abstract: Many shallow craters near the Spirit Mars Exploration Rover landing site contain asymmetric deposits of windblown sediments which could indicate the predominant local wind direction at the time of deposition or redistribution. Wind tunnel simulations and field studies of terrestrial craters were used to determine trends in deposition as a function of crater morphometry and wind direction. Terrestrial analog field work at the Amboy lava field, Mojave Desert, California, included real-time wind measurements and assessments of active sediment deposition in four small (<100 m) craters. Preliminary results indicate that reverse flow or stagnant wind and deposition on the upwind side of the crater floor occurs in craters with depth-to-diameter (d/D) ratios &ge;0.05. Measurements taken within a crater of d/D of ~0.02 do not indicate reverse flow. Therefore, reverse flow is expected to cease within a d/D range of 0.02 to 0.05, resulting in wind movement directly over the crater floor in the downwind direction with no asymmetric sediment deposition. Wind tunnel simulations using six crater models, including a scaled model of a crater from the Amboy lava field, were completed to assess the wind flow in and around craters as a function of crater morphometry (depth, diameter). Reverse flow occurred in craters with d/D ratios &ge;0.033, resulting in sediment deposition in the upwind portion of the crater floor. Visual observations of a crater with a d/D of ~0.020 did not indicate reverse flow, similar to the results of field studies; therefore, reverse flow appears to cease within a d/D range of 0.020 to 0.033. Craters with asymmetric aeolian deposits near the Mars Spirit landing site have d/D ratios of 0.034 to 0.076, suggesting that reverse flow occurs in these craters. Thus, the position of windblown sediments in the northwest parts of the crater floors would indicate prevailing winds from the northwest to the southeast, consistent with late afternoon winds as predicted by the Mars Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (MRAMS) circulation model. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.S. Geological Sciences 2011

Based on the assumption that returns in Commercial Real Estate are normally distributed, the Sharpe Ratio has been the standard risk-adjusted performance measure for the past several years. Research has questioned whether this assumption can be reasonably made. The Upside Potential Ratio as a risk-adjusted performance measure is an alternative to measure performance on a risk-adjusted basis but its values differ from the Sharpe Ratio's only in the assumption of skewed returns. We will provide reasonable evidence that CRE returns should not be fitted with a normal distribution and present the Gaussian Mixture Model as our choice of distribution to fit skewness. We will then use a GMM distribution to measure performance of CRE domestic markets via UPR. Additional insights will be presented by introducing an alternative risk-adjusted perfomance measure that we will call D-ratio. We will show how the UPR and the D-ratio can provide a tool-box that can be added to any existing investment strategy when identifying markets' past performance and timing of entrance. The intent of this thesis is not to provide a comprehensive framework for CRE investment decisions but to introduce statistical and mathematical tools that can serve any portfolio manager in augmenting any investment strategy already in place.

This study focuses on whether the mispricing of investor has relevance for firm¡¦s investment decision. In other words, it tries to test the relation between mispricing of investor and managers¡¦ catering behavior. In addition, this study divides Taiwan¡¦s companies into three cases: Listed and following listed companies, OTC companies and companies under the counter. The period of this study from 1986 to 2009, it excludes firms with negative book value of assets, and only uses the positive capital expenditure data. This paper divides the sample into various subsamples discussed separately. For example, it uses the R&D ratio as the proxy for information transparency and explores that information transparency may affect manager¡¦s catering behavior in the different subsamples. Besides, this study also separates the companies from different stock turnover rate to discuss whether the impact of mispricing to the rate of investment will be different. The results showed that indeed mispricing change the rate of investment of companies. After that, this paper controls the independent variables which may affect the company¡¦s profitability to figure out the abnormal rate of investment. Finally, this study finds that abnormal rate of investment result in a poor return of companies. That is to say, when a manager caters the mispricing of investor in stock market, afterwards, may lead to a poor return of companies. In the view of investors, when the market¡¦s sentiment that is too warm, many companies begin to invest in plant. At this time, investors shall examine whether the investment of companies is efficient.

