Interactions between materials, their surfaces, and applied stresses are involved in every man-made construction in the world. Therefore, finding ways to interact without altering inherent properties of materials is of great interest. Surface spectroscopies, including second harmonic generation (SHG) and sum frequency generation (SFG), are inherently noninvasive testing methods. Both SHG and SFG are well-developed techniques that can be used in various applications including the characterization of material state. Both of these techniques allow for a noninvasive analysis of various materials, such as metals and polymers. We have used SHG as a method to characterize the change in signal strength before and after mechanical, chemical, and thermal stress. The results have allowed for comparisons to established methods such as electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and indenter testing. SHG shows great potential for a new nondestructive evaluation (NDE) technique to provide more information alongside current destructive and nondestructive methods. SFG has long been used to excite vibrations in the bulk and at interfaces. This allows for a deeper understanding of any molecular change induced by stress such as preferred orientation and new chemical interactions. Overall developments in surface specific methods deepens our understanding of how we interface with the universe.

The molecular characterization of Pratylenchus species determined from D2-D3 of 28S rDNA, ITS of rDNA, and COI of mtDNA regions revealed four Pratylenchus species from North Dakota, P. scribneri, P. neglectus, Pratylenchus sp. (ND-2016 isolate HG51), and Pratylenchus sp. (ND-2017). They were clustered in four separate clades in the phylogenetic trees indicating the divergence among species. P. scribneri and Pratylenchus sp. (ND-2016 isolate HG51) were closely associated and Pratylenchus sp. (DH-2017) was closely related to Pratylenchus sp. (ND-2016 isolate HG51). However, P. neglectus was not closely associated with the other three species. Moreover, resistance evaluation of ten corn hybrids to Pratylenchus scribneri, P. neglectus, and Pratylenchus sp. (ND-2017) revealed that 1392 VT2P was moderately resistant to three Pratylenchus species. PFS74K89 and 4913 VT2RIB were moderately resistant to two of the three Pratylenchus species. X5B-8801, DK 43-46, and DKC 44-13 were susceptible to two of the three Pratylenchus species.

Performance testing methods of boilers in transient operating conditions (start, stop and combustion power modulation sequences) need the combustion rate quantified to allow for the emissions to be quantified. One way of quantifying the combustion rate of a boiler during transient operating conditions is by measuring the flue gas flow rate. The flow conditions in chimneys of single family house boilers pose a challenge however, mainly because of the low flow velocity. The main objectives of the work were to characterize the flow conditions in residential chimneys, to evaluate the use of the Pitot-static method and the averaging Pitot method, and to develop and test a calibration method for averaging Pitot probes for low 𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅.A literature survey and a theoretical study were performed to characterize the flow conditions in in single family house boiler chimneys. The flow velocities under normal boiler operating conditions are often below the requirements for the assumptions of non-viscous fluid justifying the use of the quadratic Bernoulli equation. A non-linear calibration coefficient is required to correct for these viscous effects in order to avoid significant measurement errors. The flow type in the studied conditions changes from laminar, across the transition regime, to fully turbulent flow, resulting in significant changes of the velocity profile during transient boiler operation. Due to geometrical settings occurring in practice measurements are often done in the hydrodynamic entrance region, where the velocity profiles are neither fully developed nor symmetrical. The predicted changes in velocity profiles are also confirmed experimentally in two chimneys.Several requirements set in ISO 10780 and ISO 3966 for Pitot-static probes are either met questionably or not met at all, meaning that the methods cannot be used as such. The main issues are the low flow velocity, viscous effects, and velocity profiles that change significantly during normal boiler operation. The Pitot-static probe can be calibrated for low 𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅, but is not reliable because of the changing velocity profiles.The pressure averaging probe is a simple remedy to overcome the problems with asymmetric and changing velocity profiles, but still keeping low the irrecoverable pressure drop caused by the probe. However, commercial averaging probes are not calibrated for the characterized chimney conditions and the information available on the performance of averaging probes at low 𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅 is scarce. A literature survey and a theoretical study were done to develop a method for calibrating pressure averaging probes for low 𝑅𝑅𝑒 flue gas flows in residential chimneys.The experimental part consists of constructing a calibration rig, testing the performance of differential pressure transducers, and testing a prototype pressure averaging probe. The results show good correlation over a wide operation range, but the low 𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅 characteristics of the probe could not be identified due to instability in the chosen pressure transducer, and temperature correlation for one of the probes while not for the other. The differential pressures produced are close to the performance limitations of readily available transducers and it should be possible to improve the method by focusing on finding or building a suitable pressure transducer. The performance of the averaging method can be improved further by optimizing the geometry of the probe. Another way of reducing the uncertainty would be to increase the probe size relative to the conduit diameter to produce a higher differential pressure, at the expense of increasing the irrecoverable pressure drop.

Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) represent an emerging new class of functional crystalline solid-state materials. In the early discovery of this now rapidly growing class of materials significant challenges were often encountered. However, MOFs today, with its vast structural modularity, reflected by the huge library of the available chemical building blocks, and exceptional controlled porosity, stand as the most promising candidate to address many of the overbearing societal challenges pertaining to energy and environmental sustainability. A variety of design strategies have been enumerated in the literature which rely on the use of predesigned building blocks paving the way towards potentially more predictable structures. The two major design strategies presented in this work are the molecular building block (MBB) and supermolecular building block (SBB) -based approaches for the rationale assembly of functional MOF materials with the desired structural features. In this context, we targeted two highly connected MOF platforms, namely rht-MOF and shp-MOF. These two MOF platforms are classified based on their topology, defined as the underlying connectivity of their respective net, as edge transitive binodal nets; shp being (4,12)-connected net and rht being (3,24)-connected net. These highly connected nets were deliberately targeted due to the limited number of possible nets for connecting their associated basic building units. Two highly porous materials were designed and successfully constructed; namely Y-shp-MOF-5 and rht-MOF-10. The Y-shp-MOF-5 features a phenomenal water stability with an exquisite behavior when exposed to water, positioning this microporous material as the best adsorbent for moisture control applications. The shp-MOF platform proved to be modular to ligand functionalization and thus imparting significant behavioral changes when hydrophilic and hydrophobic functionalized ligands were introduced on the resultant MOF. On the other hand, rht-MOF-10 constituting of 24-connected transition metal based-SBB was successfully synthesized and activated using a modified supercritical CO2 drying technique. This allowed access to over 90 % of the total pore volume (1.95cm3/g). High pressure gas sorption measurements of CH4, CO2 and O2 showed that this material has a gravimetric uptake that ranks close to the best materials enlisted for the storage of these corresponding gases.

The aim of this thesis is the isolation and identification of yeasts obtained from the wine berries and the characterization of the collection yeast by using processes of PCR - RFLP. The type yeasts were obtained from the collection of yeasts of CCY in Bratislava, yeasts from the wine berries were collected from the species of Hibernal wine from the wineries of Štěpán Maňák. Identification of individual yeast is then based on analysis of the DNA segment in the area of 5,8S - ITS using primers ITS1 and ITS4. The restriction analysis was performed using restriction endonucleases HaeIII, HinfI, HhaI a TaqI(a). Restriction analysis is used to chopp the DNA to specific sections that are characteristic for each microorganism. For the assesment of the genetic similarity analyzed yeasts the BioNumerics software has been used. BioNumerics processes the results using cluster analysis using Jaccard´s coefficients.

