Algal blooms are a common occurrence in water bodies of all shapes and sizes throughout the United States and countries around the world. The State of Florida is no exception to this phenomenon. Cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, have proven to be of special concern due to its proliferation and potential to produce toxins that are harmful to humans, livestock and wildlife. A casual drive along the roads and in the neighborhoods of central Florida will confirm algal conditions in many areas. The potential for exposure to harmful and possibly fatal toxins associated with these algal blooms are becoming more evident as urban development progresses. Detailed studies have been previously performed for large lakes and rivers in the State of Florida, but no studies have been performed regarding stormwater ponds. Since stormwater ponds in residential neighborhoods are a common source for irrigation, research in this area is warranted due to the potential health effects associated with Cyanobacteria. This research was conducted to determine if Cyanobacteria does exist in stormwater ponds and to what extent. Cyanobacteria were found to be in stormwater ponds of various sizes, locations and watersheds in the central Florida area. Even though the algae and its associated toxins were encountered in the stormwater ponds evaluated for this study, the levels detected were much lower than the values discovered in previous studies performed in the larger lakes and rivers around the State.

The footprint of urban streets have become conflict zones of interests; ranging from efficient automobile infrastructure, building restriction lines, economical interests, shy efforts to introduce nature, services, etc. How can we, as urban designers, retrieve a portion of this footprint to nature by taking advantage of the existing public parking areas and create a network of streets that speaks to the larger park network? Can a neighborhood like Adams Morgan serve as an example for a collaborative design between private and public interests to enhance the potential of blue-green infrastructure? / Master of Science / This thesis presents a way of utilizing “public parking areas” to connect the network of streets to a larger network of parks. In Washington, DC, parking areas are public spaces situated between the property line and the sidewalk. Though public, these parking areas are under the immediate care and maintenance of the owners or occupants of the premises. For the purpose of this thesis, streets in the Adams Morgan neighborhood are used to illustrate the potential of a collaborative design between private and public interests in such parking areas. The Adams Morgan neighborhood provides several key elements, including many residential streets, three DC parks (Walter Pierce, Marie H. Reed Community and Learning Center, and Kalorama Park) and four National Park Service Parks (Meridian Hill, Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Rock Creek Trail and Parkway) as well as an active commercial district. Moreover, this thesis illustrates the potential benefits of using blue-green infrastructure, which integrates natural with semi-natural landscape elements, including water. Using this type of infrastructure to link streets to the park network would promote sustainability and resilience and provides an opportunity to enhance connectivity and reduce park fragmentation.

Task of this master thesis is to create system for support of automated testing and deploying of server applications according to requirements defined by company AVG. The main target is create system for deploying and testing that automatically or manually test the server application in the cloud environment with ability of final deployment to the production environment with overall progress monitoring. Automated testing and deploying system has been split to the two parts. The first part is user interface that allows adding new applications, testing applications and deploying applications to its production environment. The second part represents the REST service which process testing and deploying tasks and  store progress to database. System was tested with sample server's applications in Amazon Web Services cloud environment. Thesis describes general testing principles cross multiple areas. Also it contains general architecture withing diagrams, which shows use cases. At the end of thesis is described testing of samples application together with results.

Syftet med fallstudien har varit att undersöka hur öppen dagvattenhantering och platsens användbarhet skulle kunna kombineras så det ena inte utesluter det andra. Studien utgick ifrån en hypotes om att det finns många konflikter mellan öppen dagvattenhantering och användbarhet. Motsättningarna mellan de olika perspektiven skulle därför innebära, enligt hypotesen, att det är omöjligt att planera för det ena perspektivet utan att skapa problem för det andra. Undantaget skulle vara om kombinationen varit en målsättning under förarbetet. Fallen som har studerats är Ekostaden Augustenborg i Malmö där öppen dagvattenhantering har prioriterats och Stadsparken i Borås där platsens användbarhet har varit en tidig målsättning. Fallen är goda exempel utifrån två olika perspektiv men har gemensamt att de hamnar under begreppet urban parkmiljö. Genom observation, intervjuer och textanalys har fallen studerats närmare. Hypotesen har kunnat verifieras utifrån de två fallen. För mer generella slutsatser behöver fler fall studeras. Resultatet från fallstudien presenteras i form av framtagna planeringsprinciper och förslag på vidare studier.

