3 pp. / Mondell pine should not be planted within a mile of Comandra populations. Infection of pine occurs through needles by spores produced on Comandra, but spores produced on pine cannot re-infect pine. This article gives information about the disease cycle, the symptoms and prevention and control methods for blister rust.

Dix chaussettes ont été étudiées, toutes en coton : quatre d’entre elles pour évaluer l’influencede la structure tricotée sur le frottement (jerseys bouclette, simple, double et ponts de fil), trois sontidentiques au titre du fil près, et les trois dernières à la pointure près. Nous nous sommes attachés aucas des phlyctènes apparaissant lors de la course à pied. Les zones du pied sujettes aux ampoules ontété déterminées grâce à un sondage. La pression s’exerçant sur ces zones et la fréquence des fouléesont été mesurées. Nous avons ainsi programmé une platine oscillante qui reproduit le frottement dansla chaussure. Les mesures obtenues sur ce dispositif ont été comparées à celles du Textile FrictionAnalyser de l’EMPA. En croisant ces résultats avec des mesures de compression et une premièreapproche de test d’absorption des chocs, nous avons observé que le jersey simple est plus indiquédans le cas de la marche car il exerce un frottement moins important que la bouclette et apporte unmeilleur amortissement quasi-statique. Dans le cas de la course à pied, il reste à déterminer si le choca un effet plus dommageable que le frottement et la compression exercée sur la peau. Si le choc estprimordial, le jersey bouclette sera recommandé, sinon le jersey simple. Nous avons développé unmodèle du frottement textile-peau en nous intéressant tout d’abord au cas des tricots bouclette. Lemouvement des bouclettes lors d’un cycle de frottement est assimilé à une rotation entre un anglemaximal en sens bouclette et un angle maximal en sens inverse. Ce modèle donne des résultats trèsproches de l’expérience. / Ten cotton-made athletic socks were studied: four in order to evaluate the influence of theknitted structure on the sock - to - skin friction (terry, simple, double and yarn bridges jerseys), threediffer from the yarn count and three from the size. We focused our research on the case of skinblisters generated during running. The areas of the foot where these skin affections may appear weredetermined using a survey. The pressure exerted on these areas and the stride frequency weremeasured whereby a linear alternative tribometer reproducing the friction in the shoe has beenprogrammed. The results obtained on this device were compared with the results obtained on theEMPA’s Textile Friction Analyser. Complementary compression and shock absorption tests wererealised. It was observed that the best knitted structure for hiking socks is the simple jersey structure.For running socks, if the effect of the friction force and the compression energy is more importantthan the influence of the maximal compression force on the formation of blisters, then we recommendwearing simple jersey otherwise we advise to wear terry jersey socks. A discrete model for thefriction of textile surfaces recovered with terries in contact with the skin is proposed. Terries aresupposed to rotate from an initial to a final position both in the forward and the reverse direction.After fitting, theoretical and experimental results are very similar.