Abstract : Circular reinforced concrete (RC) members are often used in civil engineering structures, for instance, as piers and piles in bridge substructures. Also, their applications are frequently utilized as a fender and piling system for harsh water front and marine environments. Such members are usually reinforced with conventional steel bars and stirrups. Corrosion of steel reinforcement constitutes one of the major problems that shorten the lifetime serviceability and, hence, brittle failure of many concrete structures worldwide. In the last decade, the use of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) materials has been growing to solve some of these problems and increase the anticipated service life of RC structures, such as bridges, parking garages, tunnels, and marine structures. Recently, the use of FRP bars in soft-eyes, which are openings in retaining walls that will be pierced by tunnel boring machines (TBMs), is gaining popularity in the field of tunnel excavation. In recent years, the shear behavior of RC members reinforced with FRP bars has been the focus of many studies. Accordingly, several codes and design guidelines are available for the design of concrete structures reinforced with FRP bars under shear loads. These codes and design guidelines were developed based on experimental work on rectangular concrete members reinforced with FRP bars and stirrups. Yet, no research seems to have assessed circular concrete members reinforced with FRP bars and spirals under shear loads. In this research study, an experimental program was designed to investigate the shear behavior of circular members reinforced with glass FRP (GFRP) and carbon FRP (CFRP) bars, and spirals. A total of twenty full-scale circular RC specimens, with a total length 3,000 mm and 500 mm in diameter, were fabricated and tested experimentally under shear load. The specimens were divided to five series; series I contains two reference steel-RC specimens with and without spiral reinforcement. Series II contains three specimens internally reinforced with GFRP longitudinal bars and without spiral reinforcement. Series III contains five specimens reinforced with GFRP longitudinal bars and spirals (Type I). Series IV includes six specimens reinforced with GFRP bars and spirals (Type II), while series V includes four specimens totally reinforced with CFRP reinforcement. The experimental tests were performed at the structural laboratory, Faculty of Engineering, University of Sherbrooke. The main objective of testing these specimens is to investigate the behavior of circular concrete members reinforced with GFRP or CFRP longitudinal bars and transverse spirals reinforcement. Several parameters have been studied; type of reinforcement, longitudinal reinforcement ratio, shear reinforcement ratio (spiral diameter and spacing), and shear-span-to-depth ratio. The test results of the tested specimens were presented and discussed in terms of load deflection response, crack patterns and modes of failure, ultimate shear capacities, concrete, longitudinal, and spiral strains, effectiveness of FRP spirals, and beam action versus arch action through four journal papers in this dissertation. In addition, an analytical investigation was conducted to evaluate the validity and accuracy of available FRP shear design equations in codes and design guidelines, and to determine whether certain modifications should be introduced in order to make them suitable for circular concrete members reinforced with FRP bars and spirals. The tested specimens were also analysed using Response 2000 (R2K), which is based on the modified compression field theory (MCFT). Based on the finding of this investigation, the shear capacity of FRP-RC members with circular sections may be determined with the approaches developed for rectangular sections provided that certain modifications are made to take into account the effective shear depth, equivalent breadth, the mechanical properties and geometry of GFRP or CFRP spirals. Furthermore, a new equation was introduced to quantify the spirals contribution (V[subscript s[florin]]) in circular concrete members to account for FRP spiral inclination, curvature, and strength reduction as a result of the stretching process. The proposed equation provided more reasonably accurate predictions. / Résumé : Les éléments circulaires en béton armé sont largement utilisés dans les structures en génie civil, comme