Masters Theses
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The Masters Theses collection contains digital copies of AUT University masters theses deposited with the Library since 2002 and made available open access. From 2007 onwards, all theses for masters degrees awarded are required to be deposited in Tuwhera Open Theses & Dissertations unless subject to an embargo.
For theses submitted prior to 2007, open access was not mandatory, so only those theses for which the author has given consent are available in Tuwhera Open Theses & Dissertations. Where consent for open access has not been provided, the thesis is usually recorded in the AUT Library catalogue where the full text, if available, may be accessed with an AUT password. Other people should request an Interlibrary Loan through their library.
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- Item[Testing] Genetic variation in hybrid improvements of banana crops(Auckland University of Technology, 2024) Banana, Asparagus; Wayne, BruceSeveral species of banana were genetically crossed with asparagus to create a new fruit called bananaragus.
- ItemTapu Tivaevae: Using Tivaevae to Facilitate Safe Conversations with Cook Island Youth Around Sexual Health and Wellbeing(Auckland University of Technology, 2024) Utia, Kyani Vira; Reay, Stephen; Khoo, CassandraThis practice-based research project looked at designing a culturally responsive and engaging resource for Cook Island adolescents. Eurocentric frameworks are currently dominating health and research concerning the development of Pacific peoples, where there is a lack of understanding of the cultural sensitivities of topics such as sex. In addressing the culturally sensitive topic of sexual health and wellbeing, this practice-based research project explored communication design approaches to prompting safe, engaging, and culturally responsive conversations around sex with Cook Island youth. There was an opportunity to understand better where Pasifika1 (specifically Cook Island) youth get their sexual health and wellbeing information and develop a designed resource incorporating this. This research project adopted an Action Research and Tivaevae model approach. Pasifika sexual health and wellbeing researchers, Pasifika communication designers, and Cook Island youth were included in this research to provide insight into first-hand experiences around specific challenges surrounding the issue. In conjunction, this research was also highly self-reflected and incorporated a wide range of experiences and interpretations to redefine taboos within sexual health and wellbeing and how conversations are navigated. This creative and reflective exploration informed a culturally responsive and engaging conversational ‘game.’ Embedded with Tivaevae, the game is an engaging way to talk about situations relating to sexual health and wellbeing safely and provides a visual representation of the conversations. Creative and culturally driven methods were integral to the research around facilitating safe conversations that understand Pasifika and its values. The final design outcome suggests that incorporating Tivaevae and Cook Island communication design can potentially create a safe space for these difficult conversations among Cook Island youth.
- ItemUnit Cell Orientation and Batch Variation Effect on the Mechanical Behaviour of Simple Cubic Ti-6Al-4V Lattice Made by Electron Beam Powder Bed Fusion(Auckland University of Technology, 2024) Wan, Antony R. O.; Chen, Zhan; Singamneni, SaratElectron beam powder bed fusion (EB-PBF) can make Ti-6Al-4V biomedical bone implants with porous lattice structures that are fully customised and patient-specific, potentially improving osseointegration and preventing stress shielding of Ti-6Al-4V bone implants. However, the mechanical strength of simple Ti-6Al-4V porous lattice structures with geometrical lattice parameters that are favourable for osseointegration and osteoconduction with consideration for the factors of the ease of powder removal, unit cell orientation and batch variation between builds for small lattices in an industrial production setting for EB-PBF have yet to be examined and understood. The mechanical strength of lattice with simple cubic unit cells of features desired for biomedical bone implants was investigated. This study examined the effect of unit cell orientation and batch variation on the mechanical strength of simple cubic Ti-6Al-4V lattice made with EB-PBF for quasi-static compressive and compressive-compressive fatigue loading. Four unit cell orientations of [001], [011], [111] and [√½√½1] made from six batches of the simple cubic lattice were tested for in the quasi-static compressive test and two unit cell orientations of [011] and [√½√½1] made from four batches of the simple cubic lattice were tested in the compressive-compressive fatigue test. Two net themes were used to print the specimens. Four batches were printed with net theme A and two with net theme B. The unit cell orientation affected the mechanical behaviour of the simple cubic Ti-6Al-4V lattice structure under compressive load. The [001] orientation still behaves with a stretching-dominated deformation, even with a small strut diameter and pore diameter that follows the osteoconductive requirement. The [001] orientation is significantly stronger than the [011], [111], and [√½√½1] orientations with bending-dominated deformation, which are in agreement with the quasi-static compressive simulation results. The [001] orientation has the highest compressive strength with σUCS -L of 2.0 to 2.5 times higher, σy-L of 1.8 to 2.1 times higher and EL of 1.6 to 2.1 times higher than other orientations. The [011] and [√½√½1] orientations were also found to affect the fatigue strength of the simple cubic Ti-6Al-4V lattice structure under cyclic compressive-compressive loading. The fatigue strength generally follows the compressive strength trend of the lattice structure. The batch variation factor affected the compressive strength behaviour of the simple cubic Ti-6Al-4V lattice structure. The specimens that were printed using both of the net themes A and B showed that they had been affected by the batch variation of either increasing the spread of the σUCS -L, σy-L and EL values or decreasing their mean values. The batch variation in net theme A were more significant in affecting the compressive strength of the printed lattice specimens. The batch variation factor also affected the fatigue strength of the simple cubic Ti-6Al-4V lattice structure with bending-dominated deformation under compressive-compressive cyclic loading. The fatigue strength generally follows the compressive strength of the lattice structure with the effect of the batch variation factor, but only in LCF regions. The fatigue strength of all the specimen batches seems to converge at 10.5 MPa past 10⁶ cycles to failure.
