reactive, although the results were somewhat complex due to the heterogeneity of fly ash. The MSIA method proposed in previous work was further developed through this study, and a new way of selecting the training classes for phase composition assignment in the images was proposed. / text

It is common practice to purposely trap small air-voids in concrete in order to give it frost resistance. A large number of factors have been recognized to impact the ability to entrain and stabilize these microscopic air-voids in concrete. This dissertation investigates a number of these variables. However, the primary focus of this work is on investigating problems entraining and stabilizing air in concrete utilizing fly ash. These investigations include: evaluation of existing and newly created test methods to measure the impact of fly ash on the ability to air-entrain concrete, and the fresh and hardened properties of air-entrained fly ash concrete is investigated. Additional work is presented concerning some of the fundamental physical and chemical properties of air-void shells separated from cement paste and how they change with time.

published_or_final_version / Botany / Master / Master of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Civil and Structural Engineering / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

There is a discrepancy in the current literature concerning the stage of development in which horn flies arrest during pupal diapause. A study was therefore conducted to describe the morphologies of horn fly pupae and its central nervous system (CNS) throughout nondiapause pupal development and diapause. Morphologies of diapausing pupae and CNS indicated that developmental arrest occured early in pupal development during the interval between head eversion and pupal-adult apolysis. Morphological descriptions are necessary for defining compariable tissues between nondiapausing insects and diapausing insects. These tissues can then be used for molecular differential analysis to determine genes specific to either diapause or nondiapause. One such differential analysis technique, subtractive hybridization, was used to isolate putative diapause up-regulated genes from the horn fly. Seven different cDNAs were closed and partially sequenced. Comparisons of the cDNA sequences with known DNA and protein sequences indicated homology with transferrin, cytochrome oxidase I, Kunitz family serine protease inhibitor, tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), and carboxylensterase. Two cDNAs did not have homology to entries in DNA and protein databases. Northern blot analyses were used to study expression of each gene by probing total RNA extracted from whole pupae throughout nondiapause pupal development and diapause. Expression of TH was also determined in total RNA extracted from CNS tissue of nondiapausing and diapausing pupae. Cytochrome oxidase was equally expressed in nondiapause and diapause destined pupae, and therefore not considered to be a diapause up-regualted gene. Expression patterns differed slightly for each of the remaining clones; however, expression tended to be highest in diapause destined pupae during pupation compared to nondiapausing pupae. These genes and their products are involved in many aspects of insect phsiology including metamorphosis, melanization and sclerotization of the puparium and cellular defense. The possible functions of these genes and products are discussed in the context of the diapause process. / xii, 92 leaves : ill. ; 28 cm.

Blow fly (Diptera: Calliphoridae) interactions in decomposition ecology are well studied; however, the non-consumptive effects (NCE) of predators on the behavior and development of prey species have yet to be examined. The effects of these interactions and the resulting cascades in the ecosystem dynamics are important for species conservation and community structures. The resulting effects can impact the time of colonization (TOC) of remains for use in minimum post-mortem interval (mPMI) estimations. The development of the predacious blow fly, Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart) was examined and determined to be sensitive to muscle type reared on, and not temperatures exposed to. Development time is important in forensic investigations utilizing entomological evidence to help establish a mPMI. Validation of the laboratory-based development data was done through blind TOC calculations and comparisons with known TOC times to assess errors. A range of errors was observed, depending on the stage of development of the collected flies, for all methods tested with no one method providing the most accurate estimation. The NCE of the predator blow fly on prey blow fly, Cochliomyia macellaria (Fabricius) behavior and development were observed in the laboratory. Gravid female adult attraction was significantly greater to resources with predatory larvae rather than prey larvae and oviposition occurred on in the presence of heterospecific (predatory) and conspecific larvae equally. However, the life stages necessary for predation to occur never overlapped and so these results may not be as surprising as they seem. Conversely, exposing prey larvae to predator cues through larval excretions/secretions led to larger prey larvae and faster times to pupariation when appropriate life stages overlapped. Differences in size and development times of prey larvae in the presence of predatory cues could lead to errors when estimating the mPMI. These data also partially explain the ability of C. macellaria to survive in the presence of Ch. rufifacies. Colonization of a resource with late instar Ch. rufifacies enhanced development and size of resulting larvae indicating that lag colonization, rather than being a primary colonizer, could become an alternate strategy for C. macellaria to survive the selective pressures of the predator, Ch. rufifacies. The differing effects of temperature on Ch. rufifacies and C. macellaria may also lend an advantage to C. macellaria over the predacious Ch. rufifacies in an environment with variable temperatures unlike what Ch. rufifacies is adapted for.

