As reserves of conventional crude oil are depleted, there is a growing need to develop unconventional oils such as heavy oil and bitumen from oil sands. In terms of recoverable oil, Canadian oil sands are considered to be the second largest oil reserves in the world. However, the upgrading of bitumen from oil sands to synthetic crude oil (SCO) requires nearly ten times more hydrogen (H₂) than the conventional crude oils. The current H₂ demand for oil sands operations is met mostly by steam reforming of natural gas. With the future expansion of oil sands operations, the demand of H₂ for oil sand operations is likely to quadruple in the next decade. As natural gas reforming involves significant carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions, this sector is likely to be one of the largest emitters of CO₂ in Canada. <br> <br>In the current H₂ plants, CO₂ emissions originate from two sources, the combustion flue gases from the steam reformer furnace and the off-gas from the process (steam reforming and water-gas shift) reactions. The objective of this study is to develop a process that captures CO₂ at minimum energy penalty in typical H₂ plants. <br> <br>The approach is to look at the best operating conditions when considering the H₂ and steam production, CO₂ production and external fuel requirements. The simulation in this study incorporates the kinetics of the steam methane reforming (SMR) and the water gas shift (WGS) reactions. It also includes the integration of CO₂ capture technologies to typical H₂ plants using pressure swing adsorption (PSA) to purify the H₂ product. These typical H₂ plants are the world standard of producing H₂ and are then considered as the base case for this study. The base case is modified to account for the implementation of CO₂ capture technologies. Two capture schemes are tested in this study. The first process scheme is the integration of a monoethanolamine (MEA) CO₂ scrubbing process. The other scheme is the introduction of a cardo polyimide hollow fibre membrane capture process. Both schemes are designed to capture 80% of the CO₂ from the H₂ process at a purity of 98%. <br> <br>The simulation results show that the H₂ plant with the integration of CO₂ capture has to be operated at the lowest steam to carbon (S/C) ratio, highest inlet temperature of the SMR and lowest inlet temperatures for the WGS converters to attain lowest energy penalty. H₂ plant with membrane separation technology requires higher electricity requirement. However, it produces better quality of steam than the H₂ plant with MEA-CO₂ capture process which is used to supply the electricity requirement of the process. Fuel (highvale coal) is burned to supply the additional electricity requirement. The membrane based H₂ plant requires higher additional electricity requirement for most of the operating conditions tested. However, it requires comparable energy penalty than the H₂ plant with MEA-CO₂ capture process when operated at the lowest energy operating conditions at 80% CO₂ recovery. <br> <br>This thesis also investigates the sensitivity of the energy penalty as function of the percent CO₂ recovery. The break-even point is determined at a certain amount of CO₂ recovery where the amount of energy produced is equal to the amount of energy required. This point, where no additional energy is required, is approximately 73% CO₂ recovery for the MEA based capture plant and 57% CO₂ recovery for the membrane based capture plant. <br> <br>The amount of CO₂ emissions at various CO₂ recoveries using the best operating conditions is also presented. The results show that MEA plant has comparable CO₂ emissions to that of the membrane plant at 80% CO₂ recovery. MEA plant is more attractive than membrane plant at lower CO₂ recoveries.

