Techno-Economic Feasibility of Novel On-Line Condition Monitoring Methods in Low Voltage Distribution Networks

The focus in this thesis is to study both technical and economical possibilities of novel on-line condition monitoring techniques in underground low voltage distribution cable networks. This thesis consists of literature study about fault progression mechanisms in modern low voltage cables, laboratory measurements to determine the base and restrictions of novel on-line condition monitoring methods, and economic evaluation, based on fault statistics and information gathered from Finnish distribution system operators. This thesis is closely related to master’s thesis “Channel Estimation and On-line Diagnosis of LV Distribution Cabling”, which focuses more on the actual condition monitoring methods and signal theory behind them.

Novel Regression Methods For Spectral Data

Singular Value Decomposition (SVD), Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) are some of the mathematical pre- liminaries that are discussed prior to explaining PLS and PCR models. Both PLS and PCR are applied to real spectral data and their di erences and similarities are discussed in this thesis. The challenge lies in establishing the optimum number of components to be included in either of the models but this has been overcome by using various diagnostic tools suggested in this thesis. Correspondence analysis (CA) and PLS were applied to ecological data. The idea of CA was to correlate the macrophytes species and lakes. The di erences between PLS model for ecological data and PLS for spectral data are noted and explained in this thesis. i

Embolização pré operatória de tumores renais com microparticulas esféricas de tecnologia nacional. (Spherus®-First line Brasil)

Os autores relatam pela primeira vez utilização de uma nova partícula para embolização, constituída de um núcleo de acetato de polivinil revestido por polivinil-álcool, de forma esférica (Spherus®-First Line Brasil), como preparo pré-operatório em três pacientes portadores de neoplasia renal, na intenção de diminuir o tamanho do tumor e prevenir complicações hemorrágicas durante o ato operatório. Estas novas partículas foram projetadas e elaboradas nos laboratórios da COPPE/UFRJ. A embolização intra-arterial pré-operatória com estas novas partículas ocasionou acentuada isquemia em todo o tecido tumoral facilitando o procedimento cirúrgico.

Intrapartum hypoxia and power spectral analysis of fetal heart rate variability

Reliable detection of intrapartum fetal acidosis is crucial for preventing morbidity. Hypoxia-related changes of fetal heart rate variability (FHRV) are controlled by the autonomic nervous system. Subtle changes in FHRV that cannot be identified by inspection can be detected and quantified by power spectral analysis. Sympathetic activity relates to low-frequency FHRV and parasympathetic activity to both low- and high-frequency FHRV. The aim was to study whether intra partum fetal acidosis can be detected by analyzing spectral powers of FHRV, and whether spectral powers associate with hypoxia-induced changes in the fetal electrocardiogram and with the pH of fetal blood samples taken intrapartum. The FHRV of 817 R-R interval recordings, collected as a part of European multicenter studies, were analyzed. Acidosis was defined as cord pH ≤ 7.05 or scalp pH ≤ 7.20, and metabolic acidosis as cord pH ≤ 7.05 and base deficit ≥ 12 mmol/l. Intrapartum hypoxia increased the spectral powers of FHRV. As fetal acidosis deepened, FHRV decreased: fetuses with significant birth acidosis had, after an initial increase, a drop in spectral powers near delivery, suggesting a breakdown of fetal compensation. Furthermore, a change in excess of 30% of the low-to-high frequency ratio of FHRV was associated with fetal metabolic acidosis. The results suggest that a decrease in the spectral powers of FHRV signals concern for fetal wellbeing. A single measure alone cannot be used to reveal fetal hypoxia since the spectral powers vary widely intra-individually. With technical developments, continuous assessment of intra-individual changes in spectral powers of FHRV might aid in the detection of fetal compromise due to hypoxia.

