Doctoral thesis „Ballistic-proof concretes“ deals with description, design and development of material based on ultra-high performance fibre reinforced cementitious composite with increased ballistic resistance i.e. increased resistance against high-strain rate dynamic loading induced by interaction of high-velocity moving objects. High mechanical properties, essential for such a material, are reached especially by maximal reduction of water-to-binder coefficient using high-range water reducing agents, high-strength aggregates and dense structure by precise selection and dosage of raw materials in the recipe. The main goal is to prepare a methodology for design of such a materials, observation of material behaviour on ballistic loading and quantitative description of material response for protective structures design. Properties of designed materials within this thesis are comparing with properties of commercially available and commonly used cementitious composites in order to create a concept for material limits in the field of ballistic protection. This concept enables to estimate ballistic protection of present or newly-designed materials and structures.

The thesis discusses the design and experimental verification of a new method for detecting partial discharges in oil-cooled high-power transformers, emphasizing the origin of the measured signal from the outer and inner regions of the transformer tank. The detection and spatial localization of partial discharges utilizes UHF (Ultra High Frequency) electromagnetic signal measurement. The UHF partial discharge detection method, also referred as UHF PD, is one of the most advanced techniques for the accurate spatial localization of the signal source position. The focus of the thesis lies in the development of technical and software solutions for the separation of partial discharge signals originating from the internal space of the transformer and the spurious signals from the connection lines. The proposed technical and program solutions constitute a signal discriminatory method. The precise and repeatable diagnostics of the transformer state are guaranteed by observing the measurement methodology and special setting of the diagnostic system. The functionality of the signal discriminatory method was verified during real measurement of the oil-cooled power transformers at the Dukovany nuclear power plant in operation. The output of the designed methodology is to set up a calibration procedure and follow-up steps to ensure objective, repeatable, and comparable measurements for the purposes of regular predictive maintenance in transformers.

CHARLES UNIVERSITY IN PRAGUE FACULTY OF SCIENCE DEPARTMENT OF BIOCHEMISTRY PRAGUE 2010 Supervisor: Doc. MUDr. Jiří Gallo, PhD. Supervisor-consultant: Prof. RNDr. Gustav Entlicher, CSc. Eva Zolotarevová Summary of PhD Thesis POLYETHYLENE WEAR PARTICLES AROUND TOTAL JOINT REPLACEMENTS - THEIR PROPERTIES, DISTRIBUTION AND POSSIBLE MECHANISM OF THEIR ADVERSE BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS PRAGUE 2010 The research project was supported by the Grant project of National research program II. (no. 2B06096) of the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports named "Observation and minimization of UHMWPE wear in joint replacements". Front-page picture: Polyethylene wear particle isolated from granuloma tissue surrounding total hip replacement; Electron microscope microphotograph; particle size app. 90 x 80 µm; retouched Eva Zolotarevová Introduction Introduction For many people all over the world a replacement with an implant of irreversibly damaged joint is often the only way how to come back to normal life without pain and mobility limitation. Nowadays, greater and greater requirements are asked of quality of all replacement components, especially in terms of quality of used materials. Biomechanical properties of hip and knee replacements have been already solved. The most often used materials for manufacturing joint...

