The purpose of this study was to analyze the dropwise condensation on a cylindrical surface including the sweeping effect theoretically. For this purpose, first the problem of the equilibrium shape and departure size of drops on the outer surface of a cylinder was formulated. The equations of the surface of the drop were obtained by minimizing (for a given volume) the total energy of the drop which consists of surface and gravitational energy by using the techniques of variational calculus. The departure size of the droplets on a surface at varies angle of inclinations were also determined experimentally. Drop departure size is observed to decrease up to as the surface inclination was decreased up to 90 degree and then it increased up to 180 degree. Mean base heat flux, drop departure rate, sweeping frequency, fraction of covered area, sweeping period, local heat flux and average heat flux for the dropwise condensation on a cylindrical surface including the sweeping effect is formulated and the resulting integral equation was solved by using the finite difference techniques. The results show that drop departure rate and sweeping frequency was strongly affected by the angular position and reached asymptotic value at large angular positions. Comparing the results of the average heat flux values at different diameters show that at larger diameters the average heat flux becomes larger. This is due to the increased sweeping effect at larger diameters.

Where lead pollutes urban soils, both human and animals risk exposure. This exposure gives rise to similar health risks across species. A group of 50 outdoor living cats from inner city Tampa, Florida were tested for blood lead concentration (BLC). Most cats had no measurable lead loads, 14 percent had levels less than or equal to 6 micrograms per decaliter. Soil samples were taken from the home location of each cat. None of these samples, which ranged from 2.6 microgram per gram to 170 micrograms per gram, had hazardous levels of lead. Overall, BLCs were lower than expected. In addition, the BLCs were lower than those found in older industrial cities. The reduction of the use of lead as well as Tampa's location in the newly developed Sunbelt, may be responsible for the overall low levels found in the region's outdoor living cat population.

Several advancements related to the solution of 3D time-harmonic wave equations are presented, especially in the context of a parallel moving-PML sweeping preconditioner for problems without large-scale resonances. The main contribution of this dissertation is the introduction of an efficient parallel sweeping preconditioner and its subsequent application to several challenging velocity models. For instance, 3D seismic problems approaching a billion degrees of freedom have been solved in just a few minutes using several thousand processors. The setup and application costs of the sequential algorithm were also respectively refined to O(γ^2 N^(4/3)) and O(γ N log N), where N denotes the total number of degrees of freedom in the 3D volume and γ(ω) denotes the modestly frequency-dependent number of grid points per Perfectly Matched Layer discretization. Furthermore, high-performance parallel algorithms are proposed for performing multifrontal triangular solves with many right-hand sides, and a custom compression scheme is introduced which builds upon the translation invariance of free-space Green’s functions in order to justify the replacement of each dense matrix within a certain modified multifrontal method with the sum of a small number of Kronecker products. For the sake of reproducibility, every algorithm exercised within this dissertation is made available as part of the open source packages Clique and Parallel Sweeping Preconditioner (PSP). / text

Water scarcity is among the most serious, long-term challenges in the world. To an ever increasing degree, sustainable water supply depends on the utilization of water of impaired initial quality. This is particularly true in developing nations and in water-stressed areas such as the American Southwest. Water of impaired quality could be water of high salinity such as brackish groundwater. Traditionally, reverse osmosis (RO) would be chosen to desalinate the brackish groundwater, since RO costs are competitive with those of thermal desalination, even for seawater applications. However, both conventional thermal distillation and RO are energy intensive, complex processes that discourage decentralized or rural implementation. In addition, both technologies require enhanced expertise for operation and maintenance, and are susceptible to scaling and fouling unless extensive feed pretreatment is employed. Membrane distillation (MD), driven by vapor pressure gradients, can potentially overcome many of these drawbacks. MD can operate using low-grade, sub-boiling temperature heat sources. When it is driven by solar energy it does not require highly concentrating collection devices, non-aqueous working fluids, or complex temperature control systems, nor does it require extensive operational expertise. Membrane Distillation (MD) applications, background and modeling efforts are discussed in the first part of this dissertation. Two main studies are presented in this document: Firstly, Sweeping Gas Membrane Distillation (SGMD) through a hollow fiber membrane was studied both experimentally and modeled mathematically to describe performance of SGMD and extend results to predict membrane module efficiency and secondly, SGMD through a flat sheet MD module to study the effect of membrane characteristics in combination with operational variables. A final study was conducted to examine the effect of mesh spacer insertion in flat sheet membrane module on the permeate water production.