par exemple, les pieux et les piles de pont. Également, ils sont très utilisés dans les systèmes de pieux battus dans des environnements agressifs et marines. Ces éléments sont habituellement utilisés avec un renforcement interne en acier. La corrosion de l'acier est un des problèmes majeurs qui diminuent la durée de vie et peuvent même amener la structure à la ruine et ce, partout dans le monde. Dans la dernière décennie, utiliser des polymères renforcés de fibres (PRF) est une bonne solution aux problèmes précédents et augmente la durée de vie des structures en béton armé, comme les ponts, les stationnements, les tunnels et les structures marines. Récemment, l'utilisation des barres de PRF dans les murs-diaphragmes, qui sont des ouvertures dans les murs de soutènement percé avec de la machinerie d'excavation de tunnel, gagne en popularité dans le domaine de l'excavation de tunnel. Depuis quelques années, le comportement en cisaillement des éléments en béton armé de PRF a été étudié dans plusieurs recherches. Par conséquent, les normes et les guides de dimensionnement sont disponibles pour les efforts tranchants. Ils sont développés à partir des expériences en laboratoires sur des éléments rectangulaires. Par contre, aucune recherche a été fait sur les éléments circulaires renforcés de PRF avec des barres et des spirales sous un effort tranchant. Dans ce sujet d'étude, un programme expérimental a été développé pour regarder le comportement en cisaillement des éléments circulaires en béton armé de PRV de verre (PRFV) et de PRF de carbone (PRFC), pour les barres longitudinales ainsi que pour les spirales (transversales). Un total de 20 spécimens circulaire de grandeur réelle, avec comme dimension 3,000 mm de long et 500 mm de diamètre, ont été fabriqués et testés à l'effort tranchant. Les spécimens ont été divisés en cinq séries; la série I contient deux spécimens de références en acier avec et sans renforcement transversal. La série II contient trois spécimens ayant de l'armature longitudinale en PRFV avec et sans renforcement transversal. La série III contient cinq spécimens renforcés de PRFV (Type I) dans le sens longitudinal et transversal. La série IV comprend six spécimens renforcés de PRFV (Type II) dans le sens longitudinal et transversal. Finalement, la série V comprend quatre spécimens totalement renforcés de PRFC. Les essais expérimentaux ont été réalisés dans le laboratoire de structure de la Faculté de génie à l'Université de Sherbrooke. L'objectif principal est de tester ces spécimens pour étudier le comportement des poutres circulaires en béton armé avec des PRFV et PRFC pour le renforcement longitudinal et transversal (spiral). Plusieurs paramètres y sont étudiés : type de renforcement, le taux d'armature longitudinal, le taux d'armature en cisaillement (diamètre et espacement des spires) ainsi que le rapport portée en cisaillement sur la profondeur effective. Les résultats sur les spécimens sont présentés et discutés en terme de la flèche, du réseau de fissuration, du mode de rupture, de la capacité ultime en cisaillement, le béton, la déformation longitudinale et transversale, efficacité des spirales en PRF, l'action de poutre à arche sur quatre articles de journal discutés dans cette dissertation, une étude analytique pour évaluer la validité des équations disponibles dans les codes et les guides de dimensionnement et de déterminer si certaines modifications devraient être faites pour que les sections circulaires avec un renforcement complet avec des spirales en PRF soient mieux adaptées. Les poutres testées ont également été analysées en utilisant Response 2000 (R2K), où il est basé sur la théorie du champ de compression modifiée (TCCM). Basé sur les résultats obtenus, la capacité en cisaillement des éléments circulaires en béton armé de PRF a été déterminé avec l'approche d'une section rectangulaire mais en changeant certains paramètres pour prendre en compte la profondeur effective, la largeur équivalente, des propriétés mécaniques ainsi que la géométrie des PRFV et PRFC pour les spirales. De plus, une nouvelle équation est introduite pour quantifier la contribution des spirales (V[indice inférieur s[florin]]) des éléments circulaires pour prendre en considération l'inclinaison des spires, de la courbure et de la réduction de la résistance suite à l'étirement de la spirale. L'équation proposée permet de prédire raisonnablement la capacité en cisaillement.

