For this research, the abnormality of tissue cultured plantlets,vitrification, was examined in Gypsophila paniculata.Measurement of the relative water content and water saturation deficit of plantlets in culture revealed that vitrified plantlets contain relatively more water and less air spaces than non-vitrified plantlets.The effect of relative humidity on vitrification and growth was investigated using a variety of methods.From the results found, it was determined the defining characteristic of vitrified plantlets is water filled intercellular spaces. It was also determined that the primary cause of vitrification is high relative humidity resulting in a lack of transpiration in vitro but that other factors such as unbalanced mineral nutrition or high medium cytokinin can exacerbate vitrification.Further research in tissue culture may investigate the influence of relative humidity on plant growth and morphology, the mechanism by which plants exclude water from their intercellular spaces and refine in vitro tissue mineral analysis as a means by which critical mineral concentrations can be determined. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Compaction of soil is essential in the construction of highways, airports, buildings, and bridges. Typically compaction is controlled by measuring the dry density and the water content of the compacted soil and checking that target values have been achieved. There is a current trend towards measuring the soil modulus instead or in addition to density. The reasons are that the density measurements are made using nuclear density meter, an undesirable tool in today??s political environment and that pavement design uses moduli as an input parameter. Although there are many apparatus available to measure soil modulus in the field such as Falling Weight Deflectometer, Dynamic Cone Penetrometer and Seismic Pavement Analyzer, a light weight and easy to use device which can measure the soil modulus fast and accurately is in great need. Briaud Compaction Device (BCD) is a portable device which can measure a soil modulus in several seconds. The principle of the BCD is to use the bending of a plate resting on the ground surface as an indicator of the modulus of the soil below. Numerical simulations show that within a certain range, the soil modulus is simply related to the plate bending. Strain gauges are glued on the top of the plate of BCD and a double half Wheatstone bridge is used to measure the strain. BCD tests were done in parallel with plate tests of the same size. A good correlation was found between the ratio of the plate pressure over the bending strain measured with a BCD and the reload soil modulus obtained from the plate test. This correlation can be incorporated into the BCD processor to display the soil modulus directly. To transit from dry density based compaction control to modulus based compaction control, BCD tests were also performed in the laboratory on top of a soil sample compacted inside the Proctor mold followed by plate tests. That way, a soil modulus versus water content curve is developed which parallels the approach for the dry density versus water content. The soil modulus versus water content curve can be used to provide the target values for compaction control in the field.

Compaction of soil is essential in the construction of highways, airports, buildings, and bridges. Typically compaction is controlled by measuring the dry density and the water content of the compacted soil and checking that target values have been achieved. There is a current trend towards measuring the soil modulus instead or in addition to density. The reasons are that the density measurements are made using nuclear density meter, an undesirable tool in today??s political environment and that pavement design uses moduli as an input parameter. Although there are many apparatus available to measure soil modulus in the field such as Falling Weight Deflectometer, Dynamic Cone Penetrometer and Seismic Pavement Analyzer, a light weight and easy to use device which can measure the soil modulus fast and accurately is in great need. Briaud Compaction Device (BCD) is a portable device which can measure a soil modulus in several seconds. The principle of the BCD is to use the bending of a plate resting on the ground surface as an indicator of the modulus of the soil below. Numerical simulations show that within a certain range, the soil modulus is simply related to the plate bending. Strain gauges are glued on the top of the plate of BCD and a double half Wheatstone bridge is used to measure the strain. BCD tests were done in parallel with plate tests of the same size. A good correlation was found between the ratio of the plate pressure over the bending strain measured with a BCD and the reload soil modulus obtained from the plate test. This correlation can be incorporated into the BCD processor to display the soil modulus directly. To transit from dry density based compaction control to modulus based compaction control, BCD tests were also performed in the laboratory on top of a soil sample compacted inside the Proctor mold followed by plate tests. That way, a soil modulus versus water content curve is developed which parallels the approach for the dry density versus water content. The soil modulus versus water content curve can be used to provide the target values for compaction control in the field.