Scour is a phenomenon of soil erosion around foundations under currents and waves. It is a major cause for the disruption to water-borne structures such as bridges and marine structures. Pile foundations supporting these structures are required to be designed against the scour damage. However, at present, there is no accepted method for the design of piles in scoured conditions probably due to an inadequate understanding of scour effects on foundations. Although numerous efforts have been made to evaluate the scour effects on single piles using numerical simulations and centrifuges tests, the scour susceptibility of piles in different soil properties is still not well understood. Furthermore, there is no study concerning scour effects on the lateral responses of pile groups. Therefore, a series of three-dimensional finite element (FE) parametric analyses were conducted to investigate scour effects on lateral behavior of both single piles and free-head pile groups by varying scour-hole dimensions, soil properties, pile properties, and pile group configurations. Moreover, to facilitate the routine design, a modified p-y method that was modified based on the widely used p-y method was proposed for both scoured single piles and pile groups, and was validated against the results from the FE analyses. The results show that scour induced lateral capacity loss to both single piles and pile groups, which was approximately 10% more in dense sands than that in loose sands. Simplification of local scour as a general scour that has been commonly used in general design practice resulted in a maximum of 17% underestimate of lateral capacity of pile foundations. Pile groups were more susceptible to scour than single piles under equivalent scour conditions. A pile group with smaller pile spacing or larger pile numbers tended to experience less lateral capacity loss due to scour. / Graduate / 2020-08-19

A disposição de areia de fundição em áreas não licenciadas foi uma prática até pouco tempo empregada por muitas empresas do setor. Em função dessa prática estuda-se nessa dissertação um passivo ambiental produzido em uma área no estado de São Paulo, que recebeu resíduos de fundição e pouco se sabe sobre o impacto ao meio ambiente ocasionado pela disposição inadequada desse material. O presente trabalho propõe avaliar potenciais impactos no meio ambiente pela disposição deste resíduo em um aterro não controlado de uma indústria de fundição e promover análise crítica diante das atuais normas e ferramentas de análises de impactos ambientais e classificação de resíduos sólidos, verificando eventuais conflitos entre as atuais ferramentas aplicadas. Para essa avaliação, foram empregadas algumas ferramentas de investigação científica como Microscopia Eletrônica de Varredura compreendendo análise morfológica e química qualitativa do resíduo depositado, análise granulométrica e análise química das águas subterrâneas, a partir de amostragens realizadas em campo e dados fornecidos por empresa de recuperação ambiental que atua na área. Assim foram obtidos dados que permitiram caracterizar a área, monitorar a qualidade das águas subterrâneas dentro e no entorno do aterro e caracterizar o resíduo sólido em questão, onde se analisou as questões ambientais e legais com base nas atuais normas e ferramentas de gestão de áreas contaminadas e resíduos sólidos. Os dados obtidos a partir das análises das amostras de água e resíduo demonstram clara e forte concentração de metais nas águas (ferro, manganês, boro e selênio) e no resíduo (cromo, cobre, cobalto, níquel, zinco, alumínio, ferro, manganês), no caso desse último, dentro dos limites da atual normatização para classificação, identificando-o como resíduo não perigoso. Ainda que esse não seja considerado perigoso, a identificação de elementos nas águas em concentrações acima do permitido compromete a qualidade ambiental do local, colocando em risco a população do entorno, visto que em suas adjacências algumas propriedades realizam cultivo agrícola, além de extrair água do subsolo. Evidenciase, a partir desse cenário, a necessidade de estreitamento técnico entre as atuais normas e ferramentas de análises de impacto ambiental e classificação de resíduos sólidos, permitindo realizar avaliações de passivos gerados pela disposição inadequada de resíduos que levem em consideração suas possíveis interações com o ambiente ao longo de seu tempo de exposição. / The disposal of foundry sand illegal areas was a practice until recently employed by many companies. Because this practice is studied in this dissertation an environmental liability produced in a land in the state of São Paulo that received foundry waste and little is known about the environmental impact caused by inadequate disposal of this material. This issue proposes detected the real effect in the environment by the disposal of this waste in an uncontrolled landfill foundry industry and promote critical analysis before the current standards and tools of environmental impact analyses and classification of solid waste, checking possible conflicts between the current tools applied. For this evaluation, some scientific research tools were employed as Electronic Microscopy of Scan including morphological and chemical waste analyses, particle size analysis and chemical analysis of groundwater samples collected from the field and data provided by an environmental recovery company that operates in the area. Thus data were obtained which allowed to characterize the area, monitor the groundwater quality in and around the landfill and to characterize the solid waste in question, which examined the environmental and legal issues based on current standards and management tools of contaminated lands and solid waste. The data from the analyzes of samples of water and waste show a clear and strong concentration of metals in water (iron, manganese, boron and selenium) and in the waste (chromium, copper, cobalt, nickel, zinc, aluminum, iron, manganese), in the last one according to current regulation for classification, identifying it as not dangerous. Although the waste is not considered dangerous, the identification of elements in water at concentrations above permitted to compromise the quality of the local environment, endangering the surround population, since in its surrounding some properties carry out agricultural, in addition extracting groundwater. It is evident from this scenario, the need for technical narrowing between the current standards and environmental impact analyzes tools and classification of solid waste, permitting carry out evaluations of liabilities generated by inadequate disposal of waste that take into account their possible interactions with the environment over time of exposure.

