This paper describes a practice- based research project in which physical and emotional comfort and discomfort is experienced by the human body. A variety of different Comfort Zones are presented. All of them deal with the relationship between filling material and cover, in which knitted structures and materials play a central role in order to create comfort. The elasticity of the knit is challenged when creating volume and emphasizes the idea that comfort is elastic in material/physical way, as well as well in emotions. The use of filling materials gives a new dimension, sensitivity and offers new opportunities. This form exploration discusses the potential of knit to serve as a cover and decorative element, but most importantly the possibility of a textile to create its own filling. By rolling up a knitted tube, volume is built up layer by layer; a torus appears and captures a void in the center of the form, required by the tube, the fundament. Hints of discomfort are given and emphasized by either surface/structure, volume or garments on the body.

<div> <p>Guided by the continuous manufacturing paradigm shift in the pharmaceutical industry, the proposed thesis focuses on the implementation of an integrated continuous crystallization platform, the oscillatory baffled crystallizer (OBC), with real time process monitoring. First, by defining an appropriate operating regime with residence time distribution (RTD) measurements, a system can be defined that allows for plug flow operation while also maintaining solid suspension in a two-phase system. The aim of modern crystallization processes, narrow crystal size distributions (CSDs), is a direct result of narrow RTDs. Using a USB microscope camera and principal component analysis (PCA) in pulse tracer experiments, a novel non-contact RTD measurement method was developed using methylene blue. After defining an operating region, this work focuses on a specific process intensification technique, namely spherical crystallization.</p> <p>Used mainly to tailor the size of a final dosage form, spherical crystallization removes the need for downstream size-control based unit operations (grinding, milling, and granulation), while maintaining drug efficacy by tailoring the size of the primary crystals in the agglomerate. The approach for generating spherical agglomerates is evaluated for both small and large molecules, as there are major distinctions in process kinetics and mechanisms. To monitor the spherical agglomeration process, a variety of Process Analytical Technology (PAT) tools were used and the data was implemented for scale-up applications.</p> <p>Lastly, a compartmental model was designed based on the experimental RTD data with the intention of predicting OBC mixing and scale-up dynamics. Together, with validation from both the DN6 and DN15 systems, a scale independent equation was developed to predict system dispersion at different mixing conditions. Although it accurately predicts the behavior of these two OBC systems, additional OBC systems of different scale, but similar geometry should be tested for validation purposes.</p> </div> <br>

An evaluation of a series of interventions was conducted for an individual who engaged in life-threatening rumination and emesis. There is substantial research indicating that the delivery of peanut butter (Barton & Barton, 1985; Greene, Johnston, Rossi, Racal, Winston, & Barron, 1991) and/or chopped bread following meals (Thibadeau, Blew, Reedy, & Luiselli, 1999), chewing gum (Rhine & Tarbox, 2009), and satiation procedures (Dudley, Johnston, & Barnes, 2002; Lyons, Rue, Luiselli, & DiGennario, 2007; Rast, Johnston, Drum, & Conrin, 1981) can be effective treatments for rumination. In the current case, each of these interventions was found to be either ineffective or contraindicated based on the participant's fragile health status. Previous literature has shown that liquid delivery can affect rates of rumination in some clients (Barton & Barton, 1985,; Heering, Wilder, & Ladd, 2003). We examined how liquid affected the rate of rumination during and after meals. Based on the individual's medical condition, oral nutrition and fluids were discontinued indefinitely and a gastronomy-jejunostomy tube was used for nutrition. All rumination ceased when fluids and nutrition were delivered via the jejunostomy tube. Finally, a fluid analysis procedure was implemented in which the participant received small amounts of fluid while NPO. Color and flavor were manipulated systematically, and results suggested that flavor impacted the rate of rumination.

