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This thesis has a theoretical and a practical part. The first part contains theoretical introduction to the phenomenon of increased stiffness at very small strains and possibilities of its practical applications. The available methods for evaluating initial shear modulus tests are described below. Increased attention is paid to the method of evaluation of test data in the frequency domain using the Fourier transform. The last chapter in this part describes an algorithm designed for automatic evaluation of measurements in the frequency domain. The practical part deals with measurement and evaluation of initial shear modulus for Brno clay as a function of vertical stress in oedometric test. Firstly, a device is presented that allows the extension of the oedometric test with sensors for measuring initial shear modulus of soil. This device was designed for the test in this thesis. Subsequently, the test plan is described including description of all soil samples. In this thesis, several types of soil samples from a single site were tested. Next, the results of the individual tests are evaluated by the selected methods. Examples are used for showing the differences in evaluation of the same data by other methods. At the end, the results of the individual tests for all sample types are compared with each other and with data from literature.

Legislative pressures are being brought to bear on South African employers to demonstrate that occupational assessment is scientifically valid and culture-fair. The development of valid and reliable performance-based assessment tools will enable employers to meet these requirements. The general aim of this research was to validate a performance-based assessment battery for the placement of sales representatives. A literature survey examined alternative assessment measures and methods of performance measurement, leading to the conclusion that the combination of the work sample as a predictor measure and the managerial rating of performance as a criterion measure offer a practical and cost-effective assessment process to the sales manager. The empirical study involved 54 sales persons working for the Commercial division of an oil marketing company, selling products and services to the commercial and industrial market. By means of the empirical study, a significant correlation was found between performance of sales representatives in terms of the performance-based assessment battery for the entry level of the career ladder and their behaviour in the field as measured by the managerial performance rating instrument. The limitations of the sample, however, prevent the results from being generalised to other organisations. / Industrial & Organisational Psychology / M.A. (Industrial Psychology)

This study describes the technique and procedures used for the simultaneous determination of elements involved in Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis, applied to some geological samples as a sensitive and non-destructive tool. Using Isotopic Neutron Source, the delayed gamma-rays emitted due to neutron capture have been applied for the investigation of the elemental constituents and concentrations of major, minor and trace elements in such samples. The experimental investigations were carried out at the scale of researcher's practices at the chosen site by measuring soil/rock nutrient contents from hydrologically isolated farmland/site plots. Using detailed sampling procedures with special precautions, against contaminations, to yield meaningful results, soil/rock samples have been collected from selected areas of East Gojjam, pulverized, homogenized and prepared for irradiation. The samples were properly prepared together with known standards of potassium iodide or cupric sulphate or arsenic trioxide (one /or both at a time), and simultaneously irradiated in to isotopic neutron ux in the same irradiation position. After activation, the samples were subjected to gamma-ray spectrometry, using a high-purity germanium detection system and computerized multichannel analyzer. The gamma-ray spectra from the irradiated samples were measured by high resolution gamma-ray spectrometry with a calibrated germanium detector. Both qualitative and quantitative approach to data collection and analysis were used in order to gain insight into what should be acceptable to the community. The results obtained have a practical interest in view of possible applications to the technology of extraction and exploration of a variety of industrial, metallic, cement minerals, and geothermal energy and coal deposits. These results tend to agree with the lowest values reported in the literature, and the analytical precision is su cient for the determination of the standard deviation of the distribution of all elements in East Gojjam and these results were brie y discussed within the text of this research work. In carrying out the analysis, the best and most convenient method being the Instrumental and /non-destructive Neutron Activation Analysis was adopted, and NAA has matured and attained analytical competence providing not only rapid, quantitative, qualitative, simultaneous, multi􀀀element analysis but also crucial validation support to programmes using di erent analytical techniques. This method of analysis is generally multi-element and experimental conditions can be designed to be non􀀀destructive to the sample, and it plays a leading role among analytical techniques in the eld of environmental research related to human, animal and plant health. Studies of di erent radionuclide and trace elements in the environmental samples are very important for health physics, research and education. Many forms of elements are possible in environmental samples which may be hazardous for human being, animals and also plants. Most of them have the potential for both benefcial and harmful effects / Environmental Sciences / D. Phil. (Environmental Science)

