Growth release of trees following canopy disturbances is of interest to ecological scientists and forest managers. Using dendroecological techniques, I examined growth release of canopy and subcanopy trees following the formation of natural, fine-scale canopy gaps in old-growth, western red cedar-western hemlock forests of coastal British Columbia. I aimed to quantify detailed information on release of the three shade-tolerant tree species that constitute these stands: western red cedar (Thuja plicata), western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla), and Pacific silver fir (Abies amabilis). As a first step, I calibrated the radial-growth averaging method to account for regional-scale variability and capture a more complete range of growth releases that may occur following the formation of fine-scale gaps in the study stands. A 25% threshold, 5-year moving average, and 10-year window emerged as appropriate parameters for detecting releases using radial-growth averaging. Basal area increment was also the most appropriate growth index for detecting releases. Establishing these empirically-based criteria was important for quantifying the magnitude and duration of releases. Tree diameter and growth rate prior to release were the most important predictors of the magnitude and duration of releases, but identity of the tree species and distance from the gap center were also important predictors. Western hemlock and Pacific silver fir were often growing slowly both in the canopy and subcanopy, giving them tremendous potential to release. For these species, releases were generally intensive and persistent. In contrast, western red cedar were often growing quickly both in the canopy and subcanopy, giving them less potential to release. Compared to western hemlock and Pacific silver fir, western red cedar releases were less intensive and persistent. Patterns related to distance from the gap center emerged for trees growing along the north-south axis of gaps. Regardless of species, increasing distance from the gap center resulted in decreasing magnitude and duration of releases. However, patterns for duration were complex, as the distance effect was greater for trees north of the gap center. Information on growth release of trees is useful for reconstructing the history of past canopy disturbances, elucidating mechanisms of tree species coexistence, and assessing and predicting stand changes due to forest management in coastal British Columbia.

Thesis (doctoral)--Rijksuniversiteit te Utrecht, 1985. / "Stellingen": leaves inserted. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (MSc (Applied Mathematics))--Stellenbosch University, 2008. / A popular method for interpolating multidimensional scattered data is using radial basis functions. In this thesis we present the basic theory of radial basis function interpolation and also regard the solvability and stability of the method. Solving the interpolant directly has a high computational cost for large datasets, hence using numerical methods to approximate the interpolant is necessary. We consider some recent numerical algorithms. Software to implement radial basis function interpolation and to display the 3D interpolants obtained, is developed. We present results obtained from using our implementation for radial basis functions on GIS and 3D face data as well as an image warping application.

Resumo: A compreensão do escoamento em válvulas de compressores herméticos alternativos é de fundamental importância para introduzir modificações no projeto delas de maneira a aumentar a performance dos compressores, e por fim, dos ciclos de refrigeração. A válvula do compressor é um dispositivo ímpar, umas vez que seu funcionamento se dá pela ação da pressão exercida pelo escoamento, caracterizando um problema de forte interação fluido- estrutura. O uso da modelagem numérica através das ferramentas da mecânica dos fluidos computacional (CFD) tem se destacado como a alternativa mais dinâmica para o estudo do fenômeno. O trabalho desenvolvido foi voltado para o estudo numérico do escoamento através do difusor radial, o qual é um modelo simplificado da válvula, com o emprego do Método da Fronteira Imersa com Modelo Físico Virtual para a modelagem do disco superior do difusor (palheta). O ponto forte desta metodologia é que a representação de regiões sólidas é feita pelo cálculo de um campo de força, o qual é introduzido nas equações das células na vizinhança do sólido. Este procedimento dispensa o uso de malhas que se adaptam ao corpo, possibilitando o uso de malhas cartesianas convencionas para modelar geometrias complexas e móveis. A metodologia foi acoplada com a solução das equações governantes do escoamento em coordenadas cilíndricas através do Método dos Volumes Finitos. Inicialmente, a metodologia foi validada, utilizando como dados de referência resultados provenientes de estudos numéricos e experimentais, e foi avaliada a influência dos parâmetros do procedimento na qualidade final dos resultados. Na segunda etapa foram desenvolvidos estudos preliminares referentes ao movimento do disco superior, com a imposição artificial dos processos de abertura e fechamento da válvula. Os resultados obtidos mostraram que a metodologia adotada ... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The fully understanding of the flow through automatic valves of alternative hermetic compressors is essentiall to introduce modifications in its project aiming the improvement of the compressor performance and, also, the refrigeration cycle. The compressor valve is a singular device, once its operation is ruled by the flow pressure, characterizing a case with a strong fluid-structure interaction. The using of numerical tools trough the methods of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has gained especial attention due to its flexibility to study the phenomenon. The present work was developed to study numerically the flow through the radial diffuser, which is a simplified model of the valve, with the employment of the Immersed Boundary Method with Virtual Physical Model to modeling the superior disk (valve reed). The main advantage of this methodology is that the modeling of solid boundaries is performed with the calculus of a force field, which is introduced in the cells equations nearby the solid. This procedure dispenses the using of body-fitted meshes, enabling the adoption of conventional Cartesian meshes to model complex and moving geometries. The methodology was coupled with the solution of the governing equations in cylindrical coordinates though the Finite Volume Method. Firstly, the methodology was validated, confronting the results obtained with data from numerical and experimental studies, where the influence of the main parameters in the quality of the final results was evaluated. In the second step were developed preliminary studies concerning the movement of the superior disk, whose opening and closing movements were artificially imposed. The results obtained showed that the adopted methodology is quit promising and flexible, and can be employed in more refined studies to the comprehension of the flow through the valve regarding the fluid-structure interaction that rules the problem / Orientador: José Luiz Gasche / Coorientador: Júlio Militzer / Banca: Cassio Roberto Macedo Maia / Banca: Elie Luis Martinez Padilla / Mestre

Depuis la première détection d'une planète extrasolaire autour d'une étoile de type solaire par Mayor et Queloz (1995), plus de 1500 planètes ont été découverts. Actuellement il existe un énorme intérêt à découvrir et caractériser des planètes semblables à la Terre, en particulier celles situées dans la zone habitable de leur étoile hôte (définie comme la distance à l'étoile hôte où la température de la planète permet l'existence d'eau liquide à la surface). La détection de planètes de type terrestre, et la recherche de biomarqueurs dans leurs atmosphères sont parmi les principaux objectifs de l'astronomie du vingt et unième siècle. La méthode des vitesses radiales (VR), consistant à mesurer le mouvement réflexe de l'étoile induit par des planètes en orbite, est une remarquable technique pour atteindre cet objectif.Pour atteindre les précisions nécessaire à la detection de telles planètes il est absolument nécessaire de concevoir des spectrographes extrêmement stables, d'avoir une très bonne compréhension de l'activité stellaire (qui peut mimer l'effet d'une planète), d'effectuer un traitement soigneux de l'atmosphère terrestre (laquelle inévitablement laisse des empreintes dans les spectres acquis depuis le sol), et de disposer d'une puissante technique pour extraire, à partir des spectres, autant d'information Doppler que possible. La recherche de planètes orbitant autour des étoiles de très faible masse, plutôt qu'autour des étoiles de type solaire, permet d'aborder dès maintenant la détection de planètes de faible masse dans la zone habitable. En effet, en gardant tout les autres paramètres égaux, le mouvement réflexe (et donc l'amplitude de la variation VR) sera plus grande si l'étoile centrale est de très faible masse. De plus les naines M ont une plus faible luminosité que les étoiles de type solaire, il en resulte des périodes orbitales courtes des planètes dans la zone habitable (~50 jours pour les naines M contre ~360 jours pour des étoiles