The extraction of high power with high beam quality from semiconductor lasers has long been a goal of semiconductor laser research. Optically pumped vertical-external-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VECSELs) have already shown the potential for their high power high brightness operation. In addition, the macroscopic nature of the external cavity in these lasers makes intracavity nonlinear frequency conversion quite convenient. High-power high-brightness VECSELs with wavelength flexibility enlarge their applica-tions. The drawbacks of the VECSELs are their poor spectral characteristics, thermal-induced wavelength shift and a few-nm-wide linewidth.The objective of this dissertation is to investigate tunable high-power high-brightness VECSELs with spectral and polarization control. The low gain and microcavity reson-ance of the VECSEL are the major challenges for developing tunable high-power VECSELs with large tunability. To overcome these challenges, the V-shaped cavity, where the anti-reflection coated VECSEL chip serves as a folding mirror, and an extremely low-loss (at tuned wavelength) intracavity birefringent filter at Brewster's angle are employed to achieved the high gain, low-loss wavelength selectivity and the elimination of microcavity. This cavity results in multi-watt TEM00 VECSELs with a wavelength tuning range of 20~30 nm about 975 nm. Also the longitudinal mode discrimination introduced by birefringent filter makes the linewidth narrow down to 0.5 nm. After the tunable linearly polarized fundamental beam is achieved, the tunable blue-green VECSELs are demonstrated by using type I intracavity second-harmonic generation. The spectral control of VECSELs makes it possible to apply them as an efficient pump source for Er/Yb codoped single-mode fiber laser and to realize the spectral beam combining for multi-wavelength high- brightness power scaling.In this dissertation, theory, design, fabrication and characterization are presented. Rigorous microscopic many-body theory of the quantum well gain, based on semiconductor Bloch equations and k.p theory, is introduced. The closed loop design tool based on this theory is not only used to design the VECSEL structure, but also used as a precise on-wafer diagnostics tool by the experiment/theory comparison of the photo-luminescence. The characterization of the wafer shows that the modeling is in good agreement with the measured results.The VECSEL high power high brightness performance relies on the fabrication of the chip. The fabrication method of the VECSEL chip, which provides the optically smooth surface and good heat dissipation, is presented. The anti-reflection coating on the chip surface can significantly improve the slope efficiency of VECSEL when high reflectivity output coupler is used. Over 12-W VECSEL cw output power with 43 % slope efficiency is demonstrated at 0 oC. A beam quality factor (M^2 factor) of 1.75 is obtained at 11 W output power.

O crescimento acelerado da aqüicultura no estado de São Paulo, ou seja, a implantação de pesque-pagues e pisciculturas pode estar causando uma série de problemas ambientais. A contribuição para o processo de eutrofização é uma das conseqüências desses empreendimentos, pois tanto os tanques utilizados na piscicultura como os afluentes em torno desses estabelecimentos, estão sendo eutrofizados pelo excesso de nutrientes. Uma das conseqüências da eutrofização é o aparecimento de florações de cianobactérias, e a principal preocupação está nas toxinas liberadas por estas cianobactérias, que se ingeridas pelos seres humanos e animais, podem causar efeitos de intoxicação, como fraqueza, cefaléia, vômito e dependendo da concentração ingerida pode levar à morte. Desta forma é necessário que haja um programa de controle da qualidade da água dos tanques e reservatórios e também dos peixes que ali são criados, pois florações de cianobactérias vêm sendo encontradas em diversos corpos d\'água. Este estudo teve como foco a determinação da cianotoxina microcistina-LR, empregando técnicas como a extração em fase sólida e a cromatografia líquida para a detecção e quantificação da microcistina-LR em amostras de florações de cianobactérias. Os testes feitos com a extração em fase sólida demonstraram que esse procedimento não se faz necessário para todas as amostras, pois houve casos em que não se obteve diferença nos picos interferentes mais próximos ao tempo de retenção do analito de