This thesis studies two important carbon structures, graphene and carbon nanotubes, with the purpose of understanding how their three-dimensional electron density distribution affects the way fast ions interact with them. <br /><br /> A brief introduction to research in pure carbon structures is made. We then use different models to calculate the equilibrium electron density distribution in graphene and carbon nanotubes. <br /><br /> In the second part of the thesis we investigate fast ions moving parallel to a graphene sheet and experiencing forces due to the dynamic polarization of carbon valence electrons. Using the three-dimensional electron density distribution of graphene, we calculate the force directly opposing the ion's motion (stopping force), as well as the force which bends the ion's trajectory towards the sheet (image force). It is our purpose to compare these results with those based on a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model of graphene, which approximates the electron distribution of graphene by a charged fluid confined to the two-dimensional plane of the sheet. <br /><br /> The results obtained for interactions of ions with a single graphene sheet should be useful for a further analysis of ion channeling through carbon nanostructures.

Economic utilisation of biogas arising from sewage sludge is hampered by the need to remove siloxanes, which damage gas engines upon combustion. This thesis applies on-line Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to measure siloxanes in biogas upstream and downstream of the activated carbon vessels designed to adsorb siloxanes. On-line analysis provides accurate measurement of siloxane concentrations with a detection limit below the siloxane limits set by engine manufacturers, high data intensity and timely identification of breakthrough. Cost savings of up to £0.007 kWh- 1 may be realised compared to existing grab sampling. Using on-line analysis, the performance of full-scale and bench-scale carbon vessels were measured. Full-scale carbon contactors are typically operated at Reynold’s numbers close to the boundary between the laminar and transitional regimes (Re = 40 - 55). This thesis demonstrates, at full- and bench-scale, that increasing the Reynold’s number to site the adsorption process in the transitional regime increases media capacity, by 36% in dry gas and by 400% at 80% humidity. It is postulated that the change in gas velocity profile which occurs as Reynold’s number increases reduces the resistance to siloxane transport caused by gas and water films around the carbon particles, and therefore increases the rate of the overall adsorption process. In the laminar regime (Re = 31) increasing humidity from zero to 80% led to the classical stepwise reduction in adsorption capacity observed by other researchers, caused by the increasing thickness of the water film, but in the transitional regime (Re = 73) increasing humidity had no effect as no significant water film develops. It is therefore recommended that siloxane adsorption vessels should be designed to operate at Reynold’s numbers above 55. By choosing a high aspect ratio (tall and thin) both Reynold’s number and contact time can be optimised.

Cette thèse est dédiée à l'étude d'ondes non linéaires dans des écoulements en rotation. Dans une première partie, je me suis intéressé aux ondes de Rossby apparaissant par instabilités de thermoconvection dans une coquille sphérique en rotation représentant un modèle simplifié de noyau planétaire tellurique, et ce pour deux types de forçage: un chauffage interne correspondant à une activité radioactive du noyau et un chauffage différentiel lié à la différence de température entre les frontières interne et externe. Selon le théorème de Proudman-Taylor, l'écoulement possède une faible dépendance en la coordonnée axiale à cause de la rotation rapide. Cela permet de simplifier les modèles 3D en des modèles quasi géostrophiques 2D reposant sur une intégration axiale. Cette thèse présente la première comparaison systématique entre modèles 2D et 3D (Simitev, U-Glasgow) concernant des ondes de Rossby faiblement non linéaires. En 2D l'équation de Landau régissant l'amplitude de l'onde critique est calculée; l'amplitude de la convection et celle des écoulements zonaux ainsi prédites se comparent assez bien aux résultats 3D. L'existence d'une bifurcation sous-critique est établie à très bas nombre d'Ekman en chauffage interne et en chauffage différentiel, à condition dans ce dernier cas que le nombre de Prandtl soit petit. La seconde partie est une étude expérimentale de l'écoulement d'eau et de ses premières instabilités dans un canal annulaire creusé dans un plateau éventuellement en rotation surmonté d'un couvercle tournant. Trois cas sont étudiés: le cisaillement pur correspondant à la rotation du couvercle seul, la corotation rapide et la contrarotation pure. Le seuil d'instabilité détecté par mesures globales (visualisations par caméra vidéo) et locales par Vélocimétrie Laser Doppler se caractérise par des ondes spiralées. Dans le cas de la contrarotation pure, des structures localisées dans l'espace-temps peuvent coexister avec les ondes. Une comparaison est effectuée avec des calculs numériques (Serre, CNRS-Marseille). Un accord relativement bon est obtenu pour l'écoulement de base (vitesse azimutale) et la première instabilité (nombre de Reynolds, nombre d'onde et fréquence angulaire critiques) / A first part is devoted to the study of the Rossby waves that appear in a rotating spherical shell representing the core of a terrestrial planet by thermal instabilities for two heating types. Internal heating is driven by radioactive sources and differential heating is driven by a difference of temperature between the internal and external frontiers. According to the Proudman-Taylor theorem, the flow depends only weakly on the axial coordinate because of the high rotation rate. Thus the 3D models can be simplified into quasi-geostrophic 2D models \textit{via} an axial integration. I present the first systematic comparison between 2D and 3D models (Simitev, U-Glasgow) for weakly nonlinear Rossby waves. In 2D the Landau equation that controls the amplitude of the critical wave is calculated. Predicted convection' amplitude and zonal flows agree rather well with the 3D results. The existence of a subcritical bifurcation is established at very low Ekman numbers with internal and differential heating; in this latter case, the Prandtl number also has to be small for the bifurcation to be subcritical. The second part is an experimental study of water flows and its first instabilities in an annular channel digged in a plate which may rotate, and which is sheared by a rotating lid. Three cases are studied: a pure shear where only the lid turns, a rapid corotation and a pure contrarotation. The onset of instability is studied with global measurements (using a video camera) and local ones (Laser Doppler Anemometry) and is characterized by spiralling waves. In the case of contrarotation, patterns localized in space and time may coexist with the waves. The comparison of these results with numerical ones (Serre, CNRS-Marseille) is done and shows a rather good agreement for the basic azimutal flow and the first instability (critical Reynolds number, wavenumber and angular frequency)