Blister-Based Laser-Induced Forward-Transfer (BB LIFT) is a new method of particle transfer, capable of projecting complex and fragile particles into the gas phase. The technique uses a laser pulse to deform a metal or polymer film on a transparent substrate. The deformation of the film creates a blister which can mechanically desorb particles adhered to the surface. This thesis covers the study of the underlying mechanisms of blister formation in relation to laser pulse duration and film properties, whilst also advancing upon the technique by developing new methods for particle transfer of 0-dimensional point particles, 1-dimensional nanotubes, and 2-dimensional crystals. Study of the blister formation was carried out on uncoated 200-400 nm Titanium films, using 120 fs and 7 ns laser pulses. The blisters were studied by Atomic Force Microscopy and optical analysis. Furthermore a theoretical model for the blister formation using ns laser pulses was developed using a linear heat transfer model, showing a good agreement between experiment and theory. From this model mechanisms for blister formation under both of these pulse durations were developed. It was concluded that ns laser pulses heat the thin film causing it to undergo thermal expansion where the temperature and thermal expansion properties of the film define the blister. Femtosecond pulses form blisters due to confined ablation of the film at the interface of the transparent substrate and the film. The expanding gas forces the metal to stretch, where the deformation is dictated by the Young’s modulus of the material with the major factor being the thickness of the titanium film. The velocity distribution of the desorbed material was studied by means of mass spectroscopy. An ionising laser pulse was focused a known distance from the donor film. The ejected particles crossed the laser beam, and with a controlled delay of the time between the blister pulse and ionisation pulse the velocities could be determined for fullerenes (C60) and gold coated silicon nanoparticles (Auroshells). Utilising C60 as the desorbed material we could identify that for ns BB-LIFT the C60 was emitted at a velocity mostly dependent upon the heat expansion coefficient for the titanium film, resulting in a velocity approximating 100 ms-1 with a secondary emission of fullerenes due to evaporation from the hot surface. However, for fs BB-LIFT this evaporated emission was not present and the velocities could be adjusted from 7-70 ms-1 by varying the Ti film thickness from 360 nm to 210 nm respectively. These results are consistent with the mechanisms proposed earlier. The spread of the desorbed particle beam was also studied for nanosecond and femtosecond laser-induced blisters utilising auroshells and C60. This was accomplished by placing a receiver platform at a known distance in front of the donor film in order to collect the desorbed particles. The radial spread was then analysed indicating a flat deposit approximately the size of the initial blister with a 5 degree spread from that point. This indicates that the desorbed beam is highly directional. From this it could be ascertained that the blisters do not form from a single point position on the film but expand uniformly with the area of laser irradiation defining the growth point of the blister. A problem with many molecular beam techniques is that large fragile molecules or nanoparticles cannot be introduced to the gas phase without causing damage to the particles. Studies into the desorption of Auroshells (150 nm diameter), C60 (1 nm), PCBM (a fragile exohedral fullerene), carbon nanotubes (1x1000 nm), and 2D films (1x10000x10000 nm) showed that these materials were successfully transferred from the donor film to a receiver plate without causing damage to the particles. This was determined via Raman, NMR, AFM, and SEM measurements. Lastly a technique that allowed the growth of carbon nanotubes directly on the donor film utilising a a multi-layered substrate was developed, enabling the removal and deposition of the nanotubes, without exposing them to any chemical treatment.

Thin film chalcogenide solar cells are promising photovoltaic technologies. Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS)-based devices are already produced at industrial scale and record laboratory efficiency surpasses 22 %. Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 (CZTS) is an alternative material that is based on earth-abundant elements. CZTS device efficiency above 12 % has been obtained, indicating a high potential for improvement. In this thesis, in-line vacuum, sputtering-based processes for the fabrication of complete thin film chalcogenide solar cells on stainless steel substrates are studied. CIGS absorbers are deposited in a one-step high-temperature process using compound targets. CZTS precursors are first deposited by room temperature sputtering and absorbers are then formed by high temperature crystallization in a controlled atmosphere. In both cases, strategies for absorber layer improvement are identified and implemented. The impact of CZTS annealing temperature is studied and it is observed that the absorber grain size increases with annealing temperature up to 550 °C. While performance also improves from 420 to 510 °C, a drop in all solar cell parameters is observed for higher temperature. This loss is caused by blisters forming in the absorber during annealing. Blister formation is found to originate from gas entrapment during precursor sputtering. Increase in substrate temperature or sputtering pressure leads to drastic reduction of gas entrapment and hence alleviate blister formation resulting in improved solar cell parameters, including efficiency. An investigation of bandgap grading in industrial CIGS devices is conducted through one-dimensional simulations and experimental verification. It is found that a single gradient in the conduction band edge extending throughout the absorber combined with a steeper back-grading leads to improved solar cell performance, mainly due to charge carrier collection enhancement. The uniformity of both CIGS and CZTS 6-inch solar cells is assessed. For CZTS, the device uniformity is mainly limited by the in-line annealing process. Uneven heat and gas distribution resulting from natural convection phenomenon leads to significant lateral variation in material properties and device performance. CIGS solar cell uniformity is studied through laterally-resolved material and device characterization combined with SPICE network modeling. The absorber material is found to be laterally homogeneous. Moderate variations observed at the device level are discussed in the context of large area sample characterization. Power conversion efficiency values above 15 % for 225 cm2 CIGS cells and up to 5.1 % for 1 cm2 CZTS solar cells are obtained.

