Developments are reported of unstructured-mesh methods for simulating stratified, turbulent and shear flows. The numerical model employs nonoscillatory forward in-time integrators for anelastic and incompressible flow PDEs, built on Multidimensional Positive Definite Advection Transport Algorithm (MPDATA) and a preconditioned conjugate residual elliptic solver. Finite-volume spatial discretisation adopts an edge-based data structure. Tetrahedral-based and hybrid-based median-dual options for unstructured meshes are developed, enabling flexible spatial resolution. Viscous laminar and detached eddy simulation (DES) flow solvers are developed based on the edge-based NFT MPDATA scheme. The built-in implicit large eddy simulation (ILES) capability of the NFT scheme is also employed and extended to fully unstructured tetrahedral and hybrid meshes. Challenging atmospheric and engineering problems are solved numerically to validate the model and to demonstrate its applications. The numerical problems include simulations of stratified, turbulent and shear flows past obstacles involving complex gravity-wave phenomena in the lee, critical-level laminar-turbulence transitioning and various vortex structures in the wake. Qualitative flow patterns and quantitative data analysis are both presented in the current study.

In this study we investigate the interactions between two co-rotating vortices. These vortices are subject to rapid rotation and stable stratification such as are found in planetary atmospheres and oceans. By conducting a large number of simulations of vortex interactions, we intend to provide an overview of the interactions that could occur in geophysical turbulence. We consider a wide parameter space covering the vortices height-to-width aspect-ratios, their volume ratios and the vertical offset between them. The vortices are initially separated in the horizontal so that they reside at an estimated margin of stability. The vortices are then allowed to evolve for a period of approximately 20 vortex revolutions. We find that the most commonly observed interaction under the quasi-geostrophic (QG) regime is partial-merger, where only part of the smaller vortex is incorporated into the larger, stronger vortex. On the other hand, a large number of filamentary and small scale structures are generated during the interaction. We find that, despite the proliferation of small-scale structures, the self-induced vortex energy exhibits a mean `inverse-cascade' to larger scale structures. Interestingly we observe a range of intermediate-scale structures that are preferentially sheared out during the interactions, leaving two vortex populations, one of large-scale vortices and one of small-scale vortices. We take a subset of the parameter space used for the QG study and perform simulations using a non-hydrostatic model. This system, free of the layer-wise two-dimensional constraints and geostrophic balance of the QG model, allows for the generation of inertia-gravity waves and ageostrophic advection. The study of the interactions between two co-rotating, non-hydrostatic vortices is performed over four different Rossby numbers, two positive and two negative, allowing for the comparison of cyclonic and anti-cyclonic interactions. It is found that a greater amount of wave-like activity is generated during the interactions in anticyclonic situations. We also see distinct qualitative differences between the interactions for cyclonic and anti-cyclonic regimes.

As the globalisation process accelerates there is a growing need for individual countries to understand the bases for effective performance in international trade. Because it makes up such a large share of world trade, it is especially important to understand what determines effectiveness in exporting. Despite much empirical research, especially over recent decades, the state of knowledge on this topic remains fragmented, unclear and unsatisfactory. The motivation for the present study was therefore twofold: dissatisfaction with the present state of knowledge in this vital area and the importance to the UK economy of improving its export performance in a world of increasing competition. Its aim was to contribute to the resolution of both. In addition to finding what appeared to be quite serious methodological problems in a group of earlier studies, our review of the literature indicated that the best prospects for identifying the determinants of effective exporting were to be found, not at national or sectoral level but at that of the individual firm. Accordingly, an empirical survey research project was developed. To minimise unquantifiable inter-sectoral variability, it was focused on a single sector of industry. For a range of reasons, including the limited amount of information available about its current export activity and prospects, the UK knitted apparel industry was chosen. Special care having been taken to assemble the fullest possible sampling frame and to develop a suitable instrument (which included an export performance model), a mail survey in the form of a stratified random sample of exporting UK manufacturers of knitted apparel was carried through from late 2000. Persistent follow-up by mail and telephone generated a response rate of 70 per cent, comprising close to half of the sampling frame, that was representative of all company size bands, levels of exporting and products. The overall quality of the responses was good; tests of non-response did not find any indications of non-response bias. Data analysis, designed to test thoroughly our 10 export-determinants hypotheses, relied primarily on Pearsonian correlation at the bivariate level then sequentially on Multiple Regression Analysis, Canonical Correlation Analysis and Partial Least Squares. A perhaps slightly novel aspect of the research was that it was not solely cross-sectional in format; a longitudinal element was provided by drawing on the researcher's earlier surveys ; and a panel element by following-up, in 2007, the main 2000 field survey. Where possible, these data were drawn upon in the analysis and interpretation. There did not appear to be any conflict between the three multivariate techniques employed and indeed their findings were not dissimilar. The outcome of the data analysis was to uphold, to varying degrees, most of our hypotheses about the determinants of effective or successful exporting. Those that did not find support were three: firm size, product adaptation, and price determination method. Most strongly supported as determinants were promotional intensity, serving many markets and visits to trade fairs/exhibitions; others which were statistically significant, included management commitment, special staff skills and the use of Commission Agents. While the conclusions must remain a bit tentative they are encouraging.

