Pressure anisotropy generation in a magnetized plasma configuration with a shear flow velocity

The nonlinear evolution of the Kelvin Helmholtz instability in a magnetized plasma with a perpendicular flow close to, or in, the supermagnetosonic regime can produce a significant parallel-to-perpendicular pressure anisotropy. This anisotropy, localized inside the flow shear region, can make the configuration unstable either to the mirror or to the firehose instability and, in general, can affect the development of the KHI. The interface between the solar wind and the Earth's magnetospheric plasma at the magnetospheric equatorial flanks provides a relevant setting for the development of this complex nonlinear dynamics.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures, submitted to Plasma Phys. Control. Fusio

Parameterized partial element equivalent circuit method for sensitivity analysis of multiport systems

This paper presents a new technique to perform parameterized sensitivity analyses of systems that depend on multiple design parameters, such as layout and substrate features. It uses the electromagnetic (EM) method called partial element equivalent circuit to compute state space matrices at a set of design space points. These EM matrices are interpolated as functions of the design parameters. The proposed interpolation scheme allows the computation of the derivatives of the matrices, which are needed to perform the sensitivity analysis. An extensive study of the required stability and passivity properties of the system involved in the parameterized sensitivity analysis is presented. Pertinent numerical results demonstrate the robustness, accuracy, and efficiency of the proposed methodology

Wet and dry effect on the hydraulic conductivity of polymer treated GCL prototype

Geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs) are widely used to isolate pollutants because of their low hydraulic conductivity to water. However, the performance of clay barriers may be impaired by prolonged exposure to electrolytic liquids which may lead to the compression of the diffuse double layer. The consequences are the increase of permeability and the loss of self-healing capacity. Moreover, the efficiency of the liners can further deteriorate by repeated wet and dry cycles, which may lead to desiccation of the bentonite and associated cracking. Modified bentonites have been introduced to improve the resistance of clay barriers to aggressive solutions. This study deals with a polymer-amended clay, HYPER clay. HYPER clay is treated with an anionic polymer and dehydrated and it shows enhanced performance in presence of electrolyte solutions. The effect of wet and dry cycles on the hydraulic conductivity to seawater of needle-punched GCLs prototypes of treated and untreated bentonite was investigated. The prototype samples containing HYPER clay 8% showed lower permeability compared to those containing untreated bentonite. However, the temperature suggested from the standard used in this study is extremely high and it does not represent the temperature in the field

Experimental and numerical study of wet and dry cycles on an innovative polymer treated clay for geosynthetic clay liners

Geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs) are widely used to isolate waste disposal facilities in order to prevent pollutant migration into the ground. GCLs are factory-manufactured hydraulic barriers containing a thin uniform layer of bentonite sandwiched between two geotextile or glued to a geomembrane. Bentonite is used as barrier material thanks to its low conductivity to water. However, the hydraulic performance may be impaired by contact with aggressive liquids due to cation exchange and highly concentrated solutions. The efficiency of these liners can further deteriorate if hydration with an electrolyte solution is combined with wet and dry cycles, as a result of seasonal changes in temperature, rainfall and groundwater migration. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of wet and dry cycles with seawater on a modified bentonite, HYPER clay. Seawater was selected to simulate conditions where wet-dry cycling is associated with high ionic strength of the inorganic permeant solution, such as a leachate. It represents an aggressive environment for the bentonite clay double layer thickness as it contains a high amount of monovalent and divalent cations. HYPER clay is a polymer amended bentonite with enhanced performance in presence of electrolyte solutions thanks to the irreversible adsorption of the polymer onto the clay. To study the effect of wet and dry cycles a number of tests was performed. The swelling ability was evaluated by means of free one-dimensional swell tests, swell pressure tests, temperature impact tests and CT scanning. Whereas the hydraulic performance is studied through hydraulic conductivity tests with flexible wall permeameters. The influence of drying temperature on the swelling and hydraulic performance was also investigated. Firstly, the thesis includes a description of the main polymer-modified bentonites developed so far. An overview of the hydraulic performance of these materials is provided. The amendment with polymers improved the barrier performance of the bentonite compared to untreated clay. However, the polymer is not always intercalated in the clay structure. Therefore, release of the polymer was experienced in some cases. The hydraulic conductivity and swelling ability of powder HYPER clay subjected to wet dry cycles with seawater was studied. The performances of HYPER clay were compared with those of untreated sodium bentonite. The swelling ability was quantified by means of free one-dimensional swell tests. The treatment with the anionic polymer improved the swelling and sealing ability of the bentonite subjected to six wet and dry cycles with seawater. The swelling of HYPER clay treated with 8% of polymer at the end of the cycles was comparable to the maximum swelling of untreated bentonite in deionized water. In addition, CT analysis demonstrated the better self-healing capacity and the smaller volume of cracks of HYPER clay compared to untreated bentonite. Unlike the untreated clay, HYPER clay maintained low permeability to seawater throughout the cycles. The impact of three different drying temperatures (air, 40°C and 60°C) on the self-healing capacity, swelling ability and water adsorption of HYPER clay and untreated clay was investigated using oedometer cells. These results were then adopted to interpret the hydraulic conductivity of GCL prototypes previously subjected to wet and dry cycles at different drying temperatures (40°C, 60°C and 105°C). In addition, the impact of wet and dry cycles on the GCLs overlap was evaluated by means of the flow box. The flow box allows the measurement of a large scale sample and it is possible to check the permeability in different sections of the sample surface. The swelling ability and water adsorption of HYPER clay always exceeded the values recorded for the untreated clay independently of the drying temperature. The higher swell of HYPER clay suggests a better hydraulic performance compared to untreated clay. Indeed, the hydraulic conductivity to seawater after four wet and dry cycles of the GCL containing the polymer treated bentonite was lower compared to the GCLs containing untreated clay at each drying temperature. These findings demonstrated the persistence of the polymer in the bentonite structure. The HYPER clay treatment intercalates the polymer in the interlayer region of the bentonite, likely inducing a disperse structure of the bentonite. Swell pressure tests were conducted to measure the swelling ability of both untreated clay and HYPER clay through four wet and dry cycles with seawater at a drying temperature of 40°C. Untreated bentonite was also subjected to wet and dry cycles with NaCl solution. HYPER clay confirmed its higher swelling ability even in presence of an aggressive environment, i.e. seawater. These results were interpreted theoretically with the model developed by Dominijanni and Manassero (2012a,b). The theoretical curves were drawn based on the swell pressure of untreated bentonite and HYPER clay 8% to increasing ionic strength. The assumption of constant number of platelets per aggregate independently of the ionic strength was adopted to obtain acceptable estimations of the experiments performed. This first interpretation demonstrated that the polymer treatment increased the net negative charge of the clay and limited the aggregation between clay platelets with a consequent improvement of the swelling ability. The swell pressures values through wet and dry cycles with sodium chloride and seawater were then back analyzed. The results obtained from wet and dry cycles with sodium chloride of untreated clay showed that it might be possible to use the model to simulate the aging process. On the other hand, more investigation is required for the samples subjected to the cycles with seawater due to the lack of information about the final concentration. The back analysis of experimental literature data allowed to define the fixed charge concentration for modified bentonites (BPN and DPH GCL) extending the application of the model to all treated clays. Results of chemico-osmotic tests on BPN and DPH GCL specimens, hydrated with KCl, were used. In general, values of membrane efficiency for modified bentonites were higher than those of conventional bentonite specimens tested with KCl solution. The theoretical curve of the global reflection coefficient versus average concentration represented well the experimental results from both, BPN and DPH GCL. As for untreated bentonite, the membrane efficiency of modified bentonites increased with decreasing the porosity of the specimens. The comparison of the solid skeleton electric charges showed higher value for BPN compared to DPH GCL, probably due to the higher amount of polymer. However, the solid skeleton electric charges of the modified bentonites were higher compared to those of untreated bentonite likely due to the presence of the polymer