Theoretical Analysis and Numerical Simulation of Spectral Radiative Properties of Combustion Gases in Oxy/Air-Fired Combustion Systems

Energy efficiency is one of the major objectives which should be achieved in order to implement the limited energy resources of the world in a sustainable way. Since radiative heat transfer is the dominant heat transfer mechanism in most of fossil fuel combustion systems, more accurate insight and models may cause improvement in the energy efficiency of the new designed combustion systems. The radiative properties of combustion gases are highly wavelength dependent. Better models for calculating the radiative properties of combustion gases are highly required in the modeling of large scale industrial combustion systems. With detailed knowledge of spectral radiative properties of gases, the modeling of combustion processes in the different applications can be more accurate. In order to propose a new method for effective non gray modeling of radiative heat transfer in combustion systems, different models for the spectral properties of gases including SNBM, EWBM, and WSGGM have been studied in this research. Using this detailed analysis of different approaches, the thesis presents new methods for gray and non gray radiative heat transfer modeling in homogeneous and inhomogeneous H2O–CO2 mixtures at atmospheric pressure. The proposed method is able to support the modeling of a wide range of combustion systems including the oxy-fired combustion scenario. The new methods are based on implementing some pre-obtained correlations for the total emissivity and band absorption coefficient of H2O–CO2 mixtures in different temperatures, gas compositions, and optical path lengths. They can be easily used within any commercial CFD software for radiative heat transfer modeling resulting in more accurate, simple, and fast calculations. The new methods were successfully used in CFD modeling by applying them to industrial scale backpass channel under oxy-fired conditions. The developed approaches are more accurate compared with other methods; moreover, they can provide complete explanation and detailed analysis of the radiation heat transfer in different systems under different combustion conditions. The methods were verified by applying them to some benchmarks, and they showed a good level of accuracy and computational speed compared to other methods. Furthermore, the implementation of the suggested banded approach in CFD software is very easy and straightforward.

Validade e confiabilidade de uma versão on-line do Female Sexual Function Index por teste e reteste

OBJETIVO: Foi testar a validade e a confiabilidade de uma versão on-line do Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). MÉTODOS: Uma versão on-line do FSFI foi comparada à versão tradicional, em papel. Para tanto, estudantes de Fisioterapia de três cidades foram alocadas randomicamente em dois grupos - G-pp/ol (n=126) e G-ol/pp (n=147). As mulheres do G-pp/ol responderam ao FSFI do modo tradicional, em papel e caneta, enquanto o G-ol/pp respondeu a uma versão on-line do mesmo questionário. Após 15 dias de intervalo, houve nova coleta, quando o G-pp/ol respondeu a versão on-line enquanto o G-ol/pp respondeu no papel. Todos os dados foram transportados para o software estatístico SPSS. Diferenças demográficas entre os dois grupos foram reveladas pelo teste t de Student ou pelo teste exato de Fischer (IC95%; p>0,05). A associação e a correlação entre as respostas entre G-pp/ol e G-ol/pp durante cada coleta foram acessadas pelo teste t e o coeficiente de Pearson. Estratégia idêntica foi utilizada para as comparações intragrupo. RESULTADOS: Um total de 273 mulheres participou do estudo e 28 (10,2%) desistiram da segunda coleta. Não houve diferenças demográficas entre os grupos. Houve associação entre 15 das 19 questões do FSFI entre os dois grupos, tanto no teste quanto no reteste. A análise intragrupo revelou que todas as questões e os escores do FSFI estiveram associados, mas fracamente correlacionados para um mesmo grupo durante as duas coletas. CONCLUSÃO: A versão on-line do FSFI apresentou validade e confiabilidade aceitáveis quando comparada à versão em papel, o que pode justificar a opção por essa modalidade, especialmente em estudos envolvendo sexualidade.

