Add to ORKGr̂ c> ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, First and foremost, I would like to thank God for providing me an opportunity to |v|0 ' pursue this education and achieve my goals. I would also like to thank my family for their selfless love and affection. I would like to extend my gratitude to Dr. Raghu S. Narayan, Chairman and Professor of Chemical Engineering for being a guide and a good friend throughout the course of this dissertation. It has been a privilege to be associated with him and his family and I sincerely appreciate their efforts in keeping me motivated throughout my stay in Lubbock, Texas. Thorough investigation and analysis have led to some interesting conclusions from this research. This effort would not have been possible without the inpu...