title: Experimental and theoretical investigations of a new integrated solar tower system for photocatalytic hydrogen and power production

contributor:
Dincer, Ibrahim
Naterer, Greg

subject:
Energy
Exergy
Hydrogen
Integrated sytem
Solar tower

abstract:
Solar energy conversion via photocatalytic hydrogen production from water is an attractive route for the propagation of a hydrogen economy. Increasing the efficiency of such systems to meet the target of 10% is essential for industrial their adoption. A new hybridized system employing a photocatalytic reactor and photovoltaic cells in a cavity receiver of a solar tower system is proposed. A fully functioning lab scale system, capable of handling continuous flow processes, is built, and experiments are conducted to investigate the behaviour of this system.
Production of hydrogen in the photo-reactor is observed to increase with an increase in temperature and a decrease in the pressure to below the atmospheric pressure. A maximum quantum efficiency of 1.9% is achieved with a 77% - 23% ratio of CdS – ZnS mixture under a visible light source. With power output from the light harnessed by the photovoltaic cells, the energy efficiency is increased from 0.2% to 2%, respectively. The optimal flow rate for an electrolyte concentration of 0.3 M and reactor volume of 90 ml is determined to be 50 ml/h.
A thermodynamic study of a proposed large scale system is conducted. This system combines a photocatalytic process, a photovoltaic process, and a heat engine to efficiently utilize solar radiation. For a given solar tower system that requires a reflective area of 913, 289 m2, energy and exergy efficiency values up to 40% and 30% are achieved respectively. Based on archived solar data, for a given summer day the system produces 50 tonnes of hydrogen if outputs from the photovoltaic process and the heat engine are used to run an electrolyzer.


title: Design and optimization of dielectric resonator antenna arrays based on substrate integrated waveguide technology for millimeter-wave applications

subject:
Dielectric resonator antenna
Substrate integrated waveguide
Millimeter-wave applications

abstract:
With the lower frequency bands heavily crowded, the millimeter wave (MMW) frequency band has attracted a lot of attention, offering a wide range of applications. It also introduces new challenges to the research community. Antennas and MMW circuits with compact size, low cost, high efficiency, and low loss are much needed to meet the new requirements of these applications.
This research focuses on the design and optimization of dielectric resonator antenna (DRA) arrays based on substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technology, which has been proven to be promising for MMW applications. The objectives include both the development of highly efficient computer aided design and optimization techniques, and the development of new designs based on the SIW-DRA technology.
Toward these objectives, an efficient and accurate circuit model is developed first. A previously reported structure of DRA array is investigated based on two different slot orientations. The total mutual coupling between antennas is firstly extracted and modeled as a two port S-parameters. Two different methods are used to extract the total mutual coupling due to the difference of the slot configurations. Next, a new and fully adjustable model for the mutual coupling is developed for DRA array, resulting in a flexible circuit model allowing the design parameters to be varied. A comparison with full wave simulation and measurement results proves that the circuit model can be used as an efficient design and optimization tool.
The model is further verified through a new design of SIW-series fed DRA parasitic array, in which an additional parasitic DRA is added on both sides of each active element to improve the gain. The antennas are fed using longitudinal slots on SIW. Due to the configuration of the antenna elements, there is strong mutual coupling between the antenna elements. The good agreement between the electromagnetic (EM) simulated and circuit model results for this design further proves the efficiency of the model.Next, a new design of an eight-element SIW middle fed series rectangular DRA array with 45° linear polarization is developed. The implicit space mapping (ISM) technique is applied for the optimization of the complex structure. The new circuit model plays an important role in the optimization method serving as the coarse/surrogate mode, and a full wave solver is used as the fine model. Parameters in the surrogate model are divided into pre-assigned parameters and design parameters. In each iteration, the preassigned parameters are extracted so that the fine model and surrogate model outputs match. The design parameters are then re-optimized and fed to the fine model. As demonstrated with this DRA array design, the optimization approach combining the developed circuit model with ISM technique is highly efficient. Only three iterations are needed to reach an optimized solution for such a complex structure. The optimized design has been fabricated using a low cost Printed Circuit Board (PCB)-based technology for validation of both performance of the design and modeling techniques. The comparison between the simulated and the measured results shows very good agreement.

abstract: University of Ontario Institute of Technology


title: Design and development of a novel omni-directional platform

subject:
Omnibot
Mechatronic
Omni-directional platforms
Omni-directional wheels
Robot Operating System

abstract:
This thesis presents the design and development of a unique omni-directional platform
known as the Omnibot which was built in the Mechatronic and Robotic Systems
Laboratory at UOIT. The Omnibot's layout is novel because its drive axes do not
intersect with the geometric center of the body, which is typical for omni-directional
platforms using segmented omni-directional wheels. This design enables the center of
mass to be lower in the design and increases the stability. A suspension system was
designed for each of the four wheels to limit vibrations and to ensure contact between
the wheels and operating surface. The Omnibot was built to modularly support many
systems, including a robot arm, without altering the mechanical design of the frame.
Two control modes were developed: local and global. Commands to drive the Omnibot
can be received from either a joystick that can be directly interfaced with the
controller or with commands that are sent from other systems that are either on or o
of the Omnibot. Both control modes require encoder feedback to ensure commanded
velocities are being executed as specified. Global control requires feedback from an
indoor localization system to determine the Omnibot's pose. Early implementation
of the localization system is discussed. An open source robotics software, known as
Robot Operating System (ROS) was selected for implementation of the Omnibot systems.
ROS serves as a middleware which allows components, such as the localization
system and remote desktop, to communicate with each other through a decoupled
messaging system. ROS is modular and
exible, allowing for easy adaptation of future
components. Test results of the Omnibot in operation are presented.


title: Evaluating social and cognitive effects of video games using electroencephalography.

subject:
EEG
Mixed measures
Human computer interaction
Games user research
Video games

abstract: Games User Research (GUR) is an area of evaluative player research and human-computer interaction (HCI) that aims to improve games, focused on a player’s understanding and on their experience when playing games. In this field, techniques are available to measure and understand user experience. These techniques each have their own strengths and weaknesses. To improve and extend GUR methodology, this thesis explores ways that electroencephalography (EEG) can be used as an evaluative measure as part of a mixed methodology. The thesis aims to improve the accuracy and richness of GUR results obtained using EEG. Hemispheric Frontal Alpha Asymmetry (HFAA) is reviewed in depth as a useful EEG technique to measure arousal in real time. HFAA, the EEG methodology proposed in this thesis is used in several experimental studies reported here to show new insights into the social and cognitive factors of gaming. The research presented in this thesis shows that player experience related to the social environment of a game does not necessarily arise from gameplay, but instead relies more on the expectations of a player than the current literature suggests. Additionally, the thesis introduces a new way to investigate player understanding and learning in games, using real-time data about the player’s brain state. This is particularly useful for game designers creating introductory tutorial mechanisms for their games. The result of this research is useful for both researchers investigating the human brain immersed in the virtual world of a video game and game designers wanting to use real-time user feedback to build their games.


title: Determining optimal flight paths for cellular network connectivity for the transmission of real-time physiological data in support of big data analytics during airborne critical care transport

contributor:
McGregor, Carolyn
El-Khatib, Khalil

subject:
Path planning
Patient transport
Cellular networks
Telemedicine
Critical care medicine

abstract: This thesis presents a methodology for determining the optimal flight paths between two geographical points based on distance and cellular reception over the path. This methodology consists of two main concepts: coverage map generation, and path planning. Coverage map generation creates a grid map of the total planning space that contains coverage information for each grid point. Coverage is calculated based on geographical and technical information regarding each cell tower in the planning area. The planning step utilises the coverage map to plan a route based on minimum distance and maximum coverage, which is then smoothed into a feasible route for an aircraft to follow. This methodology is demonstrated in an airborne critical care transport within the Province of Ontario in Canada context. Leveraging available cellular information, this methodology is used to determine optimal paths between various care centres or their closest airport. Evaluation reveals that optimal routes can be found through this methodology.


title: Thermodynamic analysis of ammonia and urea fed solid oxide fuel cells

subject:
Solid oxide fuel cell
Ammonia
Urea
Energy efficiency
Exergy efficiency
Turbine

abstract:
This thesis is concerned with the thermodynamic analyses of ion and proton-conducting solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) fed with ammonia and urea as fuels. A multi-level approach was used to determine the feasibility and the performance of the fuel cells. First, the cell-level thermodynamics were examined to capture the effect of various operating parameters on the cell voltage under open-circuit conditions. Second, electrochemical studies were conducted to characterize the cell-level performance under closed-circuit conditions. Third, the fuel cells were individually integrated in a combined-cycle power generation system and parametric studies were performed to assess the overall performance as well as the thermal and exergy efficiencies.
The findings of this study showed that the overall performance and efficiency of the ammonia fed SOFC is superior in comparison to that of the urea fed counterpart. In particular, the ammonia fed system combined with proton-conducting SOFC achieved a thermal efficiency as high as 85% and exergy efficiency as high as 75%. The respective efficiencies of the ammonia fed system combined with ion-conducting SOFC were lower by 5-10%. However, the urea fed system combined with ion or proton-conducting SOFC demonstrated much lower performance and efficiencies due to higher thermodynamic irreversibilities.


title: Microreactor for remote Canadian communities

subject:
Microreactor
Lead cooled
Graphite moderated
Stirling engine

abstract: Remote Canadian communities rely on diesel generators for their electricity needs. Providing such generators with fuel year-round presents challenges because of inclement weather and long transportation distances involved. This work presents the conceptual design of a 10 MWth microreactor that can be used to provide district heating and 3.5 MW of electricity to remote communities. The reactor has a lead-cooled and graphite-moderated core with 13 vertical fuel channels containing 10 wt% enriched HALEU fuel. The core is enclosed in a non-pressurized reactor vessel and is passively cooled through natural convection. Stirling engines are used to drive the electrical generators. The hot cylinders of the Stirling engines are located in the unpressurized reactor vessel and are heated directly by the primary molten lead coolant. Preliminary neutronic and thermal-hydraulic analyses of the core indicate that the design is technically feasible and that the reactor can function for two years and nine months without refuelling.