In this work, a differential reactor was used to expose all the biofilter packing material (compost) to a uniform toluene concentration in air. The reactor was combined with water content control using the suction cell principle and traditional inlet concentration, temperature and humidity control. The matric potential was controlled using the suction cell principle between -5 to -300 cm H₂O which controlled the water content between 0.99 and 2.30 g g⁻¹ (dry weight). Two types of compost were used, with different water retention curves with no observed difference in elimination capacity. The elimination capacity varied between 2.7 g m⁻³r hr⁻¹ and 21 g m⁻³r hr⁻¹ with low potential causing low removal rates. The reduction in EC at low matric potentials was attributed to several factors: loss of water availability to the organisms, water redistribution in the medium, non-adaptable micro-organisms, and reduced mass transfer. Cultures isolated from compost were used to inoculate the reactor to create a biofilm. A maximal observed surface EC of is 0.17 g m⁻²r hr⁻¹ and a specific removal rate of 1250 g m⁻³b hr⁻¹ is measured. These values were used in modelling the biofilter performance. The EC was dependent on the residual toluene concentration. The EC increased with increasing toluene concentration until reaching a critical concentration. Above this concentration, 100 – 300 ppm (0.37- 1.11 g m⁻³) depending on biofilm thickness and area of coverage, the EC was constant. Three toluene dependency curves were fitted using a zero order and a composite model using a weighted average of a zero and first order component. From the data the critical concentration (Ccrit) and the ECcrit was found and used to determine the biofilm thickness. It was estimated to be between 68 and 134 µm. Using a qmax of 1250 g m⁻³b hr⁻¹ and optimising the model a Ks of 1.3•10⁻¹ g m⁻³g was found. This was comparable to values found in the literature. There was no significant difference in the fit between both models. The Ks was low compared to the majority of the data, which means that the zero order part of the composite model dominated. Nitrogen and other nutrients were added to investigate their influence on the elimination capacity (EC) of toluene. Also the effect of temperature on the EC was investigated between 14 and 60 °C. Maximal removal rates were found between 25 and 55 °C. The EC decreased by 90% going from 55 to 60 °C and took many weeks to recover. Without any extra nitrogen added to the media, the EC averaged around 6 ± 0.3 g m⁻³r h⁻¹. Although the average EC was lower than most reports for toluene removal, it was still in the general range reported. When NH4Cl (1 g l⁻¹) was added to the reactor, the EC increased to 41 ± 1.7 g m⁻³r hr⁻¹. Similar effects were observed with nitrate addition; the steady state EC doubled from 30.1 ± 0.9 g m⁻³r hr⁻¹ to 76.3 ± 2.5 g m⁻³r hr⁻¹. Other macronutrients tested like phosphate, sulphate, magnesium, calcium and iron did not increase the EC.

The purpose of this study was to determinate what requirements there should be on refilling material used as soil remediation based on the soil environment, i.e. soil processes and factors important to soil-dwelling organisms. The study was conducted by investigating which parameters that is important for the soil environment and by comparing them with each other. To exemplify how the parameters may change in different locations, data for total organic carbon, dry matter (i.e. water content), and pH were analyzed from different locations before and after soil remediation. Dry matter, organic matter, pH, compaction, grain size, porosity and soil composition were found to have a significant impact on various soil processes and soil organisms. Field investigations were made to examine dry- and organic matter and pH. The results were indicating that dry matter increased and that the organic matter decreased when the area was refilled with a coarse material. This study showed that there should be requirements on the characteristics of refilling material such as; organic matter content, good water holding capacity, a pH that is as neutral as possible and that the soil should not be too compact. A conclusion from this study was that crushed rock may not be the optimal refilling material after soil remediation.

Abstract The aim was to study the effects of drought and indirect drought-related stresses on anthocyanin content in bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.). Anthocyanin content was also studied in relation to developmental stage (juvenile vs. mature leaves, previous vs. current-year stems). It was hypothesised that drought-stressed plants accumulate anthocyanins, but their direct role in osmotic regulation was questioned. Direct drought was created by preventing water supply. Freezing-induced dehydration was accomplished by removal of snow. Effects of summertime chilling (+2 °C during active growth, +5/0 °C during frost hardening) on water status were tested. The trace metal Nickel (Ni) was applied to the soil, as Ni may interfere with plant water relations at the rhizospheric level. Salt (Na+) was added to the soil to observe salt-induced disturbance in osmotic balance and ion homeostasis. Tissue water content (TWC) decreased and anthocyanin level increased under direct drought, especially in the mature leaves. The freezing-stressed plants contained the same TWC and anthocyanin levels in mid-winter compared to plants that overwintered below snow. The freezing-stressed plants had lower TWC and a similar anthocyanin level in early spring, and lower TWC and anthocyanin level in late spring than plants that overwintered below snow. In the summer and autumn following snow removal, current-year stems of freezing-stressed plants had the same TWC, but higher levels of anthocyanins than current-year stems of plants that overwintered below snow. New growth was thus affected by the freezing stress experienced by previous-year stems. Chilling had no effect on anthocyanins. Although TWC decreased and anthocyanin level increased from active growth to the beginning of frost hardening, no increase was observed during frost hardening. Ni did not cause drought stress in the aboveground shoots, but anthocyanin level decreased in the aboveground shoots along with Ni accumulation in the belowground stems. Na+ increased TWC in the belowground stems, but decreased TWC and anthocyanin level in the aboveground stems. It is proposed that anthocyanins do not have direct role in osmotic regulation, or in the development of freezing tolerance. It is suggested that the increase in anthocyanin level under direct drought stress is mainly due to the photoprotection of chlorophylls by anthocyanins. This is supported by two facts: (1) At increased anthocyanin level in the juvenile leaves, chlorophyll a was stabilized despite continuing drought stress, and (2) after the initial peak in the mature leaves, the accumulation of anthocyanins ceased although the drought became more severe. As chlorophyll a decreased in the mature leaves due to senescence, there was less demand for such high levels of anthocyanins.

