In recent years there has been an increase in offshore wind energy, which poses the need for accurate wind speed estimates in the marine environment, especially in coastal areas where most wind turbines will be placed. This thesis is focused on the Baltic Sea, which is a small, semi-enclosed sea where land-sea interaction play an important role in explaining the wind patterns. Mesoscale model simulations can be used to study the marine environment, where observations are often scarce. In this thesis the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model is used. In the first study simulations show that stable stratification over sea is very common in spring and summer and is associated with an increase in low-level jet occurrence and increased wind shear below 200 m, at heights where wind turbines are erected. The model performance in stable conditions is evaluated against aircraft measurements using several boundary layer parametrization schemes, and it is shown that the low-level jet height and strength is not accurately captured with any of the parametrizations. In the second study the advection of land features is investigated. From simulations, aircraft observations and satellite images it is shown that boundary layer rolls are created in the convective boundary layer over land, and advected several tens of kilometres out over sea surface, despite the stable stratification, where convective turbulence dissipates quickly. The occurrence of boundary layer rolls gives rise to horizontal wind speed variations of several meters per second over distances of kilometres, which can increase the uncertainty of short term wind speed forecasts in coastal areas with offshore flow. It is shown that mesoscale processes in and above the marine boundary layer are important in modifying the wind field in distances of at least 100 km from the coast and that models still need to be improved in order to capture these conditions. / Under de senaste decennierna har vindkraftsutbyggnaden ökat till havs, vilket innebär att det krävs tillförlitliga vindhastighetsuppskattningar över hav, särskilt i kustområden, där de flesta vindturbinerna kommer att placeras. Den här avhandlingen kommer att fokusera på Östersjön, vilket är ett relativt litet hav omgivet av landmassor, där land-hav-interaktion har en stor påverkan på vindmönstren över havet. Mesoskaliga modeller kan användas för att studera den lägre delen av den marina atmosfären. I den här avhandlingen används modellen "Weather Research and Forecasting" (WRF). I den första studien visar simuleringar att stabila förhållanden över havet är vanligt förekommande under sommar och vår, och sker i samband med en ökad förekomst av vindmaxima på låg höjd och ökad vindskjuvning under 200 m - alltså på höjder där vindkraftverk förekommer. Modellen, med flertalet gränskiktsparametriseringar, utvärderas för stabila fall mot flygplansmätningar, och resultaten visar att styrkan och höjden för vindmaxima är antingen över- eller underskattade oavsett parametrisering. I den andra studien undersöks advektiva fenomen. Simuleringar, flyplansobservationer och satellitbilder visar att avlånga rullvirvlar uppstår i det konvektiva gränsskiktet över land och advekteras flera tiotals kilometer över hav ut från kusten. Detta trots stabila förhållanden över havet, där den konvektiva turbulensen snabbt dör ut. Rullvirvlarna ger upphov till variationer i horisontell vindhastighet på flera meter per sekund över avstånd på några kilometer, vilket kan öka osäkerheten hos korttidsprognoser för vind när det är blåser från land. Sammanfattningsvis har det har visats att mesoskaliga processer i och ovanför det marina gränsskiktet har en stor inverkan på vindfältet åtminstone 100 km från kusten, och modeller behöver fortfarande förbättras för att kunna fånga dessa företeelser. / StandUp for Wind

Analytical chemistry is a field with a vast variety of applications. A robust companion in the field is liquid chromatography, the method used in this thesis, which is an established workhorse and a versatile tool in many different disciplines. It can be used for identification and quantification of interesting compounds generally present in low concentrations, called analytical scale chromatography. It can also be used for isolation and purification of high value compounds, called preparative chromatography. The latter is usually conducted in large scale with high concentrations. With high concentrations it is also possible to determine something called adsorption isotherms. Determination of adsorption isotherms is a useful tool for quite a wide variety of reasons. It can be used for characterisation of chromatographic separation systems, and then gives information on the retention mechanism as well as provides the possibility to study column-column and batch-batch reproducibility. If a protein is immobilised on a solid support, adsorption isotherms can be used for pharmacological characterisation of drug-protein interactions. Moreover, they can be used for the study of unexpected chromatographic phenomena. If the adsorption isotherm is known it is also possible to simulate chromatograms, and subsequently optimise the separation process numerically. The gain of a numerically optimised separation process is higher purity or yield of valuable compounds such as pharmaceuticals or antioxidants, as well as reducing the solvent usage. Taken all together, it saves time, money and the environment. However, the process of the adsorption isotherm determination requires a number of careful experimental considerations and preparations, and these are the main focus of the thesis. Important steps along the way include the choice of separation system and of suitable analytes, preparation of mobile phases and sample solutions, calibration, determination of injection profiles and column void, and of course the adsorption isotherm determination method itself. It is also important to keep track of parameters such as temperature and pH. These issues are discussed in this thesis. At the end, a description of useful methods for processing of the raw adsorption isotherm data is presented, as well as a brief passage on methods for numerical optimisation.