Bakgrund: Hinnsvepning är en icke-farmakologisk induktionsmetod som används inom förlossningsvården med önskan om att initiera en förlossningsstart. Svenska föreningen för obstetrik och gynekologi [SFOG] rekommenderar hinnsvepning i fullgången graviditet. Rekommendationen bygger dock på oeniga forskningsresultat och det framgår inte vilka maternella faktorer som kan påverka utfallet. Syfte: Beskriva utfallet av hinnsvepning i graviditetsvecka 41+3. Metod: Retrospektiv journalgranskning med kvantitativ ansats användes. Urvalet gjordes via en specialistmottagning för gravida som är kopplad till den aktuella förlossningskliniken. Totalt inkluderades 100 kvinnors förlossningsjournaler. Resultat: Av de 100 kvinnorna som hinnsveptes inducerades 41 med annan induktionsmetod och 33 kvinnor blev överburna. Paritet hade inte några statistiskt signifikanta samband med varken induktion, tid till aktiv förlossningsfas eller överburenhet, till skillnad från Bishop Score som hade ett statistiskt signifikant samband med både induktion, tid till aktiv förlossningsfas och överburenhet. Ett statistiskt signifikant samband kunde även ses mellan BMI och överburenhet samt tid till aktiv förlossningsfas. Bishop Score var den variabeln med starkast samband till induktion, tid till aktiv förlossningsfas och överburenhet. Konklusion: Kvinnans Bishop Score och BMI bör inte negligeras i samband att hinnsvepning genomförs då det kan påverka utfallet. Ytterligare forskning krävs för att klargöra utfallet av hinnsvepning och på vilka grunder det bör utföras. / Background: Sweeping of the membranes is a non- pharmacological inductionmethod used in obstetrics with the desire to initiate a labor. The Swedish Association for Obstetrics and Gynecology [SFOG] recommends membrane sweeping in full-time pregnancy. However, these recommendations are built on inconsistent research in the area and it doesn’t reveal which maternal factors that may affect the outcome. Purpose: Describe the outcome of membrane sweeping in pregnancy week 41 + 3. Methods: Retrospective journal review with quantitative approach were conducted. The selection was performed on a specialist clinic for pregnant women who are linked to the current obstetric clinic. Totally 100 women’s birth records were included in the study. Results: Of the 100 women who went through membrane sweeping, 41 was induced with another induction method and 33 women became overburdened. Parity did not appear statistically significant with neither induction, time to active delivery phase or post-term pregnancy unlike Bishop Score who had a statically significant relationship with both induction, time to active delivery phase and post-term pregnancy. A statistically significant association could also be seen between BMI and post-term pregnancy, as well as BMI and time to active delivery phase. Bishop Score showed to be the only variable with statistically significant association to induction, time to active delivery phase and post-term pregnancy. Conclusion: Bishop Score and BMI should not be neglected when membrane sweeping is performed as it may affect the outcome. Further research is required to clarify the outcome of membrane sweeping and on which grounds it should be performed.

The Stability And Control CONfiguration (SACCON) model represents an emerging trend in airplane design where the classical tube, wing and empennage are replaced by a single tailless configuration. The challenge is to assure that these designs are stable and controllable. Nonlinear aerodynamic behavior is observed on the SACCON at higher incidence angles due to leading edge vortex structures. Active Flow Control (AFC) used in preliminary design represents a promising solution to the longitudinal stability problems and this was demonstrated experimentally on a semi span model. AFC can be used to trim the SACCON in pitch and it alters forces and moments comparable to common control surface deflections. A combination of AFC and control surface deflection may increase the overall efficiency and opens up a variety of maneuvering possibilities. This implies that AFC should be treated concomitantly with other design parameters and should be considered in the preliminary design process already and not as an add-on tool. Integral force and moment data was supplemented by observations using Pressure Sensitive Paint (PSP) and flow visualization. Two arrays of individually controlled sweeping jets, one located along the leading edge and the other along the flap hinge provided the AFC input needed to alter the flow. The array positioned over the flap-hinge of the model was most effective in stabilizing the wing by decreasing the pitching moment at lower and intermediate angles of incidence. This effect was achieved by reducing the spanwise flow on the swept back portion of the wing through jet-entrainment that also affected the leading edge vortex. Leading edge actuation showed some beneficial effects by inhibiting the formation of the leading edge vortex near the wing tip. A preliminary study using suction was carried out. The tests were carried out at Mach numbers smaller than 0.2 and Reynolds numbers based on the root chord of the model that approached 10⁶.