A significant portion of cancer patients receive radiotherapy as part of their curative or palliative treatment plan. Radiotherapy is however greatly limited by radiation induced toxicities in healthy tissue surrounding the tumour, which can lead to long-term or acute complications for a patient. In response to this issue, recent studies have considered a new technique called FLASH radiotherapy, where ultra-high dose rates have been shown to effectively reduce toxicity in normal cells whilst maintaining a tumour response equivalent to conventional dose rates. However, the exact mechanism for this effect is not yet well understood. This project seeks to investigate if certain dose delivery patterns exist where there is an increase or reduction of concentration of the toxic radical hydroxyl, which is known to play a key role in the damage of DNA in the cell, for unchanged total dose. This was done by simulating the chemical reactions which take place when water is irradiated with ionizing radiation using a simple model system consisting of water with free oxygen dissolved into it, called RadChemModel. Using basic reaction laws from chemistry, the concentration of each chemical species involved was solved for from a system of linear and non-linear ordinary differential equations. The concentration of hydroxyl was calculated as a function of time for a range of irradiation beam patterns. This model supports that there could be a difference in toxicity between FLASH and conventional beam parameters. Furthermore, a shift in the behaviour of hydroxyl suggesting reduced toxicity was observed at FLASH dose rates with very high beam pulse frequencies. However, the results obtained do not provide enough information to confirm that the concentration of hydroxyl is reduced with FLASH beam parameters. / En stor andel cancerpatienter får strålterapi som läkande eller palliativ behandling. Strålterapi kan ge upphov till allvarliga skador i den friska vävnaden i närheten av tumörområdet. För att förebygga omedelbara så väl som långsiktiga skadliga effekter av strålterapi, har nyligen pulicerade studier undersökt en ny teknik som kallas för FLASH strålterapi. Man har påvisat att ultra-höga doshastigheter kan minska strålskadorna i friska celler samtidigt som tumörkontrollen bevaras. Emellertid finns ännu ingen tillräcklig förklaring för den exakta mekanismen bakom fenomenet. Målet med detta projekt är att undersöka om en ökning eller minskning av koncentrationen hos radikalen hydroxyl, som är känd för att spela en kritisk roll i framkallandet av DNA skador, kunde upptäckas för särskilda doseringsmönster med en oförändrad total dos. Detta studerades med en enkel matematisk modell (RadChemModel) för vatten med upplöst syre. Med denna modell simulerades de kemiska reaktioner som äger rum när vatten bestrålas med joniserande strålning. Från fundamentala kemiska reaktionslagar, kunde koncentrationen av hydroxyl som funktion av tid fås genom att lösa ett system av linjära och icke-linjära ordinära differentialekvationer. Den här modellen visar att det kan finnas en skillnad i strålinducerade skador mellan FLASH och vanlig strålterapi. Resultaten från väldigt höga pulsfrekvenser med FLASH antydde också att mindre hydroxyl producerades och därmed att strålskador kan vara beroende av både doshastighet och pulsfrekvens. Däremot är resultaten inte tillräckliga för bekräfta att koncentrationen av hydroxyl är reducerad för FLASH.

It is a well-known problem that concrete needs to be made more efficient and that it is the large consumption of cement that is the major contributing factor to the nearby need. There is a zero vision of a climate-neutral concrete where all CO2 emissions in the life cycle of the concrete are to be reset by 2050. It is a question of improving, above all, the process of handling CO2 in the production of cement. This study tackles CO2 emissions from the concrete from a holistic perspective, by exploring optimization possibilities when implementing a newly developed concrete in residential buildings, called Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC). While it should be a better alternative for the climate, it should also require less material consumption and be more cost-effective in order to create a competitive alternative to the conventional alternative today, called Normal Concrete (NC). UHPC is during a development phase regarding optimization opportunities and it has been proven in several studies to be able to relate better to a sustainable design, based on a total life cycle progression. This applies above all to large and robust bridge structures where large volume differences are