Gas hydrate is a potential energy source that has recently been the subject of much academic and industrial research. The search for deep-water gas hydrate involves many challenges that are especially apparent in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico, where the sub-seafloor is a complex structure of shallow salt diapirs and sheets underlying heavily deformed shallow sediments and surrounding diverse minibasins. Here, we consider the effect these structural factors have on gas hydrate occurrence in Garden Banks and Keathley Canyon blocks of the Gulf of Mexico. This was accomplished by first mapping the salt and shallow deformation structures throughout the region using a 2D grid of seismic reflection data. In addition, major deep-rooted faults and shallow-rooted faults were mapped throughout the area. A shallow sediment deformation map was generated that defined areas of significant faulting. We then quantified the thermal impact of shallow salt to better estimate the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ) thickness. The predicted base of the GHSZ was compared to the seismic data, which showed evidence for bottom simulating reflectors and gas chimneys. These BSRs and gas chimneys were used to ground-truth the calculated depth of the base of GHSZ. Finally, the calculated GHSZ thickness was used to estimate the volume of the gas hydrate reservoir in the area after determining the most reasonable gas hydrate concentrations in sediments within the GHSZ. An estimate of 5.5 trillion cubic meters of pure hydrate methane in Garden Banks and Keathley Canyon was obtained.

Many places where natural gas hydrate occurs have a regionally extensive, bottom-simulating seismic reflector (BSR) at the base of the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ). This reflection marks the top of an underlying free-gas zone (FGZ). Usually, hydrate recycling (that produces gas as the stability field moves upward relative to sediments) is invoked to explain the presence and properties of the sub-BSR FGZ. However, this explanation is not always adequate: FGZs are often thicker in passive-margin environments where hydrate recycling is relatively slow, than in convergent-margin environments where hydrate recycling is relatively fast (e.g. Blake Ridge compared with Cascadia). Furthermore, some areas with thick FGZs and extensive BSRs (e.g. west Svalbard) have similar rates of hydrate recycling to northern Gulf or Mexico, yet the latter has no regional BSR. Here we discuss a gas-forming mechanism that operates in addition to hydrate recycling, and which produces a widespread, regional, BSR when gas is transported upward through the liquid phase; this mechanism is dominant in tectonically passive margins. If the gas-water solubility decreases downward beneath the GHSZ (this occurs where the geothermal gradient and the pressure are relatively high), low rates of upward fluid flow enable pore water to become saturated in a thick layer beneath the GHSZ. The FGZ that this produces achieves a steady-state thickness that is primarily sensitive to the rate of upward fluid flow. Consequently, geophysical observations that constrain the thickness of sub-BSR FGZs can be used to estimate the regional, diffuse, upward fluid flux through natural gas-hydrate systems.

Gas hydrates are found worldwide and many studies have been carried out to develop an efficient method to identify and quantify them using various geophysical as well as other anomalies. In this study, various seismic anomalies related to gas hydrates and the underlying gas are analysed, and correlated them to rock physics properties. Observations of velocities in sediments containing gas hydrates show that the rigidity, and hence the velocity of sediments increases with increase of hydrate saturation. The increase of velocity due to the presence of gas hydrate can be explained in terms of gradual cementation of the sediment matrix. In the case of seismic attenuation, gas hydrate bearing sediments are quite different from common sedimentary rock behaviour of low seismic attenuation with high rigidity. In contrary gas hydrate bearing sediments is observed to have increased seismic attenuation of higher frequencies with increase of hydrate saturation. This strange phenomenon can be explained in terms of differential fluid flow within sediment and hydrate matrix. Also it is observed that the presence of large amount of gas hydrate can result in an increase of seismic amplitudes, a signature similar to the presence of small amount of gas. Hence misinterpretation of these enhanced amplitudes could result in the under estimation of gas present not only as shallow drilling hazard but also on the resource potential of the region. The increase of seismic reflection amplitude results from the formation of gas hydrates in selective intervals causing strong positive and negative impedance contrasts across the formations with and without gas hydrates.

