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The interest of scientists to study motion sequences exists in the fields of sports science, clinical analysis and computer animation for quite some time. While in the last decades mainly markerbased motion capture systems have been used to evaluate movements, the interest in markerless systems is growing more and more. Nevertheless, in the field of clinical analysis, markerless methods have not yet proven their value, partly due to a lack of studies evaluating the quality of the obtained data. Therefore, this study aims to validate two markerless motion capture softwares from Simi Reality Motion Systems. The software Simi Shape, which is a mixture of traditional image-based tracking supported by an artificial intelligence net (AI net), and the software Crush, that uses a completely AI-based method. For this purpose, all motion data was recorded with two in-house motion capture systems. One system for recording the movements for a markerbased evaluation as gold standard and one system for markerless tracking. Within a laboratory environment, eight cameras per system were mounted around the area of motion. By placing two cameras in the same position and using the same calibration, deviations in the image data between those for markerbased and markerless tracking were extremely minimal. Based on this data, markerbased tracking was performed using the Simi Motion program, markerless tracking was performed using the Simi Shape software system and the latest software from Simi Reality Motion Systems, Crush. When comparing the markerless data with the markerbased data, an average root mean square error of 0,038 m was calculated for Simi Shape and a deviation of 0,037 m for Crush. In a direct comparison of the two markerless systems, a root mean square error of 0,019 m was scored. Based on these data, conclusions could be drawn about the accuracies of the two markerless systems. The obtained kinematic data of the tracking are in the range of high accuracy, which is limited to a deviation of less than 0,05 m according to the literature.
Increasing global energy demand and the need to transition to sustainable energy sources to mitigate climate change, highlights the need for innovative approaches to improve the resilience and sustainability of power grids. This study focuses on addressing these challenges in the context of Morocco's evolving energy landscape, where increasing energy demand and efforts to integrate renewable energy require grid reinforcement strategies. Using renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic systems and energy storage technologies, this study aims to develop a methodology for strengthening rural community grids in Morocco.
Traditional reinforcement measures such as line and transformer upgrades will be investigated as well as the integration of power generation from photovoltaic systems, which offer a promising way to utilise Morocco's abundant solar resources. In addition, energy storage systems will be analysed as potential solutions to the challenges of grid stability and resilience. Using comprehensive data analysis, scenario planning and simulation methods with the open-source simulation software Panda Power, this study aims to assess the impact of different grid reinforcement measures, including conventional methods, photovoltaic integration, and the use of energy storage, on grid performance and sustainability. The results of this study provide valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities of transitioning to a more resilient and sustainable energy future in Morocco.
Based on a rural medium-voltage grid in Souihla, Morocco, three scenarios were carried out to assess the impact of demand growth in 2030 and 2040. The first scenario focuses on conventional grid reinforcement measures, while the second scenario incorporates energy from residential photovoltaic systems. The third scenario analyses the integration of storage systems and their impact on grid reinforcement in 2030.
The simulations with energy from photovoltaic systems show a reduction in grid reinforcement measures compared to the scenario without solar energy. In addition, the introduction of a storage system in 2030 led to a significant reduction in the required installed transformer capacity and fewer congested lines. Furthermore, the results emphasized the role of storage in stabilizing grid voltage levels.
In summary, the results highlighted the potential benefits of integrating energy from photovoltaics and storage into the grid. This integration not only reduces the need for transformers and overall grid infrastructure but also promotes a more efficient and sustainable energy system.