de type solaire), entraînant à nouveau en une plus grande amplitude des VR. Une précision de ~1 m/s en VR permet la détection d'une planète dans la zone habitable d'une naine M, alors que ~0.1 m/s sont nécessaire dans le cas d'une étoile de type solaire.Cette thèse vise à optimiser l'extraction de VR des spectres des naines M à haute résolution acquis avec le spectrographe HARPS (avec une possibilité d'applications futures sur d'autres instruments comme SOPHIE, HARPS-N et le prochain spectrographe infrarouge SPIRou - prochainement mis en service au CFHT). Les effets de l'activité stellaire des naines M seront également analysées, dans le contexte de la technique des VR. Divers traceurs d'activité stellaire sont utilisés pour rejeter des fausses détections ou pour étudier les relations entre l'activité magnétique et la rotation. Dans cette thèse (Chap. 3) je calibre pour la première fois le flux dans les raies H et K du Calcium en fonction de la luminosité bolométrique et je détermine la relation entre cet estimateur R'HK et la période de rotation des naines M. Dans le chapitre 4 je décris l'implémentation d'une méthode d'extraction de VR par une minimisation du Chi-deux entre un template spectral et les spectres observés. Je démontre que cette méthode est plus précise que celle classiquement utilisée. Les raies telluriques qui affectent les mesures VR sont prises en compte dans les procédures d'analyse. Ces méthodes sont testées sur des systèmes avec des candidats planétaires, je discuterais l'analyse de certains de ces systèmes. / Since the first detection of an extrasolar planet orbiting a Sun-like star by Mayor and Queloz (1995), more than 1500 have been discovered. Enormous interest is currently focused on finding and characterising Earth-like planets, in particular those located in the habitable zone of their host star (defined as the distance from the host star where the planet temperature allows liquid water to flow on its surface). Both the detection of Earth-like planets, and the search for biomarkers in their atmospheres are among the main objectives of the twenty-first century's astronomy. The method known as radial velocities (RV), that consists in the measure of the star's reflex motion induced by orbiting planets, is a promising technique to achieve that quest.The main difficulties with the RV technique are the needs of an extremely stable spectrograph, a correct understanding of stellar activity (which can mimic the effect of a planet), a careful treatment of our Earth's atmosphere (which inevitable imprints spectra taken from the ground), and the need to dispose of a powerful algorithm to extract as much Doppler information as possible from the recorded spectra. Search for planets orbiting very low-mass stars (M dwarfs) can more easily reach the goal of detecting low-mass planets in the habitable zone of their parent star, compared to solar-type stars. Indeed, everything else being equal, a lower mass of the host star implies a larger reflex motion, and thus a larger RV amplitude. Moreover, the lower luminosity of M dwarfs compared to Sun-like stars, implies shorter orbital periods from planets in the habitable zone (~50 days against ~360 days, for M dwarfs compared to solar-type stars, respectively), resulting again in a larger RV amplitude. A RV precision of ~1 m/s allows a planet detection in the habitable zone of an M dwarf, whereas ~0.1 m/s is required in the case of a solar-type stars.This thesis aims to optimise the RV extraction from HARPS high-resolution spectra (and to open similar analysis on other instruments like SOPHIE, HARPS-N and the upcoming infrared spectrograph SPIRou -- to be commissioned to the 3.6-m CFH-Telescope). The effects of stellar activity will also be analysed, and contextualised in the RV technique. Stellar activity tracers are used to reject false detections or to study the relationships between the stellar magnetic activity and rotation. In this thesis (Chap.ref{chap:mag_activity}) I calibrate for the first time the ratio between the Ca textrm{small II} Htextrm{small &}K chromospheric lines and the bolometric luminosity for M dwarfs. I determine a relationship between the R^prime_{HK}-index and the rotation period of M dwarfs. In chapter~ref{chap:template_matching} I describe my algorithm to extract RVs through a chi^2-minimisation between a stellar template and the observed spectra. I demonstrate the improved accuracy of this method. Telluric spectral lines also affect the measurements of RV and are taken into account in the analysis procedures. I tested these methods on systems with planetary candidates, and for some systems, I took in charge the Keplerian analysis.