This thesis describes studies on the analysis of arsenic (As) in human biological samples, mainly urine but also hair and fingernails using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GF-AAS). The relationship between ethnicity and arsenic metabolism was investigated for the first time for a population in the United Kingdom. This investigation has been carried out through comparative analysis of arsenic in human urine, hair and fingernails in volunteers from three different ethnic groups (Whites, Asians and Somali Black-Africans) who are only exposed to background levels of arsenic. Results obtained with 63 volunteers showed ethnic differences in urinary arsenic excretion as well as differences in arsenic levels in fingernail samples. The averages of total arsenic levels for the Somali Black-Africans (urine 7.2 µg/g creatinine; fingernails 723 µg/kg) are significantly (P< 0.05) different from both the Asians (urine 20.6 µg/g creatinine; fingernails 153.9 µg/kg) and Whites (urine 24.5 µg/g creatinine; fingernails 177.0 µg/kg). The Somali group also shows a higher percentage (50%) of dimethylarsinate (DMA) and a lower percentage (48%) of arsenobetaine (AB), compared to Asians (16% DMA and 83% AB) and Whites (22% DMA and 77% AB). The effect of fasting on urinary arsenic species distribution was also investigated by monitoring urine samples from 29 Ramadan fasting volunteers, with each volunteer providing a sample at the beginning (RF1) and at the end (RF2) of an approximately 12 hours fast. The results obtained showed the frequency of MA detection for RF2 was 12 and 2-fold higher than for the non-fasting and RF1 groups, respectively. This suggests fasting may alter the pattern of arsenic metabolism and excretion. However, there was no significant difference (P> 0.05) in the average of total level of arsenic for RF1 (18.3 µg/g creatinine) and RF2 (17.7 µg/g creatinine). A relationship between excretion of arsenic and selenium in individuals exposed to background levels of arsenic and selenium was investigated through analysis of urine samples from 93 volunteers from Leicester, UK. A positive correlation between arsenic and selenium was found and the As:Se ratio was 0.7 ± 0.4. The intra-individual variation of As:Se ratio does not alter significantly over time, as determined by monitoring urine samples from a volunteer over a period of one year. Furthermore, within a single day, with urine samples collected at the beginning and after a 12-hour fast, the As:Se ratio was found to be similar (0.7 ± 0.5). These findings suggest a close relationship between these two metalloids, the biological significance of which needs to be explored in the future.

Salmonella (S.) enterica est reconnue comme le principal agent causal de la salmonellose chez l’homme et les animaux. La distribution épidémiologique de cette infection implique souvent des régions géographiques éloignées; il est ainsi nécessaire de posséder des méthodes fiables afin de pouvoir discriminer des souches responsables d’une épidémie. En raison des limites de la méthode de typage sérologique, de nombreuses méthodes de génotypage moléculaire ont été développées. En particulier, la méthode par PCR couplée à l’électrophorèse en champ pulsé, qui est utilisée pour la séparation et la caractérisation des molécules d’ADN, et le génotypage par analyse de répétition en tandem polymorphe ou MLVA (Multiple-Locus VNTR Analysis), sont des méthodes modernes qui permettent d’étudier le polymorphisme et la diversité génétique des souches de S. enterica liées à une épidémie. Dans notre étude, onze marqueurs contenant des régions de répétitions en tandem polymorphique (VNTR : Variable Number Tandem Repeats) sélectionnés à partir du génome de S. enterica Typhimurium LT2 ont été utilisés pour évaluer la diversité génétique de 206 souches de S. enterica sélectionnées entre 2001 et 2007. Ces salmonelles sont représentées par 31 sérotypes, ont été isolées à partir de trois sources: hommes, aliments cuits et crus. Chaque souche a été isolée à partir d’échantillon unique et n’était liée à aucun épisode d’intoxication alimentaire ou à une épidémie de salmonellose connue. La technique MLVA a permis de sous typer 107 génotypes regroupés dans un dendrogramme en deux branches distintes dont la première et constituée par Salmonella Typhi et la deuxième par les 30 autres sérotypes liés entre eux par un ancêtre commun. Parmi les sérotypes, quatre ont été répartis dans deux à cinq branches phylogénétiques. La représentation de la variation allélique des sérotypes de S. enterica a utilisé l’arbre minimum couvrant sans racine. Des variations alléliques pour des sérotypes de S. enterica précédemment ou nouvellement décrits ont été identifiées et des variants génétiques ont été répartis en types ou en variants MLVA à loci uniques, en variants différents par un locus (SLVs), en variants différant par deux loci (DLVs) et des variants différant par plus de deux loci. Quatre marqueurs (STTR3, STTR5, STTR8 et Sal20) ont présenté un indice de diversité élevé (DI> 0,80). En résumé, la technique MLVA peut être appliquée pour étudier le profil génétique de S. enterica avec une grande diversité de sérotypes. / Epidemiological distribution of this infection often involves large areas of geographically distant, and reliable methods to discriminate strains responsible for an epidemic are necessary. Due to limitations of serological typing method, many molecular genotyping methods have been developed. Some molecular methods and their applications are: PCR coupled to PFGE, which is used for the separation and characterization of molecular profiles, and MLVA (Multiple-Locus VNTR Analysis) genotyping, or so called analysis of polymorphic tandem repeats are modern methods that allow study of the polymorphic genetic diversity and discrimination of Salmonella strains related or unrelated to epidemics. In our study, 11 markers containing polymorphic tandem repeats (VNTR: Variable Number Tandem Repeats) selected from the genome of S. enterica Typhimurium LT2 were used to assess the genetic diversity of 206 strains of S. enterica selected in 2001-2007 period. These are represented by 31 Salmonella serotypes selected from three sources: human, food and animals. Each strain was isolated from a single sample and was not related to an episode of epidemic of salmonellosis. The technique MLVA has allowed subtyping of 107 genotypes grouped in a dendrogram into two distinct dispersion trees, the first for serotype Typhi and the second for the other 30 serotypes devided within two subgroups derived from a common ancestor. Four serotypes were dispersed in two to five phylogenetic branches. The representation of the allelic variation of serotypes of S. enterica used a minimum spanning tree. Allelic variations in the serotypes of S. enterica, previously or newly described, were identified and genetic variants were distributed in MLVA types in unique locus variants, in single locus variants or in variants different by a locus (SLVs), in variants different by two loci (DLVs) and in different variants by more than two loci. Four markers (STTR3, STTR5, STTR8, and Sal20) have shown a high Diversity Index (DI> 0.80). In summary, MLVA can be applied to study the genetic profile of S. enterica with a wide variety of serotypes.