Ce sujet de thèse porte sur l’élaboration et l’étude de l’effet de la substitution du fer par le cobalt sur les propriétés physiques (structurales, morphologiques et magnétiques) et particulièrement la détection des deux gaz réducteurs NH3 et CO des composés La0,8Ca0,1Pb0,1Fe1-xCoxO3 (x = 0,00 ; 0,05 ; 0,10 ; 0,15 et 0,20). La diminution du volume a été, par la suite, confirmée par l’approximation SGGA+U en utilisant la théorie fonctionnelle de la densité (DFT). De même l’étude morphologique a révélé des micrographies poreuses présentant des particules agrégées et agglomérées de taille nanométrique et de forme irrégulière. Les analyses structurales et morphologiques nous ont permis de prédire que le composé avec x = 0,05 peut être considéré comme un bon candidat pour l’application dans le domaine de la détection des gaz. Les résultats des mesures électriques ont montré que la résistance diminue pour des taux de Co inférieurs à 0,10 puis augmente avec des taux supérieurs. De même les réponses électriques sous gaz ont montré que nos composés sont capables de détecter des gaz, avec une variation de la résistance électrique aisément mesurable suite à l’exposition sous différentes concentrations des deux gaz (NH3 et CO) et de déduire que le composé La0,8Ca0,1Pb0,1Fe0,95Co0,05O3 (x = 0,05) présente la meilleure réponse envers les deux gaz testés / This thesis deals with the elaboration and study of the effect of iron substitution by cobalt on the physical properties (structural, morphological and magnetic) and particularly the detection of the two reducing gases NH3 and CO of the compounds La0.8Ca0.1Pb0.1Fe1-xCoxO3 (x = 0.00, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15 and 0.20). The decrease of valume was subsequently confirmed by the SGGA + U approximation using the Density Functional Theory (DFT). Similarly, the morphological study reveals porous micrographs presenting aggregated and agglomerated particles of nanometric size and irregular shape. Structural and morphological analyzes predicted that the compound with x = 0.05 could be considered as a good candidate for application in the field of gas detection. The results of the electrical measurements have shown that the resistance decreases for Co rate below 0.10 and then increases with higher rate. Similarly, electrical responses under gas have shown that our compounds are able to detect gases, with a variation of the electrical resistance easily measurable following exposure under different concentrations of both gases (NH3 and CO) and to deduce that the compound La0.8Ca0.1Pb0.1Fe0.95Co0.05O3 (x = 0.05) presents the best response towards the two tested gases

Les composants HEMTs (High Electron Mobility Transistors) à base d’AlGaN/GaN sont à ce jour les candidats les plus prometteurs pour des applications hyperfréquences de puissance, dû essentiellement à leur forte densité de porteurs et des mobilités électroniques élevées. Cependant, la température générée en condition réelle est un paramètre capital à mesurer, afin d’estimer précisément la fiabilité des composants et leur durée de vie. Pour ces raisons, nous avons comparé les méthodes de caractérisation thermique par thermoréflectance et par spectroscopie Raman car elles sont non destructives et avec une résolution spatiale submicronique. Ces techniques ont déjà prouvé leur faisabilité pour la caractérisation thermique des transistors, en modes de fonctionnement continu et pulsé. Nous comparons dans cette étude leurs adaptabilité et performance dans le cadre de la réalisation d’un banc d’essai thermique dédié. Ces méthodes sont reconnues pour ne caractériser que certaines catégories de matériaux : les métaux pour la thermoréflectance et les semiconducteurs pour la spectroscopie Raman, ce qui nous a conduit à l’éventualité de les combiner. Nous avons confronté des résultats obtenus par thermoréflectance à partir des équipements de deux fabricants commercialisant cette méthode, nous permettant ainsi de mettre en évidence des résultats originaux sur des aspects et inconvénients qui ne sont pas relayés dans la littérature. Avec la spectroscopie Raman, nous avons identifié les paramètres de métrologie qui permettent de réaliser un protocole de mesure thermique le plus répétable possible, et nous présentons également une technique innovante pour sonder les matériaux en surface, à l'aide du même équipement, et notamment les métaux. / At the moment, AlGaN/GaN HEMTs (High Electron Mobility Transistors) are the most promising for high-power hyperfrequency applications, essentially due to their large carrier density and a high electronic mobility. However, the temperature generating during operational conditions is a crucial parameter to measure, in order to estimate the reliability and durability of components. For these reasons, we compared thermoreflectance and Raman spectroscopy, that are non-destructive and possessing a submicronic spatial resolution. These techniques have already proven their feasibility as thermal characterization methods in both continuous wave and pulsed operational modes. We compare here their adaptability and performance to the conception of a thermal test bench. These methods are known for characterizing specific types of material: metals for thermoreflectance and semiconductors for Raman spectroscopy, leading us to the eventuality to combine them. We compared several results measured by thermoreflectance method with equipment from two different manufacturers that commercialize this technology, so we could highlight some aspects and drawbacks that are note relayed in the literature. With Raman spectroscopy, we identified metrology parameters allowing to realize a thermal measurement setup as reproducible as possible, and we also present an innovative method to probe surface material, especially metals.

