Applied Mathematics and Computational Physics

As faster and more efficient numerical algorithms become available, the understanding of the physics and the mathematical foundation behind these new methods will play an increasingly important role. This Special Issue provides a platform for researchers from both academia and industry to present their novel computational methods that have engineering and physics applications

An Investigation Into the Origin, Composition, and Commercial Significance of a Sedimentary Subsalt Formation: Keathley Canyon, Gulf of Mexico

Sub-salt oil and gas formations in deep-water northern Gulf of Mexico are high priority targets. Advances in seismic processing allow for high-resolution, below-salt imaging. Understanding the modes of salt emplacement provide insight into sub-salt traps and potential drilling hazards. A sub-salt sedimentary unit lies in the Keathley Canyon protraction. Autosutures created the transport-parallel lineaments of the upper surface of the unit. In addition, highly variable sediment aggradation rates created ramps, flats, and basal cutoffs along the base of the allochthon as salt and sediment competed for space. Seismic models identify modes of salt emplacement, salt/sediment interactions, and mechanisms responsible for the morphology. Petrophysical assessments highlight an abnormally pressured, dirty salt environment transitioning into a gouge zone. Dirty salt adds an element of difficulty to managing borehole pressures requiring a unique mud-weight plan designed to resist formation pressures without fracturing lithology

Development of microfabricated optical chemical sensor platforms using polymer processing technology

This work describes the design and fabrication of enhanced polymer waveguide platforms for absorption-based optical chemical sensors and the use of soft lithographic techniques for the fabrication of optical sensor chips. The design of the enhanced polymer waveguide platforms was based on a previously reported theoretical model that was verified experimentally in this work. The platforms were fabricated by micro-injection moulding and subsequently coated with sol-gelderived sensing layers doped with a colorimetric indicator compound. The sensor response to both gaseous ammonia and solution pH was examined using a LEDbased prototype sensor head. Soft lithographic patterning techniques, based on the use of a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) patterning element, were employed to produce a variety of sol-gel-based structures with applications in optical sensing. These included discrete sensor spots, surface corrugation grating couplers and ridge waveguides. As a proof of principle, these techniques were applied to the development of an integrated optical oxygen sensor based on the quenching of fluorescence from a sol-gel-encapsulated ruthenium complex that was deposited as a sensor spot onto a ridge waveguide. This work highlights the feasibility of using rapid prototyping technology to fabricate sensitive, mass-producible sensor platforms that employ generic configurations, thereby facilitating their use in a broad range of applications

Structural, Magnetic, Dielectric, Electrical, Optical and Thermal Properties of Nanocrystalline Materials: Synthesis, Characterization and Application

This book is a collection of the research articles and review article, published in special issue "Structural, Magnetic, Dielectric, Electrical, Optical and Thermal Properties of Nanocrystalline Materials: Synthesis, Characterization and Application"