The goal is to perform heat measurements examine of selected roofing material samples. Those roofing materials are asphalt shingles, ceramics, and cedar. It’s important to understand the concept of heat transfer, which consists of conduction, convection, and radiation. Research work was reviewed on different infrared devices to see which one would be suitable for conducting my experiment. In this experiment, the main focus was on a specific property of radiation. That property is the emissivity, which is the amount of heat a material is able to radiate compared to a blackbody. An infrared measuring device, such as the infrared camera was used to determine the emissivity of each sample by using a measurement formula consisting of certain equations. These equations account for the emissivity, transmittance of heat through the atmosphere and temperatures of the samples, atmosphere and background. The experiment verifies how reasonable the data is compared to values in the emissivity table. A blackbody method such as electrical black tape was applied to help generate the correct data. With this data obtained, the emissivity was examined to understand what factors and parameters affect this property of the materials. This experiment was conducted using a suitable heat source to heat up the material samples to high temperature. The measurements were taken during the experiment and displayed by the IR camera. The IR images show the behavior of surface temperatures being distributed throughout the different materials. The main challenge was to determine the most accurate emissivity values for all material samples. The results obtained by the IR camera were displayed in figures and tables at different distances, which was between the heap lamp and materials. The materials exhibited different behaviors in temperature and emissivity at certain distances. The emissivity of each material varied with different temperatures. The results led to suggestions of certain materials that could be beneficial and disadvantageous in energy and cost savings during cold and hot seasons of the year. Also this led to some uncertainties in the data generated. Overall, this can support in exploring other ideas to increase energy and cost saving consistently during both season by using a material that can change its color and density based on a high or low temperature.

Farmaceutická fakulta, Katedra farmaceutické technologie, Hradec Králové, 2014 Vypracovala: Markéta Valentová Školitel: Doc. RNDr. Milan Dittrich, CSc. ABSTRACT STUDY OF POLYESTER DRUG CARRIERS DEGRADATION USING THE DSC METHOD The aim of this work was focused on the study of relations among various parameters of degradation process, such as time-dependent range of glass transition temperature, swelling, erosion, and molar weight decrease. Two model polyesters of two type architectures of polyester molecules were used and monitored during two-week period. In the theoretical part of this diploma thesis are in details described biopolymers with stimulus responsive activity and exploitation of these materials in various biomedical applications in the topic of tissue engineering. The experimental part of this work is directed into the study of molecule degradation parameters, eventually into simulated biodegradation in the in vitro conditions of two different in the type polyesters with the contrast polyester molecule constitution. It was demonstrated that parameter Mn decreases towards the limit values. Between the values of molar weight and glass transition temperature is not Flory-Fox relation in the advanced phase of degradation process. The erosion of the material begins after the lag-time in the dependency...