The topic of my diploma thesis is the design of electric ride-on sweeper. At first, the product is analyzed from a designer and technical aspect. From these analytics is determine the purpose of the thesis and made the new specifical design that is friendly with economical, technical and sychological aspects. Easy and easily controllable elements that provide work safety are he next demand.

The purpose of this thesis is to explore the value co-creation opportunities for an autonomous cleaning robot, in the context of a cleaning service, by using several prototyping methods. Assuming a service perspective, with an exploratory, multi-stakeholder, and collaborative approach, a case study of an autonomous cleaning robot currently in development is conducted. With the methodological approach of sequentially and iteratively going through the phases of Mapping and Ideation, Conceptualization, Prototyping, and Data analysis, a total of 10 co-creative, stakeholder-centric workshops were conducted, using various prototyping methods e.g. Contextual value network mapping and Desktop walkthrough. Findings show that the value that an autonomous cleaning robot can bring different stakeholders in the context of a cleaning service is multi-facetted and can be divided in to eight different Aspects, where each value carries a different implication at the level of the individual and the level of the system. Furthermore, a list of seven different Design parameters and four different Design problems are presented, which should be used as guidelines when further developing a cleaning service that uses an autonomous cleaning robot. Finally, the implications of the findings are put into a broader perspective through discussion, with topics such as the impact of more robots in society.

Disposal and beneficial-use options for street sweeping residuals collected as part of routine roadway maintenance activities in Florida, USA, were assessed by characterizing approximately 200 samples collected from 20 municipalities. Total concentrations (mg/kg or μg/kg) and leachable concentrations (mg/L or μg/L) of 11 metals and a number of organic pollutant groups (volatile organics, semi-volatile organics, pesticides, herbicides, carbamates) in the samples were measured. The synthetic precipitation leaching procedure (SPLP) was performed to evaluate the leachability of the pollutants. From the total metal analysis, several metals (e.g., arsenic, barium, chromium, copper, nickel, lead, and zinc) were commonly found above their detection limits. Zinc was found to have the highest mean concentration of all metals measured (46.7 mg/kg), followed by copper (10.7 mg/kg) and barium (10.5 mg/kg). The metal with the smallest mean concentration was arsenic (0.48 mg/kg). A small fraction of the total arsenic, barium, lead, and zinc leached in some samples using the SPLP; leached concentrations were relatively low. A few organic compounds (e.g., 4,4′-DDT, endrin, and endosulfan II) were detected in a limited number of samples. When the total and leaching results were compared to risk-based Florida soil cleanup target levels and groundwater cleanup target levels, the street sweepings were not found to pose a significant human-health risk via direct exposure or groundwater contamination.

The enhancement of node projection techniques in sweeping is the subject of this thesis. Sweeping is a method used to produce all-hexahedral finite element meshes on certain classes of geometry. The placement of nodes in the interior of the geometry during the sweeping process remains a difficult problem. This thesis presents advancements in this area which improve the speed of the algorithm and the resulting element quality. A comparison of existing projection methods was performed. The existing Faceted projection sweeping method was extended to be applicable to more general classes of sweepable geometry. This comparison and extension of node projection algorithms led to the development of a new node projection technique: the SmartAffine method. This method builds on previous techniques and is characterized by its speed. Finally, a technique for coupling node projection techniques is presented. This technique characterizes the complexity of the sweepable geometry and applies the most appropriate node projection scheme. This is accomplished without user interaction and improves the speed of the sweeping algorithm and the quality of swept meshes.