Gene expression profile of ABC transporters and cytotoxic effect of ibuprofen and acetaminophen in an epithelial ovarian cancer cell line in vitro

PURPOSES: To determine the basic expression of ABC transporters in an epithelial ovarian cancer cell line, and to investigate whether low concentrations of acetaminophen and ibuprofen inhibited the growth of this cell line in vitro. METHODS: TOV-21 G cells were exposed to different concentrations of acetaminophen (1.5 to 15 μg/mL) and ibuprofen (2.0 to 20 μg/mL) for 24 to 48 hours. The cellular growth was assessed using a cell viability assay. Cellular morphology was determined by fluorescence microscopy. The gene expression profile of ABC transporters was determined by assessing a panel including 42 genes of the ABC transporter superfamily. RESULTS: We observed a significant decrease in TOV-21 G cell growth after exposure to 15 μg/mL of acetaminophen for 24 (p=0.02) and 48 hours (p=0.01), or to 20 μg/mL of ibuprofen for 48 hours (p=0.04). Assessing the morphology of TOV-21 G cells did not reveal evidence of extensive apoptosis. TOV-21 G cells had a reduced expression of the genes ABCA1, ABCC3, ABCC4, ABCD3, ABCD4 and ABCE1 within the ABC transporter superfamily. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides in vitro evidence of inhibitory effects of growth in therapeutic concentrations of acetaminophen and ibuprofen on TOV-21 G cells. Additionally, TOV-21 G cells presented a reduced expression of the ABCA1, ABCC3, ABCC4, ABCD3, ABCD4 and ABCE1 transporters.

DFMA Aspects in the Design of a Transfer Line for Off-line Ion Sources

In this thesis, the DFMA is presented and used for the purpose of having a design for a vertical transfer line that can be easily manufactured and assembled. The design of the transfer line, the major components and drawings are presented. The ease of assembly, the costs of manufacturing and differences between the use of steel structure and aluminum are compared. The ALARA principle is followed to minimize the risk of radiation exposure by the means of locating the test ion sources outside the radioactive area.

The Effects of Anesthetic Induced Loss of Consciousness on Quantitative Electroen Cephalogram, and Bispectral and Spectral Entropy Indices. Studies on Healthy Male

Changes in the electroencephalography (EEG) signal have been used to study the effects of anesthetic agents on the brain function. Several commercial EEG based anesthesia depth monitors have been developed to measure the level of the hypnotic component of anesthesia. Specific anesthetic related changes can be seen in the EEG, but still it remains difficult to determine whether the subject is consciousness or not during anesthesia. EEG reactivity to external stimuli may be seen in unconsciousness subjects, in anesthesia or even in coma. Changes in regional cerebral blood flow, which can be measured with positron emission tomography (PET), can be used as a surrogate for changes in neuronal activity. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of dexmedetomidine, propofol, sevoflurane and xenon on the EEG and the behavior of two commercial anesthesia depth monitors, Bispectral Index (BIS) and Entropy. Slowly escalating drug concentrations were used with dexmedetomidine, propofol and sevoflurane. EEG reactivity at clinically determined similar level of consciousness was studied and the performance of BIS and Entropy in differentiating consciousness form unconsciousness was evaluated. Changes in brain activity during emergence from dexmedetomidine and propofol induced unconsciousness were studied using PET imaging. Additionally, the effects of normobaric hyperoxia, induced during denitrogenation prior to xenon anesthesia induction, on the EEG were studied. Dexmedetomidine and propofol caused increases in the low frequency, high amplitude (delta 0.5-4 Hz and theta 4.1-8 Hz) EEG activity during stepwise increased drug concentrations from the awake state to unconsciousness. With sevoflurane, an increase in delta activity was also seen, and an increase in alpha- slow beta (8.1-15 Hz) band power was seen in both propofol and sevoflurane. EEG reactivity to a verbal command in the unconsciousness state was best retained with propofol, and almost disappeared with sevoflurane. The ability of BIS and Entropy to differentiate consciousness from unconsciousness was poor. At the emergence from dexmedetomidine and propofol induced unconsciousness, activation was detected in deep brain structures, but not within the cortex. In xenon anesthesia, EEG band powers increased in delta, theta and alpha (8-12Hz) frequencies. In steady state xenon anesthesia, BIS and Entropy indices were low and these monitors seemed to work well in xenon anesthesia. Normobaric hyperoxia alone did not cause changes in the EEG. All of these results are based on studies in healthy volunteers and their application to clinical practice should be considered carefully.