estudo. Como as matrizes desse tipo de amostras são muito complexas e variam muito conforme o meio em que se encontram, recomenda-se que sejam avaliados caso à caso a necessidade de se promover a extração em fase sólida, pois o mesmo é um processo que demanda um tempo maior de análise e conseqüente aumento nos custos. Foi determinado e validado um método cromatográfico considerado capaz de fornecer dados reproduzíveis e confiáveis, por meio de testes de seletividade, limite de detecção e de quantificação, linearidade, precisão, exatidão e recuperação, conforme critérios de aceitação da Resolução n°899 de 2003, da ANVISA. O limite de detecção do método ficou estipulado em 0,1 µg mL-1, e o limite inferior de quantificação em 0,5 µg mL-1, determinados conforme a relação sinal-ruído proposta pelo Guia de Validação de Métodos Bioanalíticos da ANVISA. A quantificação da microcistina-LR foi feita utilizando o método de superposição de matriz, que minimiza e/ou compensa o efeito de matriz ou de possíveis interferentes presentes na amostra, e a curva analítica obtida y = 1,5888+21,849 x, com um coeficiente de correlação de 0,997 mostra uma boa linearidade. Foram analisadas amostras de florações de cianobactérias, coletadas em pesque-pagues e pisciculturas situadas na região do Alto Mogi (subdivisão da bacia do Mogi Guaçu), conforme o método de extração e análise estudado. / The rapid growth of aquaculture in the state of São Paulo may be causing a number of environmental problems. The contribution to the eutrophication process is among the consequences of these undertakings, given that the tanks used in fish farming as well as the changes around these establishments are becoming eutrophic systems due to excessive nutrients. A frequent consequence of eutrophication in waters is the massive development of cyanobacteria.The occurrence of these blooms induces severe problems, as Microcystis aeruginosa, the most widespread distributed cyanobacteria, which can produce microcystin-LR. Toxic effects of MC have been described in liver, lungs, stomach, and intestine. Deaths in wildlife, livestock and human beings were also associated with microcystin exposition, which can occur directly by ingestion, inhalation, contact, intravenous inoculation of contaminated water (hemodialysis) or indirectly, by the consumption of animals, as fish and mollusks, the major ingestors of cyanobacteria and its toxins. Thus we need a program to control the quality of water tanks and reservoirs and also the fish breeded there, as cyanobacteria blooms have been found in various water bodies. This study focused on the determination of the cyanotoxins microcystin-LR, using techniques such as solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography for the detection and quantification of microcystin-LR in samples of cyanobacteria blooms. Tests performed with solid phase extraction showed that this procedure is not necessary for all the samples because there were cases where no difference was obtained in interfering peaks near the retention time of the analyte studied. As the parent of such samples are very complex and vary greatly, because the extracts contained too much coextrated material that interfered in the LC-UV detection, and depending on the way in which it is recommended to be assessed, case by case, the solid phase extraction needs to be promoted, because it is a process that demands a longer period of analysis and consequently an increase in costs. A liquid chromatography method was established and validated, which is deemed capable of providing reproducible and reliable data, by testing for selectivity, limit of detection and quantification, linearity, precision, accuracy and recovery, in accordance with the acceptance criteria of Resolution No. 899 of 2003 of ANVISA. The detection limit of the method was set at 0.1 µg mL-1, and the lower limit of quantification at 0.5 µg mL-1 determined according to the signal to noise ratio proposed by the Validation Guide of Bioanalytical Methods, ANVISA. Quantification of microcystin-LR was performed using the matrix-matched method, which minimizes and/or offsets the effect of possible matrix interference or present in the sample. The analytical curve obtained y = 1.5888 + 21.849 x, with a coefficient of correlation of 0.997 shows a good linearity. Real aquaculture samples were analyzed that were detected and quantified according to the method developed.

No description available.

