Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1993.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1997. / Vita. Abstract. "UMI number : 9812512"--Verso of t.p. Includes bibliographical references (p. 64-73). Available electronically via Internet.

Akademisk avhandling--Histoire--Uppsala, 1997. / Résumé en anglais. Bibliogr. p. 265-278.

International aid non-governmental organisations (IANGOs) are expected by the public and government institutions funding them to focus upon maximising effectiveness for the delivery of aid and in the process adopt ethical procurement (EP) practices. Concerns have been voiced by governments and media regarding the perceived lack of coordination between IANGOs. The motivation for this thesis stems from a societal and personal evaluation of the need for ethical behaviour in the procurement of goods and services for international aid and is supported by a willingness by IANGOs to explore the potential for conducting procurement practices in their supply networks in an ethical manner. To address these issues this research aims to explore ethical procurement strategies for IANGOs in humanitarian supply chains. To achieve these aims our methodological approach is qualitative, which means that it studies the subjects in their natural environments, and seeks to understand phenomena by understanding the meanings given to them by actors. We undertook a multiple case study approach and conducted in-depth interviews with senior logistics and purchasing managers in IANGO organisations, together with a survey of IANGO suppliers. Our contribution to EP strategies for IANGOs at the strategic level is to develop a conceptual framework for collaborative ethical procurement due diligence (CEPDD) between IANGOs in HSCs. At the tactical level we identify inhibitors and enables to CEPDD between IANGOs, their suppliers’ networks and donors. At the operational level we develop a risk-rating framework which provides IANGOs with a tool to establish a collaborative procurement code of conduct (COC) ethics system which can be used to assess ethical risks in HSCs. Our findings demonstrate SC co-opetition strategies are being enacted by IANGOs to explore the formulation of CEPDD. We establish there are concerns surrounding ethical risk in HSCs that differ from CSCs in relation to IANGO relationships with donors, and supplier networks. We apply our risk rating framework to highlight inhibitors to CEPDD throughout IANGO supplier networks and donor relations, and in doing so we determine that apart from the actions of a lead IANGO, ethical procurement due diligence is not instigated in a formalised manner. Tactically our risk-rating framework is of practical importance as it allows IANGOs to access the relevant information concerning inhibitors and enablers in order to evaluate CEPDD ideas and schemes, and to make informed decisions towards participation. These factors facilitate initiatives by directing efforts towards issues of concern and shifting focus towards the critical problem areas which need to be addressed. Operationally it provides a guide in horizontal cooperation considerations in CEPDD by acting as a basis of decision choices for the construction of a framework of COCs between IANGOs.

A study has been carried out relating to various methods of detinning scrap tinplate. Assessments of chemical and electrochemical techniques have been made with special relevance to recycling of the used can. It has been found that the electrolytic dissolution of both tin and the iron-tin intermetallic compound is Coulombic in alkaline conditions. The addition of oxidising agents does not generally increase the rate of alloy dissolution under alkaline electrochemical conditions, although free tin dissolution is aided. Parameters associated with an industrial electrolytic detinning plant have been studied, and it was found that optimum temperature and current density values exist for the dissolution of alloy in alkali. The effect of thermally treating tinplate has been studied, and some reactions of the intermetallic layer have shown the possible presence of other stoichiometric alloys. Activation energies for one alloy (FeSn2) have been calculated at above and below 232°C. Alkaline attack of the intermetallic layer has been shown to be very similar to that of iron. The presence of lead and calcium has been found in tinplate; the relevance of the apparent lead content is discussed and assessed. Conditions have been established for a viable industrial process for the reclamation of tin and clean scrap steel from urban refuse. Necessary instrumentation for an industrial process is discussed.

In this thesis, the phenomenon of a microdrop impacting onto and spreading over surfaces of constant and variable wettability is investigated. The study is motivated by wide-ranging industrial applications of ink-jet printing technologies, in particular used by our industrial sponsor Kodak Ltd. Mathematical models for dynamic wetting phenomena are incorporated into a specially developed finite element based numerical platform. By examining different models, it was found for the first time that the interface formation model is capable of describing the experimentally observed non-uniqueness of the relationship between the contact-line speed and the dynamic contact angle. It is shown that, the interface formation model naturally captures the effect which variations in the wettability of the solid surface have on an adjacent flow, so that the model can be used, without any ad-hoc alterations, to consider the spreading of microdrops on such solids. An investigation of the effect that variation of the model's parameters has on the characteristics of the impact and spreading of microdrops has been carried out.