A principal contribuição para a exposição externa aos seres humanos provem da radioatividade natural presente em solos, principalmente do 40K e das séries do 238U e 232Th. No presente trabalho foram determinadas as concentrações de atividade de 226Ra (série do 238U) , 232Th e 40K em amostras superficiais de areia coletadas mensalmente em 11 locais ao longo da Praia de Camburi durante o ano de 2011, selecionados para cobrir toda a extensão da praia. As amostras seladas foram medidas por espectrometria gama, após um tempo de espera de aproximadamente 30 dias, para que fosse atingido o equilíbrio radioativo nas séries do 238U e 232Th. A concentração de atividade do 226Ra foi determinada pela média ponderada das concentrações do 214Pb e do 214Bi, a concentração de atividade do 232Th pela média ponderada das concentrações do 212Pb, do 212Bi e do 228Ac. A atividade do 40K foi determinada pela sua única transição gama de 1460,8 keV. Para todas as amostras, as concentrações foram corrigidas pelos fatores de autoatenuação gama. A partir destas concentrações foram avaliados os índices radiológicos, atividade equivalente em rádio (Raeq), índice de concentração de atividade (I&gamma;), índice de risco à exposição gama externo (Hext), índice de risco à exposição gama interno (Hint), taxa de dose gama absorvida no ar (D) em nGy.h-1 e dose efetiva anual (E) em mSv.a-1. No local estudado foi realizada uma avaliação da correlação das concentrações de atividade de 226Ra, 232Th e 40K com os fatores geológicos, geográficos, climatológicos (precipitação pluviométrica e temperatura) e oceanográficos (variação da altura das marés). Devido à presença forte de monazita, a concentração de 232Th é mais elevada do que a concentração de 226Ra e 40K. As concentrações de atividade encontradas variaram de 4 Bq.kg-1 a 1380 Bq.kg-1 para o 226Ra, de 9 Bq.kg-1 a 7453 Bq.kg-1 para o 232Th e de 6 Bq.kg-1 a 504 Bq.kg-1 para o 40K. A variação encontrada para o Raeq foi de 20 Bq.kg-1 a 12077 Bq.kg-1 , para o I&gamma; foi de 0,07 a 42,08, para o Hext foi de 0,05 a 32,61, para o Hint foi de 0,06 a 36,34 e para a taxa de dose absorvida no ar foi de 9 nGy.h-1 a 5160 nGy.h-1. As baixas concentrações de atividade de 226Ra,232Th e 40K em todos os pontos no mês de abril estão possivelmente relacionadas aos valores máximos da variação da altura das marés e da precipitação pluviométrica. A temperatura média de Vitória durante o ano de 2011 não interfere diretamente nas variações observadas nas concentrações de atividade de 226Ra,232Th e 40K das areias. Foi realizada uma avaliação da dose efetiva anual para um indivíduo do público que frequenta a Praia de Camburi durante 8 horas diárias em 1 mês, em janeiro ou em julho, e todas as doses encontradas estão abaixo do limite de 1 mSv.a-1, recomendado pela ICRP 60 para público em geral. / The main contribution to the external exposure to humans comes from gamma emitting radionuclides in soils, especially the 40K and 238U and 232Th series. In this work, the activity concentrations of 226Ra (238U serie), 232Th and 40K in surface sand monthly collected at 11 sites along the Camburi beach during the year 2011, selected to cover the entire length of the beach, were determined. The samples were hermetically sealed and measured by high resolution gamma spectrometry, after a resting time of approximately 30 days, in order to attain the radioactive equilibrium in the 238U and 232Th series. The activity concentration of 226Ra was determined by the weighted average concentrations of 214Pb and 214Bi, the activity concentration of 232Th by the weighted average concentrations of 212Pb, 212Bi and 228Ac. The activity of 40K was determined by its single transition of 1460,8 keV. For all samples the concentrations were corrected by self attenuation factors. From these concentrations, radiological indices like radium equivalent activity (Raeq), activity concentration index (I&gamma;), external exposure risk index (Hext), internal exposure risk index (Hint), absorbed gamma dose rate in air (D) in nGy.h-1 and annual effective dose (E) in mSv.y-1 were evaluated. In the studied area it was realized an assessment of the correlation of the activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K with the geological, geographical, climatological (rainfall and temperature) and oceanographic (tidal height variation) factors. Due to the strong presence of monazite, the concentration of 232Th is higher than the concentration of 226Ra and 40K. The activity concentrations found ranged from 4 Bq.kg-1 to 1380 Bq.kg-1 for 226Ra, from 9 Bq.kg-1 to 7453 Bq.kg-1 for 232Th and 6 Bq.kg-1 to 504 Bq.kg-1 for 40K. The variation of Raeq from 20 Bq.kg-1 to 12077 Bq.kg-1, of I&gamma; from 0,07 to 42,08, of Hext from 0,05 to 32,61, of Hint from 0,06 to 36,34 and of absorbed gamma dose rate in air from 9 nGy.h-1 to 5160 nGy.h-1. The low activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in all points in April , are possibly related to the maxima of the variation of the height of the tides and rainfall. The average temperature of Vitória during the year 2011 does not directly interfere in the observed variations in the activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K sands. The assessment of the annual effective dose to an individual from the public who attends the Camburi Beach throughout 8 hours per day in a month, in January or July, showed that all values are below the limit of 1 mSv.y-1 , recommended by the ICRP 60 for the general public.