available. The idea behind this study is to highlight the question of whether there is an opportunity to get similar results in the construction of less robust components in residential buildings, since the problem with the mix design for UHPC has been the overall high cost in relation to NC. In recent years, this cost has been reduced and now there are opportunities to effectively introduce UHPC into another segment.In this study, columns and beams were dimensioned in a residential NC building and a residential UHPC building with ETABS (CSI 2019). Furthermore, the components of the buildings were compared, based on the aspect of a sustainable design from a total LCA. What was investigated were the differences in total material consumption, CO2 emissions, and costs.The study showed that the UHPC components were better based on all aspects after its total LCA. The total cement consumption was larger, but the building received at the same time an estimated double the lifespan of the NC- building. The total material consumption in the form of total component volumes became smaller, the total annual CO2 emissions became smaller and the total annual costs became smaller as well. / Det är ett välkänt problem att betong behöver klimateffektiviseras och att det är den storacementkonsumtionen som är den stora bidragande faktorn till det närliggande behovet. Detfinns en nollvision om en klimatneutral betong där alla CO2- utsläpp under betongenslivscykel (LCA), ska nollställas fram till år 2050. Det är en fråga om att framför allt förbättraprocessen gällande hantering av CO2 vid produktion av cement. Den här studien angriperCO2- utsläppen från betongen ur ett helhetsperspektiv, genom att undersökaoptimeringsmöjligheter vid implementering av en nyutvecklad betong i bostadshus, kalladUltra High Performance Concrete (UHPC). Samtidigt som den ska vara ett bättre alternativför klimatet, ska den också kräva mindre materialåtgång och vara mer kostnadseffektiv föratt kunna skapa ett konkurrenskraftigt alternativ till det konventionella alternativet idag,kallad Normal Concrete (NC). UHPC är under en optimeringsfas och den har bevisats i flerastudier kunna förhålla sig bättre till en hållbar design, utifrån en total LCA. Det gäller framförallt stora och robusta brokonstruktioner där stora volymskillnader är disponibla. Tankenmed den här studien är att lyfta fram frågan om det finns möjlighet att få liknande resultatvid byggnation av mindre robusta komponenter i bostadshus, i ju med att problemet medmix-designen för UHPC, har varit den generella höga kostnaden i förhållande till NC. Påsenare år har den kostnaden kunnat reduceras och nu finns möjligheterna att effektivtkunna införa UHPC till ytterligare ett segment.I studien jämfördes pelare och balkar i ett UHPC- hus med motsvarande komponenter i ettNC- hus utifrån aspekten en hållbar design, ur en total LCA. Husen dimensionerades i ETABS(CSI 2019) utefter samma förutsättningar med hänsyn till kravet på bärförförmågorna. Detutgjorde skillnader hos volymerna på komponenterna, som således påvisade hurmaterialåtgången förändrades. CO2- utsläppen och kostnaderna påverkades avbetongkompositionerna och skillnaderna hos de materiella egenskaperna av respektivebetongtyp. I slutändan redovisades vilken betongtyp som genererade minsta och störstaårliga CO2- utsläpp och kostnader.Resultatet visade att UHPC- komponenterna minskade den totala betongåtgången underbyggprocessen med 27,1%, samt minskade armeringsåtgången med 12,0%, men attcementåtgången nästan fördubblades och motsvarade en ökning på 99,4%. CO2- utsläppenvart således betydligt större efter byggprocessen, men i förhållande till ett totaltlivcykelförlopp, minskade de totala årliga utsläppen med 18,8%. Det fanns en kritisk punktdär UHPC- komponenterna måste ha en LCA på minst 97,5 år i förhållande till NCkomponenternas LCA på 60 år, för att vara mer lönsamma utifrån totala CO2- utsläpp.Kostnaderna vart också betydligt större för UHPC- komponenterna efter byggprocessen,men efter en total LCA, minskade de totala kostnaderna med 39,0%. Det fanns en kritiskpunkt, där LCA- förloppet måste uppgå till minst 73,2 år i förhållande till NCkomponenternas LCA på 60 år, för att vara mer lönsamma utifrån totala kostnader.Enligt det framtagna resultatet fanns det goda möjligheter för pelare och balkar i UHPChuset att förhålla sig bättre utifrån en hållbar design, än vad motsvarande komponenter förNC- huset gjorde, efter en total LCA. Pelare och balkar i bostadshus kan bli ett nytt segmentatt introducera UHPC till, även om pålitligheten för studien är begränsad av betydelsefullafelkällor och tillgängliga kunskaper inom området för närvarande.