- ItemDenim Deconstructed; Deconstructing the Notion of Denim Through Avant-Garde Methods(Auckland University of Technology, 2024) Jeon, Milan; Smith, Mandy; Kalyanji, JyotiThis research investigates and responds to the wastefulness of denim through an experimental approach of deconstructing and reconstructing used denim garments. Denim is one of the most popular fabrics globally, accounting for one of the largest segments of the fashion industry. This style of woven cotton was first created for workwear in the late 19th century by Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss and soon became the source of one of the most prevalent garments in the history of fashion–– denim jeans. Today denim is used in various subsectors of the fashion industry, from fast to high fashion, and has become a fabric that has a significant influence on the way people dress around the globe. However, with their versatility and popularity, denim jeans come at a high cost to the environment; on average requiring 3,781 litres of water for one pair of standard jeans, which is equivalent to filling approximately 54 bathtubs. This environmental impact is intensified by the throwaway culture of fast fashion, including denim jeans. This thesis responds to the wastefulness of the denim industry by investigating methods for recycling denim cloth, through approaches of deconstruction and reconstruction. Deconstruction as intertextuality, trace and différance as constructed by Derrida, alongside the practical analysis of deconstructive strategies in fashion design analysed by Maria Skivko as the conflict of form, function and ideology act as guiding principles for this research. In the process of physically deconstructing and reconstructing second-hand denim garments, draping was used as a method to explore new possibilities in how pre-constructed garments are positioned on the human body. By draping deconstructed jeans on the upper part of the body, for example, I was able to challenge the original function of each garment. This allowed me to test new forms, sculptural effects, and ideologies regarding deconstruction and reconstruction as methods. These findings contribute to the storytelling aspect of the fashion collection, which aims to prompt the audience to reflect on their understanding of denim and its detrimental impact on the environment. It seeks to encourage a deeper emotional connection to the viewer’s own personal relationship with denim by helping them understand its timeless beauty as a fabric. Through this, the research hopes to extend the user’s relationship with their denim garment, and the designer’s relationship with denim as a durable and versatile textile, thereby preventing more denim from ending up in landfills.
- ItemCrackGNet: A Hybrid Approach Leveraging U-Net and Graph Neural Networks for Road Crack Detection(Auckland University of Technology, 2024) Paras, Paras; Yongchareon, SiraPavement cracks are a common issue affecting road infrastructure worldwide. Their timely detection and repair are essential for ensuring road safety and preventing further deterioration. Traditional manual crack inspection methods are time-consuming, labor-intensive, and susceptible to human mistakes. To overcome these challenges, this thesis introduces CrackGNet, a hybrid deep-learning architecture for the automated detection of road cracks. Our proposed method strategically integrates a U-Net encoder-decoder with a GCN. The U-Net component focuses on robust feature extraction from crack images, while the GCN component explicitly models the spatial relationships and connectivity patterns inherent in crack structures. We performed a comprehensive evaluation of CrackGNet on the CFD, DeepCrack, and CRACK500 datasets, demonstrating its superiority over established deep learning baselines across a range of performance metrics achieving 0.8618 precision, 0.8811 recall, and an F1 score of 0.8665, outperforming existing methods. These results highlight the effectiveness of our hybrid approach and the importance of considering both local image features and spatial context in crack detection tasks. Our research contributes to the advancement of automated road infrastructure assessment systems, with the potential to improve infrastructure maintenance efficiency and reduce costs. Future research directions include exploring alternative GNN architectures for further performance gains, expanding datasets for increased model robustness, and evaluating CrackGNet in real-world inspection scenarios.