Andrea Ofori-Boadu | North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (original) (raw)

Papers by Andrea Ofori-Boadu

2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Jul 26, 2021

Water Environment Research, Sep 11, 2019

A review of the literature published in 2018 on topics related to monitoring, sampling, and autom... more A review of the literature published in 2018 on topics related to monitoring, sampling, and automated analysis is presented. The review includes current developments in monitoring, sampling, and analysis of water, wastewater, and groundwater. This review includes the following sections: brief introduction; sample preparation and extraction techniques; real-time, high-frequency, and/or in situ monitoring (microbiological, inorganic, organic, metals, and others); passive monitoring; and the biosensors. In the end, the authors have discussed future of the topic. © 2019 Water Environment Federation • Practitioner points • Advances in monitoring, sampling and automated analysis of water and wastewater are summarized. • Real-time, high-frequency, and in-situ monitoring and analysis of pollutants are summarized. • Topics include sample preparation and extraction and passive monitoring, and biosensors for pollutants.

International Journal of Engineering Research and Applications, 2017

The purpose of this research was to investigate the influence of swine-waste biochar (SB) on the ... more The purpose of this research was to investigate the influence of swine-waste biochar (SB) on the early-age characteristics of cement pastes. Using a water/binder ratio of 0.28, SB modified cement pastes were analyzed using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), flow, and Vicat setting tests. Notably, SB reduced the flow and initial setting times of SB modified cement pastes. Due to its porous and negatively charged surfaces, capillary water was adsorbed into the pores of the carbonaceous SB and this reduced the flow of the SB modified cement pastes. Furthermore, it is suspected that the reductions in initial setting times may have been because with the addition of water to the dry SB/cement binder mix, chemical reactions between the calcium cations from Portland cement and carboxylate anions from SB resulted in the development of Calcium Polycarboxylate Salts (C-P-S). Improvements in the properties of SB could enhance its applications in rapid-setting and flow-reducing concrete.

2016 Portland International Conference on Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), 2016

Increasing the pool of qualified workers in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics ... more Increasing the pool of qualified workers in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) areas has become one of the nation's key priorities, as those professions are the backbone of innovation and critical to our country's economic future. The 2015 Females in Technology (FiT) Summer Boot Camp project was a summer residential technology boot camp for low income rising high school junior and senior girls. The objective of the 2015 Summer FiT boot camp was to increase the number of low income female students who pursue degrees in technology disciplines at the collegiate level and who are prepared for a technologically rich workforce. As a recruitment tool, we anticipate increasing the enrollment of female students in the School of Technology. The methodology for the FiT Boot Camp was a short-term intensive hands-on experience which was the first of its kind at NCA&T. The preliminary results have been more than promising. The pre and post-test surveys indicate a positive trend in terms of knowledge gained, interest, and attitude towards technology. Not only did this program stimulate interest in the technology profession, it also introduced female students to new and innovative technology concepts while reinforcing and improving technology and leadership skills.

Water Environment Research, 2003

In the pursuit of cheaper and more sustainable building materialsto meethousing demands in develo... more In the pursuit of cheaper and more sustainable building materialsto meethousing demands in developing countries like Cameroun, the mechanicalproperties ofadobe bricks which have been stabilized with recycled sugarcane fiber waste were investigated. Laboratory experiments were conducted using sugarcanefiber waste stabilized adobe brick specimens with fiber proportions of 0%, 0.3%, 0.6%, 1.2%, 2% and 3% by weight.Fiber stabilization increased compressive strength by 58.61% for 3% bricks, reaching 4.79 MPa.Further, 3% fiber stabilized bricks shrunk by 7.49%, while the non-stabilized bricksshrunk by 12.13%. Also, 3% bricks lasted for one week before deterioration when immersed in water, while the non-stabilized bricks lasted for only a few hours. The findings confirmed that sugarcane fiber waste stabilized adobe bricks have improved strength, durability and stability. The use of abandoned sugarcane fiber waste in adobe bricks will contribute to the development of more durable, sustainab...