Photoautotrophic organisms have been highlighted as carbon capture and conversion platforms for sustainable production of agricultural and chemicals in KSA. Previously two cyanobacterial strains, Geitlerinema spp. CT7801 and CT7802, were isolated from an industrial brine outfall site in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Initial characterization of their growth characteristics showed growth at high temperature (38 ºC) and high salinity ( > 60 PSU), making them potentially good candidates for industrial applications. In this study, quantitative growth assays were performed using standardized methods developed for the analysis of Red Sea photosynthetic microorganisms supported by microscopic observations, optimal growth media preference assays, CO2 concentration effect, photoperiod effect, mixotrophic and heterotrophic growth tests. Data was recorded for absorbance (600 and 750 nm wave lenght), dry cell weight (DCW), colorimetric observations, and chlorophyll a content. Both CT7801 and CT7802 exhibited a clear preference for Walne's Red Sea medium. An analysis on media composition highlights B and Fe as growth enhancers, as well as a base requirement of seawater. Tests on the effect of supplied concentration of CO2 showed that air enhanced with 1 % v/v CO2 allows approximately 2-fold increase in DCW for Geitlerinema spp. CT7802. Photoperiod tests showed that continuous light is disadvantageous for phototrophic growth of Geitlerinema spp. CT7801 and CT7802. Results for mixotrophic and heterotrophic growth of Geitlerinema spp. CT7801 and CT7802 revealed their ability to metabolize glycerol. Analysis on the complete genome of CT7802 identified three key enzymes, glycerol kinase, glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and triosephosphate isomerase, which may catalyze the glycerol metabolic pathway in the strain. Utilization of glycerol, a residue of the biodiesel industry, might provide a sustainable alternative for growth of Geitlerinema sp. CT7802.

>Magister Scientiae - MSc / Crystalline basement aquifers are an important source of water supply in sub-Saharan Africa for various purposes. These aquifers are characterized by fractured rock networks which form pathways for groundwater recharge, flow, and discharge in subterranean groundwater areas. The fractured rock networks in these areas form fractured rock aquifers which in some cases are protected or reserved. In South Africa, various aquifers with these characteristics have been declared as subterranean groundwater control areas. The physical characteristics of these hydrogeological settings remains crucial in sustaining ecosystems and supporting socio-economic practices such as irrigation, among others. However, the role of fracture connectivity in crystalline basement aquifers remains poorly understood despite the well-established knowledge about the hydrogeological characteristics of such areas. / 2022

In this research, some fundamental aspects of surface growth processes are investigated through in-situ synchrotron based x-ray techniques, including a new coherent x-ray technique developed as part of this work, as well as ex-situ Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and simulation. The first part of this dissertation focuses on careful examination of early-time kinetics of indium (In) island growth via real-time Grazing Incidence Small Angle X-ray Scattering (GISAXS) since it is a good example of simple growth systems allowing the results to be directly compared to surface growth theories and also because of its technical relevance for III–V semiconductor deposition. The results are compared with Family-Meakin (FM) droplet growth and coalescence theory through Monte Carlo simulations. In addition, room temperature deposition of amorphous silicon (a-Si) through DC magnetron sputtering onto a silicon (Si) substrate has been investigated via real-time GISAXS. The deposition conditions are optimized to create an idealized growth environment so that the results can be directly compared to surface growth models. Performing the deposition at room temperature results in adatoms having limited surface mobility, which causes formation of correlated mound-like structures on the surface at the early stages of the growth. The correlation distance between the mount-like structures is found to grow linearly with time. The results are compared to a ballistic deposition model including self-shadowing and desorption effects. The second half of this study focuses on investigation of the kinetic roughening dynamics of thin film growth, where the local dynamics are measured after the overall kinetic evolution of the surface roughness reach a steady-state saturation. Coherent X-ray GISAXS (Co-GISAXS) has been developed as a new approach to investigate surface dynamics during thin film deposition. Room temperature deposition of a-Si and amorphous tungsten disilicide (a-WSi2) through DC magnetron sputtering onto respectively Si and SiO2 substrates has been examined. The overall dynamics are complex, but power law behavior is observed for the structure factor and correlation times at the most surface sensitive section of the data. This research demonstrated that Co-GISAXS is a powerful new approach to investigate the correlated dynamics between surface and sub-surface structures. / 2016-10-27T00:00:00Z