This PhD thesis is an analysis of the chemical kinetics and oxidation behavior of fuel components via experiments and correlations. First, a number of experimental studies of the reactivity of OH radicals with unsaturated hydrocarbons are performed at temperatures ranging from 294 to 1400 K by OH absorption and laser induced fluorescence techniques in two different reactors: shock tube and flow reactor. It is found that OH has a tendency to add to the unsaturated CC bond, forming a relatively stable adduct. The thermal stability of these adducts is vital for a better understanding of the kinetics of olefins, poly-olefins, alkynes and other unsaturated components in real and surrogate fuel blends. In this work, the reaction rate coefficient of the reaction of hydroxyl radical with many olefins (butenes, pentenes, hexenes), di-olefins (butadienes, and pentadienes) and allyl radical are measured. A strong competition between H-abstraction and OH-addition pathways is seen particularly in the intermediate temperature window of ~ 400 to 900 K. All of these measured elementary reactions give new insights into the chemical kinetics of fuels and allow modelers to improve the predictive capability of their models. Second, measurements of the ignition delay times of propene, isobutene, 2-methylhexane and 2-methylbutanol in air are performed using a high-pressure shock tube. Details about multi-stage ignition and ignition delay dependence on various thermodynamic properties is investigated for these four hydrocarbons. We followed this with a correlation study of ignition delay times of fuel blends and real fuel streams. The main requirement of these correlations is that these should be predictive enough to compete with the predictive capabilities of detailed chemical kinetic models but at a much reduced computational cost. The obtained correlation scheme does not only predict ignition timing during CFD simulations but also other combustion properties such as low-temperature heat release timing and resulting temperature and pressure increases due to cool flame. A discussion on the weak dependence of high-temperature ignition delay times on the composition of real fuels is also presented, where universal Arrhenius type expressions of ignition delay times of gasoline, diesel and jet fuels are given.

Energy demand is rapidly increasing due to the increase in population and rising living standards. Petroleum-based fuels account for the main source of energy consumed in the world. However, they are also considered to be the main source of the unwanted emissions to the atmosphere. In this context, chemical kinetic studies of combustion processes are essential for a better understanding of the underlying reactions and to achieve increased combustion efficiency and reduced pollutant emissions. In this study, ignition delay times, a global indicator of fuel reactivity, were measured for promising fuels for use in advanced combustion engines. Also, rate coefficients were measured for promising oxygenated hydrocarbons that can be used as additives to conventional fuels. Ignition delay time measurements of four primary reference fuel (PRF) blends, mixtures considered to be some of the simplest gasoline surrogates, were measured behind reflected shock waves to provide a large experimental dataset to validate PRF chemical kinetic models. The kinetic modeling predictions from four chemical kinetic models were compared with the experimental data. Ignition delay correlations were also developed to reduce the simulation cost of complicated models. Recently, naphtha, a low-octane distillate fuel, has been proposed as a low-cost refinery fuel. Likewise, a mid-octane blend which consists of low-octane (light and heavy naphtha) and high-octane (reformate) distillate fuels has been proposed to power gasoline compression ignition (GCI) engines. In this work, experimental and modeling studies were conducted on low and mid-octane distillate fuels (naphtha and GCI blend) and surrogate candidates to assess their autoignition characteristics for use in advanced internal combustion engines. Oxygenated molecules are considered to be promising additives to conventional fuels. Thermal decomposition of three esters (ethyl levulinate, ethyl propionate and diethyl carbonate ) and a five-member cyclic ketone (cyclopentanone) was investigated in this work. Laser absorption technique was employed to follow the reaction progress by measuring ethylene (C2H4) near 10.532 µm using a CO2 gas laser for the decomposition process of the three esters. The reaction progress of the decomposition of cyclopentanone was followed by monitoring CO formation using a quantum cascade laser at a wavelength near 4.556 µm.

Valproic Acid Promotes Acetylation of Superoxide Dismutase-2 During Neurogenesis. Valproic acid (VPA) is a known developmental toxicant associated with a high prevalence of neural tube defects (NTD). The mechanism of VPA-induced NTD is unclear, but oxidative stress may be implicated. To understand how embryotoxic oxidative stress may occur, we measured superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity following VPA treatment in the embryonic pluripotent P19 mouse carcinoma cell line. In undifferentiated P19 cultures treated with VPA (5 mM), dichlorofluorescein fluorescence increased 15% compared to untreated controls over 20 min, indicating a modest, yet statistically significant increase in ROS generation. Undifferentiated P19 cells were treated with VPA for 6 h, after which total SOD and mitochondrial SOD (SOD2) activities were measured. VPA treatment decreased total SOD activity by approximately 20% but SOD2 activity was undetectable; but this was not a consequence of changes to SOD (SOD1 or SOD2) protein concentrations. Interestingly, glutathione redox state increased from -262 mV to -245 mV after a 6 h treatment with VPA, indicating significant oxidation of the cellular redox environment. Measurement of mitochondrial superoxide levels showed an increase following VPA treatments. While it is unlikely that VPA works directly as an oxidant, these data suggest that VPA may promote oxidative stress through an alternative means, such as via the inhibition of SOD activity and thus, allow for an increase in ROS. Importantly, VPA is a known deacetylase inhibitor, and SOD2 function is regulated by acetylation. As such, we evaluated the acetylation state of SOD2 to determine potential disruption via acetylation. Treated undifferentiated P19 cells showed a significant increase in SOD2 acetylation. However, in fully differentiated P19-derived neurons, cells showed no such SOD2 acetylation. Additionally, pretreatment with dithiole-3-thione (D3T), a Nrf2 activator of the antioxidant response, attenuated VPA-induced mitochondrial ROS production and SOD2 acetylation and improved SOD2 activity, suggesting Nrf2 as a potential means to reduce VPA-mediated oxidative stress. To evaluate the effects in the embryo proper, gestational day 8 mouse embryos were treated with VPA in culture for 6 h. Similar to P19 cells, VPA-treated neurulating embryos showed significant SOD2 acetylation and a concomitant decrease in total SOD activity. These data support a similar consequence of VPA-induced oxidative stress in embryos as is demonstrated in our cellular model. Since no SOD2 acetylation is observed in differentiated neurons and VPAinduced SOD2 acetylation occurs more prevalently in undifferentiated/differentiating cells, these data purport means by which VPA preferentially induces oxidative stress in developing systems.