The growing threat posed by multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens, such as Klebsiella pneumoniae (Kp), represents a significant challenge in modern medicine. Traditional antibiotic therapies are often ineffective against these pathogens, leading to high mortality rates. MDR Kp infections pose a novel challenge in military medical contexts, particularly in Medical Biodefense, as they can be deliberately spread, leading to resource-intensive care in military centres. Recognizing this issue, the European Defence Agency initiated a prioritised research project in 2023 (EDF Resilience PHAGE- SGA 2023). To address this challenge, the Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology (IMB) leads BMBF- (Federal Ministry of Education and Research) and EU-funded projects on the use of bacteriophages as adjuvant therapy alongside antibiotics. Since 2017, the IMB has isolated and characterised Kp phages, collecting over 600 isolates and optimizing their production for therapy, in compliance with the EMA (European Medicine Agency) guidelines. This involves in vitro phage genome packaging to minimize endotoxin load, reduce manufacturing costs, and shorten production times. The goal of this work was to establish MinION sequencing (Oxford Nanopore Technology) as a quick and reliable way for initial identification and characterisation of phage genomes. Especially as a quick screening method for isolated on Kp, prior to more precise but also more expensive and time consuming sequencing methods like Illumina. This characterisation is crucial for developing a personalized pipeline aimed at producing magistral or Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) quality medicinal phage solutions tailored individually for each patient. DNA extraction methods were compared to identify suitable input DNA for sequencing purposes. Additionally, the quality of this DNA was as- sessed to determine its suitability for in vitro phage packaging, which was successfully done achieving a phage titer of 103, confirming that the DNA used for MinION sequencing could indeed be used for acellular packaging. The created genomes were annotated and compared with Illumina sequencing, revealing high similarity in all five individually tested cases. Between the generated sequences only a 4% maximal percentual difference in genome size was observed, while simultaneously showing high similarity in the actual sequence. Throughout the course of this study, a total of 645.15 GB of sequencing data were generated. In total, 38 phages were successfully characterised, with 21 phage genomes assembled and annotated, and saved in the IMB database.
Steroid hormones (SHs) are a rising concern due to their high bioactivity, ubiquitous nature, and prolonged existence as a micropollutants in water, they pose a potential risk to both human health and the environment, even at low concentrations. Estrogens, progesterone, and testosterone are the three important types of steroids essential for human development and maintaining multiorgan balance, are focus to this concern. These steroid hormones originate
from various sources, including human and livestock excretions, veterinary medications, agricultural runoff, and pharmaceuticals, contributing to their presence in the environment. According to the recommendation of WHO, the guidance value for estradiol (E2) is 1 ng/L. There are several methods been attempted to remove the SH micropollutant by conventional water and wastewater technologies which are still under research. Among the various methods, electrochemical membrane reactor (EMR) is one of the emerging technologies that can address the challenge of insufficient SHs removal from the aquatic environment by conventional treatment. The degradation of SHs can be significantly influenced by various factors when treated with EMR.
In this project, the removal of SH and the important mechanism for the removal using carbon nanotube CNT-EMR is studied and the efficiency of CNT-EMR in treating the SH micropollutant is identified. By varying different parameters this experiment is carried out with the (PES-CNTs) ultrafiltration membrane. The study is carried out depending upon the SH removal based on the limiting factor such as cell voltage, flux, temperature, concentration, and type of the SH.
Decarbonisation Strategies in Energy Systems Modelling: APV and e-tractors as Flexibility Assets
(2023)
This work presents an analysis of the impact of introducing Agrophotovoltaic technologies and electric tractors into Germany’s energy system. Agrophotovoltaics involves installing photovoltaic systems in agricultural areas, allowing for dual usage of the land for both energy generation and food production. Electric tractors, which are agricultural machinery powered by electric motors, can also function as energy storage units, providing flexibility to the grid. The analysis includes a sensitivity study to understand how the availability of agricultural land influences Agrophotovoltaic investments, followed by the examination of various scenarios that involve converting diesel tractors to electric tractors. These scenarios are based on the current CO2 emission reduction targets set by the German Government, aiming for a 65% reduction below 1990 levels by 2030 and achieving zero emissions by 2045. The results indicate that approximately 3% of available agricultural land is necessary to establish a viable energy mix in Germany. Furthermore, the expansion of electric tractors tends to reduce the overall system costs and enhances the energy-cost-efficiency of Agrophotovoltaic investments.