Autothermal thermophilic aerobic digestion (ATAD) of sludge has been used to produce class A biosolids. With stringent EPA guidelines, more and more municipalities are looking to use this process for digestion of sludge. However the large polymer costs associated with dewatering these sludges has made the use of this technology unfavorable. Several studies have been conducted in the past which have looked into the mechanism leading to such a poor dewatering of sludge. Some of these studies have attributed the release of protein and polysaccharide during the high temperature digestion to be responsible for the poor dewatering. However the exact mechanism leading to the poor dewatering is still not totally clear. Laboratory scale studies were conducted to evaluate the mechanism leading to the poor dewatering of these sludges and also to be able to economically condition these sludges. ATAD sludge samples were collected from ATAD processing facilities in Ephrata, PA, Cranberry, PA, Titusville, FL and College Station, TX. The research included experiments evaluating the protein and polysaccharide concentrations in solution, cations and anions, iron and aluminum, zeta potential and capillary suction time. It was found that during digestion large amounts of protein and polysaccharide were released which were in the colloidal range, and the dewatering of each of these sludges became poorer as the amount of protein and polysaccharide in the solution increased. The release of protein and polysaccharide was related to the monovalent to divalent cation ratio and the iron and aluminum concentration in the sludge. Also during the digestion process, the pH of the sludge increased appreciably and the divalent cations precipitated out. The zeta potential of the ATAD digested sludge was also found to be positive. Different chemical coagulants were used to condition the sludge, but even with high polymer doses the dewatering of the sludge was not satisfactory. A combination of iron (or cationic polymer) followed by anionic polymer was found to improve the dewatering to a desired level. The use of this combination of sludge conditioning also provides an economical solution to the problem of dewatering. The role of iron in improving the dewatering of the sludges was found to be important, with the sludge dewatering being better for sludges with a high iron content. The combination of high pH, divalent cation precipitation, iron deficiency and biopolymer release all contribute to the poor dewatering of ATAD sludge. / Master of Science

Concrete deep beams with small shear span-to-depth (a/d) ratios are common elements in structures. However, there are few experimental results on the behaviour of FRP reinforced concrete deep beams and no specific modelling techniques exist in design codes for such members. The objectives of this study were to examine the shear behaviour of FRP reinforced concrete deep beams containing no web reinforcement and to develop a modelling technique. Test results of 12 large-scale specimens are reported where the primary variables included the a/d ratio, reinforcement ratio, member height, and concrete strength. The results showed that an arch mechanism was able to form in FRP reinforced concrete beams having a/d 2.1. A strut and tie modelling procedure adapted from CSA A23.3-04 was capable of accurately predicting the capacity of FRP reinforced concrete deep beams containing no web reinforcement while sectional shear models gave poor, but conservative, predictions. / Structural Engineering

This report is the result of a 20-points project at the University of Jönköping. The project was carried out in form of a case study with the object of analysing the value flow at DIAB AB’s confection department in Laholm. The aim of this project is to submit proposals to the production management on how to increase the efficiency of the production flow at the confection department and reduce the capital accumulation in form of products in work. The information in this report is gathered from interviews, observations and measurements. Furthermore, a literature study was carried out in view to find suitable theories when analysing present as well as future suggested production conditions. This report is based on four main questions: • What does the existing process of the value flow for the most produced product family look like? • How does the process of the value flow for GS perform considering the through-put-time? o How long through-put-time does a representative product of the GS-family have? o How long is the value- and no value adding time for that product along its production flow? • Which production related disturbances and cost prompters exist in the present value flow process? • How could the process of the value flow for GS be made more efficient, less persistent to disturbances and more competitive? The existing process of the value flow for the most producing product family has been mapped and is illustrated in appendix 3. For now, the process includes nine working stations along the production chain. The through-put-time of a representative GS-product is according to my survey 18,5 days. The value adding time is only 16,1 minutes, that is 0,061 % of the entire through-put-time. The