No description available.

Shock tubes have been used extensively to study shock wave structures and high speed flow features. The purpose of constructing this open end shock tube was to have the ability to produce shock waves in a laboratory setting but also understand the exit flow coming out which can be applied to future studies that are beyond the scope of this work. This undertaking would require that an open end shock tube be built and instrumented with PCB Integrated Circuit Piezoelectric (ICP) Pressure Sensor Model 113B24 that would then be connected to a PCB Model 482C05 Signal Conditioner with the purpose of measuring the the pressure jumps as well as the speed of the shock wave. The data was acquired using National Instruments NI PXIe-1071 chassis with a PXI 1088 Embedded Controller as well as three PXI 5114 digitizer cards with the Virtual Instrument coded using LabView. The data was written to a text file that was then transferred to MATLAB for post processing using a Savitzy-Golay filter to clean up the signal noise. The shock tube was driven using compressed air and a diaphragm burst was achieved through spontaneous rupture of a 0.003" Mylar diaphragm. The open shock tube built for this undertaking fits in a lab space and successfully produces a shock wave that propagates down the tube that exits at the open end to reproduce a blast wave. Additionally the available pressure sensors and DAQ were integrated into the shock tube to measure the different predicted shock structures in each run. The experimental runs at the exit of the shock tube demonstrate the expected exit flow features, but a flow visualization is necessary to get a better understanding of the exit flow

Out-of-Autoclave (OoA) processes for manufacturing aerospace-grade parts needs to be better understood to further the development and success of industries that are manufacturing reusable launch vehicles, military and commercial aircraft, and spacecraft. Overcoming the performance limitations associated with OoA, also known as low-pressure prepreg curing, methods (void count, energy absorption, etc.) will help decrease the costs associated with aerospace composite manufacturing and the negative environmental effects correlated with high-pressure composite curing methods. Experimental, theoretical, and numerical approaches are used to explore both low and high-pressure curing cycles and how the two different processes affect final cured parts. Quasi-static uniaxial compression tests on 33mm diameter tubular specimens concluded that the high-pressure curing methods (up to 90 psi) increased the likelihood of a final part with increased stiffness compared to the lower atmospheric-pressure methods (14.7 psi) on an order of 22%. After further extension and deformation past the linear elastic region, tests concluded that although the autoclaved specimens may have been higher-quality parts, the low-pressure-cured specimens performed more efficiently with respect to energy absorption. Considering the specific energy absorption (SEA) and crush force efficiency (CFE) are both on average around 6% higher for the low-pressure specimens, it is concluded that they can perform similarly to the high-pressure specimens and possibly even more efficiently depending on the loading conditions and desired purpose of the structure.

This master thesis is divided into three main parts. In first part is more closely described the method of tube flaring. Tube flaring was chosen for analysis of biaxial stress, in this thesis particularly in the presence of high strain rate. In the second part is more closely described influence of high strain rate on the forming process. There is described influence of high strain rate on behavior of the material, hardening, change of quasi-static yield strength to the dynamic yield strength, influence of high strain rate on the microstructure and more. During the description of these processes there is effort to describe the cause of these changes as well. For this task was used domestic and foreign literature, as well as peer review papers whose authors study intensively this problematic. Besides all of the above there is also derived the velocity of elastic and plastic wave. In the end is evaluated experiment, in which was done tube flaring, which is part of this master thesis. Results from the 3D optical system ARAMIS are interpreted with the help of Microsoft Excel, where the chosen results were used as the input to the equations modified for the dynamic loading.