The objective of this study was to determine if numerical models commonly used for large scale applications could also be used to model flow through flood control structures in the Rigolets Pass between Lake Borgne and Lake Pontchartrain. For this purpose a small scale physical model was built. It showed that bi-stable flow can develop downstream of a constriction. Small changes in the distribution of the approaching flow significantly impacted flows downstream of the constriction. This behavior could not be properly reproduced by a small scale 2-dimensional RMA2 model of identical dimensions. A large scale RMA2 model of the Rigolets testing possible locations and geometries of flood control structures showed that this pass is very sensitive to variations in the cross sectional flow area. Even minor reductions can significantly increase headlosses and velocities. To reduce negative impacts a flood control structure should be built in a wide and shallow area of the pass.

O presente trabalho aborda a modelagem unidimensional do regime misto de lubrificação para problemas caracterizados por condições genéricas de carga, velocidade e geometria. Tal modelagem foi desenvolvida a partir de modelos clássicos, tais como a equação de Reynolds relacionada com os fenômenos hidrodinâmicos, e as formulações de Greenwood & Williamson e Greenwood & Tripp utilizadas na descrição do contato de asperezas entre superfícies rugosas. A cavitação do fluido lubrificante foi considerada através dos modelos tradicionais de half-Sommerfeld e Swift-Steiber (Reynolds). Com relação à reologia do lubrificante, as possíveis variações de viscosidade devidas ao próprio campo de pressões hidrodinâmicas e às altas taxas de cisalhamento do fluido (\"shear-thinning\") foram também contempladas na modelagem proposta. Adicionalmente, quatro filtros não convencionais de rugosidade foram propostos e implementados com o objetivo de eliminar as distorções verificadas na definição do plano (ou linha) médio(a) de referência em topografias caracterizadas pela presença de vales profundos, tais como as obtidas após a aplicação da técnica de texturização a laser (LST). A definição adequada desse plano (ou linha) médio(a) de referência é imprescindível para a correta determinação dos parâmetros necessários para a utilização dos modelos de contato de Greenwood a partir das metodologias consideradas neste trabalho. Toda a modelagem unidimensional foi implementada em um programa computacional denominado VTL (\"Virtual Tribology Laboratory\"), cujo código fonte está disponível para qualquer usuário interessado em realizar simulações envolvendo sistemas lubrificados caracterizados por perfis com geometrias genéricas. A validação da modelagem unidimensional proposta foi verificada utilizando os resultados experimentais de um teste de atrito com movimento alternado (\"reciprocating test\") publicado na literatura. Como resultado, a correlação experimental dos resultados calculados com o programa VTL foi excelente. O programa VTL foi também utilizado para verificar a possibilidade da redução de atrito em sistemas lubrificados envolvendo superfícies planas texturizadas, como as obtidas utilizando a técnica de texturização a laser (LST). Devido à limitação unidimensional da modelagem proposta, as fileiras ortogonais de 7 micro-cavidades foram aproximadas como sendo ranhuras (\"grooves\") de dimensões fixas. Para tais situações, apesar da limitação comentada acima, a modelagem unidimensional proposta pode ser utilizada para analisar qualitativamente o mecanismo de micro-mancais responsável pela geração de pressão hidrodinâmica entre superfícies paralelas caracterizadas por esse tipo de micro-texturas. / This dissertation focuses on one dimensional modelling of the mixed lubrication regime for problems with general conditions of load, velocity and geometry. Such modelling was based on classical models, such as the Reynolds equation related to the hydrodynamic phenomena, and the Greenwood & Williamson and Greenwood & Tripp formulations for the description of the asperity contact between rough surfaces. Cavitation of the lubricant was considered adopting the well-known half-Sommerfeld and Swift-Steiber (Reynolds) models. As for the lubricant rheology, the viscosity-pressure dependence and viscosity-shear-thinning effects were considered. Furthermore, four non-conventional