This Thesis puts its focus on the physics of neutron stars and its description with methods of numerical relativity. In the first step, a new numerical framework the Whisky2D code will be developed, which solves the relativistic equations of hydrodynamics in axisymmetry. Therefore we consider an improved formulation of the conserved form of these equations. The second part will use the new code to investigate the critical behaviour of two colliding neutron stars. Considering the analogy to phase transitions in statistical physics, we will investigate the evolution of the entropy of the neutron stars during the whole process. A better understanding of the evolution of thermodynamical quantities, like the entropy in critical process, should provide deeper understanding of thermodynamics in relativity. More specifically, we have written the Whisky2D code, which solves the general-relativistic hydrodynamics equations in a flux-conservative form and in cylindrical coordinates. This of course brings in 1/r singular terms, where r is the radial cylindrical coordinate, which must be dealt with appropriately. In the above-referenced works, the flux operator is expanded and the 1/r terms, not containing derivatives, are moved to the right-hand-side of the equation (the source term), so that the left hand side assumes a form identical to the one of the three-dimensional (3D) Cartesian formulation. We call this the standard formulation. Another possibility is not to split the flux operator and to redefine the conserved variables, via a multiplication by r. We call this the new formulation. The new equations are solved with the same methods as in the Cartesian case. From a mathematical point of view, one would not expect differences between the two ways of writing the differential operator, but, of course, a difference is present at the numerical level. Our tests show that the new formulation yields results with a global truncation error which is one or more orders of magnitude smaller than those of alternative and commonly used formulations. The second part of the Thesis uses the new code for investigations of critical phenomena in general relativity. In particular, we consider the head-on-collision of two neutron stars in a region of the parameter space where two final states a new stable neutron star or a black hole, lay close to each other. In 1993, Choptuik considered one-parameter families of solutions, S[P], of the Einstein-Klein-Gordon equations for a massless scalar field in spherical symmetry, such that for every P > P⋆, S[P] contains a black hole and for every P < P⋆, S[P] is a solution not containing singularities. He studied numerically the behavior of S[P] as P → P⋆ and found that the critical solution, S[P⋆], is universal, in the sense that it is approached by all nearly-critical solutions regardless of the particular family of initial data considered. All these phenomena have the common property that, as P approaches P⋆, S[P] approaches a universal solution S[P⋆] and that all the physical quantities of S[P] depend only on |P − P⋆|. The first study of critical phenomena concerning the head-on collision of NSs was carried out by Jin and Suen in 2007. In particular, they considered a series of families of equal-mass NSs, modeled with an ideal-gas EOS, boosted towards each other and varied the mass of the stars, their separation, velocity and the polytropic index in the EOS. In this way they could observe a critical phenomenon of type I near the threshold of black-hole formation, with the putative solution being a nonlinearly oscillating star. In a successive work, they performed similar simulations but considering the head-on collision of Gaussian distributions of matter. Also in this case they found the appearance of type-I critical behaviour, but also performed a perturbative analysis of the initial distributions of matter and of the merged object. Because of the considerable difference found in the eigenfrequencies in the two cases, they concluded that the critical solution does not represent a system near equilibrium and in particular not a perturbed Tolmann-Oppenheimer-Volkoff (TOV) solution. In this Thesis we study the dynamics of the head-on collision of two equal-mass NSs using a setup which is as similar as possible to the one considered above. While we confirm that the merged object exhibits a type-I critical behaviour, we also argue against the conclusion that the critical solution cannot be described in terms of equilibrium solution. Indeed, we show that, in analogy with what is found in, the critical solution is effectively a perturbed unstable solution of the TOV equations. Our analysis also considers fine-structure of the scaling relation of type-I critical phenomena and we show that it exhibits oscillations in a similar