title: Front underride protection devices: methods for design and testing

subject:
FUPD
Crashworthiness
Structural optimization
Heavy vehicle compatibility

abstract: Improvements to highway safety are in continual demand. One of the most severe instances of vehicle collision occurs as a result of vehicle weight and sizing mismatch. The fitment of Front Underride Protection Devices (FUPDs) upon tractor-trailers is studied as a method to improve crash compatibility between passenger vehicles and tractor-trailers involved in head-on highway crashes. While some countries require the use of FUPDs, no such regulation exists in North America. North America‟s use of Conventional Tractors also presents a variation to Cab-over Engine Tractors popular in Europe. The distinction presents variations to FUPD design boundary conditions. A three tier design strategy is proposed and implemented in an effort to guide development of FUPDs for improved performance and robustness. Extensive testing is undertaken in establishing guidelines for further development and testing of Front Underride Protection Devices.


title: A method to detect and represent temporal patterns from time series data and its application for analysis of physiological data streams

subject:
Temporal patterns
Temporal abstractions
Knowledge discovery
Pattern recognition
Temporal data mining

abstract:
In critical care, complex systems and sensors continuously monitor patients’ physiological features such as heart rate, respiratory rate thus generating significant amounts of data every second. This results to more than 2 million records generated per patient in an hour. It’s an immense challenge for anyone trying to utilize this data when making critical decisions about patient care. Temporal abstraction and data mining are two research fields that have tried to synthesize time oriented data to detect hidden relationships that may exist in the data.
Various researchers have looked at techniques for generating abstractions from clinical data. However, the variety and speed of data streams generated often overwhelms current systems which are not designed to handle such data. Other attempts have been to understand the complexity in time series data utilizing mining techniques, however, existing models are not designed to detect temporal relationships that might exist in time series data (Inibhunu & McGregor, 2016).
To address this challenge, this thesis has proposed a method that extends the existing knowledge discovery frameworks to include components for detecting and representing temporal relationships in time series data. The developed method is instantiated within the knowledge discovery component of Artemis, a cloud based platform for processing physiological data streams.
This is a unique approach that utilizes pattern recognition principles to facilitate functions for; (a) temporal representation of time series data with abstractions, (b) temporal pattern generation and quantification (c) frequent patterns identification and (d) building a classification system.
This method is applied to a neonatal intensive care case study with a motivating problem that discovery of specific patterns from patient data could be crucial for making improved decisions within patient care. Another application is in chronic care to detect temporal relationships in ambulatory patient data before occurrence of an adverse event.
The research premise is that discovery of hidden relationships and patterns in data would be valuable in building a classification system that automatically characterize physiological data streams. Such characterization could aid in detection of new normal and abnormal behaviors in patients who may have life threatening conditions.


title: Characterization of carbon nanotubes grown by chemical vapour deposition

contributor:
Gaspari, Franco
Smith, William

subject:
carbon nanotubes
CNTs
field emission devices
reinforced composites
arc-discharge
laser ablation
chemical vapour deposition
thermogravimetirc analysis
electron microscopy
FTIR spectroscopy
Raman spectroscopy

abstract:
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs), discovered by Ijima in 1991, are one of the allotropes of carbon, and can be described as cylinders of graphene sheet capped by hemifullerenes.
CNTs have excellent electrical, mechanical, thermal and optical properties and
very small size. Due to their unique properties and small size, CNTs have a great
potential for use in electronics, medical applications, field emission devices (displays,scanning and electronprobes/microscopes) and reinforced composites. CNTs can be grown by different methods from a number of carbon sources such as graphite, CO,C2H4, CH4 and camphor. Under certain conditions, a metallic catalyst is used to initiate the growth. The three main methods used to grow CNTs are: Arc-discharge, laser ablation (LA) and chemical vapour deposition (CVD). In the present work CNTs were grown from a mixture of camphor (C10H16O) and ferrocene (C10H10Fe) using Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) and argon was used as a carrier gas. The iron particles from ferrocene acted as catalysts for growth. The substrates used for the growth of CNTs were crystalline Si and SiO2 (Quartz) placed in a quartz tube in a horizontal furnace. Several parameters have been found to affect the CNT growth process. The effects of three parameters: growth temperature, carrier gas (Ar) flow rate and catalyst concentration were investigated in the present work in order to optimize the growth conditions with a simple and economical CVD setup. The samples were characterized using electron microscopy (EM), thermogravimetirc analysis (TGA), Raman and FTIR spectroscopy
techniques. It was found that the quality and yield of the CNTs were best at 800°C
growth temperature, 80sccm flow rate and 4% catalyst concentration.


title: Evaporative heat and mass transfer with solubility driven solidification of aqueous droplet flows

subject:
nuclear-based hydrogen production
copper-chlorine cycle
Cu-Cl cycle
aqueous cupric chloride droplets

abstract: Nuclear-based hydrogen production via thermochemical water decomposition using a copper-chlorine cycle consists of a series of chemical reactions that split water into hydrogen and oxygen. This is accomplished through reactions involving intermediate copper and chlorine compounds, which act as catalysts that are recycled in the process. In this thesis, analytical and numerical solutions are developed to predict the behaviour of aqueous cupric chloride droplets in a solution undergoing spray-drying in the Cu-Cl cycle. The aqueous CuCl2 is present as a slurry within the cycle, which will later generate oxygen and hydrogen as a net result. The efficiency of the cycle can be increased by utilizing low-grade waste heat from any industrial source or nuclear power plant to assist in the drying process. There are many different methods employed in industry for drying of solutions. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages, depending on the application and conditions. In this thesis, analytical correlations of heat and mass transfer are developed for the aqueous solution, subject to various drying conditions. The analysis is performed for moist air in contact with a sprayed aqueous solution of CuCl2(2H2O). Validation of the model is performed by comparisons with experimental results obtained from a Niro-spray dryer for CuCl2 and previous experimental and theoretical data for different fluids, on the basis of non-dimensional analysis.


title: Analysis and mitigation of the impacts of integrating fast-charging stations on the voltage fluctuations

subject:
Fast charging station
Smart charging
Voltage fluctuation
Light flicker

abstract:
As the number of electric vehicles increases, fast charging becomes a necessity in the electric service stations; not only to reduce the charging and waiting times for electric vehicles whether in service or in a queue, but also to increase their commercial benefits by increasing their utilization rates. Fast charging stations are characterized by their high-power consumption from the electric grids to fulfill these aforementioned aims. Times and periods of that consumption are indeterminate due to several uncertain parameters that are inherent in the electric vehicles charging process, such as their numbers, their battery capacities, their state-of-charge levels at time of arrivals, and their time of arrivals, which may all lead to a degradation in the quality of electric power delivered to the customers. The research presented in this thesis focuses on the impacts of fast charging stations on three power quality phenomena, namely voltage magnitude variations, voltage unbalance, and voltage fluctuation. The Markov Chain Monte Carlo is proposed to estimate the required energy from each fast charging station when it is utilized to charge the electric vehicles, considering their stochastic parameters. Two charging methods are implemented in this work: charging with an estimated output power and charging with an actual output power. The results reveal that the impact of fast charging stations on voltage fluctuation by either of these charging methods can lead to light flicker. When the estimated output power is utilized, the light flicker is higher compared to when the actual output power is utilized.
When the operation of Fast Charging Stations causes a voltage fluctuation and light flicker, the FCSs may get disconnected which results in a financial loses represented by the FCS downtime. The FCS downtime can be avoided by mitigating the voltage fluctuation and light flicker. Several flicker mitigation devices are analyzed and compared based on different criteria. The comparison reveals that distribution static compensators considers the cheapest mitigation device, according to the cost per kVAr basis and the total annual equivalent cost. Besides, to mitigate the impact on the voltage and light flicker, a novel smart charging is proposed in this study in which customers can select one of three charging services available in the fast chargers: premium, regular, or economic charging power. The charging power is selected upon customer priority toward the time and cost which offers less control than those currently available in the literature. The proposed smart charging preserves the balance of customer's value of time and value of cost. The proposed smart charging achieves a tremendous reduction in the cost of mitigation the voltage fluctuation and light flicker. Annual cost of the proposed smart charging is less than the annual cost of distribution static compensators by a minimum of 90% to a maximum of 99 %. The proposed smart charging offers a compromise solution to satisfy several stakeholders with different interests. Thus, equipment of system’s operator, investor of fast charging station, nearby customers, and owners of electric vehicles will not be impacted by integrating the fast charging station.