roughness filters were conceived and implemented in order to eliminate the distortions observed on the definition of the reference mean plane (or line) of topographies (or profiles) with deep valleys, such as those obtained with the laser surface texturing (LST) technique. The proper definition of the reference plane (or line) is indispensable for the calculation of the Greenwood\'s contact parameters according to the methodologies used in this work. The complete one dimensional modelling proposed was implemented as a computational program named Virtual Tribology Laboratory (VTL), an open source code available for any user interested in performing simulations of lubricated systems with generic profiles. In order to validate the one dimensional model, experimental results of a frictional reciprocating test published in the literature were considered for comparison. The correlations between the experimental and simulated results calculated with VTL were excellent. Simulations using the VTL program were also performed in order to evaluate the friction reduction potentialities of textured surfaces (LST). Due to the one dimensional model limitations, grooves were considered instead of micro-cavities (dimples). In such scenery, regardless the above mentioned limitations, the one dimensional modelling proposed yielded good qualitative descriptions of the micro-bearing mechanism that generates hydrodynamic load carrying capacity between parallel textured surfaces.

This thesis provides a numerical and theoretical investigation of transitional and turbulent enclosed rotating flows, with a focus on the formation of macroscopic coherent flow structures. The underlying processes are strongly threedimensional due to the presence of boundary layers on the discs and on the walls of the outer (resp. inner) cylindrical shroud (resp. shaft). The complexity of these flows poses a great challenge in fundamental research however the present work is also of importance for industrial rotating machinery, from hard-drives to space engines turbopumps - the design issues of the latter being behind the motivation for this thesis. The present work consists of two major investigations. First, industrial cavities are modeled by smooth rotor/stator cavities and therein the dominant flow dynamics is investigated. For the experimental campaigns on industrial machinery revealed dangerous unsteady phenomena within the cavities, the emphasis is put on the reproduction and monitoring of unsteady pressure fluctuations within the smooth cavities. Then, the LES of three configurations of real industrial turbines are conducted to study in situ the pressure fluctuations and apply the diagnostics already vetted on academic problems.

Large areas of mesotidal estuaries become subaerial during low tide. Here we study the effect of nutrient enrichment and several meteorological and hydrodynamic parameters on the erodability of mudflat substrates when they are emergent. We tested the impact of nutrient fertilization on tidal flat sediments over a two week period in September 2011 in Plum Island Sound, Massachusetts (USA). High resolution measurements from our experiment indicate that daily nutrient enrichment at 70 μM NO3‾ using our experimental approach does not change the critical shear stress of the muddy substrate, nor affect the concentration of chlorophyll a at the surface. Sediment erodability is instead directly related to the potential evaporation rate and to the duration of the subaerial period. Chlorophyll a concentration decreases when evaporation is high, possibly due to the downward migration of diatoms. Sediment concentrations in the water column during submergence strongly depend on bottom shear stresses triggered by tidal currents. Surprisingly, they are also related to the total evaporation that occurred in the previous emergence period. We conclude that subaerial desiccation at low tide decreases the erodability of mudflat sediments. This strengthening effect is not lost during the following submerged period, thus limiting the erosive effect of tidal currents. For the first time we show that not only subaqueous but also subaerial processes control the erodability of mudflats. Global warming and other climatic variations regulating long-term evaporation rates can therefore directly affect the stability of mudflats in mesotidal environments.

