Summary of sense, methods and instruments of valuable employees stabilization in organisation. Creation of retention plans, turnover and loss of knowledge problems. Employee's retention according to submission to various groups and situation. Analysis of key employee definitions. Key employee identification methods. Specification of work with key employee group. System of work with key employees at cooperative organisation. Interview of selected organisations and interview of key employees in cooperative organisation.

The Swedish armed forces’ doctrinal documents are currently under review, where the Doctrine for Land Forces will together with the doctrines for Navy and Air force be reissued into one common operative doctrine 2013. This essay can be seen as a possible interjection in order to facilitate the work with the new Swedish operative doctrine, by analyzing doctrinal articulated descriptions and know-hows from the French Army in the context of stability operations. Since, what fundamentally differentiates stabilization from the pacification operations of the past is the end state where the local authorities and population retake the ownership of their country. The French doctrines contain a significant higher level of details regarding the tactical methods and principles, such as the Oil spots, Quadrillage, Force and Influence ratio, and the measures for how the actual re-construction and re-building should take place. This compared to the Swedish doctrinal document that mainly involves the initial stages of intervention and laying the foundations for further development. The gap between these phases and the desired end-state of peace is vaguely described, which can be characterized as a mayor difference.

The adsorption of cationic polyacrylamide (C-PAM) and silicananoparticles onto a model surface of silicon oxide wascompared with the adsorption of C-PAM to fibres and theirinfluence on flocculation of a fibre suspension. An increase inionic strength affects the polyelectrolyte adsorption indifferent ways for these two systems. With the silica surface,an increase in the ionic strength leads to a continuousincrease in the adsorption. However, on a cellulose fibre, theadsorption increases at low ionic strength (1 to 10 mM NaCl)and then decreases at higher ionic strength (10 to 100 mMNaCl). It was shown that the adsorption of nanoparticles ontopolyelectrolyte-covered surfaces has a great effect on both theadsorbed amount and the thickness of the adsorbed layer. Theresults showed that electrostatic interactions were thedominating force for the interaction between both the fibresand the polyelectrolytes, and between the polyelectrolytes andthe silica particles. Furthermore, at higher NaClconcentrations, a significant non-ionic interaction between thesilicon oxide surface/particles and the C-PAM was observed. The adsorption rate of C-PAM onto fibres was rapid andquantitative adsorption was detected in the time range between1 and 8 s at polyelectrolyte addition levels below 0.4 mg/g.Conversely, an increase in the amount of added polymer leads toan increased polymer adsorption up to a quasi-static saturationlevel. However, after a few seconds this quasi-staticsaturation level was significantly lower than the level reachedat electrostatic“equilibrium”. The adsorbed amountof charges at full surface coverage after 1 to 8 s contact timecorresponded to only 2 % of the total fibre charge, whereasafter 30 minutes it corresponded to 15 % of the total fibrecharge. This shows that a full surface coverage at shortcontact times is not controlled by surface charge. Based onthese results, it is suggested that a combination of anon-equilibrium charge barrier against adsorption and ageometric restriction can explain the difference between theadsorption during 1 to 8 s and the adsorption after 30 minutes.With increasing time, the cationic groups are neutralised bythe charges on the fibre as the polyelectrolyte reconforms to aflat conformation on the surface. The addition of a high concentration of C-PAM to a fibresuspension resulted in dispersion rather than flocculation.This behaviour is most likely due to an electrostericstabilisation of the fibres when the polyelectrolyte isadsorbed. Flocculation of the fibre suspension occurred at lowadditions of C-PAM. A maximum in flocculation was found ataround 50 % surface coverage and dispersion occurred above 100% surface coverage. It was also shown that for a given level ofadsorbed polymer, a difference in adsorption time between 1 and2 seconds influenced the flocculation behaviour. An optimum inflocculation at 50 % surface coverage in combination with theimportance of polymer reconformation time at these shortcontact times showed that the C-PAM induced fibre flocculationagrees with La Mer and Healy’s description of bridgingflocculation. A greater degree of flocculation was observed with theaddition of silica nanoparticles to the fibre suspension thanin the single polyelectrolyte system. Flocculation increased asa function of the concentration of added nanoparticles until0.5 mg/g. At higher additions the flocculation decreased againand this behaviour is in agreement with an extended model formicroparticle-induced flocculation. An increase in flocculationwas especially pronounced for the more extended silica-2particles. This effect is attributed to the more extendedpolyelectrolyte layer, since the adsorbed amount wasessentially the same for both silica particles. Finally it was found that fines from the wood fibres had asignificant effect on the flocculation. When fines were added,a greater degree of flocculation was detected. Furthermore, itwas also more difficult to redisperse the fibres with polymerin the presence of fines. <b>Keywords:</b>Adsorption, bridging, cationic polymers,cellulose fibres, electrosteric stabilisation flocculation,ionic strength, nanoparticle, polyelectrolyte, reconformation,retention aids and silica / NR 20140805