title: Secure and privacy-preserving fog-assisted vehicular crowdsensing

contributor:
Lin, Xiaodong
Sankaranarayanan, Karthik

subject:
Security
Privacy
Vehicular crowdsensing
Fog computing

abstract:
Vehicular crowdsensing (VCS) is an emerging paradigm where vehicles use onboard sensors to collect and share data with the aim of measuring phenomena of common interest. VCS has allowed for automated control as well as analysis of road surface quality. These innovations have thus encouraged and shown the importance of the cloud in providing reliable transport services to clients. Nonetheless, these initiatives have not been without challenges, ranging from mobility support, location awareness, low latency and geo-distribution. In order to address these challenges, a new term, known as fog computing, has been coined as a novel paradigm. Therefore, this present work exploits the advantages of VCS and fog computing paradigms in order to propose a promising framework, which is referred to as fog-assisted vehicular crowdsensing (FVCS). Although FVCS has addressed the aforementioned challenges, it may encounter various security threats and privacy concerns that could jeopardize public safety and become the main barrier to the acceptance of such a new technology.
This thesis presents the proposal of a secure and privacy-preserving framework for FVCS. Its objective is to allow vehicles to share their resources while preserving their privacy by preventing private information from being disclosed. Attention is first focused on investigating the threat towards the data generated by vehicles, which is then forwarded to cloud servers and organizations by roadside units (RSUs). Therefore, this work presents a privacy-preserving protocol for enhancing security in VCS-based road surface condition monitoring systems using fog computing.
Furthermore, in order to revoke compromised users from the system, this work offers a novel secure and efficient revocable privacy-preserving protocol in FVCS. Based on the CLASC scheme, this protocol is designed with security properties that include report confidentiality, integrity, privacy, revocation functionality and key escrow resilience.
In addition to the above countermeasures in FVCS, this work also presents an efficient deduplicated reporting scheme in order to ensure that vehicles are free from security risks and privacy threats while sharing their resources with semi-trusted nodes.
Moreover, attention is also given to how the present work can be further developed by exploring the important business perspective related to FVCS technology.


title: Development of an integrated tracking control algorithm and a test platform for autonomous excavation

subject:
Excavator
Position control
Contour control
Force control
Simulation

abstract:
Since construction is part of the industrial sector where a large amount of labor is required and workers operate under harsh environmental conditions, the transformation from manual to autonomous operation in modern construction sites can be a solution to improve productivity, accuracy, and efficiency. Excavator is one of the key equipment in the construction field for earthmoving operations. In this study, an effective control strategy for excavation is introduced considering the position, contour, and force which are mutually associated factors for successful autonomous excavation. For position tracking of the bucket tip, a non-linear PI controller was devised to control the hydraulic actuators of the boom, arm, and bucket links of the excavator. To compensate for the ground resistive forces, an impedance controller was designed. Finally, contour compensation was considered to generate an optimal path of the bucket tip by reducing the contour profile error that is vital for skilled tasks such as ground levelling. Furthermore, the time-delayed control strategy was adopted to mitigate dynamic uncertainties.
The performance of the developed algorithm was evaluated through co-simulation in multi-physics domains. Simulation results showed the designed control algorithm provided good tracking results in terms of the desired position and force of the bucket tip. In addition, the controller could reduce the contour error between the desired trajectory of the bucket tip and its actual trajectory. The simulation results were tested experimentally using the test platform that was developed by modifying an existing mini-hydraulic excavator. Experimental data was gathered to conduct an analysis of the bucket tip’s tracking error and, the error between the desired ground terrain profile and the excavated ground terrain profile. Experimental results showed the developed effective control strategy provided good tracking results of the bucket tip and reduced the standard deviation between the desired ground terrain profile and actual excavated ground terrain profile.


title: The acute response to sprint interval exercise and moderate intensity continuous exercise in adults with and without airway hyperresponsiveness

subject:
Sprint interval exercise
Airway hyperresponsiveness
Lung function
Asthma
Affect

abstract: Introduction: Sprint interval exercise (SIE) has been proposed as a time efficient way to improve physical activity levels; however, SIE has not been studied in adults with airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR). Methods: Eight adults with AHR and eight adults without AHR completed both SIE (4x30 second sprints at 7.5% body weight) and moderate intensity continuous exercise (MICE) (20 minutes at 65% peak power output). Spirometry, ventilatory measures, tissue oxygenation, and subjective responses were assessed prior to, during, and following exercise. Results: The decline in forced expiratory volume in one second was similar following SIE and MICE. Ventilatory measures, tissue oxygenation, and subjective responses were similar in the AHR group compared to those without AHR. Differences were observed in affect, breathlessness, and exertion between SIE and MICE at the onset of exercise. Conclusions: SIE appears to be feasible in adults with AHR; this may have implications for exercise prescription in this population.


title: Joint position estimation, packet routing and sleep scheduling in wireless sensor networks

subject:
Position estimation
Packet routing
Sleep scheduling
Wireless sensor networks
Mobile sink

abstract:
Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is an important research field in Computer Science
with applications that span multiple domains. Due to the limitation of sensor nodes,
network lifetime is a critical issue that needs to be addressed. Therefore, in this thesis
I propose the Energy-aware Connected k-Neighbourhood (ECKN), a joint position
estimation, packet routing, and sleep scheduling solution that combines some overlap-
ping features. I propose a localization algorithm that performs trilateration using the
position of a mobile sink and of neighbour nodes to estimate the position of a sensor
node with no GPS module. I introduce a routing protocol based on the well-known
Greedy Geographic Forwarding (GGF). Similarly to GGF, my protocol takes into
consideration the position of neighbours to decide the best forwarding node, however
it also considers the residual energy in order to guarantee that the forwarding node
will deliver the packet. The concept of bridges is also introduced, in which the sink
compares its current position with previous positions and calculates whether there is a
shortest path in order to create a bridge that will reduce the number of hops a packet
has to travel through. Lastly, a sleep scheduler is proposed in order to extend the
network lifetime, it is based on the Connected k-Neighbourhood (CKN) algorithm,
which aids in the decision of what nodes goes to sleep while maintaining the network
connected. My sleep scheduler maintains the network denser in the area close to the
sink, since this region receives packets from the whole network to forward to the sink.
An extensive set of performance evaluation experiments is conducted and results show
that ECKN can extend network lifetime, while sustaining acceptable packet delivery
ratio and reducing network overhead.


title: Passive damping mechanism of Herschel-Quincke tubes for pressure pulsations in piping systems

subject:
Damping device
Herschel-Quincke tube
Noise control
Pressure Pulsations
Acoustics

abstract: The acoustic pressure pulsations in industrial piping systems can induce fluctuating loads on inline equipment which may cause fatigue failure and in severe cases, initiate a phenomenon known as acoustic resonance. Passive damping devices such as the Herschel-Quincke (HQ) Tube can be implemented into a resonant system to mitigate the pressure pulsations. Some practical considerations have been clarified in the current work which include the normalization of the transmission loss with respect to the HQ tube to pipeline diameter ratio and the change in attenuation when placing an HQ device at different locations along the standing wave formed in the pipeline. The attenuation mechanism of the HQ device was clarified for the application to resonant piping systems. It was found that the second acoustic mode of an open-open pipe is excited within the device. A Computational Aeroacoustic simulation was performed to visualize the acoustic state variables within the HQ device.


title: Design and development of an autonomous scaled electric combat vehicle

contributor:
El-Gindy, Moustafa
Lang, Haoxiang

subject:
Autonomous
Combat vehicle
Obstacle avoidance
Path planning
ROS

abstract: Current literature pertaining to multi-steerable mobile robots and the progression of military vehicles in the past few decades suggest a lack of effort in pursuing advanced technologies in this joint area. As a result, a novel scaled robotic platform that features independent wheel actuation and autonomous navigation capabilities is developed in this work to represent a potential future design of combat vehicles. The following thesis discusses the details of the mechanical systems in addition to the embedded electronics and software architecture. From there, previously developed mapping and path planning algorithms in addition to a developed localization algorithm are implemented to achieve autonomous navigation. Furthermore, a vision-based close quarter pose correction algorithm is designed and developed to improve upon the limitations imposed by current navigation methodologies. The result of this work is a proposed prototype capable of navigation and precise positioning.


title: Towards parallax-based unencumbered displays

contributor:
Green, Mark
Qureshi, Faisal

subject:
Computational displays
Content adaptive parallax barriers
Non-negative matrix factorization
Autostereoscopic

abstract: We present an analysis of content adaptive parallax barriers used for multi-layer unencumbered displays. We explain the techniques involved in detail from the input light field to the output masks and how to display them. The content adaptive parallax barrier masks are produced by decomposing a matrix, which is created by applying a set of constraints to the input light field, using non-negative matrix factorization. We compare a number of matrix factorization methods, including a novel technique developed in this work. We provide a detailed exploration of design parameters for the multi-layer display to produce proper autostereoscopic results. A number of datasets are used to produce simulated results for a comparison of factorization techniques and other elements of the process in creating an unencumbered display using content adaptive parallax barriers.

abstract: University of Ontario Institute of Technology


title: Cultural competence in health care: exploring the experiences of Muslim women within the Ontario healthcare system.

subject:
Cultural competence
Muslim women
Healthcare
Communication

abstract:
This exploratory study examines the influences of cultural and religious practices
of Muslim women within health care settings. Twelve Muslim women, ranging between
the ages of 19 to 57, were interviewed. They all participated in a 30 to 60 minute, semistructured
interview, and discussed their personal interactions with health care providers
and shared their experiences receiving health care. The research question highlights the
role of cultural and religious traditions and practices for Muslim women and how that
affects the patient-provider relationship. Knowledge of the difficulties these women face
is often unrecognized by providers. These include communication and language barriers,
modesty issues, provider gender, translator services and poor provider services. Other
significant themes in the study also include characteristics of a ‘good’ provider, main
challenges for Muslim women, positive versus negative health care experiences, and key
suggestions from participants to improve health services for Muslim patients. Data was
analyzed using Denzin’s qualitative framework interpretive interactionism. Analysis
suggests that Muslim women patients encounter a wide range of difficulties when
obtaining heath care services. The women shared some personal stories, where providers
lacked the ability to care for them in accordance to their cultural and religious
obligations. This reinforces the need for better cultural and religious accommodations for
this “unique” population. Cultural competent strategies and protocols must be developed
to improve health experiences. However, health care providers must first recognize the
gap in the Muslim woman patient-provider relationship in order to change health care
processes and experiences for this community.