way to the one studied in the context of scalar-field critical collapse. / Diese Arbeit legt seinen Schwerpunkt auf die Physik von Neutronensternen und deren Beschreibung mit Methoden der numerischen Relativitätstheorie. Im ersten Schritt wird eine neue numerische Umgebung, der Whisky2D Code entwickelt, dieser löst die relativistischen Gleichungen der Hydrodynamik in Axialymmetrie. Hierzu betrachten wir eine verbesserte Formulierung der sog. "flux conserved formulation" der Gleichungen. Im zweiten Teil wird der neue Code verwendet / um das kritische Verhalten zweier kollidierenden Neutronensternen zu untersuchen. In Anbetracht der Analogie, um Übergänge in der statistischen Physik Phase werden wir die Entwicklung der Entropie der Neutronensterne während des gesamten Prozesses betrachten. Ein besseres Verständnis der Evolution von thermodynamischen Größen, wie der Entropie in kritischer Prozess, sollte zu einem tieferen Verständnis der relativistischen Thermodynamik führen. Der Whisky2D Code, zur Lösung Gleichungen relativistischer Hydrodynamik wurde in einer „flux conserved form“ und in zylindrischen Koordinaten geschrieben. Hierdurch entstehen 1 / r singuläre Terme, wobei r der ist, die entsprechend behandelt werden müssen. In früheren Arbeiten, wird der Operator expandiert und die 1 / r spezifisch Therme auf die rechte Seite geschrieben, so dass die linke Seite eine Form annimmt, die identisch ist mit der kartesischen Formulierung. Wir nennen dies die Standard-Formulierung. Eine andere Möglichkeit ist, die Terme nicht zu expandieren, den und den 1/r Term in die Gleichung hinein zu ziehen. Wir nennen dies die Neue-Formulierung. Die neuen Gleichungen werden mit den gleichen Verfahren wie im kartesischen Fall gelöst. Aus mathematischer Sicht ist keine Unterschiede zwischen den beiden Formulierungen zu erwarten, erst die numerische Sicht zeigt die Unterschiede auf. Versuche zeigen, dass die Neue-Formulierung numerische Fehler um mehrere Größenordnungen reduziert. Der zweite Teil der Dissertation verwendet den neuen Code für die Untersuchung kritischer Phänomene in der allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie. Insbesondere betrachten wir die Kopf-auf-Kollision zweier Neutronensterne in einem Bereich des Parameter Raums, deren zwei mögliche Endzustände entweder einen neuen stabilen Neutronenstern oder ein Schwarzes Loch darstellen. Im Jahr 1993, betrachtete Choptuik Ein-Parameter-Familien von Lösungen, S [P], der Einstein-Klein-Gordon-Gleichung für ein masseloses Skalarfeld in sphärischer Symmetrie, so dass für jedes P> P ⋆, S[P] ein Schwarzes Loch enthalten ist und jedes P <P ⋆, S [P] eine Lösung ohne eine Singularität. Er studierte das numerisch Verhalten von S [P] als P → P ⋆ und stellte fest, dass die kritische Lösung, S[P ⋆], universell in dem Sinne ist, dass die Lösung nahe des kritischen Wertes unabhängig von den Anfangsdaten ist. Alle diese Phänomene haben die gemeinsame Eigenschaft, dass sobald sich P P ⋆ annähert, auch S[P] S [P ⋆] annähert und dass alle physikalischen Größen von S [P] nur noch von | P - P ⋆ | abhängen. Die erste Studie der kritischen Phänomene über den Frontalzusammenstoß von zwei Neutronensternen wurde von Jin und Suen im Jahr 2007 durchgeführt. Insbesondere untersuchten sie eine Reihe von Anfangsdaten gleicher Neutronensternmasse, mit einer idealen EOS, die aufeinander zu beschleunigt werden. Variiert wurden die Massen der Sterne, ihr Abstand, die Geschwindigkeit und die polytropen Index der EOS. Auf diese Weise konnten sie kritische Phänomen des Typ I beobachten. In weiteren Versuchen, führten sie ähnliche Simulationen frontal kollidierender Materie in Gauß Verteilungen durch. Auch in diesem Fall fanden sie Typ-I-kritisches Verhalten. Zudem führten sie eine störungstheoretische Analyse der Anfangsobjekte als auch der stabilen Endobjekte durch. Wegen der beträchtlichen Unterschiede in den Eigenfrequenzen in beiden Fallen, schlossen sie daraus, dass die kritische Lösung keine linear-gestörten Tolmann-Oppenheimer-Volkoff (TOV) Sterne im Gleichgewicht darstellen. In dieser Arbeit untersuchen wir die Dynamik der Frontalzusammenstoß zweier Neutronensterne gleicher Masse mit ähnlichem Setup wie oben besprochen. Während wir bestätigen, dass die erzeugten Objekte ebenfalls ein Typ-I-kritische Verhalten aufweisen, wiedersprechen wir der der Aussage, dass sich die kritische Lösung nicht als Gleichgewichtslösung dargestellt werden kann. In der Tat zeigen wir, dass die kritische Lösung als linear-gestörte instabile Lösung eines TOV-Sterns dargestellt werden kann. Unsere Analyse berücksichtigt auch die Feinstruktur der Skalenverhältnisse Typ-I-kritischer Phänomene und wir zeigen ebenfalle, dass hier Oszillationen auftreten, die bereits in ähnlichen Studien zum Kollaps kritischer Skalar-Feld gefunden wurden.