This thesis is focused on evaluation of the compatibility of entomopathogenic fungus Isaria fumosorosea with different species of entomopathogenic fungi and mycoparasitic fungi at different temperatures. The strains of species Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae, Lecanicillium muscarium, Coniothyrium minitans and Clonostachys rosea f. catenulata were selected for experiments base on compatibility. The results showed that combination of I. fumosorosea with species L. muscarium is compatible. The species do not limit to each other in the environment at all temperatures (15, 23 and 25 °C). On the other side, fungus I. fumosorosea in combination with other species have affected their growth and spore production. The efficacy of entomopathogenic fungi against larvae Tenebrio molitor was evaluated. The most effective species against larvae were species I. fumosorosea, B. bassiana and M. anisopliae. On the contrary, the smallest effective was observed after infection larvae by L. muscarium. Mycoparasitic fungus C. rosea f. catenulata was not able to directly infect larvae of T. molitor. This species did not infect healthy larvae. However it is able to infect weakened individuals or is growing as saprotrophs on the cadavers.

Submitted by Gabriel Figueiredo Puerta (gfpuerta@gmail.com) on 2018-11-12T17:24:33Z No. of bitstreams: 1 diss_Gabriel_Final_real_oficial_.pdf: 2623476 bytes, checksum: a1018496f3944da6d7825e6856e593ac (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Cristina Alexandra de Godoy null (cristina@adm.feis.unesp.br) on 2018-11-13T16:56:42Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 puerta_gf_me_ilha.pdf: 2623476 bytes, checksum: a1018496f3944da6d7825e6856e593ac (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-11-13T16:56:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 puerta_gf_me_ilha.pdf: 2623476 bytes, checksum: a1018496f3944da6d7825e6856e593ac (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-08-23 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) / Neste trabalho, apresenta-se um modelo matemático especializado para a otimização do problema da restauração de redes de distribuição de energia elétrica radiais quando existem poucas chaves manobráveis. A existência de um número reduzido de chaves seccionadoras na rede de distribuição é uma característica típica de sistemas reais. O problema da restauração de redes de distribuição consiste em obter um plano de restauração que restabeleça o máximo possível de cargas presentes na parcela do sistema que foi desenergizada após a ocorrência de uma falta permanente. O plano de restauração deve ser obtido o mais rápido possível. O modelo matemático proposto possui como objetivo maximizar o restabelecimento de energia àqueles setores de carga que estão desenergizados e minimizar o número total de chaveamentos necessários para que a restauração aconteça. O modelo matemático resultante é de programação cônica de segunda ordem inteira mista e é resolvido através de solucionadores comerciais que se baseiam em técnicas de otimização clássicas. Os testes considerando faltas permanentes foram simulados em sistemas de distribuição testes de 53 e 84 barras. Os sistemas foram adaptados e transportados para a problemática do trabalho e os resultados adquiridos qualificam a robustez e a eficácia do modelo matemático especializado proposto para a resolução do problema. / This work proposes an specialized mathematical model for the optimization of the restoration problem in radial electric power distribution systems with few manageable switches. The existence of a reduced number of switches in the distribution systems it’s a typical characteristic of real systems. The restoration problem in radial electric power distribution systems is to obtain a restoration plan that reestablishes the maximum amount of present loads in the system portion that has been de-energized after the occurrence of a permanent fault. The elaboration of the restoration plan must be as soon as possible. The proposed mathematical model aims at maximizing the power re-establishment to the de-energized load sectors and at minimizing the total amount of operated switches that are required for the restoration happen. The resulting mathematical model is a mixed-integer second-order conic programming problem and it’s solved through commercial solves that use classical optimization techniques as base. The tests considering permanents faults were simulated in 84 and 53-bus distribution systems. The systems were adapted and transported to the work’s problematic and the acquired results show the robustness and the effectiveness of the proposed specialized mathematical model for the problem resolution. / CAPES: 001 / FAPESP: 2015/21972-6

Master's thesis deals with possibility of simplifying calculation hydraulic machines by converting the three-dimensional geometry in the plane. The aim is to create modifications of a trailng edge and determine their effect of the hydraulic parameterso of the machine.

