published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 77-89).

This thesis is a research-focused work on a study of alternative materials for horseshoes. Within this thesis the objectives and functions of a compliant horseshoe are identified, based on a literature study of the work of previous researches, and they are linked to the properties of material. After identifying these objectives, a number of methods are implemented with the aim of detecting the most suitable materials for horseshoes taking into account the properties linked with the objectives. In order to determine whether the selected material is suitable or not, a comparison with a traditional forged steel horseshoe is carried out. Whenever an appropriate material is found, a most exhaustive study is performed and finally, a decision is elected based on the further investigation. The last chapter of this thesis is comprised of a document destined for future researches where suggestions about how to get more reliable results in the field are explained.

In this paper we explore bifurcations, in particular the Hopf bifurcation. We study this especially in connection with the Brusselator, which is a model of certain chemical reaction-diffusion systems. After a thorough exploration of what a bifurcation is and what classifications there are, we give graphic representations of an occurring Hopf bifurcation in the Brusselator. When an additional forcing term is added, behavior changes dramatically. This includes the introduction of a horseshoe in the time map as well as a strange attractor in the system.

Västergarn is one of the smallest parishes on the island of Gotland. It’s a place of rich history and has been subject to numerous excavations throughout the years. The University of Gotland has conducted seminar excavations at Västergarn between the years of 2005-2012. During these excavations a lot of horse related finds have been found. By studying these finds archaeologist can learn a lot about the horses and the people who once lived in Västergarn. The purpose of this paper is to shed some light on the urban and rural horse in Västergarn. How big were the horses? Were the horses used for riding or farming? What can the finds tell us about the people who lived in Västergarn and their view on horse handling?

Horseshoe Bay, British Columbia is: 1) a geographically constricted waterfront neighbourhood of the Municipality of West Vancouver, 2) a north facing deep water ocean bay with a history of marine access and activities, 3) the site of one of the busiest terminals on the British Columbia Ferry Corporation system with 2.6 million vehicles and 7 million passengers per year. The ferry corporation is planning to expand the vehicle holding lots and administration facilities in 2001 and there are public concerns about possible degradation of the character and environment of the community. The Municipality of West Vancouver has expressed a desire to rebuild the foreshore embankment of the waterfront in Horseshoe Bay Park and upgrade the various amenities. Merchants of Horseshoe Bay are concerned that changes to the pedestrian access from the ferry terminal lots may negatively affect their business. The federal government is in the midst of divesting itself of ownership and responsibility for the public wharf. These are the issues and factors that were considered in a project where several different landscape locations with different functions within the Horseshoe Bay community were the subject of a redesign program. The proposed interventions range from environmental graphics to intertidal infill and wetland construction. Each of the various proposals has a different focus, use or function but all share the common theme of landscape connectivity, linking the community to the environment in a mutually beneficial way.

Horseshoe Bay, British Columbia is: 1) a geographically constricted waterfront neighbourhood of the Municipality of West Vancouver, 2) a north facing deep water ocean bay with a history of marine access and activities, 3) the site of one of the busiest terminals on the British Columbia Ferry Corporation system with 2.6 million vehicles and 7 million passengers per year. The ferry corporation is planning to expand the vehicle holding lots and administration facilities in 2001 and there are public concerns about possible degradation of the character and environment of the community. The Municipality of West Vancouver has expressed a desire to rebuild the foreshore embankment of the waterfront in Horseshoe Bay Park and upgrade the various amenities. Merchants of Horseshoe Bay are concerned that changes to the pedestrian access from the ferry terminal lots may negatively affect their business. The federal government is in the midst of divesting itself of ownership and responsibility for the public wharf. These are the issues and factors that were considered in a project where several different landscape locations with different functions within the Horseshoe Bay community were the subject of a redesign program. The proposed interventions range from environmental graphics to intertidal infill and wetland construction. Each of the various proposals has a different focus, use or function but all share the common theme of landscape connectivity, linking the community to the environment in a mutually beneficial way. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Architecture and Landscape Architecture (SALA), School of / Graduate