The Scotian margin of the east coast of Canada has a large theoretical gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ) yet review of extensive industry seismic data reveals a prominent BSR at only one location. 3D seismic reflection and long offset (9 km) pre-stack 2D multichannel seismic data were used to study the velocity structure and geophysical characteristics of the hydrate zone and surrounding regions. The Mohican Channel study area shows a unique double BSR at 300 to 450 m below the seafloor in the western section of the study area immediately adjacent to the Mohican Channel in a water depth range of 1500- 1930m. The topmost BSR (BSR 1) is the more extensive of the two covering an area of 150 km2 in the 3D volume and a calculated area of 280 km2 using 2D industry and single-channel seismic profiles outside of the study area. BSR 2 covers an area of ~50 km2 and occurs approximately 80m below BSR 1. A system of polygonal faults is prominent in the area and some faults appear as conduits for gas leakage into the GHSZ. Fluid escape features are common on the surface of BSR 1 but rare on the seafloor suggesting that fluid flux is at lower levels than in the past.

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This thesis looks at the challenges of establishing environmentally sustainable supply chains in Swedish Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) through the lens of buyer-supplier relationships. Despite SMEs' important role in innovation and employment, there is little research on sustainability in this sector, particularly on buyer-supplier dynamics. Existing literature emphasizes the potential benefits of strong buyer-supplier relationships but does not investigate into their role in SME sustainability efforts. This study aims to fill this gap and provide insights into the barriers to sustainable supply chain development in Swedish SMEs. It aims to educate policymakers and practitioners about the importance of fostering long-term partnerships within SME supply chains. The purpose of this study is to explore how buyer-supplier relationships influence sustainable practices in the supply chains of Swedish SMEs. Utilizing qualitative research methods, the research involved interviews with multiple SMEs to gather insights into the dynamics of these relationships and their effect on sustainability efforts. The study examines the role of trust, communication, and mutual sustainability goals in strengthening these relationships. The findings indicate that robust, trust-based buyer-supplier relationships are essential for fostering sustainable supply chain practices. Such relationships enable better collaboration, which is crucial for SMEs aiming to overcome limitations related to their size and bargaining power. The study also shows that a variety of factors influence SMEs' efforts to become more environmentally sustainable. Examples include industry, customer and supplier size, and new regulations. This thesis contributes to the literature by describing specific challenges and effective practices relevant to Swedish SMEs and suggests that enhancing the quality of buyer-supplier interactions can significantly impact their sustainability outcomes. Practical recommendations are offered for SMEs to optimize their supply chain sustainability, highlighting the importance of strategic partnerships in achieving environmental goals.

Cirrus clouds play an important role in radiative transfer, and thus have impact on the energy balance of the atmosphere and the climate of the Earth. Furthermore, they occur often and cover large areas globally at any time. Nevertheless, cirrus clouds are poorly studied, especially in the polar regions. Cirrus clouds are present in a large amount of the 14 years of data produced by the lidar at the Swedish Institude of Space Physics (IRF), but has not been studied to a large extent. A lidar is an active remote sensing instrument using a laser. This master's thesis develops and improves programs for analysis of cirrus clouds from this lidar data. It also performs analysis of six case studies chosen from the available data, and statistics of these six cases. The parameters calculated for each date are the cloud top, base and mean altitude, the geometrical thickness, the depolarisation ratio, the backscatter ratio (BSR), the backscatter coefficient, the extinction coefficient, the optical thickness and the number of cloud layers. No clear correlation between the optical thickness and the cloud top, base or mean altitude was found. There seems to be a weak correlation between increased optical thickness and increased geometrical thickness, which is not unreasonable. The mean cloud layer top altitude was 11.82 km and the mean cloud base was 10.36 km. The mean optical thickness for a cloud layer was 1.46 km, and the average of the cloud layer mean altitude was 11.09 km. It should be noted that the statistical analysis is based on only six cases with a total observation time of no more than 37 hours. A far larger dataset is needed in order to obtain any statistically signicant conclusions. The effect of averaging is studied, and it is concluded that averaging over altitude reduced the noise and facilitated the interpolation more than averaging over time did. Different approaches to obtain the molecular backscatter coefficient are compared, as well as the effect on the simulated molecular signal. Two of these approaches calculate the molecular backscatter coeffcient with input of the temperature and pressure either as continuously measured ground vales from the weather station at IRF or as radiosonde profiles for a specific time. In the other two, the molecular backscatter coeffcient is obtained from ECMWF data and from the standard atmosphere. Differences in the range 12-35% between the methods are found. Different approaches to calculate the backscatter ratio (BSR) are also compared. At cirrus altitudes, the decrease in the signal due to the molecular cloudfree part of the atmosphere is still strong, and finding the top and base separately by comparison with the standard deviation of the signal is proven a better method than interpolating between the point where the signal starts to increase and the point where it reaches the same signal value again. Height-normalising the signal provides a more robust method. For thin cirrus, the signal is not significantly attenuated above the cloud layer, and it is found that a method based on the ratios between the measured signal and the simulated molecular signal at cloud top and base did not produce reliable results for the optical thickness. In addition to analysing data and data processing methods, new data processing tools in MATLAB have been developed and existing functions have been improved. These will be valuable for continued studies with the IRF lidar, for cirrus as well as PSCs and thick and/or low-altitude clouds.