Leishmanicidal and cholinesterase inhibiting activities of phenolic compounds of Dimorphandra gardneriana and Platymiscium floribundum, native plants from Caatinga biome

In recent years, the Brazilian Health Ministry and the World Health Organization have supported research into new technologies that may contribute to the surveillance, new treatments, and control of visceral leishmaniasis within the country. In light of this, the aim of this study was to isolate compounds from plants of the Caatinga biome, and to investigate their toxicity against promastigote and amastigote forms of Leishmania infantum chagasi, the main responsible parasite for South American visceral leishmaniasis, and evaluate their ability to inhibit acetylcholinesterase enzyme (AChE). A screen assay using luciferase-expressing promastigote form and an in situ ELISA assay were used to measure the viability of promastigote and amastigote forms, respectively, after exposure to these substances. The MTT colorimetric assay was performed to determine the toxicity of these compounds in murine monocytic RAW 264.7 cell line. All compounds were tested in vitro for their anti-cholinesterase properties. A coumarin, scoparone, was isolated from Platymiscium floribundum stems, and the flavonoids rutin and quercetin were isolated from Dimorphandra gardneriana beans. These compounds were purified using silica gel column chromatography, eluted with organic solvents in mixtures of increasing polarity, and identified by spectral analysis. In the leishmanicidal assays, the compounds showed dose-dependent efficacy against the extracellular promastigote forms, with an EC50 for scoporone of 21.4µg/mL, quercetin and rutin 26 and 30.3µg/mL, respectively. The flavonoids presented comparable results to the positive control drug, amphotericin B, against the amastigote forms with EC50 for quercetin and rutin of 10.6 and 43.3µg/mL, respectively. All compounds inhibited AChE with inhibition zones varying from 0.8 to 0.6, indicating a possible mechanism of action for leishmacicidal activity.

Introduction of the T-10 static line parachuting capability to the NH90 helicopter

The purpose of this study was to investigate the suitability of the Finnish Defence Forces’ NH90 helicopter for parachuting operations with the T-10 static line parachute system. The work was based on the Army Command’s need to compensate for the reduction in the outsourced flight hours for the military static line parachuting training. The aim of the research was to find out the procedures and limitations with which the NH90 IOC+ or FOC version helicopter could be used for static line parachutist training with the T-10B/MC1-1C parachutes. The research area was highly complicated and non-linear. Thus analytical methods could not be applied with sufficient confidence, even with present-day computing power. Therefore an empirical research method was selected, concentrating on flight testing supported with literature study and some calculated estimations. During three flights and 4.5 flight hours in Utti, Finland on 1720 September 2012, a total of 44 parachute drops were made. These consisted of 16 dummy drops and 28 paratrooper jumps. The test results showed that when equipped with the floor mounted PASI-1 anchor line, the deflector bar of the NHIndustries’ Parachuting Kit and Patria’s floor protection panels the Finnish NH90 variant could be safely used for T-10B/MC1-1C static line parachuting operations from the right cabin door at airspeed range of 5080 KIAS (90–150 km/h). The ceiling mounted anchor lines of the NHI’s Parachuting Kit were not usable with the T-10 system. This was due to the static lines’ unsafe behaviour in slipstream when connected to the cabin ceiling level. In conclusion, the NH90 helicopter can be used to meet the Army Command’s requirement for an additional platform for T-10 static line parachutist training. Material dropping, the effect of additional equipment and jumping from the rear ramp should be further studied.

Onset of Nucleate Boiling and Onset of Fully Developed Subcooled Boiling Using Pressure Transducers Signals Spectral Analysis

The experimental technique used for detection of subcooled boiling through analysis of the fluctuation contained in pressure transducer signals is presented. This work was partly conducted at the Institut für Kerntechnik und zertörungsfreie Prüfverfahren von Hannover (IKPH, Germany) in a thermal-hydraulic circuit with one electrically heated rod with annular geometry test section. Piezoresistive pressure sensors are used for onset of nucleate boiling (ONB) and onset of fully developed boiling (OFDB) detection using spectral analysis/ signal correlation techniques. Experimental results are interpreted by phenomenological analysis of these two points and compared with existing correlation. The results allow us to conclude that this technique is adequate for the detection and monitoring of the ONB and OFDB.