Polyimides are ubiquitous in the electronics, space science, and research industries due to their thermal stability, ease of use, lifetime, and high dielectric strength. These properties, along with the propensity of polyimides to absorb water vapour, has led to both their use as a common sensing element in humidity sensors, and additional challenges when utilising polyimides in solid state electronic devices. Consequently, a substantial amount of literature has been produced regarding the transport properties of water vapour in polyimide films. This has been found to be a complex process dependent on the morphology and chemistry of the particular polyimide in question. Accordingly, as part of an industrial collaboration with Honeywell Inc. several tools and probing techniques were developed to map and quantify the transport properties and characteristics of such materials. The material of focus is a particular form of polyimide which is used as a sensing element by Honeywell in their capacitance based humidity sensors. The cure procedures and preparation have been varied to understand the relationship between water transport and processing procedure. Importantly, methods and equipment have been developed to measure and characterise the subtle difference in water transport resulting from variations in the preparation procedure. in-situ techniques to characterise transport have included the use of capacitance measurements, Attenuated Total Refectance Infra -Red spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM), and Neutron Refectivity. Other techniques to characterise the polymer have included Transmission Electron Microscopy(TEM) and Atomic Force Microscopy(AFM). The use of Attenuated Transmission Reflectance Infrared Spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) has indicated a chemical interaction between the polar elements of polymer backbone and the water molecule. Permporometry and an analysis of the TEM images indicate a transport length scale ∼ 0.2nm, similar to the size of a water molecule. Density profles ftted to Neutron Refectivity measurements reveal a dense skin layer on the surface of the polymer, the characteristics of which vary with the sample curing procedure. The neutron refectivity technique was then used in time of fight mode (ToF) to map the ingress of vapour into the polymer, pushing the time resolution further than has previously been achieved. However, the box-car averaging technique which was used to gain sufficient counts of neutrons was found to obscure the longer timescale transport effects. The QCM procedures outlined have provided Honeywell with a cost effective method of raw material measurements of transport properties for a range of materials. QCM measurements indicate dual diffusion coefficients, skin, and bulk, when Fickian transport models are applied to the system. The transport timescales were found to be thickness independent in the range studied (60nm-1.1µm), consequently diffusion is not the rate limiting factor in this system. Thus, the key factors such as time and length scales of this diffusion system have been characterised with the customisation of a host of techniques. The distribution of water vapour within the samples is shown to be uniform in the bulk layer of the sample, and the rate limiting step in the transport of water vapour is demonstrated to be constant on all polyimide thin films. It is also indicated that oxygen plasma etching can be used to reduce the hystersis effect in this form of polyimide with some indication that such treatment impacts on the chemical interactions between the polyimide films and water vapour.

Thesis PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.

The EU-funded SATIN project sought to provide a multimodal interface to aid product designers in judging the quality of curved shapes. This thesis outlines a research programme designed to assist in the exploration of fundamental issues related to this project, and provide a means to evaluate the success of such interfaces more generally. Therefore, three studies were undertaken with the aim of exploring the value of haptic and sound feedback in the perception of curve shape differences, and through the knowledge gained provide an evaluative framework for the assessment of such interfaces. The first study found that visual, haptic, and visual-haptic perception was insufficient to judge discontinuities in curvature without some further augmentation. This led to a second study which explored the use of sound for conveying curve shape information. It was found that sine waves or harmonic sounds were most suited to for this task. The third study combined visual-haptic and auditory information. It was found that sound improved the perception of curve shape differences, although this was dependent upon the type of sonification method used. Further to this, data from studies one and three were used to identify gradient as the active mechanism of curve shape differentiation and provided a model for the prediction of these differences. Similarly performance data (response time, accuracy, and confidence) were analysed to produce a model for the prediction of user performance at varying degrees of task difficulty. The research undertaken across these studies was used to develop a framework to evaluate multimodal interfaces for curve shape exploration. In particular a ‘discount’ psychophysical method was proposed, along with predictive tools for the creation of perceptual and performance metrics, plus guidelines to aid development. This research has added to fundamental knowledge and provided a useful framework through which future multimodal interfaces may be evaluated.

published_or_final_version / Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering / Master / Master of Philosophy