The self-diffusion coefficient of a polymer in solution may be expanded in the concentration of the polymer, as seen in equation 1. The linear term would represent a perturbation due to the presence of another polymer; the c^{2} term would represent a perturbation due to interactions of trios of polymers. Phillies determined the c^{2} term of a virial expansion of the self-diffusion coefficient for trios of polymers interacting via a ring. Here I determine a correction to the c^{2} term due to trios of polymers interacting via a figure-eight scattering diagram: the equivalent of four polymers interacting in a ring where the second polymer and the fourth polymer are the same. D_{s}(c) = D_{0}(1+ alpha D_{0} c + beta D_{0}^{2}c^{2}+...) 1 or, D_{s}(c) = D_{0}(1+ alpha D_{s}(c)c). 2 A D_{0} may be replaced by D_{s}(c) in equation 1 to arrive at equation 2. The left-hand-side of equation 2 is the final self-diffusion coefficient, and the D_{s}(c) on the right-hand-side of this equation is that due to the question of self-similarity. If the D_{s}(c) on the right-hand-side is given by equation 1, resulting in beta=alpha^{2}, it may be said that the system exhibits self-similarity. I demonstrate self-similarity quantitatively for a polymer solution using a generalized Kirkwood-Riseman model of polymer dynamics. The major physical assumption of the model I utilize to derive equation 2 is that, in solution, polymer motions are dominantly governed by hydrodynamic interactions between the chains. First, I review the Kirkwood-Riseman model for intrachain hydrodynamic interactions. I then discuss Phillies' extension of this model to interchain interactions for duos or trios of polymers in a ring. I analytically calculate the hydrodynamic interaction tensor from a multiple scattering picture T_{54321}, for five polymers in solution and verify this tensor by numerical differentiation. Finally, I perform the ensemble average of the self-interaction tensor b_{1232} appropriate to the figure-eight scattering diagram both analytically and with a Monte Carlo routine, thereby verifying equation 2 to second order in concentration.

Today, more than forty percent of the world’s population lives within 100 kilometers of a coastal area, and population densities are only increasing. In recent years, extreme conditions have resulted in several failures of coastal protection structures around the world. During these failure events, the incurred cost of damages and loss of life has been nearly immeasurable. Rubble mound breakwaters have been used for millennia, and are critical even today for the protection of coastal areas. In the last several decades, the popularity of using concrete armour units in place of natural rock has risen greatly. However, the quantitative interaction between wave hydrodynamics and the armour layer is still not clearly understood. Due to highly complex, turbulent flow patterns that occur in the armour layer, direct assessment of forces acting on individual units has not been practical. This has prevented the coastal engineering field from applying a force-balance design approach that is commonplace in other civil engineering disciplines. Instead, a wealth of experimental testing and past case studies have resulted in a wide array of empirical formulae and design techniques. These approaches are often very idealized and do not account for all parameters that have been shown to affect armour unit stability. The current study aims to quantify the forces and pressures acting on units within an armour layer, using an experimental approach. This was achieved by developing an instrumented Core-Loc armour unit. This armour unit was outfitted with 6 pressure sensors, and the ability to be mounted on a force transducer. This unit was then put through a performance analysis and calibration procedure, before being extensively tested in a breakwater setting. Wide ranges of wave conditions were utilized, with the unit at three different locations along the breakwater slope. This was done to isolate both the effect of various sea state parameters, and the effect of unit location along a breakwater slope versus generated forces and pressures. In addition to the experimental study, an accompanying numerical study was performed in OpenFOAM. This had the intent of both developing general modeling rules of thumb for rubble mound breakwaters, and for replicating the experimental results. The results showed that using relatively low-tech, low-cost, and widely available instrumentation was capable of performing in a coastal engineering setting. The performance of the unit showed great promise for “smart-units” to usher in a new paradigm of experimental testing for rubble mound breakwaters. From the results of the performance analysis and calibration procedure, it was evident that the unit could record forces and pressures to a high degree of accuracy. From the breakwater testing program, notable relationships between unit location, surf similarity, and wave steepness emerged. It appeared that the largest hydrodynamic interaction with units occurs slightly below the SWL. As well, both decreased surf similarity, and increased wave steepness resulted in higher hydrodynamic interaction for all locations. General rules of thumb for modeling armour units, as well as wave conditions in a breakwater setting were developed for the numerical study in OpenFOAM. Additionally, the calibrated numerical model was capable of reproducing the experimental results with reasonable accuracy.