Flat plate systems are constructed with slabs directly supported on columns. Since there are no beams in the system, the behavior of connections between the slabs and columns play a crucial role. Due to the sudden and brittle nature of punching shear failures, slab-column connection design must be conducted with proper safety precautions. The first part of this study aims to evaluate the safety level of different design expressions in the codes. Fir this purpose, the ability of ACI 318-11, TS-500 and Eurocode-2 to estimate punching shear strength was examined in light of experimental results compiled from previous research. Interior and exterior connections were examined in the course of the study. In the second part of the study, beam and shell models were calibrated to simulate the load-deformation response of interior slab-column connections in light of experimental results. In the final part of this thesis, a typical floor plan of a flat plate system was analyzed to investigate the possibility of a progressivefailure mechanism after punching failure takes place at a slab-column connection. Minimum post-punching capacity required to avoid progressive punching failure in a floor was estimated. It is believed that, the results of this study can be helpful in guiding engineers in understanding the safety inherent in punching shear design expressions and to take necessary precautions against progressive collapse.

Dans nombre d'applications thérapeutiques des ultrasons, il peut être intéressant d'augmenter l'activité de cavitation inertielle tout en limitant au maximum les intensités utilisées : ceci permet de maximiser les effets mécaniques des ultrasons au niveau des tissus visés tout en minimisant les échauffements des tissus environnants. L'étude expérimentale présentée ici ² porte sur la modification des seuils de cavitation inertielle et de l'activité de cavitation au-delà du seuil lorsqu'un signal bifréquentiel comportant deux composantes fréquentielles proches est utilisé. Le caractère non linéaire de la modification du seuil est démontré. Ainsi, des réductions significatives de l'intensité nécessaire à l'obtention de cavitation inertielle peuvent être obtenues dans des milieux où les seuils sont élevés. De plus, l'évolution de l'activité de cavitation lorsque l'intensité ultrasonore est augmentée au-delà du seuil montre qu'avec une excitation bifréquentielle, de fortes activités de cavitation peuvent être atteintes pour des intensités plus proches du seuil. Ce point présente un double intérêt sur le plan de l'application pratique, puisque cela signifie une meilleure séparation des régimes cavitant et non cavitant et permet de réduire encore, par rapport à une excitation monofréquentielle, les intensités requises pour atteindre une activité de cavitation donnée. Des essais sur modèle de caillots sanguins ont permis de valider in vitro l'efficacité de cette excitation bifréquentielle pour la thrombolyse purement ultrasonore.