International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation, 2017

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a Housing Eligibility Assessment Scoring Method (... more Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a Housing Eligibility Assessment Scoring Method (HEASM) for low-income Urgent Repair Programs (URPs). Design/methodology/approach In order to develop a practical HEASM that incorporates the prevailing eligibility assessment criteria for low-income URPs, a case study research approach was adopted. Emergent themes and patterns in predominant eligibility assessment criteria and methods are derived from program documents utilized by a successful State Urgent Repair Program (SURP) and its 42 Community Partners operating in the Southeastern region of the USA. Coupled with interviews and the expert analysis of SURP staff, the quantitative analysis of 11,414 repaired homes and literature reviews were used to categorize predominant eligible housing repairs and costs. Findings The five key eligibility assessment criteria categories that emerged from the data analysis are: location, owner-occupancy, family needs, housing repair, and estimated rep...

Built Environment Project and Asset Management, 2015

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate relationships between five energy efficienc... more Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate relationships between five energy efficiency programs and electricity intensities in the US commercial buildings sector. Design/methodology/approach – Regression methods analyze state-level secondary data from 2006 through 2009 to identify significant energy program drivers of electricity efficiency. Findings – Combined, the five programs studied account for approximately nine percent reduction in commercial electricity intensity. Practical implications – Outcomes will inform stakeholders’ decision-making regarding adoption or continuation of energy programs. Social implications – Electricity efficiency gains will help reduce negative environmental aspects and the present dependence on foreign oil. Originality/value – Very little research has considered the impact of multiple programs on commercial electricity efficiency within their complex implementation environment.

Structural Survey, 2012

PurposeTraditional management systems sometimes struggle to meet the unique demands of Leadership... more PurposeTraditional management systems sometimes struggle to meet the unique demands of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) projects. Consequently, contractors have to modify their management practices. The purpose of this paper is to explore the management practices necessary to achieve successful implementation of LEED projects.Design/methodology/approachLEED project management practices implemented by six US contractors from the Top 100 Green Contractors list published by the Engineering News and Record, were analysed using structured case study interviews. An additional case study probed management practices implemented on a LEED‐GOLD project.FindingsFindings support the implementation of management practices classified using the six Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award criteria of leadership, strategic planning, customer focus, measurement, analysis and knowledge management, workforce focus and operation focus.Research limitations/implicationsThe qualitative study was based on a limited number of participant organizations. A subsequent quantitative study might provide generalizeable metrics for the green building industry. Further research on the cost effectiveness of the identified management practices is recommended.Practical implicationsThis study provides an intuitive framework in the form of discourse on management practices to enhance the success of LEED projects. Contractors may consider the study's recommendations in order to increase their success on such projects.Originality/valueThe need to harmonize management practices with sustainable development has sparked the interest of researchers and practitioners. The study should be of utility to LEED contractors, environmental agencies, governments, educators, and other relevant stakeholders.

Mercy Fash is an enthusiastic and determined researcher. She is currently a graduate student at N... more Mercy Fash is an enthusiastic and determined researcher. She is currently a graduate student at North Carolina A&T State University with the Applied Science and Technology Program. With a Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, a master's in Technology management and currently attaining a PhD in Applied Science and Technology, Mercy is a passionate STEM student who is purposeful about the success and well-being of other STEM students. She is currently working on other researches that would help understand the decision-making, and thinking processes of STEM students. Mercy has had the opportunity to work with great minded STEM scholars and researchers in the course of her career and has been exposed to real life experiences that have shaped her perspective on the relevance of STEM professions. Mercy is currently mentored by Dr. Andre Ofori-Boadu who has tremendous achievements in the STEM profession as a resourceful scholar and a researcher. Mercy has a learnt a lot from Dr. Andrea in the little time she has worked with her and still hopes to learn some more. Mercy is determined to find out possible ways to advance the STEM professions and also inspire young students to also see the relevance of the STEM professions. Overall, Mercy has a bright future in the research and as a STEM professional.