Cellular and molecular mechanisms of postembryonic muscle fibre recruitment were investigated in zebrafish (Danio rerio L.), a standard animal model for developmental and genetic studies. Distinct cellular mechanisms of postembryonic muscle fibre recruitment in fast and slow myotomal muscles were found. In slow muscle, three overlapping waves of stratified hyperplasia (SH) from distinct germinal zones sequentially contributed to a slow and steady increase in fibre number (FN) through the life span. In fast muscle, SH only contributed to an initial increase of FN in early larvae. Strikingly, mosaic hyperplasia (MH) appeared in late larvae and early juveniles and remained active until early adult stages, accounting for >70% of the final fibre number (FFN). The molecular regulation of postembryonic muscle fibre recruitment was then studied by characterising myospryn and cee, two strong candidate genes previously identified from a large scale screen for genes differentially expressed during the transition from hyperplastic to hypertrophic muscle phenotypes. Zebrafish myospryn contained very similar functional domains to its mammalian orthologues, which function to bind to other proteins known to regulate muscle dystrophy. Zebrafish myospryn also shared a highly conserved syntenic genomic neighbourhood with other vertebrate orthologues. As in mammals, zebrafish myospryn were specifically expressed in striated muscles. Zebrafish cee was a single-copy gene, highly conserved among metazoans, ubiquitously expressed across tissues, and did not form part of any wider gene family. Its protein encompassed a single conserved domain (DUF410) of unknown function although knock-down of cee in C. elegans and yeast have suggested a role in regulating growth patterns. Both myospyrn and cee transcripts were up-regulated concomitant with the cessation of postembryonic muscle fibre recruitment in zebrafish, indicating a potential role in regulating muscle growth. Furthermore, a genome-wide screen of genes involved in the regulation of postembryonic muscle fibre recruitment was performed using microarray. 85 genes were found to be consistently and differentially expressed between growth stages where muscle hyperplasia was active or inactive, including genes associated with muscle contraction, metabolism, and immunity. Further bioinformatic annotation indicated these genes comprised a complex transcriptional network with molecular functions, including catalytic activity and protein binding as well as pathways associated with metabolism, tight junctions, and human diseases. Finally, developmental plasticity of postembryonic muscle fibre recruitment to embryonic temperature was characterised. It involved transient effects including the relative timing and contribution of SH and MH, plus the rate and duration of fibre production, as well as a persistent alteration to FFN. Further investigation of FFN of fish over a broader range of embryonic temperature treatments (22, 26, 28, 31, 35°C) indicated that 26°C produced the highest FFN that was approximately 17% greater than at other temperatures. This finding implies the existence of an optimal embryonic temperature range for maximising FFN across a reaction norm. Additionally, a small but significant effect of parental temperature on FFN (up to 6% greater at 24 and 26°C than at 31°C) was evident, suggesting some parental mechanisms can affect muscle fibre recruitment patterns of progeny. This work provides a comprehensive investigation of mechanisms underlying postembryonic muscle fibre recruitment and demonstrates the power of zebrafish as an ideal teleost model for addressing mechanistic and practical aspects of postembryonic muscle recruitment, especially the presence of all major phases of muscle fibre production in larger commercially important teleost species.