Power-line-communication-based data transmission concept for an LVDC electricity distribution network – Analysis and implementation

Communications play a key role in modern smart grids. New functionalities that make the grids ‘smart’ require the communication network to function properly. Data transmission between intelligent electric devices (IEDs) in the rectifier and the customer-end inverters (CEIs) used for power conversion is also required in the smart grid concept of the low-voltage direct current (LVDC) distribution network. Smart grid applications, such as smart metering, demand side management (DSM), and grid protection applied with communications are all installed in the LVDC system. Thus, besides remote connection to the databases of the grid operators, a local communication network in the LVDC network is needed. One solution applied to implement the communication medium in power distribution grids is power line communication (PLC). There are power cables in the distribution grids, and hence, they may be applied as a communication channel for the distribution-level data. This doctoral thesis proposes an IP-based high-frequency (HF) band PLC data transmission concept for the LVDC network. A general method to implement the Ethernet-based PLC concept between the public distribution rectifier and the customerend inverters in the LVDC grid is introduced. Low-voltage cables are studied as the communication channel in the frequency band of 100 kHz–30 MHz. The communication channel characteristics and the noise in the channel are described. All individual components in the channel are presented in detail, and a channel model, comprising models for each channel component is developed and verified by measurements. The channel noise is also studied by measurements. Theoretical signalto- noise ratio (SNR) and channel capacity analyses and practical data transmission tests are carried out to evaluate the applicability of the PLC concept against the requirements set by the smart grid applications in the LVDC system. The main results concerning the applicability of the PLC concept and its limitations are presented, and suggestion for future research proposed.

Support vector machines in spectral data classification

Työssä käydään läpi tukivektorikoneiden teoreettista pohjaa sekä tutkitaan eri parametrien vaikutusta spektridatan luokitteluun.

The consequences of e-HRM on line managers

The purpose of this research was to provide a deeper insight into the consequences of electronic human resource management (e-HRM) for line managers. The consequences are viewed as used information system (IS) potentials pertaining to the moderate voluntaristic category of consequences. Due to the need to contextualize the research and draw on line managers’ personal experiences, a qualitative approach in a case study setting was selected. The empirical part of the research is loosely based on literature on HRM and e-HRM and it was conducted in an industrial private sector company. In this thesis, method triangulation was utilized, as nine semi-structured interviews, conducted in a European setting, created the main method for data collection and analysis. Other complementary data such as HRM documentation and statistics of e-HRM system usage were utilized as background information to help to put the results into context. E-HRM has partly been taken into use in the case study company. Line managers tend to use e-HRM when a particular task requires it, but they are not familiar with all the features and possibilities which e-HRM has to offer. The advantages of e-HRM are in line with the company’s goals. The advantages are e.g. an transparency of data, process consistency, and having an efficient and easy-to-use tool at one’s disposal. However, several unintended, even contradictory, and mainly negative outcomes can also be identified, such as over-complicated processes, in-security in use of the tool, and the lack of co-operation with HR professionals. The use of e-HRM and managers’ perceptions regarding e-HRM affect the way in which managers perceive the consequences of e-HRM on their work. Overall, the consequences of e-HRM are divergent, even contradictory. The managers who considered e-HRM mostly beneficial to their work found that e-HRM affects their work by providing information and increasing efficiency. Those managers who mostly perceived challenges in e-HRM did not think that e-HRM had affected their role or their work. Even though the perceptions regarding e-HRM and its consequences might reflect the strategies, the distribution of work, and the ways of working in all HRM in general and can’t be generalized as such, this research contributed to the field of e-HRM and it provides new perspectives to e-HRM in the case study organization and in the academic field in general.