Les vallées alpines urbanisées sont régulièrement soumises à des épisodes de pollution aux particules fines, en particulier sous des conditions hivernales anticycloniques. Ces épisodes se développent du fait de la conjonction de l'augmentation des émissions et de la stratification de l'atmosphère qui inhibe le mélange vertical et isole l'atmosphère de vallée de la dynamique de grande échelle. Le transport des polluants devient alors principalement piloté par les écoulements locaux d'origine thermique. Ces écoulements se caractérisent par une forte dépendance aux spécificités locales de la zone et sont difficiles à représenter dans les modèles numériques de prévision du temps, tout comme les conditions stables qui les accompagnent. L'amélioration de la prévision des situations de pollution hivernale en zone de montagne nécessite donc une meilleure compréhension de la dynamique locale en condition stable. Cette thèse s'inscrit dans ce contexte et vise à améliorer la compréhension de la structure des circulations locales à l'échelle de la vallée. Pour cela, l'étude s'appuie sur les données acquises lors de la campagne Passy-2015 et sur des simulations numériques haute résolution réalisées avec le modèle Méso-NH. La campagne s'est déroulée durant l'hiver 2014-2015 dans le bassin de Passy, situé à proximité du Mont-Blanc et à la confluence de trois vallées. Les concentrations en PM10 observées dans ce bassin excédent régulièrement les seuils réglementaires et montrent des hétérogénéités marquées au sein du bassin et avec les vallées adjacentes. L'étude de la dynamique met en évidence le rôle des circulations locales vis-à-vis des disparités dans la distribution spatiale des polluants. En particulier, les écoulements dans le bassin sont organisés selon différentes strates et génèrent des niveaux de ventilation hétérogènes. En journée, les échanges de masse s'opèrent de manière préférentielle entre les segments de vallée les plus ensoleillés. [...] / Air quality issues are frequent in urbanized valleys, particularly in wintertime under anticyclonic conditions. Pollution episodes occur due to the combination of increased emissions and atmospheric stratification that inhibits vertical mixing and isolates the valley atmosphere from large-scale dynamics. The transport of pollutants then becomes mainly driven by local thermally driven flows that largely depend on local characteristics and are difficult to represent in numerical weather prediction models. Improving the forecasting of winter pollution situations in mountain areas therefore requires a better understanding of local dynamics under stable conditions. This thesis fall within this objective and aims at improving the understanding of local wind dynamics at valley scale. It is based on high-resolution numerical simulations performed with Méso-NH and data from the Passy-2015 field experiment that took place during the winter of 2014-2015 within the Passy basin, located near Mont-Blanc and at the confluence of three valleys. The PM10 concentrations observed in this basin regularly exceed the regulatory thresholds and show marked heterogeneities within the basin and with adjacent valleys. The wind dynamics study highlights local flow characteristics that are consistent with the PM10 heterogeneities observed within the valley. In particular, flows within the basin show a stratified structure and give rise to heterogeneous ventilation levels. During the day, mass exchanges preferentially occur between the sunniest valley sections. At night, the convergence of flows from tributary valleys, along with the local orography, induces a very heterogeneous flow structure on the vertical and horizontal in the Passy basin. These characteristics tend to reduce ventilation in the basin especially in the eastern sector, which is also the most polluted sector during wintertime episodes. As spring approaches, the increase of solar radiation balances inter-valley mass exchanges, thus reducing pollutant accumulation within the basin. The analysis of mechanisms controlling local circulations underlines the importance of fine scale characteristics of topography and surface (snow cover) that determine the distribution of energy received at the surface.