O objetivo deste estudo é compreender a dinâmica das partículas no estuário do rio Araranguá (SC) em termos de transporte em suspensão, deposição e exportação, em diferentes condições físico-químicas da água, com pH baixo (<4,5) e normal (>=7), e sob condições de regime transiente da descarga fluvial. O estuário do rio Araranguá é classificado como altamente estratificado e dominado pela descarga fluvial. Um aspecto fundamental nos processos que controlam a dinâmica de materiais em suspensão no estuário é a atividade de lavra e beneficiamento do carvão, que gera uma drenagem ácida no rio Mãe Luzia. O seu pH baixo (&#732;3) indica que o processo de floculação é intensificado no interior do estuário. Com o objetivo de melhor entender a hidrodinâmica do estuário, um modelo tridimensional foi implementado para a região. O modelo foi calibrado e validado com dados observados. Simulações com diferentes picos de descarga fluvial (100, 400, 700 e 1000 m3.s-1) e baixa descarga (30 m3.s-1) foram realizadas. Para calcular o transporte do material particulado em suspensão foi desenvolvido um modelo Lagrangeano da trajetória da partícula. O modelo da trajetória utiliza os resultados do modelo hidrodinâmico e a velocidade de decantação das partículas. O estuário respondeu rapidamente às variações da descarga fluvial. A cunha salina foi transportada para fora do estuário durante os picos de 700 e 1000 m3.s-1. A descarga fluvial é o fator dominante no controle da intrusão da salinidade no estuário e, em condições de baixa descarga, o transporte advectivo de sal é dominado pelo termo dispersivo da circulação gravitacional. O tempo de residência médio das partículas no estuário foi menor em condições de pH baixo. A exportação das partículas aumentou com o aumento da descarga fluvial (pico de 1000 m3.s-1), sendo que 27% e 30% foram exportadas para a plataforma interna durante os experimentos com pH baixo e pH normal, respectivamente. A região de deposição das partículas indica que com a diminuição do pH, as partículas passam a depositar mais à jusante no estuário. O evento de descarga de 1000 m3.s-1 não foi capaz de remover a grande maioria das partículas do estuário, mas foi responsável por redistribuir as partículas ao longo do médio estuário, onde se depositaram em condições favoráveis com baixas velocidades e ausência de salinidade. O trabalho demonstra que apesar da alta estratificação do estuário, a acidez de suas águas, seu padrão de circulação, com baixas velocidades e a presença da cunha salina, possuem um papel fundamental no transporte das partículas, resultando em maior potencial de retenção do material em suspensão no estuário do rio Araranguá. / The present study assessed the dynamics of particles of the Araranguá (SC) river estuary in terns of suspended transport, deposition and exportation in different conditions of physical-chemical of water, with low (<4,5) and normal pH (>=7), and transient of river discharge conditions. The Araranguá river estuary is a highly stratified flash-flood dominated. The river basin of the Mãe Luzia river, one of the main tributaries of the Araranguá river, is performed the activity of mining and coal processing, wich generates an acidic drainage. Its low pH indicates that flocculation process is intensified in estuary inner. With the objective of better understanding the estuarine processes, a three-dimensional hydrodynamics model was implemented. The model was calibrated and verified using observational data. Simulations were conducted with freshet peak ranged over 100, 400, 700 and 1000 m3.s-1. Lagrangian particle tracking algorithms was developed to represent the suspended particle transport at estuary. The particle tracking used the montion resulting from hydrodynamics model and the particle settling velocity. The estuary responded quickly the river discharge variations. During the pulse event the velocities at water column were unidirectional down-estuary is shown the barotropic dominates over baroclinic component. During the highest flash flood event (700 and 1000 m3.s-1) the salt water was pushed out of the estuary. The river discharge is a dominating factor affecting the salinity intrusion in the estuarine system and under low discharge conditions the advective salt transport is dominated by dispersive term of gravitational circulation. The mean residence time of the particles was lowest in pH low conditions. The particles export is great as the river discharge is rising (1000 m3.s-1) with 27% and 30% exported to inner shelf during the experiments with low and normal pH, respectively. The particles deposition local indicates that with the pH decrease the particles become to be deposited further downstream. The discharge event of 1000 m3.s-1 was not able to remove all particles out, but was response to redistribute the particles along of the meddle estuary, where settling in favorable conditions at low velocities and absence of salinity. The study shows that although high stratification of estuary, the acidity of water, the pattern of circulation, at low velocities, and the salt wedge presence play a fundamental role in the transport of particle matter resulting in increased the potential retention of suspended matter in the Araranguá river estuary.