Orientador: Rubén Augusto Romero Lázaro / Resumo: Neste trabalho, apresenta-se um modelo matemático especializado para a otimização do problema da restauração de redes de distribuição de energia elétrica radiais quando existem poucas chaves manobráveis. A existência de um número reduzido de chaves seccionadoras na rede de distribuição é uma característica típica de sistemas reais. O problema da restauração de redes de distribuição consiste em obter um plano de restauração que restabeleça o máximo possível de cargas presentes na parcela do sistema que foi desenergizada após a ocorrência de uma falta permanente. O plano de restauração deve ser obtido o mais rápido possível. O modelo matemático proposto possui como objetivo maximizar o restabelecimento de energia àqueles setores de carga que estão desenergizados e minimizar o número total de chaveamentos necessários para que a restauração aconteça. O modelo matemático resultante é de programação cônica de segunda ordem inteira mista e é resolvido através de solucionadores comerciais que se baseiam em técnicas de otimização clássicas. Os testes considerando faltas permanentes foram simulados em sistemas de distribuição testes de 53 e 84 barras. Os sistemas foram adaptados e transportados para a problemática do trabalho e os resultados adquiridos qualificam a robustez e a eficácia do modelo matemático especializado proposto para a resolução do problema. / Abstract: This work proposes an specialized mathematical model for the optimization of the restoration problem in radial electric power distribution systems with few manageable switches. The existence of a reduced number of switches in the distribution systems it’s a typical characteristic of real systems. The restoration problem in radial electric power distribution systems is to obtain a restoration plan that reestablishes the maximum amount of present loads in the system portion that has been de-energized after the occurrence of a permanent fault. The elaboration of the restoration plan must be as soon as possible. The proposed mathematical model aims at maximizing the power re-establishment to the de-energized load sectors and at minimizing the total amount of operated switches that are required for the restoration happen. The resulting mathematical model is a mixed-integer second-order conic programming problem and it’s solved through commercial solves that use classical optimization techniques as base. The tests considering permanents faults were simulated in 84 and 53-bus distribution systems. The systems were adapted and transported to the work’s problematic and the acquired results show the robustness and the effectiveness of the proposed specialized mathematical model for the problem resolution. / Mestre

O presente trabalho tem por objetivo propor uma metodologia para o dimensionamento da potência tracionária em função do percurso percorrido por veículos elétricos, assim como realizar o projeto básico de uma máquina elétrica para suprir a carga tracionária exigida. Os cálculos foram realizados através de um algoritmo onde o usuário insere as variáveis mecânicas do veículo e recebe a potência e conjugado necessários, e o projeto elementar da máquina que deverá equipar o veículo. Realizou-se um estudo de caso a partir de uma scooter elétrica para validar os resultados, foi projetada uma máquina brushless dc com fluxo radial e rotor externo. Os resultados experimentais atenderam as espectativas de conjugado de 46 Nm, o máximo conjugado estático atingiu 48 Nm e a rotação a vazio obteve valor de 613 rpm à tensão nominal. Os ensaios de frenagem regenerativa com supercapacitores apresentaram resultados promissores com 50% da energia mecânica recebida durante a frenagem entregue na partida do veículo. / The present study aims to propose a methodology for the design of power traction depending on the distance traveled by electrical vehicles, and perform the basic design of an electrical machine to supply the traction load required. The calculations will be performed through an algorithm where the user enters the mechanical variables of the vehicle and receives the power and torque required and the basic machine design that should equip the vehicle. A case study was conducted for an electric scooter considering the designed dc brushless machine with radial flow and external rotor in order to validate the results. The experimental results met the target of 46 Nm of torque, the maximum static torque 48 Nm was reached, and the no-load rotation obtained was 613 rpm at nominal voltage. Regenerative braking tests with super capacitors showed a promising result: 50% of the received mechanical energy during braking was delivered to the vehicle starting.