La mémoire autobiographique est vue comme un ensemble d'informations et de souvenirs personnels permettant de construire un sentiment d'identité. Elle se développe progressivement et apparaît très sensible aux pathologies neurodéveloppementales. La mémoire autobiographique est intimement liée au Soi lui permettant d'encoder et de récupérer toutes ses représentations et expériences. Ainsi, le Soi se constitue d'aspects explicites comprenant la mémoire autobiographique mais également d'aspects plus implicites relatifs aux expériences corporelles du sujet. L'atteinte des aspects implicites et explicites du Soi pourrait rendre compte de certains symptômes psychotiques et des difficultés d'adaptation des patients atteints de schizophrénie. La schizophrénie est une pathologie neurodéveloppementale qui débute à la fin de l'adolescence mais qui pourrait puiser son émergence dans des stades bien plus précoces. Le premier épisode psychotique qui signe l'entrée dans la phase active de la maladie est généralement précédé par une phase « prodromique » où des symptômes cliniques sont présents à un niveau infraliminaire du seuil de psychose. Ces sujets sont qualifiés de sujets à ultra haut risque de psychose (UHR). Les troubles du Soi sont bien documentés dans la schizophrénie, néanmoins très peu de données sont disponibles concernant les sujets UHR. Le but de cette thèse est multiple : (i) mesurer l'impact des anomalies neurodéveloppementales sur la mémoire autobiographique, (ii) objectiver des déficits de la mémoire autobiographique dès la phase prodromique, (iii) évaluer l'ensemble des composantes du Soi afin d'investiguer leurs interactions et l'impact des anomalies développementales sur celles-ci. Nous avons ainsi effectué trois études. Notre première étude a investigué le lien entre le poids des anomalies neurodéveloppementales et la mémoire autobiographique en comparant deux pathologies neurodéveloppementales, une à début tardif : la schizophrénie, et l'autre à début précoce : les troubles du spectre autistique. Nous avons pu mettre en évidence un pattern de performances similaires entre les deux populations bien que les mécanismes responsables des troubles en mémoire autobiographique apparaissent distincts. Dans notre deuxième étude, nous avons comparé les performances autobiographiques de patients atteints de schizophrénie par rapport à celles de sujets UHR. Nos résultats révèlent un déficit de la mémoire autobiographique aussi sévère chez les sujets UHR que chez les patients atteints de schizophrénie mettant ainsi en évidence une atteinte de cette fonction en amont du premier épisode psychotique. Dans la lignée de ces résultats, nous avons conduit une troisième étude. Le but étant de situer la mémoire autobiographique dans un contexte plus large, celui du Soi, tout en intégrant une composante développementale. Nous avons élaboré et proposé une batterie d'investigation examinant différents aspects du Soi implicites et explicites, combiné à l'évaluation d'anomalies du neurodéveloppement. Celle-ci a été administrée chez des sujets UHR en comparaison à des patients atteints de schizophrénie. Au final, nos résultats révèlent un impact de la charge neurodéveloppementale sur les différents aspects du Soi, la pertinence d'investiguer au sein d'un même protocole ces différents aspects et la présence d'anomalies du Soi déjà présents chez les sujets UHR, constituant potentiellement des marqueurs prédicteurs de transition psychotique et permettant d'améliorer la détection précoce de ces sujets et leur prise en charge. / Autobiographical memory is delineated as a set of personal information and experiences to build a sense of identity. It develops gradually and appears very sensitive to neurodevelopmental disorders. Autobiographical memory is intimately linked to the self, enabling it to encode and retrieve all its representations and experiences. Thus, the self is constituted of explicit aspects including autobiographical memory but also by more implicit aspects relating to the subject's body. Implicit and explicit self-aspects alterations may account for certain psychotic symptoms and adaptation difficulties in patients with schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a neurodevelopmental disorder that begins at the end of adolescence but which could emerge in much earlier stages. The first psychotic episode that signs the beginning of the active phase of schizophrenia is usually preceded by a "prodromal phase" during which clinical signs are present at a sub-threshold level. Individuals experiencing these signs are considering as Ultra High Risk of psychosis (UHR). Self-disorders are well documented in schizophrenia, however very little is known regarding UHR subjects. The aim of this thesis is multiple: (i) to measure the impact of neurodevelopmental anomalies on autobiographical memory, (ii) to objectify autobiographical memory