A principal contribuição para a exposição externa aos seres humanos provem da radioatividade natural presente em solos, principalmente do 40K e das séries do 238U e 232Th. No presente trabalho foram determinadas as concentrações de atividade de 226Ra (série do 238U) , 232Th e 40K em amostras superficiais de areia coletadas mensalmente em 11 locais ao longo da Praia de Camburi durante o ano de 2011, selecionados para cobrir toda a extensão da praia. As amostras seladas foram medidas por espectrometria gama, após um tempo de espera de aproximadamente 30 dias, para que fosse atingido o equilíbrio radioativo nas séries do 238U e 232Th. A concentração de atividade do 226Ra foi determinada pela média ponderada das concentrações do 214Pb e do 214Bi, a concentração de atividade do 232Th pela média ponderada das concentrações do 212Pb, do 212Bi e do 228Ac. A atividade do 40K foi determinada pela sua única transição gama de 1460,8 keV. Para todas as amostras, as concentrações foram corrigidas pelos fatores de autoatenuação gama. A partir destas concentrações foram avaliados os índices radiológicos, atividade equivalente em rádio (Raeq), índice de concentração de atividade (I&gamma;), índice de risco à exposição gama externo (Hext), índice de risco à exposição gama interno (Hint), taxa de dose gama absorvida no ar (D) em nGy.h-1 e dose efetiva anual (E) em mSv.a-1. No local estudado foi realizada uma avaliação da correlação das concentrações de atividade de 226Ra, 232Th e 40K com os fatores geológicos, geográficos, climatológicos (precipitação pluviométrica e temperatura) e oceanográficos (variação da altura das marés). Devido à presença forte de monazita, a concentração de 232Th é mais elevada do que a concentração de 226Ra e 40K. As concentrações de atividade encontradas variaram de 4 Bq.kg-1 a 1380 Bq.kg-1 para o 226Ra, de 9 Bq.kg-1 a 7453 Bq.kg-1 para o 232Th e de 6 Bq.kg-1 a 504 Bq.kg-1 para o 40K. A variação encontrada para o Raeq foi de 20 Bq.kg-1 a 12077 Bq.kg-1 , para o I&gamma; foi de 0,07 a 42,08, para o Hext foi de 0,05 a 32,61, para o Hint foi de 0,06 a 36,34 e para a taxa de dose absorvida no ar foi de 9 nGy.h-1 a 5160 nGy.h-1. As baixas concentrações de atividade de 226Ra,232Th e 40K em todos os pontos no mês de abril estão possivelmente relacionadas aos valores máximos da variação da altura das marés e da precipitação pluviométrica. A temperatura média de Vitória durante o ano de 2011 não interfere diretamente nas variações observadas nas concentrações de atividade de 226Ra,232Th e 40K das areias. Foi realizada uma avaliação da dose efetiva anual para um indivíduo do público que frequenta a Praia de Camburi durante 8 horas diárias em 1 mês, em janeiro ou em julho, e todas as doses encontradas estão abaixo do limite de 1 mSv.a-1, recomendado pela ICRP 60 para público em geral. / The main contribution to the external exposure to humans comes from gamma emitting radionuclides in soils, especially the 40K and 238U and 232Th series. In this work, the activity concentrations of 226Ra (238U serie), 232Th and 40K in surface sand monthly collected at 11 sites along the Camburi beach during the year 2011, selected to cover the entire length of the beach, were determined. The samples were hermetically sealed and measured by high resolution gamma