This dissertation is dedicated to my lovely and supportive wife, Eman Omar, my children, Omar and Maryam, my mother and my father, Mr. Taha Ghareeb. Without their patience, understanding, support, encouragement, and most of all love, the completion of this work would not have been possible. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation would not have been possible without the help, support, dedication and patience of my major advisor, Prof. Osama Mohammed, whom I consider myself fortunate to work with. I wish to express in words my deepest gratitude to Professor Osama Mohammed, for his guidance, encouragement, and support during my graduate study. Prof. Mohammed has always been an endless supply of ideas, guidance, suggestions and useful discussions for me. I am grateful for the chance he gave to me to work at the Energy Systems Research Laboratory, where I found all the equipment and facilities I needed to experimentally verify my results. This laboratory is where I was developed professionally in an environment where work and engineering ethics are highly respected. I do appreciate Professor Mohammed's many constructive suggestions and technical as well as personal help. I would like to thank my dissertation committee members Professor W. Kinzy Jones, Professor Sakhrat Khirzroev, Dr. Arif Sarwat and Dr. Mark Roberts for their insightful comments and constructive suggestions in the review of my research proposal and dissertation. I would like to acknowledge the research support provided from the office of Naval Research (ONR) throughout my years of research in Energy Systems Research Laboratory (ESRL). I also acknowledge the dissertation year fellowship (DYF) from FIU graduate school during the last year of my study. Although this doctoral dissertation is considered to be my personal accomplishment, I would like to acknowledge my colleagues in Energy Systems Research Laboratory for their creative support, encouragement, and collaborations during my graduate studies. vi