Insufficient information on the host medium can cause serious problems, even collapse, during construction in a tunnel. This study focuses on understanding the reasons behind the collapse of the Tunnel BT24 to be opened within the framework of Ankara-Istanbul High Speed Railway Project. The tunnel is located near Boz&uuml / y&uuml / k in the Bilecik Province. The collapsed section of the tunnel was driven into a highly weathered, weak to medium rock mass. Unanticipated geological/geotechnical circumstances caused excessive deformations at the section on which the primary support system was applied, leading eventually to collapse. To understand the response of the tunnel and the collapse mechanism, the construction sequence is simulated using two-dimensional plane-strain and axisymmetric finite element models. The analyses were carried out for the section with and without invert closure of the shotcrete liner. To implement the effects of likely unfavorable ground conditions on the tunnel response, a number of fault scenarios and possible creep effects were also considered with those two alternatives. Displacements in the tunnel periphery, forces and moments in the primary liner as well as the plastic deformation zones in the surrounding ground were determined for each case and comprasions were made accordingly. It is concluded that the unforseen ground circumstances might have substantially aggravated the deformations in the section and that the lack of ring closure of the primary liner at invert played the key role in the collapse.

In this paper we examine the extent of international trade synchronization during periods of international trade collapses and US recessions. Using dynamic correlations based on monthly trade data for the G7 economies over the period 1961-2011, our results suggest rather idiosyncratic patterns of international trade synchronization during collapses of international trade and US recessions. During the great recession of 2007-2009, however, international trade experienced the most sudden, severe and globally synchronized collapse. (author's abstract)

This thesis investigates an important power system phenomenon, voltage stability, by using continuation power flow method. Voltage collapse scenario is presented which can be a serious result of voltage instability and the parameters that affect voltage collapse are discussed. In analyzing power system voltage stability, continuation power flow method is utilized which consists of successive load flows. This method is applied to a sample test system and Turkish Power System and load-voltage curves for several buses are obtained.

Concern about effect of explosives effect on engineering structures evolved after the damage of Second World War. Beginning from 90&rsquo / s with the event of bombing Alfred P. Murrah Federal building located in Oklahoma City this concern deepened and with the attack to World Trade Center twin towers on September 11, 2001 it is peaked. Recent design codes mainly focus on earthquake resistant design and strengthening of the structures. These code design methodologies may sometimes satisfy current blast resistant design philosophy, but in general code compliant designs may not provide recognizable resistance to blast effect. Therefore designer should carry out earthquake resistant design with the blast resistant design knowledge in mind in order to be able to select the most suitable framing scheme that provide both earthquake and blast resistance. This is only possible if designer deeply understands and interprets the blast phenomenon. In this study, it is intended to introduce blast phenomenon, basic terminology, past studies, blast loading on structures, blast structure interaction, analysis methodologies for blast effect and analysis for blast induced progressive and disproportionate collapse. Final focus is made on a case study that is carried out to determine whether a regular steel structures already designed according to Turkish Earthquake Code 2007 requirements satisfy blast, thus progressive collapse resistance requirements or not.

While the process that converts implosion into explosion in core collapse supernovae is poorly understood, their observed asphericity provides new constraints on the physics of these events. Since pulsars are rotating and magnetized neutron stars, there is no doubt that rotation and magnetic fields are inherent to the exploding engine. We have shown that magnetic field amplification is an inevitable by-product of the differential rotation that accompanies core-collapse. We performed 1D core-collapse simulations of rotating iron cores with various rotational profiles and velocities. We found that differential rotation was a generic feature of rotating iron core collapse. As a result, the magnetorotational instability (MRI) generates magnetic fields of order 10¹⁵⁻¹⁷ G in a few tens of milliseconds where the negative shear is the strongest. Although magnetic fields of order 10¹⁵⁻¹⁷ G are very strong, they are not strong enough to modify the equation of state of degenerate electron gas near the proto-neutron star. The corresponding MHD luminosity available is ~10⁵² erg s⁻¹, which can modify the explosion dynamics if the power is sustained for a fraction of a second. When rotational effects are included, we found that there is a critical iron core rotation rate that gives the most rapidly rotating proto-neutron star, faster than which the rotational velocity of the proto-neutron star decreases due to centrifugal support. This non-monotonic behavior of post-collapse core rotation suggests that the progenitor of the most rapidly rotating proto-neutron star is not the most rapidly rotating iron core, but that those iron cores with nearly the critical initial rotation rate may produce the maximum proto-neutron star rotation, the strongest magnetic fields, and the most robust supernova explosions. Even small rotation may induce non-axisymmetric instabilities, which drive magneto-acoustic flux in to the mantle, transporting enegy out of the proto-neutron star to the region near the stalled shock. Further implications for rotation and magnetic fields, pulsars and magnetars, and jet formation mechanisms are discussed. / text