spectrometry, after a resting time of approximately 30 days, in order to attain the radioactive equilibrium in the 238U and 232Th series. The activity concentration of 226Ra was determined by the weighted average concentrations of 214Pb and 214Bi, the activity concentration of 232Th by the weighted average concentrations of 212Pb, 212Bi and 228Ac. The activity of 40K was determined by its single transition of 1460,8 keV. For all samples the concentrations were corrected by self attenuation factors. From these concentrations, radiological indices like radium equivalent activity (Raeq), activity concentration index (I&gamma;), external exposure risk index (Hext), internal exposure risk index (Hint), absorbed gamma dose rate in air (D) in nGy.h-1 and annual effective dose (E) in mSv.y-1 were evaluated. In the studied area it was realized an assessment of the correlation of the activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K with the geological, geographical, climatological (rainfall and temperature) and oceanographic (tidal height variation) factors. Due to the strong presence of monazite, the concentration of 232Th is higher than the concentration of 226Ra and 40K. The activity concentrations found ranged from 4 Bq.kg-1 to 1380 Bq.kg-1 for 226Ra, from 9 Bq.kg-1 to 7453 Bq.kg-1 for 232Th and 6 Bq.kg-1 to 504 Bq.kg-1 for 40K. The variation of Raeq from 20 Bq.kg-1 to 12077 Bq.kg-1, of I&gamma; from 0,07 to 42,08, of Hext from 0,05 to 32,61, of Hint from 0,06 to 36,34 and of absorbed gamma dose rate in air from 9 nGy.h-1 to 5160 nGy.h-1. The low activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in all points in April , are possibly related to the maxima of the variation of the height of the tides and rainfall. The average temperature of Vitória during the year 2011 does not directly interfere in the observed variations in the activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K sands. The assessment of the annual effective dose to an individual from the public who attends the Camburi Beach throughout 8 hours per day in a month, in January or July, showed that all values are below the limit of 1 mSv.y-1 , recommended by the ICRP 60 for the general public.

Ústav hydrogeologie, inženýrské geologie a užité geofyziky Univerzita Karlova v Praze, Přírodovědecká fakulta MATEMATICKÉ MODELOVÁNÍ HLUBOKÉ STAVEBNÍ JÁMY V PÍSCÍCH diplomová práce Martina Tichovská Vedoucí diplomové práce: RNDr. David Mašín, PhD, MPhil. Praha, Srpen, 2012 Abstract Nowadays, mathematical modeling is a very discussed in geotechnics and used in many geotechnical applications. And it became more popular. The main aim of this work is to show suitability of constitutive modeling for prediction of deep ground excavation behavior in sandy soil. The temporary excavation is part of a tunnel portal 513 on an outer road bypass in Prague. In places the pit reaches almost 30 m depth. Mohr-Coulomb constitutive model and advanced hypoplastic model for coarse grain soils supplemented by intergranular strain concept were chosen for this application. Calculations demonstrated different results in soil behavior predicted by each model. Calculated results were compared with measured data from excavations monitoring. These show hypoplastic model as more realistic for deformation prediction.