title: Communication protocols, queuing and scheduling delay analysis in CANDU SCWR hydrogen co-generation model

contributor:
Lu, Lixuan
Naterer, Greg

subject:
CANDU SCWR hydrogen co-generation model
Communication delays
Queuing delays
Scheduling delays

abstract:
Industrial dynamical, Networked Control Systems (NCSs) are controlled over a
communication network. We study a continuous-time CANada Deuterium
Uranium-Super Critical Water Reactor (CANDU-SCWR) hydrogen plant and a
discrete-time controller, sensor and actuator block, that are connected via a
communication network, such as e.g. controller area network (CAN), Ethernet or
wireless networks. Issues associated with NCSs are time-varying delays, timevarying
sampling intervals and loss of data due to packet drop outs. Delays are also
associated with software chosen, control system architecture and computation load.
CANDU-SCWR hydrogen co-generation model reliability can be analyzed by
dynamic flow graph methodology. We have analyzed the CANDU-SCWR feed
water integration with the oxygen unit of copper chloride cycle and also conducted
an analytical review of the current networked control system delays.


title: A POMDP framework for antenna selection and user scheduling in multi-user massive MIMO systems

subject: Antenna selection

subject: Joint antenna selection and user scheduling

subject: Massive MIMO

subject: Partially observable Markov decision process (POMDP)

subject: Myopic policy

abstract: We use a partially observable Markov decision process (POMDP) framework to design a resource allocation policy for downlink transmit beamforming at a multi-antenna BS that is equipped with a massive number of antennas and only a limited number of RF chains. Considering that channels evolve according to a Markov process and that only partial CSI is available, we use a POMDP framework for antenna selection with the aim to maximize the expected long-term data rate. To avoid the high computational complexity of the value iteration algorithm, we focus on the myopic policy to design a simple yet optimal algorithm. We prove that in the case of a positively correlated two-state Markov channel model, the myopic policy is optimal for antenna selection (for both in massive MISO and MU-MIMO systems) for any number of RF chains. Based on this finding, for general fading channels, we propose to quantize each channel into two levels and apply the myopic policy for antenna selection. Our simulation results show that using this two-level channel quantization for antenna selection results in only a small loss in performance, as compared to the antenna selection technique which use full CSI without quantization. We then utilize a POMDP framework to formulate the joint antenna selection and user scheduling (JASUS) problem for a BS, equipped with a limited number of RF chains that is to serve a large number of single-antenna users in a cell. To do so, we assume that the users are served in a frame, where each frame contains of a finite number of time slots. At the beginning of each frame, given that only partial CSI is available, the BS schedules each user to a time slot, and selects a subset of antennas to serve the scheduled users at that time slot. Considering a positively correlated two-state channel model, we prove the optimality of the myopic policy for our JASUS problem. For Rayleigh fading channels, we devise a low-complexity JASUS algorithm for massive MU-MIMO systems.


title: Exploring internet research process and construction tasks as a technological skill development tool

subject:
Technological skill development
Digital skills
Digital competencies
Constructionism
Internet searching

abstract: Continuous digital skill development is important in today’s workforce due to ever evolving technologies and workforce expectations. This study aims to help develop technological skills through a combination of research process frameworks and a constructionist creation tasks. This framework is designed to remove barriers often seen as inhibiting computer usage. This two-phase study utilizes a mixed-methods methodology through the use of a pre-task survey, live construction task, and a post-task questionnaire. Participants were asked to create a brochure in Microsoft Word for a tourist attraction with the assistance of the Internet. After the brochure was complete, participants were given an opportunity to reflect on the learning experience. Participants that spent more time creating were found to be more likely to report technological skill development. Changes to the task design were recommended for future studies.


title: Experimental investigation and analysis of a new light-based hydrogen production system

subject: Hydrogen Energy Exergy Solar Efficiences

abstract:
Due to the world’s increasing population and the rising standard of living, global energy demand is expected to keep increasing. The limited nature of fossil fuels and their non-homogenous global distribution along with the emissions related to their utilization have caused renewable energies to be considered as a key to sustainability. However, renewable energy sources such as solar energy are intermittent, due to which it has to be stored in an alternate form, such as electricity or hydrogen. Hydrogen is a highly versatile fuel that may become one of the key pillars to support the future energy infrastructure.
The photoelectrochemical water splitting cycle is one of the supreme attractive alternative photoelectrochemical cycles for clean hydrogen production due to its lower temperature requirement and better overall efficiency. The key objective of this master’s research is to develop, theoretically analyse and experimentally investigate a continuous type hybrid hydrogen production system that photoelectrochemically splits water and electrolyses chloralkali to convert the by–products of H2 production into useful industrial commodities. This hybrid system maximizes the utilized solar spectrum by combining photochemical and electrochemical hydrogen production in a photoelectrochemical system. In addition, CFD simulations are performed for various models to determine optimum design parameters for the present PEC reactor. Furthermore, by using electrodes as electron donors to drive photochemical hydrogen production, the hybrid system minimises the potential pollutants.
The proposed system has the advantage to eliminate generating waste by converting the by-products into commercially viable products. In addition to hydrogen, the system generates Cl2 and NaOH which are desired by various industries. The proposed system has an annual production capacity of 2.8 kg hydrogen per square meter of heliostat with a production cost of 1$/kg hydrogen produced. In addition to converting by-products into usable commodities, the system does not emit GHG during operation.


title: Conspiracy of silence: Cultural dissonance as a risk factor for the development of eating disorders in second generation South Asian women.

subject:
Cultural dissonance
Body image
Self perception
South Asian
Eating disorders

abstract:
This exploratory study examines whether traditional South Asian cultural practices, norms and values influence body image and body dissatisfaction in Canadian South Asian women, and whether these factors are involved in the development of eating disorders in this ethno-racial group. Eight second generation South Asian women, between the ages of 21 to 29 years, who have sought help for, or have been clinically diagnosed with an eating disorder, participated in a face-to-face unstructured interview.
The main research question addresses whether second generation Canadian South Asian women experience cultural conflict with regard to traditional group norms of family, household values, and/or arranged marriage practices. Determining whether the societal pressures of balancing these two cultures of East and West create mental health tensions, which manifest as body and self-concept distortions, was a main focus. Other key concepts implied in the analysis include denial, stigmatization, gender inequality, intra-familial competition, and intergenerational conflict in relation to mental health and body image.
Using feminist perspectives and transcultural models as theoretical frameworks, analyses reveal that body image distortions for these women stem not entirely from a pursuit to be thin as previous research has hypothesised, but rather from a multitude of pressures they face in relation to others in their lives. In a constant attempt to please others, follow familial and cultural expectations, and contend with restrictions, these women have sacrificed their own freedoms for their family’s honour, even though their needs and desires may differ. This cultural tension creates a feeling of disconnection and alienation leading to mental pressure, and may be a strong factor for the development of self-dissatisfaction, and ultimately eating disorders, for young South Asian women.


title: A study of a novel design for efficient hydrolysis reactor for the Cu-Cl thermochemical hydrogen production cycle

contributor:
Gabriel, Kamiel
Pope, Kevin (Memorial University)

subject: Hydrogen Energy Cu-Cl Thermochemical Environment

abstract: In this thesis, methods to optimize the Hydrolysis reactor for the Cu-Cl thermochemical Hydrogen production cycle were investigated. A simplified Hydrolysis reactor using simple off-the-shelf components was tested and found to suffer from corrosion due to the materials selected for the atomizing nozzle. Because of this corrosion issue, the decision was made to focus on gas-solid Hydrolysis reactors, such as the fluidized bed. This led to the investigation of a novel design for a Hydrolysis reactor, referred to as the Recirculating Steam Fluidized Bed (RSFB) reactor. By recirculating un-used steam through the Hydrolysis reaction directly, the RSFB reactor lowers the steam-to-copper ratio significantly while maintaining favorable reaction kinetics. This design was found to result in a more concentrated HCl acid product, simplifying integration between Hydrolysis and Electrolysis. This novel design represents an opportunity for advancing the Cu-Cl cycle and paves the way to large-scale deployment.


title: Polymorphic Adversarial DDoS attack on IDS using GAN

subject:
Adversarial attacks
Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN)
Intrusion detection system
DDoS attacks
Machine learning

abstract: IDS are essential components in preventing malicious traffic from penetrating networks. IDS have been rapidly enhancing their detection ability using ML algorithms. As a result, attackers look for new methods to evade the IDS. Polymorphic attacks are favorites among the attackers as they can bypass the IDS. GAN is a method proven in generating various forms of data. It is becoming popular among security researchers as it can produce indistinguishable data from the original data. I proposed a model to generate DDoS attacks using a WGAN. I used several techniques to update the attack feature profile and generate polymorphic data. This data will change the feature profile in every cycle to test if the IDS can detect the new version attack data. Simulation results from the proposed model show that by continuous changing of attack profiles, defensive systems that use incremental learning will still be vulnerable to new attacks.


