In this study we tested whether the prevalence or synaptic distribution of NMDA receptor subunits would be altered in the brain of the MeCP2-null mouse model of Rett syndrome. Detergent resistant membranes (DRMs) and post-synaptic densities (PSDs) were isolated from the synaptic membranes treated with TritonX-100, and resolved by sucrose density gradient centrifugation. Immunoblot analysis of the resulting density gradient fractions revealed that the relative distribution of the different NMDA receptor subunits between the DRM fractions, soluble fractions, and insoluble postsynaptic density fractions was preserved in the MeCP2-null brain. However, analysis of the overall NMDA receptor subunit prevalence within these fractions revealed a significant decrease in the expression of the NR1 and NR2A subunits, but not the NR2B subunit, in the MeCP2-null brain. The preservation of distribution of NMDAR subunits to the synaptic membranes, together with the decrease in NR1 and NR2A prevalence, suggest an imbalance in equilibrium between the mature and the immature synapses in a mouse model of Rett syndrome.

Aquesta tesi proposa una millora del clàssic mètode dels elements finits (finite element method, FEM) per a un tractament eficient de dominis amb contorns corbs: el denominat NURBS-enhanced finite element method (NEFEM). Aquesta millora permet descriure de manera exacta la geometría mitjançant la seva representació del contorn CAD amb non-uniform rational B-splines (NURBS), mentre que la solució s'aproxima amb la interpolació polinòmica estàndard. Per tant, en la major part del domini, la interpolació i la integració numèrica són estàndard, retenint les propietats de convergència clàssiques del FEM i facilitant l'acoblament amb els elements interiors. Només es requereixen estratègies específiques per realitzar la interpolació i la integració numèrica en elements afectats per la descripció del contorn mitjançant NURBS.La implementació i aplicació de NEFEM a problemes que requereixen una descripció acurada del contorn són, també, objectius prioritaris d'aquesta tesi. Per exemple, la solució numèrica de les equacions de Maxwell és molt sensible a la descripció geomètrica. Es presenta l'aplicació de NEFEM a problemes d'scattering d'ones electromagnètiques amb una formulació de Galerkin discontinu. S'investiga l'habilitat de NEFEM per obtenir solucions precises amb malles grolleres i aproximacions d'alt ordre, i s'exploren les possibilitats de les anomenades malles NEFEM, amb elements que contenen singularitats dintre d'una cara o aresta d'un element. Utilitzant NEFEM, la mida de la malla no està controlada per la complexitat de la geometria. Això implica una dràstica diferència en la mida dels elements i, per tant, suposa un gran estalvi tant des del punt de vista de requeriments de memòria com de cost computacional. Per tant, NEFEM és una eina poderosa per la simulació de problemes tridimensionals a gran escala amb geometries complexes. D'altra banda, la simulació de problemes d'scattering d'ones electromagnètiques requereix mecanismes per aconseguir una absorció eficient de les ones scattered. En aquesta tesi es discuteixen, optimitzen i comparen dues tècniques en el context de mètodes de Galerkin discontinu amb aproximacions d'alt ordre.La resolució numèrica de les equacions d'Euler de la dinàmica de gasos és també molt sensible a la representació geomètrica. Quan es considera una formulació de Galerkin discontinu i elements isoparamètrics lineals, una producció espúria d'entropia pot evitar la convergència cap a la solució correcta. Amb NEFEM, l'acurada imposició de la condició de contorn en contorns impenetrables proporciona resultats precisos inclús amb una aproximació lineal de la solució. A més, la representació exacta del contorn permet una imposició adequada de les condicions de contorn amb malles grolleres i graus d'interpolació alts. Una propietat atractiva de la implementació proposada és que moltes de les rutines usuals en un codi d'elements finits poden ser aprofitades, per exemple rutines per realitzar el càlcul de les matrius elementals, assemblatge, etc. Només és necessari implementar noves rutines per calcular les quadratures numèriques en elements corbs i emmagatzemar el valor de les funciones de forma en els punts d'integració. S'han proposat vàries tècniques d'elements finits corbs a la literatura. En aquesta tesi, es compara