Transfer of MPEG-2 Transport Stream over MPLS

This study examines how MPEG-2 Transport Stream, used in DVB-T video transmission, can be reliably and efficiently transferred to remote locations over an MPLS network. All the relevant technologies used in this scenario are also discussed in the study. This study was done for Digita Oy, which is a major radio and television content distributor in Finland. The theoretical part of the study begins with the introduction to MPLS technology and continues with explanation of IP Multicast and its components. The fourth section discusses MPEG-2 and the formation and content of MPEG-2 Transport Stream. These technologies were studied in relevant literature and RFC documentation. After the theoretical part of the study, the test setup and the test cases are presented. The results of the test cases, and the conclusions that can be drawn based on them, are discussed in the last section of the study. The tests showed that it is possible to transfer digital video quite reliably over an MPLS network using IP Multicast. By configuring the equipment correctly, the recovery time of the network in case of a failure can be shortened remarkably. Also, the unwanted effect of other traffic on the critical video traffic can be eliminated by defining the Quality of Service parameters correctly. There are, however, some issues that need to be tested further before this setup can be used in broadcast networks. Reliable operation of IP Multicast and proper error correction are the main subjects for future testing.

Paperikoneen käyttöönoton onnistumisen riippuvuus valmistelutyöstä

Paperikoneinvestointi toteutetaan projekteina, joista muodostuvaa ketjua kutsutaan projektien elinkaareksi. Toteutusketjun viimeinen lenkki on käynnistykseen huipentuva käyttöönotto. Hyvä käyttöönotto palvelee investointia. Käyttöönotoissa koetaan erilaisia ongelmatilanteita, joista osa on satunnaisesti tai usein toistuvia. Investoinnin onnistumisen ja aikataulun asettama paine luo tilanteiden selvittämiseen erityishaasteita. Aina ei selvitä ilman takaiskuja. Tutkimustavoitteena oli kartoittaa käyttöönoton yleiset ongelmat ja niiden yhteydet projektihistoriaan, sekä ne projektinhallinnan osa-alueet, joita parantamalla varmistetaan käyttöönoton ja investoinnin onnistuminen. Tutkimus pohjautuu erilaisistainvestointiprojekteista ja käyttöönotoista saatuihin kokemuksiin, haastatteluihin (3 kpl) ja kyselypalautteeseen (42 kpl). Investoinnin onnistumisedellytykset luodaan projektihistoriassa, käyttöönotossa ne viimeistellään. Onnistuminen mitataan tuotto-odotusten saavuttamisena aikataulussa, johon vaikuttavia tekijöitä ovat tuotannon hallinta, käyttövarmuus ja markkinat. Käyttöönoton onnistumista tulee arvioida käyttöönottotehtävistäsuoriutumisen pohjalta, ei pelkästään investoinnille asetettujen aikataulu- ja tuotantotavoitteiden (laatu, määrä, hallinta) saavuttamisena, kuten usein tapahtuu. Tulosten perusteella käyttöönoton merkittävimmät ongelmat ovat tiedonkulun puutteet, ohjelmallisten korjausten suuri määrä ja palautumisajan riittämättömyys. Tärkeimmät painotukset ovat laiterikkojen estäminen, ohjelmavirheiden korjaaminen ja henkilöstön osaamisen varmentaminen. Konelinjan vaikeimmin hallittava osa on radan päänvienti. Osapuolten poikkeavat näkökulmat sekä työn laadun merkitys testauksissa, koulutuksissa ja kenttätoiminnoissa nousee tuloksista myös vahvasti esiin. Tutkimus on selvittänyt sille asetetut tavoitteet. Käyttöönoton merkittävimmät ongelmat syntyvät sen lähihistoriassa: testauksissa, koulutuksessa ja kenttätoiminnoissa. Käyttöönoton onnistumiseksi tulee painotusprojektinhallinnassa keskittää käynnistysvaiheen suunnitteluun sekä kenttätoimintojen hallintaan.