title: Examining swim bladder inflation failure as a toxicological endpoint in Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes)

subject: Toxicology Pharmaceuticals Embryo-toxicity Swim-bladder Medaka

abstract:
Inadequate swim bladder inflation, while not being lethal itself, can have serious long-term effects on fish populations. Many environmental contaminants can inhibit swim bladder inflation of larval fish. Understanding how swim bladder inflation failure due to pollutant exposure occurs and developing biomarkers for this effect is important. This study demonstrated that embryonic exposure to the pharmaceuticals 17α-ethinylestradiol, levonorgestrel, and diclofenac, impaired swim bladder inflation of Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes). After exposure to individual compounds, mixture exposures to no-observed-effect concentrations of these compounds were conducted. Significant effects on swim bladder inflation were observed for a binary mixture of 17α-ethinylestradiol, and levonorgestrel, as well as in a mixture of all the compounds. These compounds thus have the potential for significant mixture effects below their individual no-observed-effect concentrations.
Many factors associated with swim bladder formation and inflation were investigated. The temporal requirement for an air-water interface for successful swim bladder inflation was determined to be ~5 days for Japanese medaka. Swim bladder inflation failure of medaka larvae was shown to be strongly correlated with decreased survival 12 days post-hatch. This implies that compounds that can disrupt swim bladder inflation of hatched larvae such as those studied in this experiment, may lead to increased mortality of larval fish.                           Embryonic exposure to 5 μM cyclopamine, a Hedgehog (Hh) signaling inhibitor, as well as 1 μM IWR-1, a Wnt signalling inhibitor, resulted in >95% inhibition of swim bladder inflation of Japanese medaka larvae. The effects of these inhibitors on the expression of medaka genes related to the Hh and Wnt pathways, as well as genes involved in the formation of the three cell layers that make up the swim bladder (epithelial, mesenchyme, and outer mesothelium) were also determined at 80, 96, 101, 144, 180, and 216 hours post fertilization. Effects on expression of key genes related to swim bladder formation and inflation following exposure to 17α-ethinylestradiol, levonorgestrel, and diclofenac were determined. The effects on gene expression of these three pharmaceuticals when compared to those of select signalling pathway inhibitors were more closely related to effects on the wnt pathway than the Hh pathway. These pharmaceutical compounds significantly inhibited the expression of genes related to the formation of the three layers of the swim bladder, with levonorgestrel affecting the most genes tested. While all of the effects observed in this dissertation were caused by concentrations of pharmaceuticals generally above those found in the environment, this study demonstrated that pharmaceutical compounds have the potential to affect medaka embryo development as well as swim bladder inflation.


title: A novel deep learning architecture and large-scale benchmark for robust object detection in traffic surveillance and analysis

subject:
Accident detection
Computer vision
Deep learning
Intelligent transportation systems
Object detection

abstract: Upstream technologies such as traffic surveillance provide helpful information to downstream intelligent transportation systems intending to improve the safety, mobility, and efficiency of road-users whilst reducing their environmental impact. Vision-based traffic surveillance sensors can provide more robust and rich information than other inroad or over-road sensors. However, they are more susceptible to challenges caused by environmental impacts, illumination changes, association issues, and viewpoint obstructions. In this thesis, we advance vision-based traffic surveillance for intelligent transportation systems by: (1) developing the “OTTSB Benchmark”, a new benchmark for largescale video-based traffic surveillance; (2) STIFFNet, a novel object detection algorithm for traffic surveillance that performs Spatial and Temporal self-attentIon-based deep Feature Fusion. The OTTSB contains over 1.7 million annotations across more than 135k frames captured from 30 different regions in 12 different countries. Our model STIFFNet outperformed the state-of-the-art results on the UA-DETRAC benchmark by 4.89% with an overall AP of 92.99%.


title: Simulation of in-core dose rates for an offline CANDU reactor

contributor:
Waller, Ed
Nokleby, Scott

subject:
MCNP
CANDU
Fuel channel
Inspections
Dose

abstract:
This thesis describes the development of a Monte Carlo simulation to predict the dose rates that will be encountered by a novel robotic inspection system for the pressure tubes of an offline CANDU reactor. Simulations were performed using the Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP) radiation transport code, version 6.1. The radiation fields within the reactor, even when shut down, are very high, and can cause significant damage to certain structural components and the electronics of the inspection system.
Given that the robotic system will rely heavily on electronics, it is important to know the dose rates that will be encountered, in order to estimate the component lifetimes.
The MCNP simulation was developed and benchmarked against information obtained from Ontario Power Generation and the Canadian Nuclear Laboratories. The benchmarking showed a good match between the simulated values and the expected values. This simulation, coupled with the accompanying user interface, represent a tool in dose field prediction that is currently unavailable. Predicted dose rates for a postulated inspection at 7 days after shutdown, with 2:5 cm of tungsten shielding around the key components, would survive for approximately 7 hours in core. This is anticipated to be enough time to perform an inspection and shows that the use of this tool can aid in designing the new inspection system.


title: Design of a secure privacy preserving cloud based framework for sharing electronic health data

subject:
Attribute Based Encryption (ABE)
Electronic Health Records (EHR)
Security
Privacy
Cryptography

abstract: There exists a need for sharing user health data, especially with institutes for research purposes, in a secure fashion. This is especially true in the case of a system that includes a third party storage service, such as cloud computing, which limits the control of the data owner. The use of encryption for secure data storage continues to evolve to meet the need for flexible and fine-grained access control. This evolution has led to the development of Attribute Based Encryption (ABE). The use of ABE to ensure the security and privacy of health data has been explored. This thesis presents an ABE based framework which allows for the secure outsourcing of the more computationally intensive processes for data decryption to the cloud servers. This reduces the time needed for decryption to occur at the user end and reduces the amount of computational power needed by users to access data.


title: Dynamic flowgraph methodology for reliability modelling of networked control systems: with application to a nuclear-based hydrogen production plant

subject:
Dynamic flowgraph methodology
Networked control system
Cu-Cl cycle
Instrumentation and control systems
Communication network

abstract: The use of communication networks in digital control systems introduces stability and reliability concerns. Standard reliability and safety assessment methods need further modification to accommodate the issue in the reliability assessment of networked control systems. In this thesis, it is demonstrated that the Dynamic Flowgraph Methodology (DFM) can be extended to model networked control systems. The modelling of the communication network influence on the performance of the control system is presented. The areas that can affect the reliability of the control system are identified using the methodology. The thesis also presents the application of the DFM to a nuclear-based thermochemical water splitting process for hydrogen production, the Copper-Chlorine (Cu-Cl) cycle. The architecture of a networked control system and configuration of instrumentation and control systems for the hydrogen production plant are proposed in the thesis.


title: Towards implicit learning of system-assigned authentication tokens

contributor:
Thorpe, Julia
Vargas Martin, Miguel

subject:
Authentication
System-assisted passwords
Implicit learning

abstract:
People tend to choose predictable passwords which are vulnerable to guessing attacks. To combat the security issue, system-assigned authentication keys were proposed, but coming at a cost to memorability. In this thesis, I explore two different approaches to improve memorability of system-assigned keys through implicit learning: one that directly uses implicit memory alone, and another that indirectly uses implicit memory to reinforce explicit memory.
I first explore the feasibility of direct implicit learning-based authentication secrets, Tacit Secrets: system-assigned passwords that you can remember, but cannot write down or otherwise communicate. I design an approach to creating Tacit Secrets based on Contextual Cueing, an implicit learning method previously studied in the cognitive psychology literature. My feasibility study involving 30 participants indicates that my approach has strong security properties: resistance to brute-force attacks, online attacks, classical phishing attacks, and some coercion attacks. It also offers protection against leaks from other verifiers as the secrets are system-assigned.  My approach also has a high login success rate and low false positive rates. I explore the trade-offs of different configurations of my design and provide insight into directions for future work.
In light of the promising results of Tacit Secrets, I propose a novel idea for training users system-assigned passphrases using implicit learning indirectly. Unfortunately, people's propensity is to choose predictable natural language patterns in passphrases, again resulting in vulnerability to guessing attacks. Making them system-assigned would improve security, but at a cost to memorability. To improve usability of system-assigned passphrases, I propose a new approach for reinforcing system-assigned passphrases by involving implicit memory. I design, implement, and test a system that employs this approach using two implicit learning techniques: contextual cueing and semantic priming. In an 880-participant online study, I explored the usability of 4-word system-assigned passphrases using the proposed approach compared to a set of control conditions. My results showed that the proposed approach improves usability of system-assigned passphrases, both in terms of recall rates and login time. This work sheds light into the potential of implicit learning for system-assigned authentication, suggesting it can improve its usability and therefore its feasibility.


title: Retinopathy of prematurity and blood oxygen saturation:  confirmation of the relationship with high fidelity data

contributor:
McGregor, Carolyn
James, Andrew

subject: Retinopathy of prematurity

subject: Blood oxygen saturation

abstract:
The CRoss Industry Standard Process for Temporal Data Mining (CRISP-TDM) that supports physiological stream temporal data mining and CRISP-DM0 that supports null hypothesis driven confirmatory data mining in combination was proposed by prior research. This combined CRISP-TDM0 is utilised as the standardised approach to managing, reporting and performing retrospective clinical research and is designed to solve the limitation in knowledge discovery amongst physiological data streams.
The temporal abstractions (TA) of high fidelity blood oxygenation saturation (SpO2) levels of nine premature neonates are analysed using data collected by the Artemis Platform and correlated with Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) data.
The hourly SpO2, TA pattern visualisation manifested three clusters and this is further supported by mathematical review of time percentage spent in target, below and over oxygenation.
Clustering based on ROP stage and gestational age identified probable association within these three clusters. However known risk factors showed no association with ROP.


title: A negotiation protocol with conditional offers for camera handoffs.

subject:
Camera networks
Camera handoffs
Smart cameras

abstract:
This thesis explores the idea of conditional offers during camera handoff negotiations. In a
departure from contract-net inspired negotiation models that have been proposed for camera
handoffs, the current scheme assumes that each camera maintains the state of its neighbouring
cameras. To this end, we develop a new short-term memory model for maintaining a camera’s
own state and the state of its neighbouring cameras. The fact that each camera is aware of its
surrounding cameras is exploited to generate conditional offers during handoff negotiations.
This can result in multiple rounds of negotiations during a single handoff, leading to successful
handoffs in situations where one of the cameras that is being asked to take on one more task
is unable to take on a new task without relinquishing an existing task. The results demonstrate
the advantages of the proposed negotiation model over existing models for camera handoffs.