O escoamento estratificado óleo-água é bastante comum na indústria do petróleo, especialmente em poços direcionas offshore, oleodutos e gasodutos. Entretanto, existem poucos trabalhos na literatura sobre a natureza da estrutura ondulatória observada no escoamento em dutos ascendentes ou descendentes a partir da horizontal. O objetivo deste trabalho foi estudar as propriedades geométricas e cinemáticas da onda interfacial, i.e, forma média, comprimento, amplitude e celeridade, e assim contribuir para a compreensão do papel da onda interfacial na dinâmica do escoamento estratificado. Um software baseado em plataforma Labview® possibilitou a automação para obtenção dos dados das ondas interfaciais extraídas de imagens de vídeos de alta resolução. Além das propriedades das ondas, também se coletaram valores de fração volumétrica in situ e de gradiente de pressão bifásico para cinco ângulos de inclinação (-20°, -10°, 0°, 10° e 20°) em diferentes pares de vazões de óleo e água. Desenvolveu-se um modelo fenomenológico considerando os termos ondulatórios do escoamento para o cálculo da fração volumétrica in situ e do gradiente de pressão bifásico, sendo comparado com modelos disponíveis na literatura e dados experimentais. A concordância do modelo proposto com os dados coletados neste trabalho se mostrou muito boa, o que sugere um avanço em comparação ao existente na literatura. O estudo da equação da onda de perturbação interfacial para o escoamento estratificado óleo-água indicou que a natureza da onda observada é cinemática e não dinâmica; e baseado na equação da celeridade da onda cinemática pode-se confrontar a celeridade experimental com a teórica, revelando boa concordância. / The oil-water stratified flow is quite common in the oil industry, especially in offshore directional wells and pipelines. However, there are few studies on the physics of the wavy structure observed in upward and downward stratified flow. The goal of this work was to study the geometric and kinematic properties of interfacial waves, i.e., the average shape, wavelength, amplitude and celerity. A homemade Labview®-based software enabled the automatic acquisition of data extracted from frames obtained via high resolution video recording. In situ volume fraction and two-phase pressure gradient data for five inclination angles (-20°, -10°, 0°, 10° and 20°) at several pairs of oil and water flow rates were also collected. A phenomenological model that takes into account the wavy structure is proposed to calculate volume fractions and two-phase pressure gradient and it was compared with available models from the literature and experimental data. The good agreement of the proposed model with the data collected in this study is promising and suggests that it may provide better predictions in comparison with models from the literature. The study of the interfacial perturbation wave equation for stratified flow indicates that the observed waves nature is kinematic and not dynamic; and based on the kinematic wave velocity equation we could compare the experimental celerity with the theoretical one, with good agreement.

Embora o escoamento estratificado óleo-água seja comum na indústria do petróleo, existem poucos trabalhos na literatura sobre a estrutura ondulatória encontrada no escoamento em dutos ascendentes ou descendentes. O objetivo deste trabalho é entender e caracterizar as estruturas interfaciais ondulatórias em escoamentos estratificados óleo e água em dutos levemente inclinados e comparar com os resultados retirados da modelagem proposta. Uma primeira tentativa de modelar a onda interfacial óleo-água através da equação da energia bifásica unidimensional para regime permanente é apresentada e comparada aos resultados obtidos experimentalmente. Valores de comprimento de onda foram coletados para quatro ângulos de inclinação a partir da horizontal (-5º, -2º, 2º e 5º) e diversos pares de vazão de óleo e água. Os dados foram extraídos de frames de vídeos de alta resolução através de uma técnica manual. Um software baseado em LabView foi desenvolvido para possibilitar a automação da obtenção do comprimento de onda e amplitude. Os comprimentos de onda obtidos com a técnica automática foram comparados com os dados obtidos através da técnica manual. O mensuramento é bem satisfatório e sugere que a ferramenta experimental proposta possa ser aplicada para o estudo de qualquer padrão de escoamento óleo-água, onde uma estrutura ondulatória possa ser identificada. A validade da modelagem da onda interfacial proposta foi avaliada através da comparação entre os resultados teóricos e dados experimentais. A concordância observada é encorajadora. / Even though the oil-water stratified flow pattern has a common occurrence in the upstream oil industry, quite often in directional wells, there are only a few works in the literature dealing with its interfacial wavy structure. This work has the mean goal of comprehending a characterizing the interfacial wave structure in inclined water-oil stratified pipe flow, comparing it with the proposed model. A model, based on the steady-state one-dimensional two-phase flow energy equation is presented and compared to our experimental data. Wave lengths and amplitude data were collected at four inclinations from the horizontal (-5º, -2º, 2º and 5º) and several oil and water flow rates. The data were extracted form high-resolution video images through a manual technique. A LabView based software was developed in order to obtain the lengths and amplitude automatically. Wave length obtained from it were compared to the manual technique data. The satisfactory measurement suggests the applicability of the experimental tool to any water-oil pipe flow pattern, where a wave structure can be identified. The validity by the comparison between theoretical and experimental data. The agreement observed is promising.