Hydrogen Sensor Application of Anodic Titanium Oxide Nanostructures

Hydrogen (H2) fuel cells have been considered a promising renewable energy source. The recent growth of H2 economy has required highly sensitive, micro-sized and cost-effective H2 sensor for monitoring concentrations and alerting to leakages due to the flammability and explosiveness of H2 Titanium dioxide (TiO2) made by electrochemical anodic oxidation has shown great potential as a H2 sensing material. The aim of this thesis is to develop highly sensitive H2 sensor using anodized TiO2. The sensor enables mass production and integration with microelectronics by preparing the oxide layer on suitable substrate. Morphology, elemental composition, crystal phase, electrical properties and H2 sensing properties of TiO2 nanostructures prepared on Ti foil, Si and SiO2/Si substrates were characterized. Initially, vertically oriented TiO2 nanotubes as the sensing material were obtained by anodizing Ti foil. The morphological properties of tubes could be tailored by varying the applied voltages of the anodization. The transparent oxide layer creates an interference color phenomena with white light illumination on the oxide surface. This coloration effect can be used to predict the morphological properties of the TiO2 nanostructures. The crystal phase transition from amorphous to anatase or rutile, or the mixture of anatase and rutile was observed with varying heat treatment temperatures. However, the H2 sensing properties of TiO2 nanotubes at room temperature were insufficient. H2 sensors using TiO2 nanostructures formed on Si and SiO2/Si substrates were demonstrated. In both cases, a Ti layer deposited on the substrates by a DC magnetron sputtering method was successfully anodized. A mesoporous TiO2 layer obtained on Si by anodization in an aqueous electrolyte at 5°C showed diode behavior, which was influenced by the work function difference of Pt metal electrodes and the oxide layer. The sensor enabled the detection of H2 (20-1000 ppm) at low operating temperatures (50–140°C) in ambient air. A Pd decorated tubular TiO2 layer was prepared on metal electrodes patterned SiO2/Si wafer by anodization in an organic electrolyte at 5°C. The sensor showed significantly enhanced H2 sensing properties, and detected hydrogen in the range of a few ppm with fast response/recovery time. The metal electrodes placed under the oxide layer also enhanced the mechanical tolerance of the sensor. The concept of TiO2 nanostructures on alternative substrates could be a prospect for microelectronic applications and mass production of gas sensors. The gas sensor properties can be further improved by modifying material morphologies and decorating it with catalytic materials.

Patient-perceived health-related quality of life during recovery after total hip arthroplasty – a 6-month follow-up study

Potilaiden käsitys terveyteen liittyvästä elämänlaadusta lonkan tekonivelleikkauksen jälkeisenä toipumisaikana – kuuden kuukauden seurantatutkimus Tässä kaksivaiheisessa seurantatutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin potilaiden käsitystä terveyteen liittyvästä elämänlaadusta lonkan tekonivelleikkauksen jälkeisenä toipumisaikana. Tutkimuksen ensimmäisessä vaiheessa tarkoituksena oli sekä kuvailla potilaiden kokemuksia potilaana olosta, saamastaan hoidosta ja terveyspalveluorganisaatiosta että analysoida aikaisempien tutkimusten perusteella leikkauksen tuloksia potilaan kannalta. Toisessa vaiheessa tarkoituksena oli arvioida potilaiden kokemaa elämänlaatua leikkauksen jälkeen, ja sitä vaikuttivatko primaaritulokset (fyysinen toimintakyky, kipu, ahdistus) tai taloudelliset seuraukset (potilaiden itsensämaksamat kustannukset, palvelujen käyttö) terveyteen liittyvään elämänlaatuun. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli löytää mahdolliset kriittiset ajankohdat tai tekijät, jotka saattavat hidastaa toipumista ja siten huonontaa potilaiden elämänlaatua. Tätä tietoa voidaan käyttää hoitotyössä kun suunnitellaan sopivaa hoitoa ja tukea toipumisajalle. Tutkimuksen ensimmäisessä vaiheessa primaarileikkaukseen tulevat potilaat (n = 17) kuvailivat teemahaastatteluissa kokemuksiaan kahdesti leikkauksen jälkeen. Haastatteluaineisto analysoitiin induktiivisella sisällönanalyysilla. Lisäksi 17 tutkimusartikkelista analysoitiin deduktiivisella sisällönanalyysilla leikkauksen tuloksia potilaalle, tuloksiin vaikuttavia tekijöitä ja käytetyt tutkimusmetodit. Toisessa vaiheessa primaari- tai revisioleikkaukseen tulevat potilaat (n = 100) arvioivat leikkauksen tuloksia kuuden kuukauden ajan leikkauksen jälkeen: terveyteen liittyvää elämänlaatua, primaarituloksia ja taloudellisia seurauksia. Aineisto kerättiin erilaisilla mittareilla: Sickness Impact Profile, Finnish Version, Stait-Trait Anxiety Inventory, ja Numeric Rating Scale. Lisäksi käytettiin tätä tutkimusta varten tehtyjä kyselylomakkeita: Fyysinen toimintakyky-mittari, Palvelujen käyttö-mittari ja Kustannusmittari. Tutkimuksen toiseen vaiheen tulokset analysoitiin tilastollisilla menetelmillä. Potilaiden terveyteen liittyvä elämänlaatu parani ja kipu lievittyi leikkauksen jälkeen ja fyysinen toimintakyky lisääntyi toipumisaikana. Positiivisista muutoksista huolimatta potilaat kokivat ahdistusta samassa määrin kuin ennen leikkaustakin. Palvelujen käyttö vaihteli toipumisajan kuluessa ja potilaiden maksamissa kustannuksissa oli suuria vaihteluita. Fyysisen toimintakyvyn lisääntyminen ja kivun lieveneminen paransivat terveyteen liittyvää elämänlaatua. Sen sijaan huonompi elämänlaatu toipumisaikana oli yhteydessä suurempaan palvelujen käyttöön, kun taas kustannuksilla ei ollut yhteyttä elämänlaatuun. Potilaiden ominaispiirteet tulisi ottaa enemmän huomioon suunniteltaessa sopivaa leikkauksenjälkeistä hoitoa ja tukea. Potilaat tarvitsevat yksilöllisiä ohjeita, sillä monet taustatekijät (esim. ikä, sukupuoli, preoperatiivinen kipu, siviilisääty, ja leikkaustyyppi) vaikuttavat toipumiseen.