The smartphone is commonly used for image and video capture. Due to the lightweight of the smartphone, small handshakes are noticeable in recorded videos. The image sensors in smartphones are typically CMOS, which introduces rolling shutter artefacts. Stabilisation is introduced to minimise the effects of the camera movement and artefacts. Stabilisation relies on accurate camera parameters. The manufacturer usually gives values to the camera parameters, but calibration is required to obtain the best results. Calibration is performed using a video and the affiliated parameters recorded by the smartphone while the video is recorded. Calibration consists of four components. The first one is feature point detection. Feature points are high contrast visual features that are easily detected. The second is optical flow. Optical flow is used to track the feature points between two consecutive frames. The third is an objective function. The points are stabilised, and the objective function for this case is set as a measurement of how much the stabilised points move. The final component is an optimisation method used to find the minimum of the objective function. In its simplest form, the calibration algorithm detects points in the first frame of a video, tracks them throughout the video, and uses the optimisation to minimise the corresponding objective function. Since the stabilisation depends on the calibration parameters, the calibrated values are obtained as the values that give the lowest objective function value. This method was refined to analyse frames and feature points and calibrate on a subset of a video. Due to the large number of camera units being produced each year, it is infeasible to calibrate every unit individually. Instead, one unit of each type is calibrated, and this calibration is used on all units of that type. One way to reach each unit individually and not rely on a general calibration is to introduce automatic calibration. Every unit would calibrate itself automatically as users record 'normal' videos. However, demands are placed on the calibration video, so it is recorded under controlled circumstances. This project aims to map which video properties can negatively affect the calibration, how these can be detected, and analyse the effects of calibrating on the parts of the video that do not contain these. The critical video properties were expected to be movements in the video, the camera movement, the distance to the feature points, and the feature point amount and spread. An object detection algorithm was used to check for the movement of objects in the video. First, the lack of movement was checked by comparing the relative rotation of consecutive frames. Secondly, the motion blur was analysed in two ways. The primary was to calculate the number of blurred pixels using exposure time and camera rotation. The other way to check for blur was to check the exposure time. Next, feature points located on objects close to the camera were eliminated by checking the relative movements of the feature points and removing the feature points that move more than others. To check for the feature point amount, a strict limit was placed. Finally, to check for the spread, the frame was divided into boxes, and a limit was placed on the number of points per box. The frame and feature point elimination methods were evaluated by letting three people record 'normal' user videos. Calibration was performed using reference calibration, which was not to remove any frames or feature points, and different frame and feature point elimination methods. The obtained calibrated values were evaluated. Some frame removal methods are slightly better than the reference calibration. However, it does not successfully eliminate all bad frames or manage to keep all good frames, so more efficient limits might need to be implemented. Only a subset of the 'normal' videos was sufficiently good to calibrate on. After improvements, adaptation to real-time implementation on a smartphone would be the next major step in obtaining real-time calibration on a smartphone.

Yes / The major concern of the physical and chemical instability of effervescent products during manufacturing and storage is addressed through a co-crystallization strategy. Citric acid (CA) and sodium bicarbonate (SBC) are the essential components of effervescent products. CA is hygroscopic and led to an uncontrollable autocatalytic chain reaction with SBC in the presence of a small amount of moisture, causing product instability. The acid···amide dimer bond and layered structure of the citric acid-nicotinamide co-crystal restricts interaction of moisture with CA, making it nonhygroscopic, and improves the stability of effervescent products. The comparative study of effervescent products containing CA in its free form and as a co-crystal suggests a significant advantage of the use of co-crystal in effervescent products. This finding is supported by the mechanistic understanding developed through GAB and Y&N models obtained from moisture sorption data along with the computational investigations into moisture interactions with different crystal surfaces.

