04/02/2021
By Sokny Long

The Francis College of Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, invites you to attend a Master’s thesis defense by Lance Harms on “Evaluation of Automated Dispensing for Fabrication of Polymer Membranes.”

MSE Candidate: Lance Harms
Defense Date: Tuesday, April 13, 2021
Time: 10 to 11 a.m. EST
Location: This will be a virtual defense via Zoom. Those interested in attending should contact Lance_Harms@student.uml.edu and committee advisor, Robert_Giles@uml.edu, at least 24 hours prior to the defense to request access to the meeting.

Committee Chair (Advisor): Robert Giles, University Professor, Physics, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Committee Members:

  • Daniel Sullivan, Associate Teaching Professor, Mechanical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell
  • Juan Pablo Trelles, Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell
  • Sohrab Mansouri, Staff Scientist, Instrumentation Laboratories

Brief Abstract:

The goal of this project was to determine the feasibility of automating the dispensing process for creating dual layer polymer membranes used in the GEM Premier blood gas analyzer made by Instrumentation Laboratories. Both contact dispensing and jetting dispensing were tested using the Nordson EFD Pro Series robot. Experimental design was used in tandem with Matlab image processing codes to increase uniformity and consistency in dispensed membranes. Then, laser scanning confocal microscopy was used to determine the volume of the dispensed membranes and adjust settings to hit the target volumes set by the company. 30 sample cards were created and tested at Instrumentation Laboratories where it was found that 10 cards passed, 17 were downgraded, and 3 had failed. The main culprit of sensor failure is thought to be incorrect volumes dispensed on the sensor pins followed by failures due to particulate contamination. It is believed that with some alteration to the dispenser settings and a more controlled dispensing environment that automated membrane dispensing is a viable process.

All interested students and faculty members are invited to attend the online defense via remote access.