This pilot study was conducted to determine if an Electron Magnetics Oxygen and Hydrogen (EMOH) device can increase the dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration of a residential surface water. By using EMOH, DO concentration will increase and allow bacteria to remove the substrate that creates blue-green algae for which the City of Boynton Beach (City) receives complaints. Those complaints center on odors and the visual appearance of the ponds. The study was conducted in-situ at the INCA Pond system in the City of Boynton Beach, Florida with data collection taking place bi-weekly, using surface aeration techniques. Water sampling was conducted in the INCA Pond system via a handheld water sensor. Primary variable monitored included: water temperature, barometric pressure, DO concentration, and DO saturation (DOSAT). Biomass of dead algae at the bottom of the pond was also monitored to determine if increased DO concentration aided the biological digestion of the organic matter. Data analysis shows that exposure to EMOH treatment allowed the relationship between DO and temperature to change from a negative correlation (the expected relationship) to a positive trend. Furthermore, pressure and DOSAT became less correlated after exposure to EMOH effluent. In all, EMOH was shown to be an effective means of treating hypoxic pond water. The optimal EMOH effluent discharge is determined to be deep in the subject pond. Backed by research on the surface-air water and bubble-water oxygen transfer coefficients, DO concentration in the subject pond was 110% higher when effluent was directed down toward the floor of the pond. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2019. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Cyanobacterial toxins present a real and growing threat to humans and animals due to the projected increases in algal blooms resulting from increasing global temperature and pollution. Wild animals, livestock, pet animals and humans can be poisoned from contaminated drinking water. With the discovery of cyanobacterial toxins present in nutritional supplements, a new concern looms over consumers with threats of neurotoxin and hepatotoxin related damage from exposure to these products. To this end, work on the development of a freeze dried algal reference material was pursued for future use in environmental and nutritional supplement analysis. The first stage of the project was to prepare needed calibration standards, starting with homoanatoxin a, a homologue of the highly neurotoxic anatoxin-a compound. The resulting reference material (RM-hATX) had a homoanatoxin-a concentration of 20.2 ± 0.7 ?M, and proved to be stable while stored at temperatures of 80°C. Reference samples for dihydro and epoxy analogues of anatoxin-a and homoanatoxin-a were then prepared by semi-synthesis. The second stage of the project was the development of new analytical methods for the anatoxins. A derivatization reaction in which dansyl chloride was coupled with a novel cleanup step produced anatoxin derivatives suitable for liquid chromatography (LC) with mass spectrometry (MS) or fluorescence detection (FLD). Limits of quantitation were 60 ng L-1 and 1.6 ?g L-1 for the developed LC-MS/MS and LC-FLD methods, respectively, with the limit of quantitation significantly better than that of a previously developed method for the underivatized toxins based on HILIC MS/MS. Quantitative results for anatoxins in various algal samples using all three methods of analysis of were compared and it was found that there were no significant differences between the three methods. Unfortunately, experiments showed that the various toxin analogues did not elicit equimolar responses in either LC-MS/MS or LC FLD, thus indicating the importance of having individual calibration standards for quantitative analysis. The LC-MS/MS and LC-FLD methods were paired with a previously developed method for the analysis of hepatotoxic microcystins to screen a small number of nutritional supplement samples for cyanobacterial toxins. Microcystins were detected in all five Aphanizomenon flos-aquae samples examined. This method involved a fifteen-fold pre-concentration using a solid phase extraction cartridge, which gave a 98% recovery of microcystins. The third phase of the project was the preparation and testing of a preliminary algal matrix reference material as a feasibility study for the eventual production of a CRM. After selecting various algal cultures and samples that could be blended together, a freeze dried algal reference material was prepared and packaged. This material (RM-BGA) was then characterized using several methods including the two new dansylation-based procedures.