NEFEM amb altres tècniques populars d'elements finits corbs (isoparamètics, cartesians i p-FEM), des de tres punts de vista diferents: aspectes teòrics, implementació i eficiència numèrica. En els exemples numèrics, NEFEM és, com a mínim, un ordre de magnitud més precís comparat amb altres tècniques. A més, per una precisió desitjada NEFEM és també més eficient: necessita un 50% dels graus de llibertat que fan servir els elements isoparamètrics o p-FEM per aconseguir la mateixa precisió. Per tant, l'ús de NEFEM és altament recomanable en presència de contorns corbs i/o quan el contorn té detalls geomètrics complexes. / This thesis proposes an improvement of the classical finite element method (FEM) for an efficient treatment of curved boundaries: the NURBSenhanced FEM (NEFEM). It is able to exactly represent the geometry by means of the usual CAD boundary representation with non-uniform rational Bsplines (NURBS), while the solution is approximated with a standard piecewise polynomial interpolation. Therefore, in the vast majority of the domain, interpolation and numerical integration are standard, preserving the classical finite element (FE) convergence properties, and allowing a seamless coupling with standard FEs on the domain interior. Specifically designed polynomial interpolation and numerical integration are designed only for those elements affected by the NURBS boundary representation.The implementation and application of NEFEM to problems demanding an accurate boundary representation are also primary goals of this thesis. For instance, the numerical solution of Maxwell's equations is highly sensitive to geometry description. The application of NEFEM to electromagnetic scattering problems using a discontinuous Galerkin formulation is presented. The ability of NEFEM to compute an accurate solution with coarse meshes and high-order approximations is investigated, and the possibilities of NEFEM meshes, with elements containing edge or corner singularities, are explored. With NEFEM, the mesh size is no longer subsidiary to geometry complexity, and depends only on the accuracy requirements on the solution, whereas standard FEs require mesh refinement to properly capture the geometry. This implies a drastic difference in mesh size that results in drastic memory savings, and also important savings in computational cost. Thus, NEFEM is a powerful tool for large-scale scattering simulations with complex geometries in three dimensions. Another key issue in the numerical solution of electromagnetic scattering problems is using a mechanism to perform the absorption of outgoing waves. Two perfectly matched layers are discussed, optimized and compared in a high-order discontinuous Galerkin framework.The numerical solution of Euler equations of gas dynamics is also very sensitive to geometry description. Using a discontinuous Galerkin formulation and linear isoparametric elements, a spurious entropy production may prevent convergence to the correct solution. With NEFEM, the exact imposition of the solid wall boundary condition provides accurate results even with a linear approximation of the solution. Furthermore, the exact boundary representation allows using coarse meshes, but ensuring the proper implementation of the solid wall boundary condition. An attractive feature of the proposed implementation is that the usual routines of a standard FE code can be directly used, namely routines for the computation of elemental matrices and vectors, assembly, etc. It is only necessary to implement new routines for the computation of numerical quadratures in curved elements and to store the value of shape functions at integration points. Several curved FE techniques have been proposed in the literature. In this thesis, NEFEM is compared with some popular curved FE techniques (namely isoparametric FEs, cartesian FEs and p-FEM), from three different perspectives: theoretical aspects, implementation and performance. In every example shown, NEFEM is at least one order of magnitude more accurate compared to other techniques. Moreover, for a desired accuracy NEFEM is also computationally more efficient. In some examples, NEFEM needs only 50% of the number of degrees of freedom required by isoparametric FEs or p-FEM. Thus, the use of NEFEM is strongly recommended in the presence of curved boundaries and/or when the boundary of the domain has complex geometric details.