As the population grows, so does the amount of biowaste. As demand for energy grows, biogas is a promising solution to the problem. Lignocellulosic materials are challenged of slow degradability due to the presence of polymers such as cellulose, lignin and hemicellulose. There are several pretreatment methods available to enhance the degradability of such materials, including enzymatic pretreatment. In this pretreatment, there are few parameters that can influence the results, the most important being the enzyme to solid ratio and the solid to liquid ratio. During this project, experiments were conducted to determine the optimal conditions for those two factors. It was discovered that a solid to liquid ratio of 31 g of buffer per 1 gram of organic dry matter produced the highest reducing sugar release in flasks when combined with 34 mg of protein per 1 gram of organic dry mass. Additionally, another experiment was carried out to investigate the impact of enzymatic pretreatment on biogas production using artificial biowaste as a substrate. Artificial biowaste produced 577,9 NL/kg oDM, while enzymatically pretreated biowaste produced 639,3 NL/kg oDM. This resulted in a 10,6% rise in cumulative biogas production compared to its use without enzymatic pretreatment. By the conclusion of the investigation, specific cumulative dry methane yields of 364,7 NL/kg oDM and 426,3 NL/kg oDM were obtained from artificial biowaste without and with enzymatic pretreatment, respectively. This resulted in a methane production boost of 16,9%. Additionally in case of the reactors with enzymatically pretreated substrate kinetic constant was lower more than double, where maximum volume of biogas increased, comparing to the reactors without enzymatic pretreatment.
In recent years, the demand for reliable power, driven by sensitive electronic equipment, has surged. Even minor deviations from the nominal supply can lead to malfunctions or failure. Despite technological advancements, power quality issues persist due to various factors like short circuits, overloads, voltage fluctuations, unbalanced loads, and non-linear loads.
This thesis extensively explores power quality anomalies in industrial and commercial sectors, using power system data as the primary analytical resource. It addresses the critical need for power supply reliability in today's evolving power grid industry, affected by non-linear loads, renewable energy integration, and electric vehicles. This field of study is paramount for ensuring power supply reliability and stability in the evolving power grid industry.
The core of this thesis involves a comprehensive investigation of power quality, with a focus on frequency, power, and harmonics in voltage and current signals. The research employs Python programming for advanced data analysis, utilizing techniques such as advanced Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT) analysis. The primary objective is to provide valuable insights aimed at elevating power supply quality and enhancing reliability in both industrial and commercial environments.
The cellulase-producing Trichoderma reesei strain RL-P37 exhibits significant potential, yielding 7.3 g/L of cellulase in 241 hours. Microscopic investigations reveal a link between spore formation and enzyme production, suggesting the need for research into the intricate relationship between enzyme production, stress responses, and the nutritional prerequisites of fungi. Comparatively, the use of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) treatment, as opposed to water treatment, results in the reduction of micronutrient content and carbon source extraction as filtrate. Despite these challenges, research by He et al. (2021) highlights NaOH's efficiency in cellulose extraction from plant-based sources. Using NaOH pretreatment can be proven as effective by designing a proper cultivation method. The selection of inducers for enzyme induction gains importance, with soluble inducers, as emphasized by Zhang et al. (2022), exhibiting superior effectiveness. Hence, adopting soluble inducers in designing cultivation methods for improved enzyme production in shaking flasks is recommended. Enzymatic treatment of bio-waste, as outlined by Hu et al. (2021), shows promise in augmenting essential component content by breaking down plant cell walls and intercellular compartments. However, the feasibility of using an artificial bio-waste medium for cultivating Trichoderma reesei is questioned. Investigating the impact of micronutrient levels, particularly the inhibitory role of zinc, on fungal growth becomes essential. These findings underscore the necessity for ongoing research and optimization in cellulase production, emphasizing both strain productivity and cultivation methodologies.
One of the main problematics of the seals tests is the time and money consuming they are. Up to now, there are few tries to do a digitalisation of a test where the seals behaviour can be known.
This work aims to digitally reproduce a seal test to extract their behaviour when working under different operation conditions to see their impact on the pimp’s efficiency. In this thesis, due to the Lomaking effect, the leakage and the forces applied on the stator will be the base of analysis.