Microbial biodegradation is the primary mechanism by which petrogenic hydrocarbons (PHCs) are removed from the environment. Though hydrocarbon biodegradation is widely studied in marine systems, knowledge of how it occurs in freshwater systems is still lacking. The Peace-Athabasca Delta (PAD), located in northeastern Alberta, is an ideal location to study microbial hydrocarbon degradation since it has a long history of exposure to PHCs. What’s more, these PHCs are predominately sourced from bituminous deposits and are therefore relevant to the Canadian Oil Sands Industry. This thesis investigated the genetic potential for hydrocarbon degradation of PHCs via metagenomic reconstruction of microbial communities in lakes of the Peace and Athabasca Deltas, as well as reference lakes in the nearby boreal uplands. In order to properly evaluate the microbial community and its potential for hydrocarbon degradation, a comprehensive analysis of PHCs (including n-alkanes, polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs), and petroleum biomarkers of terpanes, hopanes, and steranes) was performed. PHC analysis showed that n-alkanes in lake sediments from all three regions were highly similar and predominately biogenic, while PAC composition was significantly different in each region. Restricted-drainage lakes of the Athabasca Delta had the highest concentrations of PACs from petrogenic sources. Closed-drainage lakes in the Peace Delta had lower concentrations of PACs that likely originated from a mixture of pyrogenic and petrogenic sources. Closed-drainage lakes in the boreal upland region had the lowest concentrations of PACs likely sourced from pyrogenic wood combustion with traces of petrogenic PACs, possibly from atmospheric deposition of dust. Petroleum biomarkers of terpanes, hopanes, and steranes were successfully used to identify the long-range fluvial, and possibly atmospheric, transport of bituminous compounds more than one hundred kilometers from their potential source. This validates the future use of these biomarkers in environmental forensics. Microbial communities in all three regions under study were highly diverse, and their composition was significantly different in both sediment and water. Targeted gene analysis identified a total of 3885 genes involved in the degradation of n-alkanes and PACs in sediment and water. The results show that organic carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur content, as well as PAC and short-chain alkane concentrations were important chemical predictors of change in degradation gene composition. Furthermore, genes for anaerobic degradation of PHCs were identified in syntrophic bacteria, methanogens, nitrate and sulfate reducers, demonstrating the potential for syntrophic hydrocarbon degradation in PAD lakes. Though this thesis confirms the genetic potential for hydrocarbon degradation in PAD and boreal upland lakes, further research is necessary to determine whether these microbial communities can actively degrade the PHCs present in these lakes.

A presente pesquisa realizou um estudo que investiga a viabilidade técnica para a reciclagem do resíduo sólido gerado pelo descarte das areias de fundição aglomeradas com argila, para aplicação no setor da construção civil. Para isso, o trabalho estabelece uma metodologia, a qual avalia a estabilização do resíduo em matrizes solidificadas de cimento Portland, melhoradas através de adições de argila bentonita sódica e/ou sílica ativa. A estabilização do resíduo foi verificada através de ensaio de solubilização, o qual submete as matrizes solidificadas a contatos dinâmico e estático com água destilada. Os desempenhos mecânico e físico das matrizes foram avaliados em ensaios de resistência à compressão, absorção de água e permeabilidade ao ar. Os resultados obtidos demonstram que, tanto a bentonita sódica, quanto a sílica ativa contribuem para o aumento da eficiência de fixação dos metais \'AL\', \'FE\' e \'CR\' por parte das matrizes de cimento Portland. As composições que obtiveram os melhores desempenhos mecânico, físico e químico foram utilizadas na confecção de tijolos maciços, visando aplicação na execução de alvenarias. Para a moldagem dos tijolos foi empregada uma prensa hidráulica, o que possibilitou manter a regularidade dimensional das faces. Ao mesmo tempo, o formato dos tijolos foi concebido com design diferenciado, proporcionando modulação e encaixes que podem reduzir significativamente o consumo da argamassa de assentamento. Os tijolos foram submetidos aos ensaios de solubilização, resistência à compressão e absorção de água, apresentando resultados satisfatórios e comprovando a viabilidade técnica para aplicação na execução de alvenarias. / In this research, a study that investigates the technical feasibility for the recycling of solid waste generated by the disposal of the foundry sands bonded with clay, for implementation in the construction industry, was conducted. For this reason, the work establishes a method, which assesses the stabilization of waste in solidified matrices of Portland cement, improved by the additions of sodium bentonite clay and/or silica fume. The stabilization of the waste was verified by solubilization test, which puts the solidified matrices in static and dynamic contacts with distiled water. The mechanical and physical performances of the matrices were evaluated in tests of resistance to compression, absorption of water and air permeability. The results show that both the sodium bentonite, and the active silica contribute to increase the fixation efficiency of the metals \'AL\', \'FE\' and \'CR\' by the matrices of Portland cement. The compositions that have the best mechanical, physical and chemical performance were used in the manufacture of massive bricks, seeking their use in the implementation of masonry. For the molding of bricks a hydraulic press was used, which allowed to keep the dimensional regularity of the faces. At the same time, the format of the bricks was designed with different shapes, providing modulation and fitting that can significantly reduce the consumption of settlement mortar. The bricks were subjected to tests of solubilization, resistance to compression and absorption of water, showing satisfactory results that confirm the technical feasibility for being used in the implementation of masonry.