deficits in the prodromal phase, (iii) to evaluate all the self-components in order to investigate their interactions and the impact of developmental anomalies. We have conducted three studies. Our first study investigated the relationship between neurodevelopmental anomalies and autobiographical memory by comparing two neurodevelopmental disorders, one with late onset: schizophrenia and the other with early onset: autism spectrum disorders. Results revealed a pattern of similar performances between the two populations although the mechanisms responsible for autobiographical memory impairment do not appear the same. In our second study, we compared the autobiographical performances of patients with schizophrenia compared to those of UHR subjects. Our results highlighted a deficit of autobiographical memory as severe in UHR subjects as in patients with schizophrenia, thus revealing an impairment of this function upstream of the first psychotic episode. In line with these results, we conducted a third study. The aim was to situate the autobiographical memory in a wider context, the multi-componential Self, while integrating a developmental component. We developed and proposed a battery investigating different self-components, combined with the assessment of neurodevelopmental anomalies. This battery was administered in UHR subjects compared to patients with schizophrenia. Finally, our results reveal an impact of neurodevelopmental abnormalities on the different self-aspects, the relevance of investigating these different self-aspects within the same protocol and the presence of self-abnormalities already present in the UHR subjects, constituting potentially predictive marker of psychotic transition and improving the early detection of these subjects and the development of healthcare and reinsertion programs.

Ces dernières années ont été marquées par de grandes évolutions technologiques à travers notamment une course à la miniaturisation. De gros efforts de recherche se concentrent en particulier sur le domaine de l’électronique organique mais aussi sur de nouveaux matériaux bidimensionnels comme le graphène. Ces matériaux 2D présentent des propriétés physiques exceptionnelles et sont des candidats prometteurs pour le développement de futurs dispositifs électroniques. Au cours de cette thèse, l’approche ascendante, qui consiste à assembler ensemble des petites briques élémentaires, a été utilisée pour élaborer des nanostructures bidimensionnelles originales sur des surfaces. Des états électroniques localisés dus à un couplage électronique latéral particulier entre les molécules ont été observés. Quatre nanoarchitectures hybrides ioniques-organiques différentes ont été réalisées en faisant varier la température de la surface. Des nanostructures organiques covalentes ont aussi été élaborées par une réaction de couplage d’Ullmann sur la surface. Deux précurseurs différents en forme d’étoile avec des substituants iodés et bromés respectivement, ont été étudiés. De grandes nanostructures carbonées hexagonales poreuses ont notamment été synthétisées en faisant varier la température du substrat. Ces travaux ouvrent de nouvelles perspectives pour la réalisation de matériaux organiques bidimensionnels aux propriétés contrôlées. / Over the last few years, important technological developments were made following a trend towards miniaturization. In particular, lots of research efforts are put into the research on organic electronics and on 2D materials like graphene. Such 2D materials show great physical properties and are promising candidates for the development of future electronic devices.In this project, bottom-up approach consisting in assembling elementary building blocks together, was used to engineer novel twodimensional nanostructures on metal surfaces. The properties of these two-dimensional nanostructures were investigated using Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) and X-ray Photoemission Spectroscopy (XPS). Two-dimensional nanostructures based on the self-assembly of organic building blocks stabilized by intermolecular interactions were engineered. In particular, nanostructures stabilized by hydrogen bonds, halogen bonds and ionic-organic interactions were investigated. Localized electronic states due to specific molecular lateral electronic coupling were observed. Four different ionic-organic nanoarchitectures were engineered varying the substrate temperature. Covalent organic nanostructures were also engineered by onsurface Ullmann coupling reaction. Two different star-shaped precursors with iodine and bromine substituents respectively, were investigated. Large periodic porous 2D covalent hexagonal carbon nanostructures weresuccessfully engineered by temperature driven hierarchal Ullmann coupling. These results open new perspectives for the development of 2D organic materials with controlled structures and properties.