Les systèmes intégrables toriques sont des systèmes intégrables dont toutes les composantes de l'application moment sont périodiques de même période. Il s'agit donc de variétés symplectiques munies d'actions Hamiltoniennes de tores. Au début des années 80, Atiyah-Guillemin-Sternberg ont démontré que l'image de l'application moment était un polytope convexe à face rationnelles. Peu de temps après, Delzant a démontré que dans le cas intégrable qui nous intéresse, ce polytope caractérisait entièrement le système : la variété symplectique comme l'action du tore. Le champs d'étude s'est ensuite élargi aux systèmes dits semi-toriques. Ce sont des systèmes intégrables dont toutes les composantes de l'application moment sauf une sont périodiques de même période. En outre, pour simplifier l'étude de ces systèmes, on demande que tous les points critiques du systèmes soient non-dégénérés, et sans composante hyperbolique pour la hessienne. En revanche les points critiques des systèmes semi-toriques peuvent comporter des composantes dites "foyer-foyer". Celles-ci ont une dynamique plus riche que les singularités elliptiques, mais conservent certaines propriétés qui rendent leur analyse plus aisée que les singularités hyperboliques. San Vu-Ngoc et Alvaro Pelayo ont réussi à étendre pour ces systèmes semi-toriques les résultats d'Atiyah-Guillemin-Sternberg et Delzant en dimension 2. L'objectif de cette thèse est de proposer une extension de ces résultats en dimension quelconque, à commencer par la dimension 3. Les techniques utilisées relèvent de l'analyse comme de la géométrie symplectique, ainsi que de la théorie de Morse dans des espaces différentiels stratifiés. / Semi-toric integrable systems are integrable systems whose every component of the moment map are periodic of the same period. They are symplectic manifolds endowed with a Hamiltonian torus actions. At the beginning of the 80's, Atiyah-Guillemin-Sternberg proved that the image of the moment map was a polytope with rational faces. A bit after that, Delzant showed that in the integrable case that matters to us, this polytope characterized entirely the system, that is, the symplectic manifold as well as the torus action. Next, field of study widened to semi-toric systems. They are integrable systems whose all components except one are periodic with the same period. Moreover, to simplify their study, we ask that these systems have only non-degenerate critical points without hyperbolic components. On the other hand, critical points of semi-toric systems can have so-called ''focus-focus'' components. They have a richer dynamic than elliptic singularities, but it retains some properties that makes them easier to study than hyperbolic singularities. San Vu-Ngoc and Alvaro Pelayo have managed to extend to these semi-toric systems the results of Atiyah-Guillemin-Sternberg and Delzant in dimension 2. The objective of this thesis is to propose an extension of these results to any dimension, starting with dimension 3. Techniques involved are analysis as well as symplectic geometry, and Morse theory in stratified differential spaces.

