Magister Public Health - MPH / Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life and introduction of nutritionally adequate and safe complementary foods after 6 months with continued breastfeeding to 2 years and beyond. A variety of foods in the diet is needed to ensure that the nutrient needs of breastfed and non-breastfed children are met. Price of food and affordability are the main barriers of accessing sufficient, safe and nutritious diets to meet dietary needs for an active and healthy life. Many low-income households cannot afford a healthy nutritionally adequate diet, because of the cost of nutrient-rich foods relative to income. Aim: The aim of the study was to determine whether cost of the diet is associated with dietary diversity, energy and nutrient density, and nutrient adequacy in breastfeeding and non-breastfeeding children aged 12 to 24 months. Objectives: For breastfed and non-breastfed children age 12 to 24 months, to determine: (i) dietary diversity, nutrient adequacy and cost of total dietary intake; (ii) dietary diversity, nutrient density, energy density and cost of the complementary diet; (iii) the association of cost of the diet with dietary diversity and nutrient adequacy; and (iv) the association of cost of the complementary diet with dietary diversity, nutrient density and energy density of the complementary Study design: The study is a descriptive study and used an existing dataset consisting of pooled previously collected 24-hour dietary recalls for children age 12 to 24 months from the two most recent independent studies (n=1064). The dataset included data on dietary energy and nutrients, mean adequacy ratio, nutrient adequacy ratios, micronutrient density per 100 kcal of the complementary diet and cost of food per 100g edible portion.

Objective Cartilage fatigue, due to mechanical work, may account for the early development of degenerative joint disease (DJD) in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), and why women are three times more likely to be afflicted. This study tested for gender differences in mechanical energy densities in women and men with healthy TMJs. Design Eighteen women and eighteen men gave informed consent. Research diagnostic criteria including imaging were used to ensure that subjects’ TMJs were normal, without disc displacement or signs of DJD. Numerical modeling determined TMJ loads (Fnormal). Jaw tracking and three-dimensional dynamic stereometry characterized individual-specific data of stress-field dynamic mechanics during 10 symmetrical jaw closing cycles. These data were used to estimate tractional forces (Ftraction). Energy densities were then calculated, where: Energy Density = W/Q (W = work done or mechanical energy input = Ftraction*distance of stress-field translation, Q = volume of cartilage). Two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and follow-up two-group comparisons tested mean energy densities for ipsilateral and contralateral TMJs in women vs men. Results Mean energy densities ± standard deviations in ipsilateral and contralateral TMJs in women were 9.0 ± 9.7 and 8.4 ± 5.5 mJ/mm3, respectively, and were significantly larger (P = 0.004 and 0.001, respectively) compared to ipsilateral and contralateral TMJs in men, which were 5.6 ± 4.2 and 6.3 ± 4.2 mJ/mm3, respectively. Conclusions Energy densities were significantly larger in healthy TMJs of women than men. Larger TMJ energy densities during normal jaw functions could predispose earlier mechanical fatigue of the TMJ disc.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第17887号 / 工博第3796号 / 新制||工||1581(附属図書館) / 30707 / 京都大学大学院工学研究科材料工学専攻 / (主査)教授 田中 功, 教授 酒井 明, 教授 邑瀬 邦明 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第19702号 / 工博第4157号 / 新制||工||1641(附属図書館) / 32738 / 京都大学大学院工学研究科マイクロエンジニアリング専攻 / (主査)教授 立花 明知, 教授 木村 健二, 教授 伊藤 秋男 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

