New Mexico Tech
Mentor(s): Daniel Cadol, New Mexico Tech, Associate Professor of Hydrology
Program: NM AMP
Evaluating methods for remote measurement of stream flow velocity in ephemeral flash flood environments
Obtaining measurements of water velocity during flash flooding events is both difficult and dangerous. Safety is of the utmost importance when conducting research in the field, particularly in remote areas with limited vehicle and support access. Traditional methods of measuring water velocity are insufficient, especially when considering the unpredictability of shot-lived ephemeral flash floods. New, automated methods should be evaluated for their accuracy. We evaluated two methods to measure surface water velocity: Doppler velocity radar and Large-Scale Particle Image Velocimetry (LSPIV). The Doppler radar records an average of the surface velocity by directing a beam of radio wave energy at an approaching target. The frequency shift of the reflected energy is proportional to the radial velocity of the target object relative to the velocimeter. LSPIV analysis consists of recording a video of a flood and analyzing each frame for changes in the water surface. Individual particle tracking produces an array of surface velocity vectors. Using cross section and reference target surveys, continuously monitored stage data, and estimates of the ratio of depth-averaged velocity to surface water velocity for a given relative roughness, continuous cross-section-average velocity can be estimated for the flood event, and from this the entire discharge hydrograph.
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Jhanene Heying-Melendrez, Physics
New Mexico Tech
Mentor(s): Dr. Kenneth Minschwaner, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Professor of Physics
Program: NM AMP
Investigations of Ozone Dynamics and Chemistry from Satellite and Balloon Sounding Data
Ozone, is an atmospheric gas that greatly affects the surface ultraviolet radiation, air quality, and climate. In the stratosphere, ozone is considered beneficial as it absorbs ultraviolet light from the sun which reduces the exposure of plants and animals to damaging ultraviolet radiation. Closer to the surface in the troposphere, ozone is detrimental to the environment because it is a strong oxidizer and can attack plant tissue and animal respiratory systems. Ozone is also a powerful greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. Quantifying observed variations in ozone and potential temperature with altitude allows for the detection of ozone laminae (thin layered features), and thus aids in the identification of the mechanisms that produce or destroy ozone. Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) balloon ozonesondes are used along with algorithms in Interactive Data Language (IDL) software to identify spatial patterns in laminar features of balloon soundings. Plots of the measurements taken via ozonesondes will be analyzed for NOAA stations at Boulder, Colorado, and Pago Pago, Samoa, to determine the relationships between ozone and potential temperature at different altitudes in the troposphere and stratosphere. Comparisons of ozone laminae detected at different stations and across different seasons will be presented. Analysis between different periods of time will be done to see if the data is indicative of correlations between seasonality and changing ozone laminae.
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Vennessa D Maestas, Biology
Central New Mexico Community College
Mentor(s): Marina Hien, New Mexico Tech, Graduate Student
Program: NM AMP SCCORE
Vegetation Surveys
I filled the position of a vegetation survey intern. My job was to assist my advisor Marina Hien in her research on quantifying Rio Grande water loss due to invasive plants. The vegetation surveys were conducted to collect data on plant variation and quantity. The data was collected by conducting vegetation surveys within 200 meters of the Rio Grande. We would scout the 200 meters then decide what portion was most representative of the area. We would lay a 30-meter tape vertically starting at the west point then heading east. We would carry a meter stick horizontally on the line then walk and record all vegetation within that locality onto a data sheet. The data we collected showed plant variation within the 6 locations surveyed. The data can later be used by Marina to answer her research question "How much water is lost along the middle Rio Grande due to Tamarisk evapotranspiration?" A pattern I was able to observe is that in areas of canopy such as Cottonwoods or Tamarisk there was little ground vegetation. Further research is desirable. Considering the aid, I was able to hand lasted only a month. I was part to the successful completion of 6 out of 7 of the transects.
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Fillipp Edvard L Salvador, Chemistry
New Mexico Tech
Mentor(s): Wenyang Gao, New Mexico Tech, Associate Professor of Chemistry
Program: NM AMP
Mechanochemistry of Group 4 Elements-based Metal-Organic Frameworks
Metal-organic frameworks are a growing class of porous materials composed of a metal node and organic linker. The customizability made possible by the many different metal and organic linker combinations allows MOFs to be utilized in many applications. Some of them are gas capture, gas separation, gas storage, catalysis, and drug delivery. This promising family of materials is conventionally synthesized solvothermally or hydrothermally, which uses excess solvent and high temperatures. This takes away from the environmental benefits that MOFs may have. An alternative synthetic method is through mechanochemistry, which forms the extended structure through mechanical force. This method as of now has been used to recreate already known MOFs; we synthesized and characterized a family of hafnium based MOFs mechanochemically. We also synthesized a family of hafnium-zirconium multimetallic MOFs, and found that mechanochemistry allows for the synthesis of cluster precise multimetallic MOFs. Mechanochemistry gives the user a higher degree of control in the distribution of metals in multimetallic MOFs, and we believe that this is a step towards a deeper understanding of MOF chemistry.
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James T Sanchez, Physics
New Mexico Tech
Mentor(s): Caitano da Silva, New Mexico Tech, Assistant Professor of Physics
Program: NM AMP
Combining Machine Learning and Monte Carlo Simulations to Probe the Physics of Runaway Electrons
Runaway electron phenomena pose many exciting - and largely unanswered - questions involving their behavior in and implications to earth's atmosphere. Even in the absence of well-defined experimental methods for analyzing runaway electrons, great insight can be gained from utilizing Monte Carlo methods to computationally simulate them. We made use of the Geant4 C++ toolkit to simulate streamer discharges, mirroring an experimental setup carried out in 2017 (da Silva et al., GRL, 44, 11174, 2017). Thousands of (monoenergetic) simulations were carried out, each producing a unique deposited energy spectrum. Methods including random sampling and random combination were used to combine the simulation spectra to yield a non-monoenergetic distribution. The combining of spectra was done for the purpose of matching computational data with experimental data obtained from the experiment that our simulation was modeled after. Estimations of the shape of the energy / initial electron count distribution were made, but to no greater accuracy than R-squared values of 0.52. It is clear that machine learning methods are the next step to obtain the desired energy / initial electron count distribution. Early analysis suggests that an unsupervised probabilistic clustering algorithm would be very useful for this application.
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Rosa I Villalba, Environmental Science
New Mexico State University
Mentor(s): Manoj Shukla, New Mexico State University, Professor, Plant and Environmental Sciences
Program: NM AMP
Water Use Efficiency Improvement
The most used irrigation type used in New Mexico is Flood Irrigation. Flood Irrigation has been shown to lose a high percentage of water through evaporation. By incorporating the micro-gravity drip irrigation system, water waste could potentially be cut. Water for agricultural use is becoming scarce globally. It is essential to provide a solution to improve water use efficiency. In this project, the micro-drip irrigation system was installed by one irrigation line per one crop row. Sixteen total Chile rows were used to calculate data. Soil, plant, and water samples were collected and analyzed. Two different irrigation rates were used to compare and determine irrigation water output. This practice provides a demonstration of water conservation innovation. Overall, the micro-gravity drip irrigation system accurately monitors soil moisture and plant stress and determines when to increase or reduce irrigation. And improves crop yields while decreasing incidents of disease.
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