Disaster recovery of business critical 3-tiered ERP applications: Disaster Recovery of Nokia Groups SAP R/3

Nykyaikaisessa liiketoimintaympäristössä yritysten kriittisiksi resursseiksi ovat muodostuneet liiketoimintaa tukevat tietojärjestelmät. Mahdollisuus hyödyntää näitä resursseja riippuu ko. liiketoiminnalle kriittisten järjestelmien luotettavuudesta ja hyödynnettävien sovellusten saatavuudesta. Eräs tilanne jossa järjestelmien kyky tukea todellisia liiketoimintaprosesseja vaarantuu on katastrofi. Vaikutukseltaan katastrofi voi olla paikallinen tai kattaa laajojakin alueita. Eri tyyppisiin katastrofeihin on varauduttava niiden edellyttämin tavoin. Eräs kriittisten tietojärjestelmien arkkitehtuuriin vaikuttanut trendi 90-luvulla on ollut client/server lähestymistapa. Client/server paradigman mukaan sovellus jaetaan tasoihin siten että esitys-, sovellus- ja tietokantakerrokset voidaan erottaa fyysisesti toisistaan näiden silti muodostaessa loogisesti yhtenäisen kokonaisuuden. Liiketoiminnan näkökulmasta 90- luvun mullistavia IT-uutuuksia olivat toiminnanohjausjärjestelmät, joiden avulla oli mahdollista hallita koko tuotantoketjua ja muita prosessikokonaisuuksia lähes reaaliajassa. Monikerroksisten toiminnanohjausjärjestelmien luotettavuus on osoittautunut haastavavaksi sillä kaikkien kerrosten suojaaminen kaikilta mahdollisilta katastrofeilta täydellisesti on nykyisellä teknologialla mahdotonta. Kompromissien tekemiseksi on oltava selvillä kunkin menetetyn prosessin aiheuttamista taloudellisista ja liiketoiminnallisista vaikutuksista. Tämän vuoksi juuri toiminnanohjausjärjestelmät ovat mielenkiintoisia, vaikuttavathan ne liiketoimintaprosesseihin läpi koko yrityksen prosessiketjun. Monikerroksisten client/server arkkitehtuuriin pohjautuvien toiminnanohjausjärjestelmien suojaamisessa katastrofeilta onkin sovellettava useita tekniikoita ja teknologioita, ja yhdistettävä kokonaisuus prosessikehykseen. Näin voidaan luoda suunnitelmallinen osa IT strategiaa, joka ottaa kantaa liiketoiminnan jatkuvuuteen katastrofitilanteessa ja mahdollistaa nopean ja täydellisen palautumisen kaikissa olosuhteissa.