In the first part of this thesis, we present results from extensive molecular dynamics simulations of the collapse transitions of hydrophobic polymers in explicit water. The focus is to understand the roles that curvature and interactions associated with the polymer-water “interface” have on collapse thermodynamics. We show that model hydrophobic polymers can have parabolic, protein-like, temperature-dependent free energies of unfolding. Analysis of the water structure shows that the polymer-water interface can be characterized as soft and weakly dewetted. We also show that an appropriately defined surface tension for the polymer-water interface is independent of the attractive polymer-water interactions. This helped us to develop a perturbation model for predicting the effect of attractions on polymer collapse thermodynamics. In the second part, we explore connections between structure, thermodynamics, and dynamics of inhomogeneous fluids. First, we use molecular dynamics simulations and classical density functional theory (DFT) to study the hard-sphere fluid at approximately 103 equilibrium state points, spanning different confining geometries and particle-boundary interactions. We provide strong empirical evidence that both excess entropy and a new generalized measure of available volume for inhomogeneous fluids correlate excellently with self-diffusivity, approximately independent of the degree of confinement. Next, we study via simulations how tuning particle-wall interactions to flatten or enhance the particle layering of a model confined fluid impacts its self-diffusivity, viscosity, and entropy. Interestingly, interactions that eliminate particle layering can significantly reduce confined fluid mobility, whereas those that enhance layering can have the opposite effect. Excess entropy helps to understand and predict these trends. Finally, we explore the relationships between the effective interparticle interactions, static structure, and tracer diffusivity of a solute in a mixture. We show that knowledge of these relationships can allow one to “tune” the effective interparticle interactions of the solute in a way that increases its tracer diffusivity. One interesting consequence is that the mobility of a hard-sphere solute can be increased by adding a soft-repulsion to its interaction, effectively making it bigger. / text

Background: Atelectasis can provoke pulmonary and non-pulmonary complications after general anaesthesia. Unfortunately, there is no instrument to estimate atelectasis and prompt changes of mechanical ventilation during general anaesthesia. Although arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2) and intrapulmonary shunt have both been suggested to correlate with atelectasis, studies yielded inconsistent results. Therefore, we investigated these correlations. Methods: Shunt, PaO2 and atelectasis were measured in 11 sheep and 23 pigs with otherwise normal lungs. In pigs, contrasting measurements were available 12 hours after induction of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Atelectasis was calculated by computed tomography relative to total lung mass (Mtotal). We logarithmically transformed PaO2 (lnPaO2) to linearize its relationships with shunt and atelectasis. Data are given as median (interquartile range). Results: Mtotal was 768 (715–884) g in sheep and 543 (503–583) g in pigs. Atelectasis was 26 (16–47)% in sheep and 18 (13–23) % in pigs. PaO2 (FiO2 = 1.0) was 242 (106–414) mmHg in sheep and 480 (437–514) mmHg in pigs. Shunt was 39 (29–51)% in sheep and 15 (11–20) % in pigs. Atelectasis correlated closely with lnPaO2 (R2 = 0.78) and shunt (R2 = 0.79) in sheep (P-values<0.0001). The correlation of atelectasis with lnPaO2 (R2 = 0.63) and shunt (R2 = 0.34) was weaker in pigs, but R2 increased to 0.71 for lnPaO2 and 0.72 for shunt 12 hours after induction of ARDS. In both, sheep and pigs, changes in atelectasis correlated strongly with corresponding changes in lnPaO2 and shunt. Discussion and Conclusion: In lung-healthy sheep, atelectasis correlates closely with lnPaO2 and shunt, when blood gases are measured during ventilation with pure oxygen. In lung-healthy pigs, these correlations were significantly weaker, likely because pigs have stronger hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV) than sheep and humans. Nevertheless, correlations improved also in pigs after blunting of HPV during ARDS. In humans, the observed relationships may aid in assessing anaesthesia-related atelectasis.