O crescimento acelerado da aqüicultura no estado de São Paulo, ou seja, a implantação de pesque-pagues e pisciculturas pode estar causando uma série de problemas ambientais. A contribuição para o processo de eutrofização é uma das conseqüências desses empreendimentos, pois tanto os tanques utilizados na piscicultura como os afluentes em torno desses estabelecimentos, estão sendo eutrofizados pelo excesso de nutrientes. Uma das conseqüências da eutrofização é o aparecimento de florações de cianobactérias, e a principal preocupação está nas toxinas liberadas por estas cianobactérias, que se ingeridas pelos seres humanos e animais, podem causar efeitos de intoxicação, como fraqueza, cefaléia, vômito e dependendo da concentração ingerida pode levar à morte. Desta forma é necessário que haja um programa de controle da qualidade da água dos tanques e reservatórios e também dos peixes que ali são criados, pois florações de cianobactérias vêm sendo encontradas em diversos corpos d\'água. Este estudo teve como foco a determinação da cianotoxina microcistina-LR, empregando técnicas como a extração em fase sólida e a cromatografia líquida para a detecção e quantificação da microcistina-LR em amostras de florações de cianobactérias. Os testes feitos com a extração em fase sólida demonstraram que esse procedimento não se faz necessário para todas as amostras, pois houve casos em que não se obteve diferença nos picos interferentes mais próximos ao tempo de retenção do analito de estudo. Como as matrizes desse tipo de amostras são muito complexas e variam muito conforme o meio em que se encontram, recomenda-se que sejam avaliados caso à caso a necessidade de se promover a extração em fase sólida, pois o mesmo é um processo que demanda um tempo maior de análise e conseqüente aumento nos custos. Foi determinado e validado um método cromatográfico considerado capaz de fornecer dados reproduzíveis e confiáveis, por meio de testes de seletividade, limite de detecção e de quantificação, linearidade, precisão, exatidão e recuperação, conforme critérios de aceitação da Resolução n°899 de 2003, da ANVISA. O limite de detecção do método ficou estipulado em 0,1 µg mL-1, e o limite inferior de quantificação em 0,5 µg mL-1, determinados conforme a relação sinal-ruído proposta pelo Guia de Validação de Métodos Bioanalíticos da ANVISA. A quantificação da microcistina-LR foi feita utilizando o método de superposição de matriz, que minimiza e/ou compensa o efeito de matriz ou de possíveis interferentes presentes na amostra, e a curva analítica obtida y = 1,5888+21,849 x, com um coeficiente de correlação de 0,997 mostra uma boa linearidade. Foram analisadas amostras de florações de cianobactérias, coletadas em pesque-pagues e pisciculturas situadas na região do Alto Mogi (subdivisão da bacia do Mogi Guaçu), conforme o método de extração e análise estudado. / The rapid growth of aquaculture in the state of São Paulo may be causing a number of environmental problems. The contribution to the eutrophication process is among the consequences of these undertakings, given that the tanks used in fish farming as well as the changes around these establishments are becoming eutrophic systems due to excessive nutrients. A frequent consequence of eutrophication in waters is the massive development of cyanobacteria.The occurrence of these blooms induces severe problems, as Microcystis aeruginosa, the most widespread distributed cyanobacteria, which can produce microcystin-LR. Toxic effects of MC have been described in liver, lungs, stomach, and intestine. Deaths in wildlife, livestock and human beings were also associated with microcystin exposition, which can occur directly by ingestion, inhalation, contact, intravenous inoculation of contaminated water (hemodialysis) or indirectly, by the consumption of animals, as fish and mollusks, the major ingestors of cyanobacteria and its toxins. Thus we need a program to control the quality of water tanks and reservoirs and also the fish breeded there, as cyanobacteria blooms have been found in various water bodies. This study focused on the determination of the cyanotoxins microcystin-LR, using techniques such as solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography for the detection and quantification of microcystin-LR in samples of cyanobacteria blooms. Tests performed with solid phase extraction showed that this procedure is not necessary for all the samples because there were cases where no difference was obtained in interfering peaks near the retention time of the analyte studied. As the parent of such samples are very complex and vary greatly, because the extracts contained too much coextrated material that interfered in the LC-UV detection, and depending on the way in which it is recommended to be assessed, case by case, the solid phase extraction needs to be promoted, because it is a process that demands a longer period of analysis and consequently an increase in costs. A liquid chromatography method was established and validated, which is deemed capable of providing reproducible and reliable data, by testing for selectivity, limit of detection and quantification, linearity, precision, accuracy and recovery, in accordance with the acceptance criteria of Resolution No. 899 of 2003 of ANVISA. The detection limit of the method was set at 0.1 µg mL-1, and the lower limit of quantification at 0.5 µg mL-1 determined according to the signal to noise ratio proposed by the Validation Guide of Bioanalytical Methods, ANVISA. Quantification of microcystin-LR was performed using the matrix-matched method, which minimizes and/or offsets the effect of possible matrix interference or present in the sample. The analytical curve obtained y = 1.5888 + 21.849 x, with a coefficient of correlation of 0.997 shows a good linearity. Real aquaculture samples were analyzed that were detected and quantified according to the method developed.