The Cutler Formation is composed of thick, arkosic, alluvial conglomerate, sandstone, and mudstone shed southwestward from the Uncompahgre Uplift into the Paradox Basin. More basin-ward the Cutler is recognized as a group consisting of differentiable formations. Discrete formations historically have not been distinguished near the uplift, but this study identified several separate successions in the Richardson Amphitheater. Research at the Richardson Amphitheater, ~12 km southwest of the uplift and ~30 km northeast of Moab, Utah, led to a systematic subdivision of the Permian Cutler Formation proximal to the uplift. Likely driven by channel cutting and migration across the alluvial fan, six 10-20 m thick successions are partially exposed. The dominant observed facies are basal conglomerate and channel-fill trough cross-stratified sandstone overlain by finer-grained distal sheetflood and frequently pedogenically altered sandstone. Down-warping of identified successions and the presence of additional sands within the area of flexure suggest that localized salt withdrawal created a sediment depocenter in the Richardson Amphitheater, ~6 km northwest of the Onion Creek salt diapir. The identified salt withdrawal feature is more proximal to the Uncompahgre Uplift than any of the major documented salt structures in the area and was not previously documented. Six measured stratigraphic sections and hundreds of high-precision differential GPS data points outlining major lateral erosional surfaces form the basis for interpretation. Five mapped erosional surfaces (bounding surfaces based upon differential GPS point interpolation) are laterally extensive within the approximately one square kilometer study area, and as such, represent stratigraphically significant surfaces. Within the generated structural geocellular model, stratigraphic data from measured sections informed facies modeling between major surfaces. This outcrop model may serve as an analogue for subsurface systems deposited in similar settings.

Le verre feuilleté est constitué de deux ou plusieurs feuilles de verre assemblées par une ou plusieurs couches de polymères viscoélastiques intermédiaires qui sont à l’origine des interactions entre les mécanismes de cisaillement, de flexion locale et de flexion globale qui régissent le comportement d’ensemble du verre feuilleté. Dans ces travaux, nous proposons un modèle de plaques dites "fortement contrastées" intégrant ces différents mécanismes et leur couplage. Dès lors qu’il existe une séparation d’échelle entre l’épaisseur de la plaque et la taille caractéristique des variations des champs cinématiques, la méthode des développements asymptotiques est applicable pour l’étude des stratifiées. Le comportement effectif de la plaque est dérivé de la loi de comportement 3D des matériaux, associée à une formulation de développements asymptotiques et à une mise à l’échelle appropriée du contraste de rigidité entre les couches raides de verre et des couches souples de polymère viscoélastique. Le procédé fournit une formulation explicite et cohérente, intégrant les efforts duaux des descripteurs macroscopiques (équations constitutives), les équations d’équilibres hors-plan et dans le plan et les différentes lois de comportements du stratifié. Le modèle est d’abord construit dans le cas d’une plaque de verre feuilleté à 2 couches raides puis différents cas de chargements statiques et dynamiques sont appliqués. Il est ensuite étendu aux plaques à 3 couches raides puis généralisé aux plaques à N couches raides. Des campagnes expérimentales sont mises en place pour valider les modèles obtenus. Enfin un cas d’étude de dimensionnement de plancher en verre feuilleté est proposé. / Widely used in recent years, the glass material makes it possible to erect light, aesthetic and resistant structures, in particular with glass lamination method, which consists in assembling two or more sheets of glass by one or more intermediate viscoelastic polymers layer. These viscoelastic interface layers are the source of interactions between the shear, the local bending and the global bending mechanisms that govern the overall behavior of laminated glass. For an optimal dimensioning and an accurate determination of the different fields, we propose a "highlycontrasted" plates model encapsulating these different mechanisms and their coupling. As long as a scale separation between the plate thickness and the caracteristic size of kinematics field variations exists, the asymptotic expansion method can be applied for the study of laminates. The effective plate behaviour is derived from the 3D constitutive law of the materials combined with an asymptotic expansion formulation and an appropriate scaling the tiffness contrast between stiff glass layers and soft viscoelastic polymer layers. The method provides a synthetic and consistent formulation, integrating the dual efforts of the macroscopic descriptors, in-plane and out-of-plane balance equations and the constitutive laws of the laminate. First the model is developped for a 2 stiff layers laminated glass plates, then different static and dynamic loading cases are applied. It is then extended to plates with 3 stiff layers and then generalized to plates with N stiff layers. Experimental campaigns are set up in order to validate the models. Finally, a case study of laminated glass floor design is proposed.