Abstract It is a generally accepted dogma that sepsis disturbs skin function and wound healing, but surprisingly there is only remote pathophysiological evidence available behind that presumption. As the skin is the largest defensive barrier, the skin dysfunction in severe sepsis deserves more attention. In this study, the suction blister model was used to create experimental wounds. The study population included 44 patients with severe sepsis and 15 controls. The blister fluid was collected to analyse cytokine profile of the skin. The transepidermal water loss and blood flow from the wound were measured. A 4mm biopsy was taken under local anaesthesia on the first and the eighth day of the study from the healthy looking skin. Then 15 healing suction blisters were excised. Serum samples were also collected on the first day of the study. The barrier restoration was diminished, and the inflammation in the wound was more intense in severe sepsis than in the controls. The expression of the basement membrane components Laminin-332 and type IV collagen decreased during the septic disease, but increased over the next 3 months without achieving the level oft he controls. The expression of tight junction proteins remained nearly intact in the healing wound in severe sepsis compared to the controls. The expression of occludin on the leading edge of the migrating keratinocytes was more restricted and late in severe sepsis compared to the controls. The levels of the tumour necrosis factor (TNF), interleukin-10 (IL-10) and IL-6 in skin blister fluid were higher in the sepsis compared to controls. The blister fluid and serum cytokine response in the sepsis differed since the levels of epidermal growth factor, vascular endothelial growth factor, TNF and basic fibroblastic growth factor (bFGF) in the blister fluid did not correlate with the levels of serum. The septic patients with multiple organ failure had higher levels of several cytokines than patients without organ failure. Survivors had lower levels of IL-10 and bFGF in blister fluid than the non-survivors. This study offers novel findings for skin and wound healing in sepsis. Together, all the findings suggest that skin dysfunction in severe sepsis exists even when the most profound structures remain intact. Understanding these mechanisms of impaired wound healing can improve future treatments, such as the timing of surgery. / Tiivistelmä Sepsiksen ajatellaan heikentävän haavanparanemista, mutta tieteellistä näyttöä on niukasti. Iholla on keskeinen osa elimistön puolustuksessa ja tasapainon ylläpidossa, joten sen toiminnan häiriintyminen systeemisessä tulehduksessa ansaitsee suuremman huomion. Imurakkulahaavat tehtiin 44 septiselle potilaalle ja 15 kontrollille. Haavoista mitattiin veden haihtumista ja veren virtausta sekä otettiin imurakkulaneste näytteeksi sytokiinimäärityksiä varten. Tutkimuksen ensimmäisenä ja kahdeksantena päivänä otettiin 4mm biopsiat terveeltä iholta ja 15 potilaalta poistettiin näytteeksi paraneva imurakkulahaava. Seeruminäytteet otettiin tutkimuksen ensimmäisenä päivänä. Veden haihtuminen haavalta oli voimakkaampaa eli ihon barrierin palautuminen oli hidastunut septisillä potilailla verrattuna kontrolleihin. Haavassa havaittu tulehdus oli sepsiksessä voimakkaampi. Tyvikalvon komponenttien Laminiini-332:n ja tyypin IV kollageenin ilmentyminen oli vähäisempää sepsiksen aikana ja lisääntyi 3kk kohdalla, mutta ei kuitenkaan saavuttanut kontrollien tasoa. Tiivisliitosproteiinien ilmentyminen oli lähes muuttumatonta sepsiksessä kontrolleihin verrattuna. Okludiinin ilmentyminen sen sijaan paranevassa haavassa vaeltavien keratinosyyttien etureunassa oli rajoittuneempaa ja myöhäisempää sepsiksessä kuin kontrolleilla. Sytokiineistä tuumorinekroositekijä (TNF), interleukiini-10 (IL-10) ja IL-6 olivat koholla imurakkulanesteessä verrattuna kontrolleihin. Epidermaalinen kasvutekijä, verisuonten endoteelikasvutekijä, TNF ja perusfibroplastinen kasvutekijä (bFGF) pitoisuudet rakkulanesteessä erosivat seerumin pitoisuuksista eli ihon sytokiiniprofiili erosi systeemisestä sytokiiniprofiilista. Potilailla, joilla oli monielinvaurio, todettiin korkeampia sytokiinipitoisuuksia. Potilailla, jotka menehtyivät 30 vrk kuluessa, oli korkeammat pitoisuudet IL-10 ja bFGF rakkulanesteessä. Tämä tutkimus tarjoaa uutta tietoa ihosta ja haavanparanemisesta sepiksessä. Tulosten perusteella voidaan todeta, että ihon toimintahäiriö on sepsiksessä todellinen, vaikka kaikkein perustavimmat rakenteet säilyvät muuttumattomina. Toimintahäiriön mekanismien ymmärtäminen voisi auttaa septisen potilaan hoidossa, kuten kirurgisten toimenpiteiden ajoittamisessa paranemisen kannalta mahdollisimman otolliseen aikaan.