Yes / A simulation was conducted using Aspen HYSYS® software for an industrial scale condensate stabilization unit and the results of the product composition from the simulation were compared with the plant data. The results were also compared to the results obtained using PRO/II software. It was found that the simulation is closely matched with the plant data and in particular for medium range hydrocarbons. The effects of four process conditions, i.e. feed flow rate, temperature, pressure and reboiler temperature on the product Reid Vapour Pressure (RVP) and sulphur content were also studied. The operating conditions which gave rise to the production of off-specification condensate were found. It was found that at a column pressure of 8.5 barg and reboiler temperature of 180°C, the condensate is successfully stabilised to a RVP of 60.6 kPa (8.78 psia). It is also found that as compared to the other parameters the reboiler temperature is the most influential parameter control the product properties. Among the all sulphur contents in the feed, nP-Mercaptan played a dominant role for the finishing product in terms of sulphur contents.

Les étangs aérés (EA) représentent une technologie de traitement des eaux usées très répandue dans les petites communautés du Canada et des États-Unis. Au Québec, c'est plus des deux tiers des stations qui sont de ce type. Parmi les stations de petite taille (débit annuel moyen <2500 m³/d), cette proportion monte à 85%. Avec, d'une part, l'évolution de la réglementation qui impose des normes de rejet de plus en plus strictes pour les stations de traitement et, d'autre part, la croissance des communautés desservies, la mise à niveau d'un grand nombre d'EA est nécessaire. Une des solutions pour l'augmentation de la capacité des EA est d'ajouter un support bactérien fixe au sein des étangs pour augmenter le temps de rétention de la biomasse ainsi que leur concentration. Cette solution est exploitée par l'entreprise Bionest qui a développé la technologie KAMAKTM dont l'idée principale est d'ajouter un support bactérien fixe au sein de colonnes aérées installées directement dans les étangs. Le KAMAKTM complet est formé d'une alternance de zones de sédimentation (3) et de séries de colonnes formant des réacteurs à biofilm (2). Ce type de technologie peu documenté a fait l'objet du projet de recherche dont il est question dans cette thèse. Une stratégie de suivi en continu de la qualité de l'eau a été déployée sur un système KAMAKTM pleine échelle installé – pour simuler une situation de surcharge – dans une portion des EA de la petite municipalité de Grandes-Piles (415 habitants). Ce suivi a permis de gagner de l'expérience quant à l'installation, l'exploitation et l'entretien de stations de mesure dans un contexte de petit système sans opération quotidienne et, bien sûr, de récolter des données permettant d'évaluer les performances du système à l'étude. Une procédure de traitement des données a été développée pour passer des données brutes à des données plus facilement interprétables et à des fichiers d'entrée pour la modélisation. L'analyse des performances a principalement été orientée sur les défis identifiés pour le système, soit la nitrification et l'enlèvement des matières en suspension (MES). Pour la nitrification, les données ont montré que le système permet une nitrification saisonnière (à température chaude) prolongée par rapport à un étang aéré typique, et ce, même si le système est exposé à une forte charge organique. La prolongation de la période de nitrification d'environ un mois a été observée en automne, à la fin de la période optimale de nitrification. Pendant cette période, un événement temporaire de perte de nitrification a cependant été expérimenté. L'explication proposée pour cet événement concerne l'enlèvement des MES. Une présence importante de MES dans le système a en effet été corrélée avec cet événement. Le suivi de l'accumulation des solides et de leur digestion a fourni des explications pour les variations de performance d'enlèvement des MES. Un suivi de l'évolution des hauteurs de sédiments, de leurs caractéristiques et de la production de gaz associée à leur digestion a été réalisé. Ce suivi a montré que les conditions de forte charge appliquées au système sont associées à une accumulation hivernale des sédiments suivie d'une activité significative de digestion anaérobie pendant la période estivale. Cette digestion entraîne une production de biogaz pouvant causer la remise en suspension de sédiments. Ce phénomène a été utilisé pour expliquer l'augmentation momentanée des concentrations en MES et la perte temporaire de nitrification pendant l'été. Dans le cas de la nitrification, un attachement accru de MES au biofilm est associé à une pénétration plus faible de l'oxygène qui entraîne une baisse d'activité des bactéries nitrifiantes. Dans le but de comprendre de manière globale les performances du système et de vérifier les explications présentées pour les baisses momentanées de performance, un modèle mathématique a été développé. Ce modèle a permis de mettre en lumière la complexité de la nitrification