Bio-oil created from biomass sources do not have desirable fuel qualities. Due to their petroleum origins, plastics and micronized rubber powder (MRP) improve oil quality when co-pyrolyzed with biomass. Southern yellow pine, a food grade polymer (FGP) and micronized rubber powder (MRP) were co-pyrolyzed at various ratios in an auger reactor to improve the bio-oil. MRP proved to be the best additive, reducing acids, creating aromatic hydrocarbons, reducing water content, and increasing heating values in created bio-oil, while the FGP led to a formation of a liquid product containing a high concentration of phenolic compounds. To improve these qualities further, nickel oxide and sodium carbonate were added in-vivo to the coeeds. Nickel oxide influenced higher aromatic hydrocarbon production and reduced oxygen formation. Sodium carbonate greatly reduced the concentration of acids and water. Both catalysts improved the creation of unsaturated hydrocarbons, phenol compounds, and enhanced heating values with nickel oxide performing better than sodium carbonate.

This paper presents an innovative experimental approach for simultaneous measurements of the suction head, volumetric water content, and the acoustic admittance of unsaturated sands. Samples of unsaturated sands are tested under controlled laboratory conditions. Several types of uniform sand with a wide range of particle sizes are investigated. The reported experiments are based on a standard Buchner funnel setup and a standard acoustic impedance tube. It is a novel, nondestructive, and noninvasive technique that relates the key geotechnical parameters of sands such as volumetric water content, density, and grain-size distribution to the acoustic admittance and attenuation. The results show a very sensitive dependence of the acoustic admittance on the volumetric water content controlled by the value of suction head applied. Analysis of the obtained data demonstrates that the relationship between the volumetric water content and the real part of the surface admittance in the frequency range of 400–1,200 Hz can be represented using a logarithmic equation. It is found that the coefficients in the proposed equation are directly related to the uniformity coefficient and the acoustic admittance of the dry sample, which can easily be measured or predicted for a broad range of sands. A validation exercise is conducted to examine the accuracy of the proposed equation using a sand sample with markedly different properties. The results of the validation exercise demonstrate that the proposed relations can be used to determine very accurately the volumetric water content within the porous specimen from the acoustical data. The error in the acoustically measured volumetric water content is found to be ±2.0% over the full range of volumetric water contents ( 0≤θ≤n , where n is the sample porosity).

The majority of the physical properties of tissue depend directly on the interstitial or intracellular concentration of water within the epidermal and dermal layers. The relationship between skin constituent concentrations, such as water and protein, and the mechanical and optical properties of human skin is important to understand its complex nature. Localized mechanical loading has been proven to alter optical properties of tissue, but the mechanisms by which it is accomplished have not been studied in depth. In this thesis, skin's complex nature is investigated experimentally and computationally to give us better insight on how localized mechanical loading changes tissues water content and its optical properties. Load-based compression and subsequent increased optical power transmission through tissue is accomplished to explore a relationship between localized mechanical loading and tissue optical and mechanical properties. Using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), modification of optical properties, such as refractive index, are observed to deduce water concentration changes in tissue due to mechanical compression. A computational finite element model is developed to correlate applied mechanical force to tissue strain and water transport. Comprehensive understanding of the underlying physical principles governing the optical property changes within skin due to water concentration variation will enable future development of applications in the engineered tissue optics field. / Master of Science

Airborne measurements of liquid water content (LWC) and ice water content (IWC) were performed in mixed-phase clouds during the field campaign VERDI in Canada in April and May 2012. In single-layer and multi-layer clouds different vertical profiles of LWC and IWC could be observed. For single layer clouds the maximum LWC occurred in the upper half of the clouds while the IWC had a maximum near the cloud base. This pattern was attributed to the sedimentation of ice particles. In the lowest cloud layer of a multi-layer system both LWC and IWC reached a maximum near cloud top. Together with measured particles size distributions this suggests the presence of the seeder-feeder-process described by Fleishauer et al. (2012) for mid-level clouds. / Im Rahmen der VERDI-Kampagne im April und Mai 2012 in Kanada wurden flugzeuggetragene Messungen von Flüssigwassergehalt (LWC) und Eiswassergehalt (IWC) durchgeführt. Für Einschicht- und Mehrschichtwolkensysteme konnten unterschiedliche Vertikalprofile von LWC und IWC nachgewiesen werden. In Einschichtsystemen wurden die größten Flüssigwassergehalte in der oberen Wolkenhälfte und die größten Eiswassergehalte nahe der Wolkenunterkante gemessen. Diese Verteilung wurde auf die Sedimentation von Eispartikeln zurückgeführt. In der untersten Wolkenschicht eines Mehrschichtsystems befanden sich die Maxima von LWC und IWC nahe der Wolkenoberkante. Diese Beobachtung deutet zusammen mit gemessenen Partikelgrößenverteilungen auf das Vorhandensein des Seeder-Feeder- Prozesses hin, welcher von Fleishauer et al. (2012) für mittelhohe Wolken beschrieben wurde.