Wooden objects have been widely used in the history of humanity and play an important role in our cultural heritage. The preservation of such objects is of great importance and can be a challenging task. This thesis investigates the static and time-dependent mechanical behaviour of archaeological oak wood from the Vasa warship. Characterisation of mechanical properties is necessary for the formulation of a numerical model to design an improved support structure. The ship was impregnated with polyethylene glycol (PEG) for dimensional stabilisation. All elastic engineering constants of the Vasa oak have been identified and compared with those of recent oak by means of the static and dynamic testing. The experiments were done on samples with cubic geometry, which allowed obtaining all elastic constants from a single sample. The usage of cubic samples with orthotropic mechanical properties during compressive experiments was validated with finite-element simulations. The Young's moduli of the Vasa oak in all orthotropic directions were smaller than those for the recent oak. The shear moduli of Vasa oak was determined and verified with the resonant ultrasound spectroscopy. The time-dependent mechanical behaviour of the Vasa oak has been studied. Creep studies were performed in uniaxial compression on the cubic samples in all orthotropic directions. The samples loaded in the longitudinal direction were subjected to different stress levels. A stress level below 15% of the yield stress in the longitudinal direction did not result in non-linear creep with increasing creep rates within the time frame of the tests. The results of the studies in radial and tangential directions showed that creep was dominated by the effect of annual fluctuations in relative humidity and temperature. The weight changes based on annual fluctuations of relative humidity were measured for Vasa oak and recent oak. The Vasa oak showed higher variations due to an increased hygroscopicity which is the result of the impregnation with PEG. In conceiving a full-scale finite-element model of Vasa ship, not only the stress-strain relations of the material but also those of the structural joints are needed. Since the in-situ measurement of joints is not an option, a replica of a section of the ship hull was built and tested mechanically. The load-induced displacements were measured using 3D laser scanning which proved to have advantages to conventional point displacement measurements. The mechanical characteristics of the Vasa oak and joint information presented in this work can be used as input for a finite-element model of the Vasa ship for simulation of static and time-dependent behaviour on a larger scale. / Stötta Vasa

[pt] A probabilidade de alarme falso, a, e o poder dos gráficos de controle de processos dependem dos seus limites de controle, que, por sua vez, dependem de estimativas dos parâmetros do processo. A análise de capacidade de processos também depende de tais estimativas. Esta dissertação apresenta inicialmente uma revisão - ao nosso conhecimento, a primeira em português - dos principais trabalhos sobre o efeito dos erros de estimação dos parâmetros do processo sobre a. Todos os trabalhos citados buscam determinar, com base na distribuição de probabilidades das estimativas dos parâmetros do processo (parametrizada pelo número de amostras iniciais, m, e do tamanho delas, n) o valor esperado de a ou, equivalentemente, o valor esperado da distribuição marginal do número de amostras até um alarme falso. Nossa abordagem é distinta: obter (parametrizada por n e m) a distribuição de a e seus percentis ou, equivalentemente, a distribuição do valor esperado do número de amostras até um alarme falso, de modo a fornecer orientação sobre o número de amostras iniciais a serem utilizadas antes de fixar definitivamente os valores dos limites de controle dos gráficos. A análise foi conduzida para o gráfico de S. Foi analisada também a influência da estimação do desvio-padrão do processo sobre o poder do gráfico. Finalmente, foi obtida a distribuição dos erros na estimativa da capacidade do processo em função de m e n, para fornecer orientação sobre o número de amostras necessário para garantir uma precisão especificada nessa estimativa, com um grau de confiança também especificado. / [en] The false-alarm probability, a, and the power of process control charts depend on their control limits, which, in turn, depend on process parameters estimates. Process capability analyses also depend on those estimates. This dissertation initially presents a review - to our knowledge, the first in Portuguese - of the main research articles about the effect upon a of the estimation errors of the process parameters. All the works reviewed aim to determine, based on the probability distribution of the process parameters estimates (which is a function of the number of initial samples, m, and of their size, n), the expected value of a, or, equivalently, the expected value of the marginal distribution of the number of samples until a false alarm occurs. Our approach is different: to get (parameterized by m and n) the distribution of - and their percentiles or, equivalently, the distribution of the expected number of samples until a false alarm, in order to provide guidance on the initial number of samples to be used before setting the chart definitive control limits. The analysis was conducted for the S chart. The influence of the estimation errors on the power of the S chart was also examined. Finally, the distribution function was obtained, parameterized by m and n, of the estimation errors of the process capability index Cp, to provide guidance on the initial number of samples required to ensure, with a specified confidence level, a specified accuracy of the estimate.