First of all, among all the literature available for very different kind of seals and inner patterns, it has been chosen the most appropriate and precise data. The data chosen is “Test results for liquid Damper Seals using a Round-Hole Roughness Pattern for the Stator” from Fayolle, P. and “Static and Rotordynamic Characteristics of Liquid Annular Seals with Circumferentially/Grooved Stator and Smooth Rotor using three levels of circumferential Inlet-Fluid” from Torres J.M.
From the literature, dimensions of the test rig and the seals will be extracted to model them into a 3D CAD software. With the 3D CAD digitalisation, the fluid volumes for a rotor-centred position, meaning without eccentricity, will be extracted, and used. The following components have been modelled:
- Smooth Annular Liquid Seal (Grooved Rotor)
- Grooved Annular Liquid Seal (Smooth Rotor)
- Round-Hole Pattern Annular Liquid Seal (𝐻𝑑=2 𝑚𝑚) (Smooth Rotor)
- Straight Honeycomb Annular Liquid Seal (Smooth Rotor)
- Convergent Honeycomb Annular Liquid Seal (Smooth Rotor)
- Smooth Rotor / Smooth Annular Liquid Seal (Smooth Rotor)
As there is just one test rig, all the components have been adapted to the different dimensions of the seals by referencing some measures. This allows to test any seal with the same test rig.
Afterwards a CFD simulation that will be used to obtain leakage and stator forces. The parameters that will be changed are the rotational velocity of the fluid (2000 rpm, 4000 rpm, and 6000 rpm) and the pressure drop (2,068 bar, 4,137 bar, 6,205 bar, and 8,274 bar).
Those results will be compared to the literature ones, and they will determine if digitalisation can be validated or not. Even though the relative error is higher than 5% but the tendency is the same and it is thought that by changing some parameters the test results can be even closer to the literature ones.
To date, many experiments have been performed to study how the internal geometrical shapes of the annular liquid seal can reduce internal leakage and increase pump efficiency. These can be time-consuming and expensive as all rotordynamic coefficients must be determined in each case.
Nowadays, accurate simulation methods to calculate rotordynamic coefficients of annular seals are still rare. Therefore, new numerical methods must be designed and validated for annular seals.
The present study aims to contribute to this labour by providing a summary of the available test rig and seals dimensions and experimental results obtained in the following experiments:
− Kaneko, S et al., Experimental Study on Static and Dynamic Characteristics of Liquid Annular Convergent-Tapered Seals with Honeycomb Roughness Pattern (2003) [1] − J. Alex Moreland, Influence of pre-swirl and eccentricity in smooth stator/grooved rotor liquid annular seals, static and rotordynamic characteristics (2016) [2]
A 3D CAD simulation with Siemens NX Software of the test rig used in J. Alex Moreland’s experiment has been made. The following annular liquid seals have also been 3D modelled, as well as their fluid volume:
− Smooth Annular Liquid Seal (SS/GR) (J. Alex Moreland experiment)
− Grooved Annular Liquid Seal (GS/SR)
− Round-Hole Pattern Annular Liquid Seal (𝐻𝑑=2 mm) (GS/SR)
− Straight Honeycomb Annular Liquid Seal (GS/SR)
− Convergent Honeycomb Annular Liquid Seal (No. 3) (GS/SR)
− Smooth Annular Liquid Seal (SS/SR) (S. Kaneko experiment)
In the case of the seals used in S. Kaneko’s experiments, the test rig has been adapted to each seal, defining interpart expressions which can be easily modified.
Afterwards, it has been done a CFD simulation of the Smooth Annular Liquid Seal using Ansys CFX Software. To do so, the fluid volume geometry has been simplified to do a first approximation. Results have been compared for an eccentricity 𝜀0=0.00 for the following ranges of rotor speeds and differential of pressure:
− Δ𝑃= 2.07, 4.14, 6.21, and 8.27 bar,
− 𝜔= 2, 4, 6 and 8 krpm.
Even results obtained have the same trend as the one proportionated by the literature, they cannot be validated as the error is above 5%. It is also observed that as the pressure drop increases, the relative error decreases considerably.