Fly Ash was tested in relation to its ability to mitigate alkali-silica reaction, its contribution to strength, electrical resistance and heat release with the aim of recommending improvements to fly ash specifications. ASTM C 1567 accelerated mortar bar test results were in agreement with an expansion limit of 0.10 % at 14 days. A non-standard alkali leaching test showed that with high alkali fly ashes as replacement level increases the amount of alkalis leached increases while prism expansions decrease. Measures of pozzolanic activity can be improved by measuring against non-pozzolanic fillers, This requires high replacement levels to reduce statistical variability. Isothermal calorimetry tests showed that high calcium fly ashes can lead to delays in hydration, these delays can be reduced by calcium hydroxide additions. Calcium sulphate additions can also improve hydration.

Fly Ash was tested in relation to its ability to mitigate alkali-silica reaction, its contribution to strength, electrical resistance and heat release with the aim of recommending improvements to fly ash specifications. ASTM C 1567 accelerated mortar bar test results were in agreement with an expansion limit of 0.10 % at 14 days. A non-standard alkali leaching test showed that with high alkali fly ashes as replacement level increases the amount of alkalis leached increases while prism expansions decrease. Measures of pozzolanic activity can be improved by measuring against non-pozzolanic fillers, This requires high replacement levels to reduce statistical variability. Isothermal calorimetry tests showed that high calcium fly ashes can lead to delays in hydration, these delays can be reduced by calcium hydroxide additions. Calcium sulphate additions can also improve hydration.

&Ccedil / ayirhan soil is a collapsible soil. Collapsible soils are generally unsaturated, low-density soils with high voids between grains where the binding agents are sensitive to saturation. When exposed to water, binding agents break, soften or dissolve such that the soil grains shear against each other and reorient in denser configurations. This reconfiguration causes a net decrease in the soil mass, resulting in large and often unexpected settlements, which can totally destroy roads, underground utilities, and structures and alter surface drainage. Uses of collapsible soils as a natural construction material in fills or embankments also may cause serious stability problems. In this study, an extensive research program was carried out to investigate some geotechnical properties such as compaction, triaxial strength, bearing ratio and permeability of collapsible soil, found in &Ccedil / ayirhan Thermal Power Plant area, by treating with Class C fly ash and desulphogypsum (thermal power plant by-products that are to be handled for environmental reasons) in various proportions. The study has revealed that 20% and 25% fly ash or 5% desulphogypsum treatments (by dry weight of the mixture) improve the strength and bearing characteristics of &Ccedil / ayirhan soil.

The objective of this dissertation is the isolation of DNA sequences that are differentially represented in males and females of the Oriental fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis, specifically by initiating a molecular characterization of Y chromosome sequences in this species. Cytological observations have established the presence of a diminutive Y chromosome in B. dorsalis males. To isolate DNA sequences from the Y chromosome, a special method of genomic DNA isolation known as Representational Difference Analysis (RDA) was utilized to obtain DNA sequences unique to the B. dorsalis male genome. Genomic DNA from B. dorsalis males served as the "tester" DNA and female genomic DNA as the "driver" DNA. Six distinct RDA products were obtained following two complete rounds of DNA hybridization and difference enrichment via the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). One ofthese products (RDA product 1) was used to isolate a genomic DNA clone (3.1a) from a B. dorsalis male genomic DNA minilibrary. This sequence shows similarity to the reverse transcriptase of R1 retrotransposable elements. The presence of R1 elements in the Tephritid insects has heretofore been undescribed, although these elements have been previously described in the genomes of other Dipteran species. Oligonucleotide primers for PCR were designed for the 3.1a clone. These primers consistently produce different amplification patterns in PCRs ofgenomic DNA from B. dorsalis males vs. females. Amplification using male genomic DNA produces 325 bp and 2.6 kb products while only a 2.6 kb product is obtained from female DNA. The amplification products obtained with these primers are also produced in PCRs of genomic DNA from B. dorsalis embryos and third instar larvae, suggesting the ability of this method to infer sex at pre-adult stages ofthe B. dorsalis life cycle. Similar amplification products have also been obtained in other Bactrocera species. Both the 325 bp male PCR product and the 2.6 kb products have regions of sequence similarity to R1 elements. The 2.6 kb product contains a putative 1.7 kb open reading frame (ORF) encoding 583 amino acids. Three amino acid motifs found in Drosophila R1 element reverse transcriptases are present in comparable locations within the hypothetical ORF product. Both of these sequences are also repetitively represented in the B. dorsalis male and female genomes. However, the 325 bp male product produces some bands that are male specific when used as a probe for Southern blots of B. dorsalis male and female genomic DNA. The amplification pattern produced by the 3.1a primers is consistent with what would be expected if the 2.6 kb and 325 bp PCR products originated from the B. dorsalis X and Y chromosomes, respectively. Thus, the cloned male-specific sequence recovered here is potentially useful both as a gateway into the relatively uncharacterized B. dorsalis Y chromosome and as a tool for the characterization of other aspects of the B. dorsalis genome.