saisonnière et d'illustrer les liens existants entre les processus actifs au sein du système. Des fonctionnalités innovantes ont été intégrées au modèle pour décrire la remise en suspension de sédiments et l'influence de la température sur les bactéries autotrophes. Ces dernières ont été divisées en deux groupes pour décrire adéquatement les performances de nitrification. Le modèle a finalement été utilisé pour évaluer l'impact de stratégies opérationnelles et de modifications de configuration sur les performances du système. / Aerated lagoon (AL) systems are widely used for wastewater treatment in small communities of Canada and the United States. In the province of Québec, for example, more than two thirds of all plants are of this type. Among the plants classified as small or very small (yearly average flowrate below 2500 m³/d), this fraction rises to 85%. With, on the one hand, the evolution of regulations imposing increasingly strict discharge standards for treatment plants and with, on the other hand, the growth of the served communities, the upgrading of many AL type plants is becoming a necessity. One of the solutions put forward for increasing the capacity of AL is to add a fixed biofilm support within the lagoons to increase the biomass retention time as well as their concentration. This solution has been adopted by the Quebec company Bionest by developing the KAMAKTM technology. The main idea of the KAMAKTM is to add a fixed bacterial support within aerated columns installed directly in the lagoons. These columns, installed in series, form biofilm reactors within the lagoons. The complete KAMAKTM system consists of an alternation of sedimentation zones (3) and biofilm reactors (2). This thesis aims at increasing the knowledge of this type of technology which was poorly documented so far. An online water quality monitoring strategy was deployed on a full-scale KAMAKTM system installed in a portion – to simulate an overload situation – of the AL of the small Quebec municipality of Grandes-Piles (415 inhabitants). This high-frequency monitoring made it possible to gain an understanding regarding the installation, operation and maintenance of automated monitoring stations in the context of a small system without day-to-day operation and, of course, to collect data to objectively assess the performance of the studied system. A data treatment procedure was developed to transform raw data into more easily interpretable data and, ultimately, into input files for process modelling.Interpretation of the monitoring data allowed assessing the performance of the technology. The performance analysis focused on the main challenges identified for the system, namely nitrification and total suspended solids (TSS) removal. For nitrification, the data have shown that the system allows extended seasonal (at warm temperature) nitrification compared to typical AL systems (suspended growth), and even with the system being exposed to higher organic loading rates. The extension was mainly observed in the fall, at the end of the optimal nitrification period. However, during the summer period, a temporary nitrification loss event was experienced. The explanation for this event is connected to the second challenge: TSS removal. Indeed, TSS present in the system was correlated with this event and with the operating temperature. Monitoring of solids accumulation and sediment digestion helped identify potential causes for the poor TSS removal performance in this period. The evolution of sediment height, sediment characteristics and gas production associated with their digestion, was monitored in parallel to the monitoring of water quality. It showed that the high loading rate conditions applied to the system are associated with sediment accumulation during winter followed by their anaerobic digestion during the summer period. The resulting production of biogas caused sediment resuspension. This resuspension phenomenon has been used to explain the momentary deterioration in effluent quality in terms of TSS and ammonia during the summer period. Regarding nitrification, an increased attachment of TSS to the biofilm, associated with a lower penetration of oxygen, led to a decrease in the activity of the nitrifying bacteria. In order to understand the performance of the system in a comprehensive manner and to validate the presented explanations for the momentary deterioration of performance, a mathematical model was developed to describe the complete system. The modelling work highlighted the complexity of the nitrification performance dynamics and illustrates, in an integrated manner, the existing links between the different active processes within the system. Innovative features were integrated in the model to describe the resuspension of sediment and the influence of temperature on autotrophic bacteria. Two groups of autotrophic bacteria had to be considered in the model to adequately describe the observed nitrification performance. The model was finally used to assess the impact of new operational strategies and configuration changes on the performance of the system.