This thesis discusses and develops one approach to solve parabolic partial differential equations with random input data. The stochastic problem is firstly transformed into a parametrized one by using finite dimensional noise assumption and the truncated Karhunen-Loeve expansion. The approach, Monte Carlo discontinuous Galerkin (MCDG) method, randomly generates $M$ realizations of uncertain coefficients and approximates the expected value of the solution by averaging M numerical solutions. This approach is applied to two numerical examples. The first example is a two-dimensional parabolic partial differential equation with random convection term and the second example is a benchmark problem coupling flow and transport equations. I first apply polynomial kernel principal component analysis of second order to generate M realizations of random permeability fields. They are used to obtain M realizations of random convection term computed from solving the flow equation. Using this approach, I solve the transport equation M times corresponding to M velocity realizations. The MCDG solution spreads toward the whole domain from the initial location and the contaminant does not leave the initial location completely as time elapses. The results show that MCDG solution is realistic, because it takes the uncertainty in velocity fields into consideration. Besides, in order to correct overshoot and undershoot solutions caused by the high level of oscillation in random velocity realizations, I solve the transport equation on meshes of finer resolution than of the permeability, and use a slope limiter as well as lower and upper bound constraints to address this difficulty. Finally, future work is proposed.

This theses analyzes Cuk converter, that is one of the dc to dc switching converters. For continuous inductor current mode and discontinuous inductor current mode, stedy state operation is analysied. Characteristic parameters are determined. Through State Space Averge Models, Small Signal Models are obtained. Parasitic Resistance effects on steady state and small signal models are determined. Efficency of the switching converter is derived. Open loop transfer functions for continous and discontinuous inductor curret mode are obtained. Parmeters for small signal behaviour is determined and stability is analysied. Parasitic resistance effects on transfer functions is determined. Therotecial analysis are verified with a simulations of designed converter.

The United States Navy is committed to developing technology for an All-Electric Ship (AES) that promises to improve the affordability and capability of its next-generation warships. With the addition of power-intensive 21st century electrical systems, future thermal loads are projected to exceed current heat removal capacity. Furthermore, rising fuel costs necessitate a careful approach to total-ship energy management. Accordingly, the aim of this research is to develop computer tools for early-stage design of shipboard energy distribution systems. A system-level model is developed that enables ship designers to assess the effects of thermal and electrical system configurations on fuel efficiency and survivability. System-level optimization and design exploration, based on these energy system models, is challenging because the models are sometimes computationally expensive and characterized by discrete design variables and discontinuous responses. To address this challenge, a classifier-guided sampling (CGS) method is developed that uses a Bayesian classifier to pursue solutions with desirable performance characteristics. The CGS method is tested on a set of example problems and applied to the AES energy system model. Results show that the CGS method significantly improves the rate of convergence towards known global optima, on average, when compared to genetic algorithms. / text

<p>The Discontinuous Galerkin time domain (DGTD) method is promising in modeling of realistic multiscale electromagnetic systems. This method defines the basic concept for implementing the communication between multiple domains with different scales.</p><p>Constructing a DGTD system consists of several careful choices: (a) governing equations; (b) element shape and corresponding basis functions for the spatial discretization of each subdomain; (c) numerical fluxes onto interfaces to bond all subdomains together; and (d) time stepping scheme based on properties of a discretized</p><p>system. This work present the advances in each one of these steps.</p><p> </p><p>First, a unified framework based on the theory of differential forms and the finite element method is used to analyze the discretization of the Maxwell's equations. Based on this study, field intensities (<bold>E</bold> and <bold>H</bold>) are associated to 1-forms and curl-conforming basis functions; flux densities (<bold>D</bold> and <bold>B</bold>) are associated to 2-forms and divergence-conforming basis functions; and the constitutive relations are defined by Hodge operators.