title: Health and safety enhancement of lithium-ion batteries for fast-charging

contributor:
Lin, Xianke
Lang, Haoxiang

subject:
Lithium-ion
Fault detection
Fast-charging
Neural networks
Lithium plating

abstract:
In reference to IEEE copyrighted material which is used with permission in this thesis, the IEEE does not endorse any of University of Ontario Institute of Technology’s products or services. Internal or personal use of this material is permitted. If interested in reprinting/republishing IEEE copyrighted material for advertising or promotional purposes or for creating new collective works for resale or redistribution, please go to
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abstract: With the ever-increasing demand for battery electric vehicles, the expectation of safety, range, and fast charging has become a major focus for industry players and researchers. The research presented herein sought to improve the safety of Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries and the health of the cells while fast charging. The work presented has introduced recurrent neural network models and other innovative processes for the estimation of the core temperature in Li-ion cells, and the detection of thermal and voltage faults that could cause thermal runaway. A novel health-conscious fast charging (HCFC) strategy for Li-ion battery packs validated through experimentation was also developed to minimize the charge time while maximizing the longevity and useable capacity of the battery pack. Results from this research verified the reliability of recurrent neural networks for battery signal estimation and fault detection while also demonstrating the performance of the HCFC strategy compared to the standard approach.


title: Investigation of the ultrasonic based hydrogen production process: Sonohydrogen

contributor:
Dincer, Ibrahim
Mohany, Atef

subject:
Sonochemistry
Sonohydrogen
Sonoreactor performance
Sonohydrogen efficiency
Ultrasonic hydrogen production

abstract:
The present work carries out various sets of numerical investigations to link the primary effect of the acoustic parameters with the secondary effect of developing a chemical reaction mechanism for water vapor dissociation into hydrogen and radicals. The first set of numerical modeling predicts the acoustic pressure distribution inside a typical geometry cylindrical sonoreactor. The study validates the acoustic pressure according to different geometrical and acoustical parameters. Secondly, the analysis and assessments give access to the sonication process's acoustic streaming. The second set validates the acoustic streaming result according to the velocity profile and streamlines, which gives an excellent agreement with the literature's experimental data. Analysis of variance ANOVA investigates the performance of 27 different configurations for the sake of optimization and determines the most influential factors for the design of a sonoreactor. Nevertheless, the chemical reaction module develops a chemical kinetics model and simulates the sonohydrogen process. The reaction kinetics mechanism consists of 19 reversible reactions and investigates the effect of the acoustic bubble temperature and the dissolved gases on the hydrogen production rate. The study quantifies the amount of hydrogen produced from the sonohydrogen process successfully and reveals the energy consumption to produce one μmol of hydrogen per kWh.
The chemical kinetics results reveal that the higher the bubble temperature, the higher the chemical reaction rate. In the case of the H2O/O2 bubble, the energy consumption ranges between 1.05-1.63 μmol/kWh, with a maximum hydrogen yield of 4% and a maximum energy efficiency of 2% depending on the bubble’s temperature. However, in the H2O/Ar bubble, the hydrogen production shows an outstanding improvement with energy efficiency in the range 20-30 μmol/kWh with a maximum hydrogen yield of 35% and a maximum overall efficiency of 15%. The theory beyond this finding lies in the lower thermal conductivity, higher heat capacity, and lower thermal diffusivity of water vapor and carbon dioxide composition. We find this study is promising as a start for a new technique for hydrogen production.

abstract: University of Ontario Institute of Technology


title: Sensitivity analysis of fuel centerline temperatures in SuperCritical water-cooled reactors (SCWRs)

contributor:
Pioro, Igor
Gabriel, Kamiel

subject:
SCWRs
Fuel centerline temperature
Sheath temperature
HTC

abstract:
SuperCritical Water-cooled Reactors (SCWRs) are one of the six nuclear-reactor concepts currently being developed under the Generation-IV International Forum (GIF). A main advantage of SCW Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) is that they offer higher thermal efficiencies compared to those of current conventional NPPs. Unlike today’s conventional NPPs, which have thermal efficiencies between 30 ‒ 35%, SCW NPPs will have thermal efficiencies within a range of 45 ‒ 50%, owing to high operating temperatures and pressures (i.e., coolant temperatures as high as 625°C at 25 MPa pressure).
The use of current fuel bundles with UO2 fuel at the high operating parameters of SCWRs may cause high fuel centerline temperatures, which could lead to fuel failure and fission gas release. Studies have shown that when the Variant-20 (43-element) fuel bundle was examined at SCW conditions, the fuel centerline temperature industry limit of 1850°C for UO2 and the sheath temperature design limit of 850°C might be exceeded. Therefore, new fuel-bundle designs, which comply with the design requirements, are required for future use in SCWRs.
The main objective of this study to conduct a sensitivity analysis in order to identify the main factors that leads to fuel centerline temperature reduction. Therefore, a 54-element fuel bundle with smaller diameter of fuel elements compared to that of the 43-element bundle was designed and various nuclear fuels are examined for future use in a generic Pressure Tube (PT) SCWR. The 54-element bundle consists of 53 heated fuel elements with an outer diameter of 9.5 mm and one central unheated element of 20-mm outer diameter which contains burnable poison. The 54-element fuel bundle has an outer diameter of 103.45 mm, which is the same as the outer diameter of the 43-element fuel bundle. After developing the 54-element fuel bundle, one-dimensional heat-transfer analysis was conducted using MATLAB and NIST REFPROP programs. As a result, the Heat Transfer Coefficient (HTC), bulk-fluid, sheath and fuel centerline temperature profiles were generated along the heated length of 5.772 m for a generic fuel channel. The fuel centerline and sheath temperature profiles have been determined at four Axial Heat Flux Profiles (AHFPs) using an average thermal power per channel of 8.5 MWth. The four examined AHFPs are the uniform, cosine, upstream-skewed and downstream-skewed profiles.
Additionally, this study focuses on investigating a possibility of using low, enhanced and high thermal-conductivity fuels. The low thermal-conductivity fuels, which have been examined in this study, are uranium dioxide (UO2), Mixed Oxide (MOX) and Thoria (ThO2) fuels. The examined enhanced thermal-conductivity fuels are uranium dioxide – silicon carbide (UO2 - SiC) and uranium dioxide - beryllium oxide (UO2 - BeO). Lastly, uranium carbide (UC), uranium dicarbide (UC2) and uranium nitride (UN) are the selected high thermal-conductivity fuels, which have been proposed for use in SCWRs.
A comparison has been made between the low, enhanced and high thermal-conductivity fuels in order to identify the fuel centerline temperature behaviour when different nuclear fuels are used. Also, in the process of conducting the sensitivity analysis, the HTC was calculated using the Mokry et al. correlation, which is the most accurate supercritical water heat-transfer correlation so far. The sheath and the fuel centerline temperature profiles were determined for two cases. In Case 1, the HTC was calculated based on the Mokry et al. correlation, while in Case 2, the HTC values calculated for Case 1 were multiplied by a factor of 2. This factor was used in order to identify the amount of decrease in temperatures if the heat transfer is enhanced with appendages.
Results of this analysis indicate that the use of the newly developed 54-element fuel bundle along with the proposed fuels is promising when compared with the Variant-20 (43-element) fuel bundle. Overall, the fuel centerline and sheath temperatures were below the industry and design limits when most of the proposed fuels were examined in the 54-element fuel bundle, however, the fuel centerline temperature limit was exceeded while MOX fuel was examined.


title: Templated N-doped carbon materials for energy storage and conversion:  synthesis and characterization studies

subject:
Carbon
Melamine-formaldehyde
Oxygen reduction reaction

abstract:
Sustainable energy sources are necessary to decrease the environmental problems associated with fossil fuels. Modified mesoporous carbon materials have been studied with aims of improving the performance of energy conversion and storage devices. In particular, heteroatom-doped carbons have received great attention as both a catalyst and catalyst support, showing potential in improving the catalytic activity of Pt towards the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR).
In this study, N-doped mesoporous carbons were synthesized by carbonization of melamine-formaldehyde (MF) polymer gels, using SiO2 nanoparticles as a hard-template. Carbon supports (MF-NC) with up to 8 N-atom% and surface areas up to 440 m2/g were obtained depending on the SiO2 content and annealing conditions (850oC, 950°C, or 1500°C). Pt/MF-NC samples were prepared to evaluate the electrochemical performance, stability, and ORR activity for applications in energy storage and conversion devices. Incorporating Fe was also considered to replace Pt as the catalyst. Preliminary results are also discussed.


title: Characterization of eutectic In-Bi-Sn alloy (Field’s metal) for use in single and two-phase liquid metal flow in natural circulation systems

subject:
Liquid metal
Natural circulation
Nuclear
Two-phase flow

abstract: An In-Bi-Sn eutectic alloy was characterized for the purpose of liquid metal natural circulation experiments. The alloy was chosen to reduce the power requirement and enhance the safety of these types of experiments.  The initial characterization included the development of a method of fabrication, an investigation of the chemical compatibility with air, water, borosilicate glass, and stainless steel. An investigation to experimentally determine the thermo-physical properties (viscosity, density, specific heat capacity, and thermal conductivity) of the liquid metal was performed.  A numerical model of the natural circulation loop was developed and compared to experimental results of a liquid metal natural circulation experiment.


title: Community size effects in Canadian National Hockey League draftees: exploring regional variations in community size effects and the influence of population density and proximity to Canadian hockey league teams.