This thesis presents a method for digitization of the two-dimensional shape of granular particles by means of photo microscopy and image processing techniques implemented using a software package from Media Cybernetics, Inc: Image-Pro Plus 5.1 and the add-ins Scope-Pro 5.0, SharpStack 5.0 and 3D Constructor 5.0. With the use of these tools, it was possible to implement an efficient semi-automated routine that allows the digitization of large numbers of two-dimensional silhouettes of particles in minimum time, without endangering the quality and reliability of the shapes obtained. Different sample preparation techniques, illumination systems, deconvolution algorithms, mathematical functions, filtering techniques and programming commands are brought into play in order to transform the shape of the two-dimensional projection of particles (captured as a set of successive images acquired at different planes of focus) into a binary format (black and white). At the same time, measurements and statistical information such as grain size distribution can be analyzed from the shapes obtained for a particular granular soil. This information also includes but it is not limited to perimeter, area, diameter (minimum, maximum and mean), caliper (longest, smallest and mean), roundness, aspect ratio and fractal dimension. Results are presented for several sands collected from different places around the world. In addition, some alternatives for three-dimensional shape reconstruction such as X-ray nano tomography and serial sectioning are discussed.

The Late Neogene sedimentary sequence of the Murray Basin provides an excellent opportunity to examine paleoenvironmental change across southeastern Australia. A detailed stratigraphic analysis of sediments deposited within the basin in the last 10 Ma was undertaken to assess the influence of tectonic and eustatic processes on deposition. / Stratigraphic observations and radiogenic isotope analysis reveals the onset of deposition by 7.2 Ma with a transgressive episode that deposited the marine marls of the Bookpurnong Beds. Deposition was restricted to the central and eastern parts of the basin due to the Hamley Fault. In the west, subsurface elevation contours indicate the presence of incised paleodrainage channels above Miocene limestones, which facilitated the formation of a large estuary system at 5.3 Ma. The sediments of the Norwest Bend Formation were deposited within this western region, while further east, the Loxton-Parilla Sands strandplain deposited over 214 coastal ridges. The basal parts of this unit occur as lateral equivalents to the sediments of the Lower Norwest Bend Formation (in the west). Topographic and magnetic data reveal that tectonism was active during this period and resulted in the erosion and truncation of strandlines. / Tectonic evidence and an estimated minimum 28,037 year cyclicity between strandline sets, suggests that the Loxton-Parilla Sands strandlines do not represent an unbroken record of glacioeustatic change. The subaerial exposure of these sediments at approximately 3.0 Ma caused the formation of a calcareous karst above the Norwest Bend Formation and a ferruginous and/or silicious cap (the Karoonda Surface) above the Loxton-Parilla Sands. The stratigraphic position of these surfaces are indicative of a regional widespread unconformity. / The Douglas-Blackburn paleodrainage system in western Victoria was dammed during the Mid-Late Pliocene by uplift associated with the Padthaway High, which caused the formation of a 400,000 km2 lacustrine system, known as Lake Bungunnia. Topographic analysis indicates that Lake Bungunnia comprised at least four distinct sub-basins with water depths of up to 30 metres, with lake shorelines indicating that active tectonism occurred during this period. The resulting lack of sediment input to the coast caused the formation of the Kanawinka Escarpment, a large erosional scarp along the southern margin of the Padthaway High. / The geomorphology of the modern Murray Basin can be directly attributed to the demise of the Lake Bungunnia system. Movement along the Morgan Fault in the west at approximately 700 Ka, resulted in the draining and progressive drying of Lake Bungunnia as a breach was created along the Padthaway High. The Murray River gorge as observed today was incised following this episode. The modern Murray River (and playa lakes such as Lake Tyrell) occupy the lowest elevations along the former sub-basins of Lake Bungunnia. / The Late Neogene sedimentary sequence across the Murray Basin illustrates a complex interaction of eustatic and tectonic processes on deposition. Sedimentation within strandline, estuarine and lacustrine systems, particularly in the western Murray Basin, display evidence of significant tectonic control. This highlights the important role that neotectonic processes have played in shaping southeastern Australia.