The principal aim of this research is the design of a more compliant horseshoe which allows the natural expansion and compression of the horse hoof. Three different simulations have been carried out in by using Finite Element Method in order to know the behaviour of the horse hoof when is analysed under the same load conditions. First the hoof will be studied without any horseshoe to obtain the produced displacement by the hoof expansion. Once the displacement of the barefoot hoof is known, an assembly, in which a sample stiff horseshoe is attached to the hoof by nails, will be performed to obtain both the hoof displacement as the horseshoe one. Finally, after three different researches about the current horseshoes, different possible alternative materials and most commons attachment methods, a more flexible horseshoe will be created and analysed. The results obtained in the three simulations will be compared and commented.

Half model testing is considered a valuable wind tunnel technique that offers many benefits over conventional full span testing. The technique suffers from aerodynamic losses due to flow separations on the model surfaces near the model/floor junction. Computational Fluid Dynamics, employing the Spalart-Allmaras turbulence model, and experimental investigations were carried out to evaluate the losses and to investigate the effect of localised suction on the junction flows. The wind tunnel model used was a rectangular and untwisted wing having a NASA LS(1)-0413 cross section and with a physical aspect ratio of 3. Tests were conducted at 10.00 incidence at a Reynolds number of 0.44 x 106. Aerodynamic performance of the wind tunnel half model was obtained by surface flow visualisation and pressure measurements on the wing surface in the junction region. CFD predictions showed significantly large losses compared to the experimental findings and therefore CFD predicted significant influence and benefits of suction. These were seen as elimination of the model surface separation and also recovery of the wing surface pressure distributions. In contrast to this, experiments showed much smaller separation than CFD without suction and applying suction in experiments, showed only a marginal effect on the flow separations, which also further deteriorated the pressure distributions. Future CFD studies on junction flows should be conducted using more advanced turbulence models such as Large Eddy Simulations (LES). In addition, to validate these CFD studies, velocity and turbulence measurements in the wing/floor junction region are also needed.

Orientador: Juliana Regina Peiró / Resumo: Sete equinos hígidos, de ambos sexos, foram utilizados para este experimento, com objeto de avaliarmos as diferenças de temperatura do casco do animal, antes e após o ferrageamento a quente, com auxílio de termógrafo infravermelho, por duas avaliações com intervalo de 45 entre elas. O teste t de Student pareado foi escolhido para análise estatista, e foram considerados valores significativos para diferentes momentos do ferrageamento quando p<0,05. Houve diferença significativa de temperatura em quase todas imagens realizadas do casco quando comparadas as temperaturas anteriores e posteriores ao ferrageamento a quente. Embora as temperaturas tenham se elevado após ferrageamento, este aumento não ultrapassou a temperatura corpórea fisiológica (37,5ºC-38,5ºC). Não houve danos ao estojo córneo como linhas de estresse e rachaduras. Não houve falha no crescimento do casco entre os ferrageamentos. Os animais não manifestaram dor, e tão pouco alteram o comportamento durante o procedimento. Os parâmetros vitais não apresentaram diferença significativa entre os momentos. Por estes resultados, é possível aventar que o ferrageamento a quente é uma prática segura e não causa danos ao casco. / Abstract: Thermography has been widely used in veterinary medicine, mainly in diagnostic, prognostic and preventive aid. The aim of this study was to observe the temperature of toracic hooves, the anterior limbs, before and after the hot fitting, with the help of a thermograph, to establish a temperature pattern after the shoeing and to infer if it can cause damages to the hoof equine. Although the forged horseshoe reaches very high temperatures, the hoof temperature rise did not exceed physiological temperature values. Based on the maintenance behavior during the procedure, maintenance of the normal values in the physical examinations and with the conservation of the hoof growth, between one shoeing and another, it is possible to infer that the hot fitting is a safe practice and does not cause damage to the hoof. / Mestre