Offdesign operation of kraft recovery boiler

A model to solve heat and mass balances during the offdesign load calculations was created. These equations are complex and nonlinear. The main new ideas used in the created offdesign model of a kraft recovery boiler are the use of heat flows as torn iteration variables instead of the current practice of using the mass flows, vectorizing equation solving, thus speeding up the process, using non dimensional variables for solving the multiple heat transfer surface problem and using a new procedure for calculating pressure losses. Recovery boiler heat and mass balances are reduced to vector form. It is shown that these vectorized equations can be solved virtually without iteration. The iteration speed is enhanced by the use of the derived method of calculating multiple heat transfer surfaces simultaneously. To achieve this quick convergence the heat flows were used as the torn iteration parameters. A new method to handle pressure loss calculations with linearization was presented. This method enabled less time to be spent calculating pressure losses. The derived vector representation of the steam generator was used to calculate offdesign operation parameters for a 3000 tds/d example recovery boiler. The model was used to study recovery boiler part load operation and the effect of the black liquor dry solids increase on recovery boiler dimensioning. Heat flows to surface elements for part load calculations can be closely approximated with a previously defined exponent function. The exponential method can be used for the prediction of fouling in kraft recovery boilers. For similar furnaces the firing of 80 % dry solids liquor produces lower hearth heat release rate than the 65 % dry solids liquor if we fire at constant steam flow. The furnace outlet temperatures show that capacity increase with firing rate increase produces higher loadings than capacity increase with dry solids increase. The economizers, boiler banks and furnaces can be dimensioned smaller if we increase the black liquor dry solids content. The main problem with increased black liquor dry solids content is the decrease in the heat available to superheat. Whenever possible the furnace exit temperature should be increased by decreasing the furnace height. The increase in the furnace exit temperature is usually opposed because of fear of increased corrosion.

Pretreatment processes in gold recovery by thiosulphate leaching

This thesis describes several different pretreatment processes for gold concentrates and ores. The thesis is divided to theoretical part and experimental part. The theoretical part presents the operating principle of the main pretreatment methods and their suitability for thiosulphate leaching. In the theoretical part also the whole recovery process for gold from ore to elemental gold is presented. In the experimental part the study is focused on pretreatment of sulphidic refractory concentrates with mechanical activation and chemical oxidation under alkaline environment; and their effect on leachability in the thiosulphate leaching. In the experimental part a combined 2-step process, where chemical oxidation under ammoniacal environment is cascaded with thiosulphate leaching in the same conditions, is also tested. The main sulphuric mineral components in the studied refractory concentrate are pyrite (49.4 %) and arsenopyrite (27.7 %). The gold content in the concentrate is 11.3 ppm and silver content is 90 ppm. Without pretreatment the gold conversion in thiosulphate leaching was 30 %, which was analyzed at the time point of 9 hours. At that time the silver conversion was 17 %. By using mechanical activation the gold conversion reached was 59 % and silver conversion 26 %. With chemical oxidation under alkaline environment, where the used chemical was sodium hydroxide, the reached conversion of gold was 72 % and 31 % for silver. In the combined oxidation and leaching experiment the conversion of gold remained at 49 % and 18 % for silver.

Recovery of carboxylic acids from aqueous streams by extraction and back extraction