</p><p>A different approach is the study of numerical dispersion. Semidiscrete analysis is the traditional method, but for high order elements modal analysis is prefered. From these analyses, we conclude that a correct discretization of fields belonging to different p-form (e.g., <bold>E</bold> and <bold>B</bold>) uses basis functions with same order of interpolation; however, different order of interpolation must be used if two fields belong to the same p-form (e.g., <bold>E</bold> and <bold>H</bold>). An alternative method to evaluate numerical dispersion based on evaluation of dispersive Hodge operators is also presented. Both dispersion analyses are equivalent and reveal same fundamental results. Eigenvalues, eigenvector and transient results are studied to verify accuracy and computational costs of different schemes. </p><p>Two different approaches are used for implementing the DG Method. The first is based on <bold>E</bold> and <bold>H</bold> fields, which use curl-conforming basis functions with different order of interpolation. In this case, the Riemman solver shows the best performance to treat interfaces between subdomains. A new spectral prismatic element, useful for modeling of layer structures, is also implemented for this approach. Furthermore, a new efficient and very accurate time integration method for sequential subdomains is implemented.</p><p>The second approach for solving multidomain cases is based on <bold>E</bold> and <bold>B</bold> fields, which use curl- and divergence-conforming basis functions, respectively, with same order of interpolation. In this way, higher accuracy and lower memory consumption are obtained with respect to the first approach based on <bold>E</bold> and <bold>H</bold> fields. The centered flux is used to treat interfaces with non-conforming meshes, and both explicit Runge-Kutta method and implicit Crank-Nicholson method are implemented for time integration. </p><p>Numerical examples and realistic cases are presented to verify that the proposed methods are non-spurious and efficient DGTD schemes.</p> / Dissertation

This thesis is focused on direct numerical simulation (DNS) of compressible and incompressible fully developed and developing turbulent flows between isothermal walls using a discontinuous Galerkin method (DGM). Three cases (Ma = 0.2, 0.7 and 1.5) of DNS of turbulent channel flows between isothermal walls with Re ~ 2800, based on bulk velocity and half channel width, have been carried out. It is found that a power law seems to scale mean streamwise velocity with Ma slightly better than the more usual log-law. Inner and outer scaling of second-order and higher-order statistics have been analyzed. The linkage between the pressure gradient and vorticity flux on the wall has been theoretically derived and confirmed and they are highly correlated very close to the wall. The correlation coefficients are influenced by Ma, and viscosity when Ma is high. The near-wall spanwise streak spacing increases with Ma. Isosurfaces of the second invariant of the velocity gradient tensor are more sparsely distributed and elongated as Ma increases. DNS of turbulent isothermal-wall bounded flow subjected to favourable and adverse pressure gradient (FPG, APG) at Ma ~ 0.2 and Reref ~ 428000, based on the inlet bulk velocity and the streamwise length of the bottom wall, is also investigated. The FPG/APG is obtained by imposing a concave/convex curvature on the top wall of a plane channel. The flows on the bottom and top walls are tripped turbulent and laminar boundary layers, respectively. It is observed that the first and second order statistics are strongly influenced by the pressure gradients. The cross-correlation coefficients of the pressure gradients and vorticity flux remain constant across the FPG/APG regions of the flat wall. High correlations between the streamwise/wallnormal pressure gradient and the spanwise vorticity are found near the separation region close to the curved top wall. The angle of inclined hairpin structure to streamwise direction of the bottom wall is smaller (flatter) in the FPG region than the APG region. / Thesis (Ph.D, Mechanical and Materials Engineering) -- Queen's University, 2009-12-21 13:59:53.084

The dissertation documents research work carried out on Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) strategies for hard switched Voltage Source Inverters (VSI) for variable speed electric drives. This research is aimed at Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV). PWM is at the heart of all variable speed electric drives; they have a huge influence on the overall performance of the system and may also help eventually give us an extra degree of freedom in the possibility to rethink the inverter design including the re-dimensioning of the inverter components.HEVs tend to cost more than conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles as they have to incorporate two traction systems, which is the major discouraging factor for consumers and in turn for manufacturers. The two traction system increases the maintenance cost of the car as well. In addition the electric drives not only cost extra money but space too, which is already scarce with an ICE under the hood. An all-electric car is not yet a viable idea as the batteries have