Practical laser triangulation sessions were performed for each measurement object to obtain ground truth data. Three methods for laser line simulations were implemented: reshaping the built-in light sources of Blender, creating a texture projector and approximating a Gaussian beam as a light emitting volume. The camera simulation was based on the default camera of Blender together with settings from the physical camera. Three approaches for creating wood material were tested: procedural texturing, using microscopic image textures to create 3D-material and UV-mapping high resolution photograph onto the geometry. The blister package was simulated with one material for the pills and another for the semi-transparent plastic packaging. A stand-alone Python script was implemented to simulate anisotropic/directed subsurface scattering of a point laser in wood. This algorithm included an approach for creating vector fields that represented subsurface scattering directions. Three post-processing scripts were produced to simulate sensor noise, blurring/blooming of the laser line and lastly to apply simulated speckle patterns to the laser lines. Sensor images were simulated by rendering a laser line projected onto a measurement object. The sensor images were post-processed with the three mentioned scripts. Thousands of sensor images were simulated, with a small displacement of the measurement object between each image. After post-processing, these images were combined to a single scattering image. SICK IVP AB provided the algorithms needed for laser centre extraction as well as for scattering image creation. / <p>Examensarbetet är utfört vid Institutionen för teknik och naturvetenskap (ITN) vid Tekniska fakulteten, Linköpings universitet</p>

No description available.

Whitebark pine is an important keystone and foundation species in western North American mountain ranges, and facilitates tree island development in Rocky Mountain treelines. The manifestation of white pine blister rust in the cold and dry treelines of the Rockies, and the subsequent infection and mortality of whitebark pines raises questions as to how these extreme environments harbor the invasive disease, and what the consequences may be for treeline dynamics. This dissertation research comprises three studies that investigate abiotic factors influential for blister rust infection in treeline whitebark pines, how disease coupled with changing climate may affect whitebark pine treeline dynamics, and the connection between treeline spatial patterns and disease. The first study examined the spatial variation of blister rust infection in two whitebark pine treeline communities, and potential topographic correlates. Using geospatial and field approaches to generate high resolution terrain models of treeline landscapes, microtopography associated with solar radiation and moisture were found most influential to blister rust infection in treeline whitebark pines. Using field-based observations from sampled treeline communities, the second study developed an agent-based model to examine the effects of disease and climate on treeline pattern and process. Treeline dynamics were simulated under five hypothetical scenarios to assess changes in tree spatial patterns and populations. Blister rust-induced loss of whitebark pines resulted in a decline of facilitative processes, and an overall negative treeline response to disease—despite the beneficial effects of climate amelioration. The objective of the third study was to explore whether spatial patterns of tree proximity, size, and growth infer disease patterns. Comparing spatial patterns of tree characteristics between diseased and undiseased treeline communities, I found that trees growing near trees with larger stem diameters, and larger tree islands, tended to have more blister rust cankers, and displayed clustered spatial patterns. Undiseased treeline patterns revealed near neighbors smaller in stem diameter and tree island size, and were randomly dispersed. Blister rust diseased whitebark pines reveal spatial autocorrelation, despite the complex blister rust disease life cycle. Overall, findings from this dissertation reveal the implications of invasive disease on sensitive treeline ecotones dependent on a keystone species. / Ph. D.

No description available.

The strength and durability of proton exchange membranes for use in fuel cells has received much attention recently due to the increased push for sustainable alternatives to the internal combustion engine. To be viable, these alternatives must have comparable lifetimes and power outputs to the internal combustion engines they replace. Chemical degradation was once viewed as the most common culprit of early fuel cell failure, but as membranes and catalysts improved, mechanical failure became an important factor. As a result, fundamental research on the mechanically-induced failure mechanisms of fuel cell membranes, coupled with development and processing of less expensive membranes, has become an important topic. The use of the blister test geometry, along with digital image correlation of the deformed shape, creates a self-contained analysis tool useful for measuring the biaxial strength of membranes. In this work, blister tests are used to measure biaxial stress and strain for fuel cell membranes subjected to ramped pressure loading to form stress-strain curves that indicate the onset of yielding under biaxial stress conditions. Stress-life curves are developed experimentally for Gore-Selec? series 57 members using data collected under constant pressure conditions. These results are used to predict blister failure under ramped and fatigue loadings. A newly implemented hydrocarbon membrane system is evaluated with constant-pressure-to-leak blister testing. Improved strength following an isothermal hold at 100°C (pretreatment) is shown to occur. Ramped pressure testing indicates that the material after the pretreatment is stiffer and has a higher yield stress than the material before treatment. Morphological and constitutive characterization indicated differences in the materials that are consistent with the improved performance. / Master of Science