subject:
Community size effect
Athlete development
Sport expertise

abstract:
Researcher have identified certain population size categories to be more advantageous in developing elite athletes than others (Côté et al., 2006), giving this phenomenon the name “community size effect”. However, inter-categorical comparisons assume uniformity of athlete production within categories, which may be misleading. The purpose of Study 1 was to explore the homogeneity in Canadian National Hockey League (NHL) draftee production within population size categories across provincial regions of Canada. Results showed substantial intra-categorical variability in NHL draftee production, suggesting athlete development environments are not equal between similarly sized cities. The purpose of Study 2 was to explore the effects of
population density and distance to Canadian Hockey League (CHL) teams on developing Canadian NHL draftees. Results showed a significant positive relationship between population density and draftee production in all provincial regions, and a significant negative relationship between distance to CHL teams and draftee production in 4/6 provincial regions.


title: Determining the effects of harmful algae blooms and their toxins on fish from both environment and laboratory-based studies through the use of proteomics

subject: Algae Plasma Fish Microcystins Hypoxia

abstract: The effects of harmful algae blooms (HABs) on wild, freshwater, large-bodied fish have been under examined. Blood samples were collected from fish in Hamilton Harbor and Lake Erie to assess the effects of HABs on a molecular level using plasma proteomics. The target species were goldfish (Carassius auratus) and Gizzard Shad (Dorosoma cepedianumi), sampled before HABs formed in the spring, during peak HAB formation in summer, and after the HABs started senescing in the fall. In the laboratory, rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were exposed to lysed Microcystis aeruginosa in a laboratory 14-day uptake and depuration study. The plasma from both studies was analyzed using liquid chromatography with tandem-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to identify changes in the protein profile before, during and after exposure. The purpose being to identify potential biomarkers that could determine whether a fish has been exposed to cyanotoxins and identify toxic effects of HABs on physiological function.


title: Impacts of the TRC and ALRC reports on Indigenous correctional programming and services: a cross-country comparison of Canada and Australia

subject: Indigenous Corrections Overrepresentation Reconciliation

abstract: Indigenous peoples have been overrepresented in the Canadian and Australian criminal justice systems for decades. Commissions were established in both of the commonwealth countries, which produced reports addressing the history of colonization and overrepresentation in the justice system. The reports included calls to action and recommendations to reconcile relationships with the Indigenous populations and improve their wellbeing. This thesis compared the government responses of the Canadian provinces and the Australian state and territory with the highest levels of Indigenous overrepresentation in the correctional system, focusing on correctional programs and services. Publicly available, secondary data was collected and analyzed. Results showed that the level of accountability and action taken in response to the national inquiries varied both within and between countries, from a direct response to an absence thereof. This study can provide insight and direction for best practices in responding to both national inquiries, and the needs of Indigenous prisoners.


title: Perceptions of coercion: a comparison of perspectives

subject:
Coercion
Interrogation
Confession
Expert witness
Admissibility

abstract: When a confession is retracted, issues of coercion and voluntariness are important and often contested matters in criminal courts. Counsel may wish to call an expert witness to testify about the coercive pressures of certain interrogation tactics, personal traits that increase suspect vulnerability, and the possibility of false confession. Such testimony must meet certain criteria (e.g., Daubert v. Merrell Dow, 1993; R v. Mohan, 1994), and is often ruled inadmissible on the grounds that it does not inform the jury beyond their common knowledge (Cutler, Findley, & Loney, 2014; Kassin et al., 2018). To investigate common understanding of coercion in interrogation, I examined jury-eligible laypersons' (n= 50) perceptions of the coerciveness of items representing minimization techniques, maximization techniques, prohibited tactics, and suspect risk factors. Their ratings were compared with those of two groups of content experts: social scientists specializing in interrogation and confession (n = 50) and criminal justice officials experienced in conducting interrogations or evaluating confession evidence (n= 20). The two groups of content experts showed a high level of agreement, though laypeople gave significantly lower ratings to the coercive potential of all sets of items representing interrogation techniques. Given the disparities between laypersons' and experts' perceptions of coercion in interrogation, and the connection between coercion and false confession (Drizin & Leo, 2004; Kassin et al., 2010; Leo & Ofshe, 1998), the results suggest the need for expert guidance to inform jurors about coercive factors which may render a confession unsafe and unreliable.


title: A variational approach to mapping: an exploration of map representation for SLAM

subject:
SLAM
Level set
Distance fields
Implicit surfaces
Mapping

abstract:
Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithms are used
by autonomous robots to build or update maps of an environment while
maintaining their position simultaneously. A fundamental open problem
in SLAM is the e ective representation of the map in unknown,
ambiguous, complex, dynamic environments. Representing such environments
in a suitable manner is a complex task. Existing approaches
to SLAM use map representations that store individual features (range
measurements, image patches, or higher level semantic features) and
their locations in the environment. The choice of how the map is represented
produces limitations which in many ways are unfavourable
for application in real-world scenarios. In this thesis, a new approach
to SLAM is explored that rede nes sensing and robot motion as acts
of deformation of a di erentiable surface. Distance  elds and level set
methods are utilized to de ne a parallel to the components of the SLAM
estimation process and an algorithm is developed and demonstrated.
The variational framework developed is capable of representing complex
dynamic scenes and spatially varying uncertainty for sensor and
robot models.


title: Automated inspection of sintered uranium fuel pellets

subject:
Uranium dioxide
Inspection
Automated
Pellet
Defects

abstract:
A method of applying high-speed, non-destructive testing technologies to the inspection process of UO2 (uranium dioxide) fuel pellets is presented. The scanning process examines the surface of each pellet for correct manufacturing parameters. In this work, three inspection technologies have been investigated: laser scanning of surface
roughness, 2D laser scanning of surface cross-section, and CCD camera inspection of surface integrity. The complete circumferential surface of each pellet is inspected using a combination of these three technologies. Both static and non-static test results on pseudo pellets are presented. The results show that the proposed technologies are
capable of performing the necessary inspections.


title: Characterization of xylan degradation systems in streptomyces

subject: Xylanase Streptomyces Xylan Actinomycete Xylose

abstract:
Plant biomass serves as a carbon and energy source for Streptomyces spp. which
secrete degradative enzymes capable of breaking down the complex plant biomass into
simple saccharides. Hemicellulose is a major component of plants and is composed of
five and six carbon sugars, such as xylose and glucose. Enzymatic degradation of
hemicellulose to obtain desired sugars has been a cornerstone of many industries, as well
as the subject of worldwide research for additional sources of efficient enzymes for
substrate conversion. In this study, environmentally-derived Streptomyces isolates were
screened for their ability to hydrolyze oat-spelt and birchwood xylan in agar-based high
throughput activity screens. Of the isolates tested, eight displayed high levels of
substrate-degrading activity and were chosen for further characterization which included
16S rRNA gene analysis, microscopic analysis from both liquid and agar grown cultures,
xylanase-specific activity, lignin peroxidase production and indole acetic acid
production.Qualitative assessment of extracellular lactone signalling for all eight isolates
was also performed. Putative lactone signalling was observed for Streptomyces isolates
JLS1-C4, JLS1-A6, JLS2-D6 and KT1-B1 which exhibited xylanase-specific activities of
0.622 μmol/min/mg, 0.0243 μmol/min/mg, 0.721 μmol/min/mg, and 0.706 μmol/min/mg
respectively. Streptomyces isolates JLS1-F12 and JLS1-C12 did not exhibit lactone
signalling but did exhibit xylanase-specific activities of 0.125 μmol/min/mg and 0.0688
μmol/min/mg respectively. No xylanase-specific activity was detected for isolates JLS2-
C7 and KT1-B8; however lactone signalling was observed for isolate KT1-B8.
Streptomyces isolate JLS1-A6 degraded birchwood xylan optimally at pH 4 and 28°C
with a maximal xylanase activity of 1.56 x10-3 μmol/min/mg.


title: Thermal performance analysis and geometrical optimization of automotive brake rotors.

contributor:
He, Yuping
Naterer, Greg

subject:
automobiles - - brakes
heat - - conduction
brake rotor
simulation
heat transfer
geometrical optimization

abstract: The heat dissipation and thermal performance of ventilated brake discs strongly depends on the aerodynamic characteristics of the air flow through the rotor passages. In this thesis, the thermal convection is analyzed using an analytical method, and the velocity distribution, temperature contours and Nusselt number are determined. Then numerical models for different rotors, pillar post rotors and vane rotors are generated and numerical simulations are conducted to determine the desired parameters. To analyze more realistic vane and pillar post rotor models, commercial CFD software packages, Fluent and Gambit, are used to simulate the heat flux rate, air flow rate, velocity distributions, temperature contours, and pressure distributions inside the rotors. Furthermore, sensitivity studies have been performed, to determine the effects of a different number of vanes or pillar posts, inner and outer radii and various angles of vanes. To automate the tedious and repetitive design process of the disc rotor, a design synthesis framework, iSIGHT, is used to integrate the geometrical modeling using GAMBIT and numerical simulations based on FLUENT. Through this integrated design synthesis process, the disc rotor geometrical optimization is performed using design of experiment studies.


title: QoE aware real-time multimedia streaming in software-defined networks

subject: QoE QoS SDN SD-WAN Crowdsourcing

abstract: The exponential increase in bandwidth-sensitive multimedia traffic on the net has given rise to new challenges and services. There is a need to have quality management measures to serve the high needs of efficient transmission and delivery in time-constrained environments over IP networks. Quality of Experience (QoE) is one of the major techniques introduced to achieve the goals of application efficiency and user satisfaction from an end-user perspective. By utilizing crowdsourcing techniques, QoE becomes more cost-efficient and easier to measure. In this paper, I propose a framework that takes real time QoE feedback and forward it to SD-WAN controllers in order to enhance streaming routes based on real-time user quality perceptions. We analyze how QoE can be affected by different streaming protocols and which streaming protocols perform better when dynamic quality changes are introduced. Real-time feedback is compared to predefined dynamic changes to identify if participants able to capture all degradation events or whether not all degradations event combinations are noticeable to the participants. This QoE timestamped feedback will be fed to a SD-WAN controller, in-order to allow end users interaction and the possibility to point out issues in the current service path and to enable the network controllers to take corrective action by rerouting the streamed traffic. Our aim is to demonstrate that real-time QoE feedback can enhance cloud-based services and can adjust services quality based on real-time active participants’ interaction.