very low energy density compared with petrol or diesel and take considerable time to charge. One solution could be to use bigger battery packs but these add substantially to the price and weight of the vehicle and are not economically viable. To avoid raising the cost of such vehicles to unreasonably high amounts, autonomy has to be compromised. However hybrid vehicles are an important step forward in the transition toward all-electric cars while research on better batteries evolves. The objective of this research is to make electric drives suitable for HEVs i.e. lighter, more compact and more efficient -- requiring less maintenance and eventually at lower cost so that the advantages, such as low emissions and better fuel efficiency, would out-weigh a little extra cost for these cars. The electrical energy source in a vehicle is a battery, a DC Voltage source, and the traction motor is generally an AC motor owing to the various advantages it offers over a DC motor. Hence the need for a VSI, which is used to transform the DC voltage into AC voltage of desired amplitude and frequency. Pulse width modulation techniques are used to control VSI to ensure that the required/calculated voltage is fed to the machine, to produce the desired torque/speed. PWM techniques are essentially open loop systems where no feedback is used and the instantaneous values differ from the required voltage, however the same average values are obtained. Pulse width modulated techniques produce a low frequency signal (desired average value of the switched voltage) also called the fundamental component, along with unwanted high frequency harmonics linked to the carrier signal frequency or the PWM period. In modern cars we see more and more mechanical loads driven by electricity through digital processors. It is very important to eliminate the risk of electromagnetic interference between these systems to avoid failure or malfunction. Hence these unwanted harmonics have to be filtered so that they do not affect the electronic control unit or other susceptible components placed in the vicinity. Randomised modulation techniques (RPWM) are used to dither these harmonics at the switching frequency and its multiple. In this thesis a random modulator based on space vector modulation is presented which has additional advantages of SVM. Another EMI problem linked to PWM techniques is that they produce common mode voltages in the load. For electric machines, common mode voltage produces shaft voltage which in turn provokes dielectric stress on the motor bearings, its lubricant and hence the possibility of generating bearing currents in the machine that can be fatal for the machine. To reduce the common mode voltage a space vector modulation strategy is developed based on intelligent placement of zero vectors. (...)

In this dissertation, we study integrodifference equations in patchy landscapes. Specifically, we provide a framework for linking individual dispersal behavior with population-level dynamics in patchy landscapes by integrating recent advances in modeling dispersal into an integrodifference equation. First, we formulate a random-walk model in a patchy landscape with patch-dependent diffusion, settling, and mortality rates. We incorporate mechanisms for individual behavior at an interface which, in general, results in the probability-density function of the random walker being discontinuous at an interface. We show that the dispersal kernel can be characterized as the Green's function of a second-order differential operator and illustrate the kind of (discontinuous) dispersal kernels that arise from our approach. We examine the dependence of obtained kernels on model parameters. Secondly, we analyze integrodifference equations in patchy landscapes equipped with discontinuous kernels. We obtain explicit formulae for the critical-domain-size problem, as well as, explicit formulae for the analogous critical size of good patches on an infinite, periodic, patchy landscape. We examine the dependence of obtained formulae on individual behavior at an interface. Through numerical simulations, we observe that, if the population can persist on an infinite, periodic, patchy landscape, its spatial profile can evolve into a discontinuous traveling periodic wave. We derive a dispersion relation for the speed of the wave and illustrate how interface behavior affects invasion speeds. Lastly, we develop a strategic model for the spread of the emerald ash borer and its interaction with host trees. A thorough literature search provides point estimates and interval ranges for model parameters. Numerical simulations show that the spatial profile of an emerald ash borer invasion evolves into a pulse-like solution that moves with constant speed. We employ Latin hypercube sampling to obtain a plausible collection of parameter values and use a sensitivity analysis technique, partial rank correlation coefficients, to identify model parameters that have the greatest influence on obtained speeds. We illustrate the applicability of our framework by exploring the effectiveness of barrier zones on slowing the spread of the emerald ash borer invasion.