Separation of carboxylic acids from aqueous streams is an important part of their manufacturing process. The aqueous solutions are usually dilute containing less than 10 % acids. Separation by distillation is difficult as the boiling points of acids are only marginally higher than that of water. Because of this distillation is not only difficult but also expensive due to the evaporation of large amounts of water. Carboxylic acids have traditionally been precipitated as calcium salts. The yields of these processes are usually relatively low and the chemical costs high. Especially the decomposition of calcium salts with sulfuric acid produces large amounts of calcium sulfate sludge. Solvent extraction has been studied as an alternative method for recovery of carboxylic acids. Solvent extraction is based on mixing of two immiscible liquids and the transfer of the wanted components form one liquid to another due to equilibrium difference. In the case of carboxylic acids, the acids are transferred from aqueous phase to organic solvent due to physical and chemical interactions. The acids and the extractant form complexes which are soluble in the organic phase. The extraction efficiency is affected by many factors, for instance initial acid concentration, type and concentration of the extractant, pH, temperature and extraction time. In this paper, the effects of initial acid concentration, type of extractant and temperature on extraction efficiency were studied. As carboxylic acids are usually the products of the processes, they are wanted to be recovered. Hence the acids have to be removed from the organic phase after the extraction. The removal of acids from the organic phase also regenerates the extractant which can be then recycled in the process. The regeneration of the extractant was studied by back-extracting i.e. stripping the acids form the organic solution into diluent sodium hydroxide solution. In the solvent regeneration, the regenerability of different extractants and the effect of initial acid concentration and temperature were studied.

An Update on Inter-Country Differences in Recovery and Utilization of Recycled Paper

The use of recovered paper as raw material in the paper and board industry has increased heavily during recent decades. At the same time, growing environmental awareness has raised the interest in recycling and a more sustainable way of living, at least in high-income countries. This paper combines these topics and explores how economic, demographic and environmental factors have affected the recovery and utilization of recycled paper between 1992 and 2010 in a sample of 70 countries. This study updates and extends the previous research on the topic using panel data and panel data estimation methods. The results confirm the roles of economic determinants but also indicate that concern for the environment impacts the recovery of recycled paper particularly in high-income countries. Moreover, the motives for recycling appear to depend on the income level of a country, which is something that future policies should consider.

Kraft recovery boilers – Principles and practice

This book was created as postgraduate lecture notes for Lappeenranta University of Technology's special course of steam power plants. But as with anything ever written the ideas shown have nurtured for a long time. Parts of these chapters have appeared elsewhere as individual papers or work documents. One of the most helpful episodes have been presentations and discussions during Pohto Operator training seminars. Input from those sessions can be seen in chapter firing. You who run recovery boilers, I salute you. The purpose of this text is to give the reader an overview of recovery boiler operation. Most parts of the recovery boiler operation are common to boilers burning other fuels. The furnace operation differs significantly from operation of other boiler furnaces. Oxygen rich atmosphere is needed to burn fuel efficiently. But the main function of recovery boiler is to reduce spent cooking chemicals. Reduction reactions happen best in oxygen deficient atmosphere. This dual, conflicting nature of recovery furnace makes understanding it so challenging. To understand the processes happening in the recovery furnace one must try to understand the detailed processes that might occur and their limitations. Therefore chapters on materials, corrosion and fouling have been added.

Recovery and purification of anthocyanins from purple-blue potato

The aim of this work was to study techniques to extract and purify of anthocyanins from purple-blue potato. This topic was determined as a master’s thesis and it was done in collaboration with the Food Chemistry and Food Development Department of University of Turku and Department of Chemical and Process Engineering at Lappeenranta University of Technology. At first, purple-blue potatoes were pretreated in four types of boiled, raw, freeze-dried and dried boiled potato for extraction. They were mixed with aqueous acidified ethanol (ethanol:water:acetic acid 40%:53%:7% v/v) for conventional extraction. Boiled potato was selected as a best pretreated potato. Different ethanol concentration and extraction time were examined and the mixture of 80% in 24 h resulted in maximum anthocyanin content (132.23 mg/L). As conventional extraction method of anthocyanins was non-selective, some of impurities such as free sugars might accelerate anthocyanin degradation. Therefore, to obtain anthocyanins in purified form, adsorption as a promising selective method was used to recovery and isolate anthocyanins. It was carried out with six adsorbents. Among those, Amberlite XAD-7HP, a nonionic acrylic ester adsorbent, was found to have the best performance. In an adsorption column, flow rate of 3 mL/min was selected as the loading flow rate among four tested flow rates. Eluent volume and flow rate were 3 BV of aqueous acidified ethanol (75%, v/v) and 1 mL/min for desorption. The quantification of the total anthocyanin contents was performed by pH-differential method using UV-vis spectrophotometer. The resulting anthocyanin solution after purification was almost free from free sugars which were the major cause for degradation of anthocyanins. The average anthocyanin concentration in the purified and concentrated sample was obtained 1752.89 mg/L.