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Thesis (Ph.D. (Physics)) -- University of Limpopo, 2020 / This work presents a computational modelling workflow that uniquely combines several techniques, proposed as a means for studying and designing high-energy-density electrodes for the next-generation of rechargeable batteries within the era of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). The Self-Consistent Charge Density Functional-based Tight Binding (SCC-DFTB) parameterisation scheme for the Li-Si and Na-Si systems is presented. By using the Li-Si system, a procedure for developing the Slater-Koster based potentials is shown. Using lessons learned from the Li-Si framework, the parameterisation of the Na-Si is reported. The Li-Si SCC-DFTB parameter set has been developed to handle environments that consist of Si-Si, Li-Si and Li-Li interactions; and the Na-Si SCC DFTB parameter set is developed for Na-Na, Na-Si, and Si-Si interactions. Validations and applications of the developed sets are illustrated and discussed. By calculating equilibrium lattice constants, the Li-Si set is shown to be compatible with various phases in the crystalline Li-Si system. The results were generally within a margin of less than 8% difference, with some values such as that of the cubic Li22Si5 being in agreement with experiments to within 1%. The volume expansion of Si as a function of Li insertion was successfully modelled via the Li-Si SCC-DFTB parameter set. It was shown that Si gradually expands in volume from 53.6% for the LiSi phase composed of 50 atm % Li, to 261.57% for Li15Si4 with 78.95 atm % Li, and eventually shoots over 300% for the Li22Si5 phase with the expansion at 316.45%, which agrees with experiments. Furthermore, the ability of the Li-Si SCC-DFTB parameter set to model the mechanical properties of Si is evaluated by calculating the mechanical properties of pristine cubic Si. The parameter set was able to produce the mechanical properties of Si, which agree with experiments to within 6%. The SCC-DFTB parameter set was then used to model the volume expansion of amorphous silicon (a-Si) as a result of lithiation within concentrations ranging from 33 – 50 atm % Li. Consistent with experiments, the a-Si was found to marginally expand in a linear form with increase in Li content. a-Si was observed to exhibit a lower expansion compared to c-Si. Additionally, the structural stability of the amorphous Li-Si alloys was examined, and observations agree with experiments.vi The Na-Si SCC-DFTB parameter set produced equilibrium lattice parameters that agree with experiments to within 4% for reference structures, and the transferability was tested on three Na-Si clathrate compounds (i.e. the Pm-3n Na8Si46, the Cmcm NaSi6 and Fd-3m Na24Si136). By employing the approach used when lithiating Si, the sodiation of crystalline silicon (c-Si) was modelled. It was predicted that c-Si expands by over 400% at 77 atm% Na and shoots above 500% for concentrations exceeding 80 atm% of Na. By comparing how c-Si expands as a result of lithiation to the expansion consequent to sodiation for concentrations ranging from 66.6 – 81.4 atm%, c-Si is shown to be unsuitable for Na-ion batteries. As a test, the ability of the developed Na-Si SCC DFTB parameter set to handle large and complex geometries was shown by modelling the expansion of a-Si at 33 atm% Na. It was deduced that a-Si would be more preferable for Na-ion batteries since at 33 atm% Na, a-Si expanded a lot less than when c-Si was used. Using the Li-Si and the Na-Si SCC-DFTB parameter sets, it was noted that amorphisation appears to lower the magnitude by which Si expands, therefore agreeing with experiments in that amorphous structures are reported to exhibit a buffering effect towards volume expansion. The material space for the Li-Si alloy system is explored through crystal structure predictions conducted via a machine learning powered cluster expansion (CE). Using the FCC and BCC – based parent lattice in the grid search, 12 thermodynamically stable Li-Si alloys were predicted by the genetic algorithm. Viz. the trigonal Li4Si (R-3m), tetragonal Li4Si (I4/m), tetragonal Li3Si (I4/mmm), cubic Li3Si (Fm-3m), monoclinic Li2Si3 (C2/m), trigonal Li2Si (P-3m1), tetragonal LiSi (P4/mmm), trigonal LiSi2 (P-2m1), monoclinic LiSi3 (P2/m), cubic LiSi3 (Pm-3m), tetragonal LiSi4 (I4/m) and monoclinic LiSi4 (C2/m). The structural stabilities of the predicted Li-Si alloys are further studied. With focus on pressure, the thermodynamic conditions under which the Li-rich phase, Li4Si (R 3m), would be stable are tested. Li4Si (R-3m) was subjected to pressures during geometry optimization and found to globally maintain its structural stability within the range 0 – 25GPa. Hence, Li4Si was predicted to be a low pressure phase. In studying the PDOS, the Li4Si (I4/m) was noted to be more stable around 40GPa and vii 45GPa, which is consistent with the prediction made from other works, wherein intelligence-based techniques were used. A test for exploring the Na-Si material space was done using insights acquired from the Li-Si framework. Three thermodynamically stable Na-Si (i.e. the I4/mmm Na3Si, P4/nmm NaSi and Immm NaSi2) were predicted. Using the Na-Si SCC-DFTB parameter set, a correlation of the total DOS in the vicinity of the Fermi level (Ef) with the structural stability of the three Na-Si alloys is done. NaSi (P4/nmm) was shown to be unstable at 0GPa, NaSi2 (Immm) is found to be stable, and the Na-rich Na3Si exhibited metastability. The stability of Na3Si was seen to improve when external pressure ranging from 2.5 – 25GPa was applied; hence, suggesting Na3Si (I4/mmm) to be a high-pressure phase. Furthermore, expanding on the groundwork laid from the Li-Si and Na-Si CE, the Mg-Si system was tested to illustrate that the approach can be used to rapidly screen for new materials. The ground-state crystal structure search predicted 4 thermodynamically stable Mg-Si alloys. Viz. Mg3Si (Pm-3m), MgSi (P4/mmm), MgSi2 (Immm) and MgSi3 (Pmmm). Lastly, to highlight the power of combining various computational techniques to advance material discovery and design, a framework linking SCC-DFTB and CE is illustrated. Candidate electrode materials with nano-architectural features were simulated by designing nanospheres comprised of more than 500 atoms, using the predicted Li-Si and Na-Si crystal structures. The stability of the nanospheres was examined using SCC-DFTB parameters developed herein. The workflow presented in this work paves the way for rapid material discovery, which is sought for in the era of the fourth industrial revolution. / National Cyber Infrastructure System: Center for High-Performance Computing (NICIS-CHPC) for computing resources, the National Research Foundation (NRF) and the University of Limpopo