remaining time, in other words the no value adding time, is 440 hours and it represents mainly storage and transport of products. The representative production disturbances and cost prompters that characterise the process of the value flow contain material related disturbances, a high number of long shifts, long storage time prior to the customer order point and with that, high capital accumulation and finally unnecessary transports. Improvement proposals aim to increase the efficacy of the process of the value flow and reduce the capital amounts by shifting from the present production strategy involving manufacturing towards order (TMO) to assembling towards order (MMO). In order to make this possible a semi-manufactured storage will be introduced after the standard confection which will represent the new decoupling point. The production at the standard confection will then occur according to the semi-manufactured storage. The standard confection should produce in larger aggregated order quantities based on prognosis in order to benefit from the advantages of economy of scale and the production must proceed in a continuous flow according to the FIFU-system (First In First Out). In addition to that, the special confection must produce according to a pull-system and only when the customer makes a request. The tact-time of the GS products should constitute a limit for all the cycle times along the production chain, both on the standard- and special confection. This is partly due to creating a constant and balanced production flow which enables short through-put-time and partly due to avoiding in-between-storage as a result of various bottlenecks.

<p>This report is the result of a 20-points project at the University of Jönköping. The project was carried out in form of a case study with the object of analysing the value flow at DIAB AB’s confection department in Laholm. The aim of this project is to submit proposals to the production management on how to increase the efficiency of the production flow at the confection department and reduce the capital accumulation in form of products in work.</p><p>The information in this report is gathered from interviews, observations and measurements. Furthermore, a literature study was carried out in view to find suitable theories when analysing present as well as future suggested production conditions.</p><p>This report is based on four main questions:</p><p>• What does the existing process of the value flow for the most produced product family look like?</p><p>• How does the process of the value flow for GS perform considering the through-put-time?</p><p>o How long through-put-time does a representative product of the GS-family have?</p><p>o How long is the value- and no value adding time for that product along its production flow?</p><p>• Which production related disturbances and cost prompters exist in the present value flow process?</p><p>• How could the process of the value flow for GS be made more efficient, less persistent to disturbances and more competitive?</p><p>The existing process of the value flow for the most producing product family has been mapped and is illustrated in appendix 3. For now, the process includes nine working stations along the production chain.</p><p>The through-put-time of a representative GS-product is according to my survey 18,5 days. The value adding time is only 16,1 minutes, that is 0,061 % of the entire through-put-time. The remaining time, in other words the no value adding time, is 440 hours and it represents mainly storage and transport of products.</p><p>The representative production disturbances and cost prompters that characterise the process of the value flow contain material related disturbances, a high number of long shifts, long storage time prior to the customer order point and with that, high capital accumulation and finally unnecessary transports.</p><p>Improvement proposals aim to increase the efficacy of the process of the value flow and reduce the capital amounts by shifting from the present production strategy involving manufacturing towards order (TMO) to assembling towards order (MMO).</p><p>In order to make this possible a semi-manufactured storage will be introduced after the standard confection which will represent the new decoupling point. The production at the standard confection will then occur according to the semi-manufactured storage. The standard confection should produce in larger aggregated order quantities based on prognosis in order to benefit from the advantages of economy of scale and the production must proceed in a continuous flow according to the FIFU-system (First In First Out). In addition to that, the special confection must produce according to a pull-system and only when the customer makes a request.</p><p>The tact-time of the GS products should constitute a limit for all the cycle times along the production chain, both on the standard- and special confection. This is partly due to creating a constant and balanced production flow which enables short through-put-time and partly due to avoiding in-between-storage as a result of various bottlenecks.</p>

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名古屋大学博士学位論文 学位の種類 : 博士(医学)(論文) 学位授与年月日:平成4年7月20日 淺田義正氏の博士論文として提出された