Die Dynamik der Atmosphäre der Erde umfasst einen Bereich von mikrophysikalischer Turbulenz über konvektive Prozesse und Wolkenbildung bis zu planetaren Wellenmustern. Für Wettervorhersage und zur Betrachtung des Klimas über Jahrzehnte und Jahrhunderte ist diese Gegenstand der Modellierung mit numerischen Verfahren. Mit voranschreitender Entwicklung der Rechentechnik sind Neuentwicklungen der dynamischen Kerne von Klimamodellen, die mit der feiner werdenden Auflösung auch entsprechende Prozesse auflösen können, notwendig. Der dynamische Kern eines Modells besteht in der Umsetzung (Diskretisierung) der grundlegenden dynamischen Gleichungen für die Entwicklung von Masse, Energie und Impuls, so dass sie mit Computern numerisch gelöst werden können. Die vorliegende Arbeit untersucht die Eignung eines unstetigen Galerkin-Verfahrens niedriger Ordnung für atmosphärische Anwendungen. Diese Eignung für Gleichungen mit Wirkungen von externen Kräften wie Erdanziehungskraft und Corioliskraft ist aus der Theorie nicht selbstverständlich. Es werden nötige Anpassungen beschrieben, die das Verfahren stabilisieren, ohne sogenannte „slope limiter” einzusetzen. Für das unmodifizierte Verfahren wird belegt, dass es nicht geeignet ist, atmosphärische Gleichgewichte stabil darzustellen. Das entwickelte stabilisierte Modell reproduziert eine Reihe von Standard-Testfällen der atmosphärischen Dynamik mit Euler- und Flachwassergleichungen in einem weiten Bereich von räumlichen und zeitlichen Skalen. Die Lösung der thermischen Windgleichung entlang der mit den Isobaren identischen charakteristischen Kurven liefert atmosphärische Gleichgewichtszustände mit durch vorgegebenem Grundstrom einstellbarer Neigung zu(barotropen und baroklinen)Instabilitäten, die für die Entwicklung von Zyklonen wesentlich sind. Im Gegensatz zu früheren Arbeiten sind diese Zustände direkt im z-System(Höhe in Metern)definiert und müssen nicht aus Druckkoordinaten übertragen werden.Mit diesen Zuständen, sowohl als Referenzzustand, von dem lediglich die Abweichungen numerisch betrachtet werden, und insbesondere auch als Startzustand, der einer kleinen Störung unterliegt, werden verschiedene Studien der Simulation von barotroper und barokliner Instabilität durchgeführt. Hervorzuheben ist dabei die durch die Formulierung von Grundströmen mit einstellbarer Baroklinität ermöglichte simulationsgestützte Studie des Grades der baroklinen Instabilität verschiedener Wellenlängen in Abhängigkeit von statischer Stabilität und vertikalem Windgradient als Entsprechung zu Stabilitätskarten aus theoretischen Betrachtungen in der Literatur. / The dynamics of the Earth’s atmosphere encompass a range from microphysical turbulence over convective processes and cloud formation up to planetary wave patterns. For weather forecasting and the investigation of climate over decades and centuries, these are subject to modelling with numerical methods. With progressing development of computer technology, re-development of the dynamical cores of climate models is in order to properly handle processes covered by the increasing resolution. The dynamical core of a model consists of the adaptation(discretization)of the basic equations for the dynamics of mass, energy and momentum for solving them numerically employing computers. The presented work investigates the applicability of a low-order Discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method for atmospheric applications. With equations that include external forces like gravitation and the Coriolis force, that is not given by theory. Necessary changes for stabilizing the method without resorting to slope limiters are presented. For the unmodified method, the basic inability to properly keep atmospheric balances is demonstrated. The developed stabilized model reproduces a set of standard test cases in a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. The solution of the termal wind equation along its characteristics curves, those being identical to the isobars, produces balanced atmospheric states with tunable (barotropic and baroclinic) instability via a prescribed zonal wind field. The constructed instability directly relates to the generation of cyclones. In contrast to earlier works, these balanced states are directly given in the z system (height in meters), without need for elaborate conversion from pressure coordinates. With these constructed states, both as reference state, the deviations from which being considered numerically, and as especially as initial condition subject to a small perturbation, several studies of barotropic and baroclinic instability are conducted via simulations. Particularily, the construction of steady states with configurable zonal flows of certain baroclinity facilitates a simulation-based study of baroclinic instability of differing wavelengths, depending on static stability and vertical wind gradient, in correspondence with stability maps from theoretical considerations in the literature.