The two-point in situ method is a technique for measuring the room constant of a semi-reverberant room and the sound power of a source in that room simultaneously using two measurement positions. Using a reference directivity source, where the directivity factor along any given axis of the source has been measured, one is able to use the Hopkins-Stryker equation to measure both the room constant and the sound power level of another source rather simply. Using both numerical and experimental data, it was found that by using generalized energy density (GED) as a measurement quantity, the results were more accurate than those using squared pressure. The results also improved when one measurement position was near the source and the other measurement position was far from the source. This resulted in strong contribution of both the direct and reverberant fields in each of the measurement positions. Another improvement to the two-point method was the use of a local, spatial average around the measurement position. The assumptions in the Hopkins-Stryker equation rely on this average and it was found that a small local spatial average improved the measurements. However, this improvement was greater for squared pressure than for GED. Several source sound power levels and room constants were measured to show that these measurements are improved by using the suggested techniques.

This paper presents the theory, design, and validation of a microphone calibrator used to calibrate multiple microphones simultaneously. This work was done in conjunction with the development of an acoustic energy density probe, which was used to validate the calibrator. The probe uses multiple microphones to acquire the data needed to compute the acoustic energy density. The probe microphones are 0.006 m diameter electret microphones which typically do not have an ideal “flat" response over a wide range of frequencies as compared to precision condenser microphones. The probe microphone characteristics prompted the need for simultaneous, multi-microphone magnitude calibration. The idea behind the calibration process was to simultaneously subject each microphone on the probe to the same known acoustic pressure over the frequency range of the probe (0-2 kHz). This is done using equal-length small-diameter tubes connected to a single source at each microphone. The calibrator was modeled using and equivalent circuit model. The model results are presented and compared to measured results. The calibrator was validated to result in the same pressure along individual paths to each microphone simultaneously. Test results show that the calibrator can calibrate each probe microphone within ± 0.5 dB up to 2000 Hz, and within ± 1 dB up to 4900 Hz with a confidence level of 95%. Directivity tests were performed to further characterize the probe. Using a correction factor the probe is shown to be directionally independent.

The properties of acoustic kinetic energy density and total energy density of sound fields in lightly damped enclosures have been explored thoroughly in the literature. Their increased spatial uniformity makes them more favorable measurement quantities for various applications than acoustic potential energy density (or squared pressure), which is most often used. In this dissertation, a new acoustic energy quantity, the generalized acoustic energy density (GED), will be introduced. It is defined by introducing weighting factors, α and 1 − α, in the formulation of total acoustic energy density. With the additional degree of freedom, the GED can conform to the traditional acoustic energy density quantities, or be optimized for different applications. The properties and applications of the GED are explored in this dissertation. For enclosed sound fields, it was found that GED with α = 1/4 is spatially more uniform than the acoustic potential energy density, acoustic kinetic energy density, and the total acoustic energy density, which makes it a more favorable measurement quantity than those traditional acoustic energy density quantities for many indoor measurement applications. For some other applications, such as active noise control in diffuse field, different values of α may be considered superior. The numerical verifications in this research are mainly based on a hybrid modal expansion developed for this work, which combines the free field Green's function and a modal expansion. The enclosed sound field is separated into the direct field and reverberant field, which have been treated together in traditional modal analysis. Studies on a point source in rectangular enclosures show that the hybrid modal expansion converges notably faster than the traditional modal expansions, especially in the region near the source, and introduces much smaller errors with a limited number of modes. The hybrid modal expansion can be easily applied to complex sound sources if the free field responses of the sources are known. Damped boundaries are also considered in this dissertation, and a set of modified modal functions is introduced, which is shown to be suitable for many damped boundary conditions.