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The Chemical City Of The World: Mapping Petrochemical Communities in West Virginia
Get PDFThis project was conducted out of the Center for Resilient Communities in partnerships with the West Virginia Environment and Society Lab. This research focuses on the impact of industrialization and water contamination on community health and well-being in South Charleston, West Virginia. West Virginia and the Ohio River valley have been at the heart of petrochemical development since the 1900s. Scholars refer to the area as a “sacrifice zone” that has fed the economic development of the nation while forcing local residents to suffer its toxic fallout. Many residents are aware of chemicals in their community however, there are gaps in data and information between “expert” scientists and community members. Since the birth of petrochemicals the repeated accidents and chemical spills have been underreported and concerns of the community have not been addressed. Due to their ongoing and overwhelming presence, the industry virtually controls these communities both economically and socially. This project seeks to make information about petrochemical sites available in a clear, accessible manner. As well as understanding the impact of petrochemicals in the state of West Virginia with a case study of Kanawha County. In doing this we hope to contribute to the conversations surrounding the injustice in this industry creating progress toward a brighter future
Permeability of Politics: Exploring the Impact of Mobilization on Political Discussions in a Closed Religious Community
No full textIn 2016, the Amish PAC was formed with the intent of mobilizing a group of low propensity voters who they believed could help secure political victory in critical swing states such as Ohio and Pennsylvania. These efforts continued through the 2020 election as the PAC continued to court voters within a closed religious community in an attempt to encourage political activity amongst those who ideologically remain apolitical. Specifically, this mobilization effort targeted those within the Amish and Mennonite communities, discussed throughout this dissertation as the ‘Plain Community’. This dissertation analyzes the mobilization attempt by measuring changes in the way the Plain Community engages in national politics through written discourse. I hypothesized that the mobilization attempts will cause a change in the frequency of political discourse that occurs within the Plain Community newspaper, The Budget. Published weekly, The Budget is a correspondence newspaper that is comprised primarily of entries from scribes scattered throughout the United States. To test this hypothesis, I use a mixed methods approach that incorporates topic modeling through Natural Language Processing, z-tests for proportions, and content analysis to assess the differences in political discourse across time. In total, I analyzed over 112,000 entries from 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020. The findings from this dissertation indicate that the mobilization efforts from outside groups impact the frequency of political discussions within the closed religious community. However, mobilization seems to occur across all entries, and not simply those within states most heavily targeted by the Amish PAC. I uncovered more nuance within the data by conducting a content analysis of entries identified as political. More specifically, the content analysis uncovered differences in how the community discussed political figures based on gender and race, integrated misinformation into their written correspondence and discussed their personal responsibility for the nation’s wellbeing. These findings are contextualized within the broader theoretical landscape of religion and politics in the United States
Membrane Reactor Modeling and Optimization for Hydrogen Production
No full textThere has been an ongoing trend toward cleaner fuels for more environmentally benign forms of energy generation. Recently, hydrogen has been identified as a clean fuel for energy generation. However, the most established, efficient, and widely utilized technique for producing hydrogen remains the steam methane reforming (SMR) in the presence of catalyst. Unlike other fossil fuels, utilizing methane from natural gas in an SMR process to produce hydrogen emits less, but yet a notable sum of carbon dioxide. Furthermore, the endothermic nature of SMR reactions imply that there is a high energy requirement to obtain a substantial amount of hydrogen from the conversion of methane during the process. Lastly, conventional SMR process utilizes a series of unit operations to ensure that the purity of hydrogen meets the set standards. Owing to this, research continues to investigate how to improve the SMR process. Membrane reactors (MRs) have been developed based on the principle of process intensification to improve the performance of SMR. Specifically, MRs are noted for their ability to improve the equilibrium conversion of methane as well as the production of highly purified hydrogen, especially with the use of Palladium-based membranes, such as Pd-Ag membrane.
Owing to this, a one-dimensional pseudo-homogeneous model of a Pd-Ag MR is developed in this dissertation for the SMR process. The developed model is first validated using data from open literature. Simulation is then performed to evaluate the performance of the process. Specifically, the considered performance metrics are methane conversion, hydrogen yield, carbon dioxide purity, and hydrogen recovery. Based on a literature survey on existing SMR MR modeling studies, a research gap lies in how the interaction of the operating variables impacts the performance of the process, especially with the incorporation of environmental goals in term of carbon dioxide purity. Given this, a sensitivity study is carried out to offer a robust understanding of the impact of the interaction of operating temperature, pressure, and steam-to-carbon ratio on the process performance.
Optimization studies are efficient for realizing the optimal performance of a reactor. Nonetheless, there are limited studies on the multi-objective optimization (MOO) of an SMR in a Pd-Ag-MR. Besides, to the best of our knowledge, no MOO study has considered the sizing of an industrial-scale MR as a decision variable. This study contributes to existing knowledge in the field by incorporating system performance goals (methane conversion, hydrogen permeation rate, and hydrogen recovery), environmental goal (carbon dioxide purity) and economic goal (membrane cost) during the MOO study. Specifically, the MOO scenarios considered are: (i) the maximization of methane conversion and minimization of membrane cost (ii) the maximization of hydrogen permeation rate and minimization of membrane cost (iii) the maximization of carbon dioxide purity and minimization of membrane cost (iv) the maximization of hydrogen recovery and minimization of membrane cost.
The results obtained from modeling, simulation and sensitivity studies show that MRs are efficient for improving the performance of an SMR process. When compared to equilibrium-governed simulations, a Pd-Ag-MR improved the conversion of methane by 51%, hydrogen yield by 54%, and carbon dioxide purity by 163%. Lastly, a Pareto front that consists of a set of Pareto-optimal solutions for each of the MOO scenarios is obtained. In conclusion, this work contributes to the existing field of knowledge in this domain by carrying out the modeling, simulation, sensitivity analysis, and multi-objective optimization of SMR using a Pd-Ag-MR, together with the integration of environmental and economic goals, towards achieving sustainable hydrogen production
A Post Apocalyptic Romp: Designing Costumes for Phoebe in Winter
No full textThis thesis will document the process of costume designing for Phoebe in Winter by Jen Silverman. It will examine the process from first read of the script through initial and final design meetings and to execution and production of the design. This will report on challenges specific to this production, such as nudity and violence on an academic stage, and the subsequent solutions. Phoebe in Winter was produced by West Virginia University School of Theatre and Dance in October of 2024. The design process began in February of the same year
The Dark Tetrad and the Intention to Invest in Cryptocurrency
No full textThe Dark Tetrad comprises four distinct negative personality traits with some overlapping qualities: narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and sadism. Characterized as being risky and speculative, cryptocurrencies are not backed by government banks like fiat currencies, nor do they offer the same privacy when engaging in transactions.
Narcissists may view cryptocurrency investment as an opportunity to showcase their financial acumen, reinforcing their self-image. Machiavellians see the decentralized, loosely regulated market as ideal for exploiting opportunities through strategic manipulation. Psychopaths, drawn by the market’s volatility, may engage in exploitative schemes for personal gain. Sadists may find satisfaction in the power and control they can exert within the cryptocurrency space, driven by the appeal of dominance over others.
This study examines the relationship between psychology and the strategic decisions that individuals make when choosing to purchase cryptocurrencies by conducting a survey of 433 participants. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to analyze the results. The findings demonstrate that Machiavellians show a significant intention to invest in cryptocurrency
Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana
No full texthttps://researchrepository.wvu.edu/cupressaceae/1048/thumbnail.jp