Today, there is a general notion that water resources are best managed according to their river basins. River basin management may be approached from a wide variety of angles. This thesis focuses on information management, institutional arrangements and strategic policy support, with special reference to the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD). The overall objective is to examine strategies, possibilities and hindrances for river basin management, with the ultimate goal of identifying key aspects to be considered - and prioritised - for “successful” European water management and WFD implementation. An assessment of the information management of three transboundary water regimes in Europe showed that a technical/scientific paradigm ap-pears to dominate in river basin accords. This is visible, for example, in the data collection, which is dominated by state and environmental impact information, and the use of passive channels for communicating with stakeholders and other interest groups. The studies addressing institutional arrangements for river basin management according to the WFD showed that the implementa-tion level of the directive is relatively low – both at national and international levels. For instance, competent authorities have not been established (strictly) according to the borders of the estab-lished River Basin District (RBDs). Further, in international RBDs, the ambitions and plans for cooperation vary considerably. Despite the general low implementation level, steps have still been taken in the “direction” of river basin management. At the national level, all examined countries have established RBDs according to river basins, and at the international level, joint river basin management plans will probably be coordinated for a majority of river basins shared by EU Member States. However, the same pattern could not be discerned for river basins extending outside the borders of the EU. In order to support strategic policy making on issues related to the implementation of the WFD, two assessments were made, one addressing international co-operation and water quality in the Baltic Sea Region, and one encompassing rankings of all the newly established RBDs based on a number of identical indicators. Although there is a need to refine these assessments, they may be regarded as simple – but yet robust – models for bench-marking. / QC 20100914

Masters of Science / The communication barriers between deaf and hearing society mean that interaction between these communities is kept to a minimum. The South African Sign Language research group, Integration of Signed and Verbal Communication: South African Sign Language Recognition and Animation (SASL), at the University of the Western Cape aims to create technologies to bridge the communication gap. In this thesis we address the subject of whole hand gesture recognition. We demonstrate a method to identify South African Sign Language classifiers using an eigenvector approach. The classifiers researched within this thesis are based on those outlined by the Thibologa Sign Language Institute for SASL. Gesture recognition is achieved in real time. Utilising a pre-processing method for image registration we are able to increase the recognition rates for the eigenvector approach.

The aim of this thesis was to study the Baltic Sea Region (BSR) Programme and the North Sea Region (NSR) Programme within the Transnational Interreg IV B Programme for the period 2007-2013, by making a comparison between Sweden and Denmark. The thesis looked at the level of involvement of both National Planning Authorities in the designing process of the programmes and projects, and investigated whether the Interreg programmes influence the authorities in their work with future policy-making, and the national spatial planning policies in general. The ambition of the thesis was also to clarify the links between the Interreg Programmes, the ESDP document, the Territorial State and Perspectives of the European Union and the Territorial Agenda, and how these documents have influenced the EU Territorial Cohesion debate and the creation of the EU Baltic Sea Strategy. The reason was to better understand the role of the National Planning Authorities in the implementation of the transnational programmes and their work towards territorial cohesion. The methods used for the thesis consisted of secondary research and analysis of the intergovernmental “Territorial Documents”, the Interreg programmes and their specific projects, and not least, the study of books, articles, and other documents and sources of interest for this topic. Interviews were made with people working at Swedish “Boverket”, Danish “By- og Landskabsstyrelsen” (BLST) and “Danske Regioner” (Danish Regions). Some of the main findings have been the different approaches among the Planning Authorities towards their potential leadership in the Interreg projects, the little time dedicated to the Interreg work in general at Swedish Boverket, and Boverket’s scarce intervention in the development-process of the EU Baltic Sea Strategy. On the Danish side there is very little priority given to the diffusion and transfer of knowledge, while in Sweden on the other hand, this is one of the main issues for all the authorities involved. The conclusion is that, even if Sweden and Denmark are close neighbours and are collaborating in many fields, there are some substantial differences in attitude and action towards their role as participators of the Transnational Interreg projects, differences which, if emphasised, could be useful knowledge for both parts in order to develop their own Interreg-work, responding to the growing interest of the EU in territorial concerns. / m.bengtsson@tiscali.it