O presente trabalho aborda a modelagem unidimensional do regime misto de lubrificação para problemas caracterizados por condições genéricas de carga, velocidade e geometria. Tal modelagem foi desenvolvida a partir de modelos clássicos, tais como a equação de Reynolds relacionada com os fenômenos hidrodinâmicos, e as formulações de Greenwood & Williamson e Greenwood & Tripp utilizadas na descrição do contato de asperezas entre superfícies rugosas. A cavitação do fluido lubrificante foi considerada através dos modelos tradicionais de half-Sommerfeld e Swift-Steiber (Reynolds). Com relação à reologia do lubrificante, as possíveis variações de viscosidade devidas ao próprio campo de pressões hidrodinâmicas e às altas taxas de cisalhamento do fluido (\"shear-thinning\") foram também contempladas na modelagem proposta. Adicionalmente, quatro filtros não convencionais de rugosidade foram propostos e implementados com o objetivo de eliminar as distorções verificadas na definição do plano (ou linha) médio(a) de referência em topografias caracterizadas pela presença de vales profundos, tais como as obtidas após a aplicação da técnica de texturização a laser (LST). A definição adequada desse plano (ou linha) médio(a) de referência é imprescindível para a correta determinação dos parâmetros necessários para a utilização dos modelos de contato de Greenwood a partir das metodologias consideradas neste trabalho. Toda a modelagem unidimensional foi implementada em um programa computacional denominado VTL (\"Virtual Tribology Laboratory\"), cujo código fonte está disponível para qualquer usuário interessado em realizar simulações envolvendo sistemas lubrificados caracterizados por perfis com geometrias genéricas. A validação da modelagem unidimensional proposta foi verificada utilizando os resultados experimentais de um teste de atrito com movimento alternado (\"reciprocating test\") publicado na literatura. Como resultado, a correlação experimental dos resultados calculados com o programa VTL foi excelente. O programa VTL foi também utilizado para verificar a possibilidade da redução de atrito em sistemas lubrificados envolvendo superfícies planas texturizadas, como as obtidas utilizando a técnica de texturização a laser (LST). Devido à limitação unidimensional da modelagem proposta, as fileiras ortogonais de 7 micro-cavidades foram aproximadas como sendo ranhuras (\"grooves\") de dimensões fixas. Para tais situações, apesar da limitação comentada acima, a modelagem unidimensional proposta pode ser utilizada para analisar qualitativamente o mecanismo de micro-mancais responsável pela geração de pressão hidrodinâmica entre superfícies paralelas caracterizadas por esse tipo de micro-texturas. / This dissertation focuses on one dimensional modelling of the mixed lubrication regime for problems with general conditions of load, velocity and geometry. Such modelling was based on classical models, such as the Reynolds equation related to the hydrodynamic phenomena, and the Greenwood & Williamson and Greenwood & Tripp formulations for the description of the asperity contact between rough surfaces. Cavitation of the lubricant was considered adopting the well-known half-Sommerfeld and Swift-Steiber (Reynolds) models. As for the lubricant rheology, the viscosity-pressure dependence and viscosity-shear-thinning effects were considered. Furthermore, four non-conventional roughness filters were conceived and implemented in order to eliminate the distortions observed on the definition of the reference mean plane (or line) of topographies (or profiles) with deep valleys, such as those obtained with the laser surface texturing (LST) technique. The proper definition of the reference plane (or line) is indispensable for the calculation of the Greenwood\'s contact parameters according to the methodologies used in this work. The complete one dimensional modelling proposed was implemented as a computational program named Virtual Tribology Laboratory (VTL), an open source code available for any user interested in performing simulations of lubricated systems with generic profiles. In order to validate the one dimensional model, experimental results of a frictional reciprocating test published in the literature were considered for comparison. The correlations between the experimental and simulated results calculated with VTL were excellent. Simulations using the VTL program were also performed in order to evaluate the friction reduction potentialities of textured surfaces (LST). Due to the one dimensional model limitations, grooves were considered instead of micro-cavities (dimples). In such scenery, regardless the above mentioned limitations, the one dimensional modelling proposed yielded good qualitative descriptions of the micro-bearing mechanism that generates hydrodynamic load carrying capacity between parallel textured surfaces.