Cette étude porte sur la pertinence économique de la stabilité des marchés agricoles. Pour ce faire, nous avons exploré les explications proposées par la littérature économique sur la dynamique des marchés agricoles, notamment les effets de la volatilité des prix sur l’allocation optimale des ressources au niveau du producteur et sur l’efficience des marchés. De plus, les effets de la stabilité des prix, associés particulièrement à la gestion de l’offre, sont évalués qualitativement à l’aide d’une enquête auprès d’acteurs du secteur agroalimentaire québécois. Une certaine littérature économique considère que le risque et l’incertitude, liés à la volatilité des prix, impactent négativement l’atteinte d’un optimum économique théorique. De mini-études de cas et les résultats de notre enquête semblent confirmer ces effets. Nos résultats suggèrent que les agriculteurs accordent une grande importance à la stabilité des prix en général. La prévisibilité des prix facilite l’optimisation de la production et la gestion financière des fermes. Des prix stables, qui reflètent le coût de production, contribuent à la pérennité de ces fermes dès lors qu’ils peuvent rémunérer suffisamment les exploitants ainsi que les actifs utilisés. Ils sont donc un incitatif aux investissements et aux projets de croissance, lesquels bénéficient aux fournisseurs d’intrants et de services, selon les principaux intéressés. Finalement, la stabilité des marges, associée à la gestion de l’offre, est perçue comme étant une contribution positive à la vitalité économique des villages québécois, ainsi qu’à la présence et la diversité des modèles de production agricole. / This study focuses on the economic relevance of stable agricultural markets. To do this, we explored the explanations offered by the economic literature on the dynamics of agricultural prices, including the effects of price volatility on the optimal allocation of resources at the producer level and the efficiency of markets. In addition, the effects of price stability, associated for instance with supply management, are qualitatively assessed by surveying stakeholders of the Quebec's agrifood sector. Some economic literature considers that the risk and uncertainty associated with price volatility negatively impact the economic optimum. Mini-case studies and the results of our survey seem to confirm these effects. Our results also suggest that farmers attach great importance to price stability in general. Predictability of prices facilitates the optimization of production and the financial management of farms. Stable prices, which reflect the cost of production, contribute to the sustainability of farms as they adequately pay farmers and their assets. Hence, they are an incentive for investments and growth projects that, in turn, benefit input and service providers, according to key stakeholders. In the end, the stability of the margins associated with supply management is seen as a positive contribution to the economic vitality of Quebec villages, as well as to the presence and diversity of agricultural production models.

Dans cette thèse, nous nous sommes intéressés au concept de stabilisation instantanée. Ainsi, nous avons tout d'abord proposé deux solutions instantanément stabilisantes au problème de parcours en profondeur pour des réseaux enracinés quelconques. Ces deux protocoles sont écrits dans le modèle à états et fonctionnent sous l'hypothèse d'un démon distribué inéquitable : le démon le plus général du modèle. Le premier est basé sur des listes d'identités. Le second utilise un principe de question/réponse pour remplacer les listes d'identités. Nous proposons ensuite deux applications instantanément stabilisantes obtenues à partir de nos deux protocoles de parcours en profondeur. Ces deux applications évaluent des propriétés globales sur le réseau. La première application permet de marquer les points d'articulation et les isthmes du réseau. La seconde application permet d'évaluer si un ensemble donné est un ensemble séparateur du réseau. Enfin, dans une dernière partie, nous adoptons une approche plus générale en étudiant un protocole efficace permettant de transformer semi-automatiquement des protocoles de service mono-initiateurs en protocoles instantanément stabilisants. Un protocole de parcours en profondeur et un protocole de construction d'arbre en largeur illustrent la facilité avec laquelle nous pouvons rendre instantanément stabilisants ce type protocole grâce à notre transformateur. Le protocole de parcours en profondeur est non seulement trivial à écrire mais les performances obtenues en font un compromis quasi idéal entre les protocoles à listes et à questions présentés précédemment. Enfin, grâce à une propriété de comptage due à notre transformateur, nous montrerons comment utiliser ce protocole de parcours pour résoudre en quelques lignes l'exclusion mutuelle de manière instantanément stabilisante.