IOSR Journal of Business and Management, 2016

International Journal of Industrial Engineering & Production Research, 2012

New home buyers in United States are becoming more discriminating in their home buying decision. ... more New home buyers in United States are becoming more discriminating in their home buying decision. They are demanding quality construction at reasonable prices. The current state of construction market also gives construction buyers more ammunition to be more discriminate when they choose to purchase homes. To be competitive and remain in business, housing contractors and developers must meet the growing quality demands of the customers. Thus, the competition to meet the buyers’ quality demand has forced many of them to rethink the ways they build their homes. The improved designs, and construction methods and practices have resulted into award-winning quality-built homes for many of these contractors. This study was conducted to examine the quality improvement characteristics of selected award-winning residential builders and housing developers in selected counties in North Carolina, U.S.A. Through a structured questionnaire, the researchers collected information relative to their co...

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility of utilizing agricultural (almond ... more PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility of utilizing agricultural (almond shell, rice husk and wood) waste biochars for partial cement replacement by evaluating the relationships between the physiochemical properties of biochars and the early-age characteristics of cement pastes.Design/methodology/approachBiochars are prepared through the thermal decomposition of biomass in an inert atmosphere. Using varying percentages, biochars are used to replace ordinary Portland cement (OPC) in cement pastes at a water/binder ratio of 0.35. Characterization methods include XPS, FTIR, SEM, TGA, BET, Raman, loss-on-ignition, setting, compression and water absorption tests.FindingsAccelerated setting in biochar-modified cement pastes is attributed to chemical interactions between surface functional groups of biochars and calcium cations from OPC, leading to the early development of metal carboxylate and alkyne salts, alongside the typical calcium-silicate-hydrate (C-S-H). Al...

Supervised machine learning techniques were used to answer the central question: does excelling i... more Supervised machine learning techniques were used to answer the central question: does excelling in reading quizzes, a good predictor of accurately predicting the passing rate in MEEN241 Fundamentals of Thermodynamics? Class assignments such as reading quizzes (RQ), quizzes (Q) and home-works (HW), Tests (T), and midterm (MT) were designed. The predictor variables analyzed are High GPA (>3.0), RQ, Q, and passing PHYS241 General Physics and these were used to develop two classifiers: CART with cross-validation and Random Forest. The CART and the Random Forest models identified Q, and Q and RQ, respectively as the best predictor, although quiz and reading quiz accounted respectively, for only 5% and 15% of the total weight. This suggests that students who devote the time and effort into doing the reading assignments and subsequently passing both the RQ and Q are likely to expend similar effort and time in other class assignments and preparation towards tests and examinations.

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition Proceedings

Prior to joining the School of Technology faculty, she held position at U.S. Department of Energy... more Prior to joining the School of Technology faculty, she held position at U.S. Department of Energy, N.C. A&T's Division of Research and College of Engineering. Dr. Sowells earned a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from North Carolina A&T State University's College of Engineering. She also holds a M.S. and B.S in Computer Science with a concentration in software engineering from the same university. Her primary research interests are in the areas of lowpower high performance digital systems design, asynchronous design, self-timed digital system design and STEM education. As a result of her work, she has numerous peer reviewed journal and conference publications. She recently authored a book entitled "Low Power Self-Timed Size Optimization for an Input Data Distribution," which explores innovative techniques to reduce power consumption for portable electronic devices. She was recently awarded the 2016 Chair's award for Rookie Researcher of the year in the Computer System Technology department. Dr. Sowells is the lead investigator of the Females in Technology (FiT) summer boot camp grant project for academically gifted low income rising senior and junior high girls for recruitment into the technology degree areas. She is also the co-PI of the Aggie STEM Minority Male Maker grant project focused on early exposure to technology to stimulate interest in technology of middle school minority males. Evelyn is not only outstanding in teaching and research, but also in service.

Water Environment Research

A review of the literature published in 2019 on topics associated to the fate of environmental po... more A review of the literature published in 2019 on topics associated to the fate of environmental pollutants is presented. Environmental pollutants covered include pharmaceuticals, antibiotic resistant bacteria and genes, pesticides and veterinary medicines, personal care products and emerging pollutants, PFAS, microplastics, nanomaterials, heavy metals and radionuclides, nutrients, pathogens and indicator organisms, and oil and hydrocarbons. For each pollutant, the occurrence in the environment and/or their fate in engineered as well as natural systems in matrices including water, soil, wastewater, stormwater, runoff, and/or manure is presented based on the published literature. The review includes current developments in understanding pollutants in natural and engineered systems, and relevant physico-chemical processes, as well as biological processes.