title: Video game livestream spectator: motivations and behaviours

subject:
Livestream
Spectator
Esports
User experience research

abstract: In recent years, video game livestreams have seen tremendous growth, resulting gaps of knowledge regarding studies on the motivations and behaviours of livestream spectators. This thesis presents two studies that intend to investigate livestream spectators’ motivations and behaviours to add knowledge regarding livestream spectators. The first study investigates if gamification typology framework can be used to determine and categorize livestream spectators based on their preference in interactive features. Initial results highlight hints of possible trends in preferences of spectators depending on their gamification user type. The second study uses an exploratory approach adopted to gain a better understanding of the behaviours and motivations of esports tournament spectators. The result of this study showed that spectators value the quality of the gameplay during tournament matches. Spectators are more likely to support teams or players that provide suspense by taking risks and trying strategies that are unconventional.


title: Design and implementation process for controls integration using CAN bus on a full function electric vehicle conversion

subject:
CAN
EcoCAR
Electric vehicle
Energy
Lithium battery

abstract:
From the electrical engineering perspective, this thesis addresses the design and
implementation of the conversion process from a hybrid electric to a full function electric
vehicle (FFEV). The architecture selection process and main components of an electric
vehicle (EV) are described, and an exhaustive literature review on the controller area
network (CAN) is presented. The electrical and control system integration strategy is
explained, along with the model-based algorithm programmed into the vehicle
integration module (VIM). Emulating electronic control units (ECUs) from the original
powertrain and controlling additional ones for the electrical drivetrain through CAN bus,
along with keeping the same functionalities of a typical production vehicle makes this
vehicle conversion similar to a factory built model. Finally, the tests and results
originating from this conversion to a full electric powertrain are discussed. The vehicle
features a 83.5 kWh Li-ion battery built in-house, resulting in an estimated range of
482 km.


title: Investigating the effectiveness of an exercise intervention on sleep behaviour and problem behaviour in children ages 6-10 with Autism Spectrum Disorder

subject:
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Sleep behaviour
Exercise
Problem behaviour
Rating of perceived exertion

abstract: Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often experience problematic sleep behaviour and demonstrate low levels of participation in physical activity (PA) and exercise. There is a bidirectional relationship between sleep and exercise in children with typical development (TD), however, it is not well understood in children with ASD. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of a 4-week exercise intervention on sleep behaviour of 6-10-year-old children with ASD in comparison to controls. Sleep, problem behaviour, and the feasibility of a rating of perceived exertion scale were assessed before and after the intervention. The results showed that subjectively reported sleep behaviour improved following participation in the exercise intervention. Problem behaviour improved in both groups and the ratings of perceived exertion fell within the expected ranges. Overall, the results indicate that exercise is a feasible, non-pharmacological option for children with ASD who experience problematic sleep behaviours, but further investigation is warranted.


title: Risk-informed maintenance for non-coherent systems

subject:
Probabilistic safety assessment
Faulty tree analysis
Risk importance measure
Non-coherent systems
Maintenance

abstract:
Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) is a systematic and comprehensive methodology to evaluate risks associated with a complex engineered technological entity. The information provided by PSA has been increasingly implemented for regulatory purposes but rarely used in providing information for operation and maintenance activities. As one of the key parts in PSA, Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) attempts to model and analyze failure processes of engineering and biological systems. The fault trees are composed of logic diagrams that display the state of the system and are constructed using graphical design techniques.
Risk Importance Measures (RIMs) are information that can be obtained from both qualitative and quantitative aspects of FTA. Components within a system can be ranked with respect to each specific criterion defined by each RIM. Through a RIM, a ranking of the components or basic events can be obtained and provide valuable information for risk-informed decision making. Various RIMs have been applied in various applications. In order to provide a thorough understanding of RIMs and interpret the results, they are categorized with respect to risk significance (RS) and safety significance (SS) in this thesis. This has also tied them into different maintenance activities. When RIMs are used for maintenance purposes, it is called risk-informed maintenance.
On the other hand, the majority of work produced on the FTA method has been concentrated on failure logic diagrams restricted to the direct or implied use of AND and OR operators. Such systems are considered as coherent systems. However, the NOT logic can also contribute to the information produced by PSA. The importance analysis of non-coherent systems is rather limited, even though the field has received more and more attention over the years. The non-coherent systems introduce difficulties in both qualitative and quantitative assessment of the fault tree compared with the coherent systems.
In this thesis, a set of RIMs is analyzed and investigated. The 8 commonly used RIMs (Birnbaum‘s Measure, Criticality Importance Factor, Fussell-Vesely Measure, Improvement Potential, Conditional Probability, Risk Achievement, Risk Achievement Worth, and Risk Reduction Worth) are extended to non-coherent forms. Both coherent and non-coherent forms are classified into different categories in order to assist different types of maintenance activities. The real systems such as the Steam Generator Level Control System in CANDU Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), a Gas Detection System, and the Automatic Power Control System of the experimental nuclear reactor are presented to demonstrate the application of the results as case studies.


title: Clustering analysis of lock contention fault types using run-time performance metrics for java intrinsic locks

contributor:
Azim, Akramul
Liscano, Ramiro

subject:
Java concurrency
Lock-contention
Run-time faults
Linux perf JLM
Clustering

abstract: Locks are essential in java-based multi-threaded applications as this mechanism provides a proper solution to synchronizing shared resources. However, improper management of locks and threads can lead to contention; as a result, it causes performance degradation and prevent java application from further scaling. These types of faults are challenging to debug because they are caused by complex interactions among the threads and can only be detected at run time. Nowadays, performance engineers use legacy tools and their experience to determine causes of lock contention. In this research, a clustering-based approach is presented to help identify the type of lock contention fault to facilitate the procedure that performance engineers follow, intending to support developers with less experience eventually. The classifier is based on the premise that if lock contention exists it is reflected as either a) threads spend too much time inside the critical section and/or b) threads’ high frequency access to the locked resources. Our results show that a classifier can be effectively trained to detect lock contention caused by high hold time and contention due to high frequency with which threads send access requests to the locked resources.

abstract: University of Ontario Institute of Technology


title: Refining adverse outcome pathways using Japanese Medaka Embryos (Oryzias latipes) exposed to 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzodioxin

subject:
Adverse outcome pathways
Toxicology
Key events
Genetic markers
Aryl hydrocarbon receptor

abstract: Adverse outcome pathways (AOPs) are a framework that categorizes the impact of chemicals biologically from the initial molecular interaction through to the ecosystem level. This research aims to refine two existing AOPs that are initiated when dioxins and dioxin-like chemicals bind to molecular receptors. When embryonic development is adversely impacted by dioxins, we hypothesize that there are differences in gene and protein expression, which will distinguish the molecular level key events in these two AOPs. To test this, we performed qPCR on AOP key event genes, and also non-targeted proteomics on teleost embryos from different stages of development after exposure to dioxins and linked these to higher-level adverse effects, specifically cardiac impairment, and malformations. Refining these AOPs will benefit society by improving our ability to respond to chemical contaminants more effectively to prevent adverse outcomes in humans and their environment.


title: Assessing the impact of a virtual lab in an allied health program

contributor:
Kay, Robin
Li, Jia

subject:
Virtual lab
Pre-laboratory preparation
Skill acquisition
Competency-based
Virtual learning environment

abstract: Demonstrating laboratory skills and competency in a hands-on laboratory requires effective pre-laboratory preparation, knowledge, and experience, all of which can be difficult to achieve using traditional teaching methods. The virtual lab is intended to facilitate effective preparation and to aid in the acquisition of skills in the microbiology laboratory. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of an online virtual lab as a learning tool in an allied health program. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected and analyzed to assess student attitudes towards the virtual lab. A convergent parallel mixed method design was chosen to compare the data from a Likert survey, open-ended questions, and a think-aloud protocol. The data converged to support the assertion that students had a positive attitude towards using the virtual lab. The virtual lab made skill acquisition easier and faster, helped them prepare for hands-on laboratory sessions, and was a tool they would use again without the need of extrinsic motivational factors. The key benefit of the virtual lab was that it enabled students to visualize procedures and reactions outside of the traditional laboratory setting. The study supports the conclusion that prior student visualization of procedures and reactions enhanced preparedness and performance in the laboratory environment.


title: Electrophysiological responses of Chrysomya rufifacies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) to active volatile organic compounds released by human and pig decomposition

subject:
Chrysomya rufifacies
VOCs
Decomposition
Electroantennography
Human analogue

abstract: Forensic entomology is an important discipline which utilizes the developmental and behavioural patterns of insects which colonize decomposing tissue in a medicolegal context, most commonly to determine the post-mortem interval (PMI). Chryosmya rufifacies (Macquart) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) is a secondary colonizer of human decomposition in North America and its predatory behaviour can affect successional data, and therefore alter PMI estimations. Determining the specific volatile organic compounds which induce a response in C. rufifacies could mitigate the effects of this predatory species by providing empirical indications of the behaviourally active compounds released by decomposition. The specific compounds which cause a response in this species were isolated and identified via GC-MS, electroantennography (EAG) and GC-EAG. Electrophysiologically active volatile organic compounds (VOCs) derived from human and pig decomposition were analysed and compared, indicating that pigs are an acceptable human analogue. Six EAG-active compounds were identified via coupled GC-EAG of the VOC samples; BAME, DMDS, DMTS, ethanol, indole and phenol. Dose response testing was conducted, confirming DMTS and BAME as EAG-active compounds. Ethanol was determined to not be EAG-active in C. rufifacies.