Les bétons autoplaçants (BAP) constituent une nouvelle génération de béton avec un fort potentiel d’utilisation compte-tenu de la facilité de leur mise en œuvre dans les chantiers de construction. Leur production révèle cependant plus de difficultés par rapport à celle des bétons ordinaires, principalement liée à leur caractère très sensible à la variation de composition. En particulier, la variation du dosage en eau influe fortement sur la régularité de la fabrication des BAP. Cette variation est à l'origine de la connaissance insuffisante de l'eau apportée par les granulats. D'autre part, la formulation des BAP prévoit l'utilisation d'un volume élevé d'éléments fins ainsi que d'une forte proportion en adjuvants dans la composition de ces bétons. Cela conduit à des temps de malaxage plus longs que ceux des bétons ordinaires, diminue la productivité et augmente le coût de production. Le travail présenté dans ce mémoire vise à proposer des méthodes de contrôle pour améliorer la régularité et la productivité des BAP dans les centrales à béton prêt à l'emploi.Dans un premier temps, l'outil traditionnel du contrôle en ligne de l'humidité du béton - le wattmètre a été calibré suivant une procédure de simplifiée et réalisable en centrale à béton. En utilisant cette méthode de calibration, la stabilisation de la puissance consommée par le malaxeur, en milieu industriel, est validée comme un indicateur fiable de la teneur en eau des BAP. En parallèle, un critère objectif de stabilisation de la puissance a été proposé afin de définir quantitativement le temps de stabilisation de la puissance. Ce dernier est considéré comme un temps de malaxage suffisant pour décider la fin du malaxage en vue d’une augmentation de la productivité.Dans un second temps, nous avons étudié, à l'échelle de laboratoire, l'influence du temps de malaxage sur l'ouvrabilité d'une formule de BAP dont les gâchées sont différenciées seulement par leur dosage en eau. Cette étape a permis de montrer que le temps de stabilisation de la puissance de malaxage est comparable et proportionnel au temps nécessaire pour obtenir l'ouvrabilité optimale du BAP.Enfin, nous avons traité un cas particulier des BAP fluides dans une plage de dosage en eau élevé sur laquelle la méthode traditionnelle de mesure d'humidité par le wattmètre devient insuffisamment sensible. Une nouvelle exploitation du signal wattmétrique a été proposée en construisant un modèle de lissage des courbes de puissance. La validation expérimentale sur un malaxeur de laboratoire permet de montrer qu'il est possible d'améliorer la sensibilité du wattmètre à l'aide du paramètre "temps caractéristique" tiré du modèle. / Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is a new generation of concrete with a great potential thank to their ease of placement in construction sites. However, as compared to ordinary concrete, it is more difficult to produce SCC; sensitivity to the variation of the composition dosage often gets cited. In particular, changes in concrete water content strongly influence the SCC production regularity. The primary source of uncertainty in concrete water content stems from poor knowledge of aggregate moisture. On the other hand, the use of a high amount of fines together with a high dosage of superplasticizer results in a long mixing time of SCC, which decreases productivity and increases the cost of production. The aim of this work is then to propose methods to improve the SCC production regularity and productivity.At first, the traditional online mixer measurement - wattmeter was calibrated through use of a simple calibration procedure in a concrete plant. By using this calibration method, the stabilization of mixing power is confirmed as a reliable online indication of SCC water content in an industrial environment. In parallel, a stabilisation criterion of power curves was proposed to quantitatively define the stabilization time. This time is considered as a sufficient mixing time to stop mixing for an increase in productivity.Secondly, we studied at the laboratory scale, the influence of the mixing time on the workability of a SCC mix design with batches in which only the water content was varied. The result has shown that the stabilization time is comparable and proportional to the time required to obtain the optimum workability of SCC.Finally, we treated a case of SCC mixtures over a range of high water content in which the traditional processing of mixing power is not able to distinguish the water proportioning difference from water over dosage in SCC. A new wattmeter signal processing was proposed through using a mathematical model to fit the power consumption curve of the mixer. The experimental validation in a laboratory mixer can show that it is possible to improve the precision of wattmeter thanks to the use of the parameter "characteristic time" from the model