Der vorliegende Bericht beschreibt das Verhalten von ultrahochfestem Beton unter zweiaxialer Druckbeanspruchung. Bisher wurden ein Feinkornbeton und zwei Grobkornbetone mit unterschiedlichen Faserzusätzen untersucht. Die Zylinderdruckfestigkeiten nach 28 Tagen betragen rund 150, 160 und 170 N/mm². Besonders bei dem Feinkornbeton wurde eine überwiegend horizontale Ausrichtung der Stahlfasern festgestellt, die zu einer Anisotropie im Materialverhalten führte. Zusammenfassend muss festgestellt werden, dass die zweiaxiale Druckfestigkeit von UHPC nur geringfügig größer ist als die einaxiale. Für die Mischungen mit 2,5 Vol.-% Fasergehalt übersteigt die Festigkeit bei einem Spannungsverhältnis von Spannung 1 zu Spannung 2 gleich Eins die einaxiale Festigkeit um 7 bzw. 10 %. Bei dem Beton mit 0,9 Vol.-% Fasergehalt lag diese zweiaxiale Festigkeit sogar geringfügig unter der einaxialen. Bei der Bemessung von UHPC dürfen somit die vom Normalbeton bekannten Festigkeitssteigerungen unter mehraxialer Druckbelastung, wie sie z.B. bei reinen Druckknoten von Stabwerkmodellen angesetzt werden, nicht verwendet werden! Für die Beschreibung der Bruchkurve kann nach jetzigem Erkenntnisstand das Bruchkriterium nach OTTOSEN als eine gute Näherung empfohlen werden. Die Versuche haben gezeigt, dass sich UHPC in vielen, zum Teil sicherheitsrelevanten Bereichen anders verhält als Normalbeton. Für eine umfassende Beschreibung des Tragverhaltens sind weitere Versuche unter dreiaxiale Druckbelastung und kombinierter Druck-Zug-Belastung notwendig.

Spot friction welding (SFW) was performed on ultra high strength steel (UHSS) steel sheet commonly used in automobile manufacturing. Alloys studied included DP780, DP780EG, DP980, and DF140T sheet steel of varying thickness from 1.2 mm to 1.4 mm. Welding was accomplished using a PCBN standard tool. Weld strengths were then compared to a proposed AWS standard. Initial hardness readings were taken in cross sectioned samples. Grain structure in a SFW is presented. Resistance spot welds were created in three steels. This study focuses on the strength of SFW joints as compared to traditional resistance spot welding (RSW) in welding like materials to one another. Cycle times of SFW were also evaluated and compared to production rate cycle times of RSW.

In this study, the dissimilar metals 5754 aluminum and DP980 ultra-high strength steel were joined using the friction bit joining (FBJ) process. The friction bits were made using one of three steels: 4140, 4340, or H13. Experiments were performed in lap shear, T-peel, and cross tension configurations, with the 0.070" thick 5754 aluminum alloy as the top layer through which the friction bit cut, and the 0.065" thick DP980 as the bottom layer to which the friction bit welded. All experiments were performed using a computer controlled welding machine that was purpose-built and provided by MegaStir Technologies. Through a series of designed experiments (DOE), weld processing parameters were varied and controlled to determine which parameters had a significant effect on weld strength at a 95% confidence level. The parameters that were varied included spindle rotational speeds, Z-command depths, Z-velocity plunge rates, dwell times, and friction bit geometry. Maximum lap shear weld strengths were calculated to be 1425.4lbf and were to be obtained using a bit tip length at 0.175", tip diameter at 0.245", neck diameter at 0.198", cutting and welding z-velocities at 2.6"/min, cutting and welding RPMs at 550 and 2160 respectively, cutting and welding z-commands at -0.07" and -0.12" respectively, cooling dwell at 500 ms, and welding dwell at 1133.8 ms. These parameters were further refined to reduce the weld creation time to 1.66 seconds. These parameters also worked well in conjunction with an adhesive to form weld bonded samples. The uncured adhesive had no effect on the lap shear strengths of the samples. Using the parameters described above, it was discovered that cross tension and T-peel samples suffered from shearing within the bit that caused the samples to break underneath the flange of the bit during testing. Visual inspection of sectioned welds indicated the presence of cracking and void zones within the bit.