Políticas de traducción y bilingüismo institucional: un estudio comparativo

Tirol del Sud, a Itàlia, i Catalunya i el País Basc, a Espanya, comparteixen una identitat local multilingüe dins d’estats monolingües. Les tres regions s’emmarquen en el règim d’autonomia lingüística que combina el multilingüisme local amb el monolingüisme en l’àmbit estatal. En aquests territoris, tant les institucions de l’Estat com els individus necessiten un cert grau de bilingüisme en uns contextos determinats. Per exemple, en relació amb el dret d’elecció lingüística dels ciutadans, les institucions públiques tenen el deure de disposar dels recursosque calen per a assolir el bilingüisme. Això se sol produir mitjançant una combinació de funcionaris bilingües i professionals de la llengua (traductors, intèrprets, etc.), encara que amb equilibris diferents. En aquest article, reflexionem sobre la distribució de la responsabilitat del bilingüisme entre funcionaris i traductors mitjançant una comparació entre les polítiques de traducció d’algunes institucions catalanes, basques i sud-tiroleses. Concloem que unes polítiques de traducció més eficients no necessàriament comporten una distribució més equilibrada de les obligacions lingüístiques entre els representants institucionals.South Tyrol in Italy, and Catalonia and the Basque Country in Spain share the characteristic of having a multilingual local identity within monolingual states. These three regions are set within the regime of linguistic autonomy, which combines local multilingualism with monolingualism at the State level. In this kind of territories, both State institutions and individuals need to possess a certain degree of bilingualism. For example, to respect the right of citizens to use whichever official language they prefer, public institutions must provide all the necessary resources to ensure bilingualism. This usually occurs through a combination of bilingual civil servants and language professionals (translators, interpreters, etc.), albeit with different balances. In this article, we reflect on how the responsibility for institutional bilingualism is distributed between civil servants and translators by comparing the translation policies of a selection of Catalan, Basque and South-Tyrolean institutions. We conclude that more efficient translation policies do not necessarily lead to a more balanced distribution of linguistic obligations among institutional representatives.Tirol del Sur, en Italia, y Cataluña y Euskadi, en España, comparten una identidad local multilingüe dentro de estados monolingües. Las tres regiones se enmarcan en el régimen de autonomía lingüística que combina el multilingüismo local con el monolingüismo a nivel estatal. En estos territorios, tanto las instituciones del Estado como los individuos necesitan un cierto grado de bilingüismo en determinados contextos. Por ejemplo, en relación con el derecho de elección lingüística de los ciudadanos, las instituciones públicas tienen el deber de disponer de los recursos necesarios para alcanzar el bilingüismo. Esto suele ocurrir mediante una combinación de funcionarios bilingües y profesionales de la lengua (traductores, intérpretes, etc.), aunque con equilibrios distintos. En este artículo, reflexionamos sobre la distribución de la responsabilidad del bilingüismo entre funcionarios y traductores mediante una comparación entre las políticas de traducción de algunas instituciones catalanas, vascas y surtirolesas. Concluimos que unas políticas de traducción más eficientes no necesariamente conllevan una distribución más equilibrada de las obligaciones lingüísticas entre los representantes institucionales

Representação social da figura materna e paterna na mídia : uma análise de discurso crítica

Monografia (graduação)-Universidade de Brasília, Instituto de Letras, Departamento de Linguística, Português e Línguas Clássicas, 2015.Entendemos o discurso como parte da prática social, sendo assim, analisar um discurso é analisar também a sociedade em que vivemos. Objetiva-se com esse estudo, por meio da Análise de Discurso Crítica (FAIRCLOUGH, 2001; VAN LEUUWEN, 1997; THOMPSON, 1995), identificar como a mídia trata a mulher e o homem quando o assunto é criação e educação das crianças. O objeto de análise consiste em duas reportagens publicadas em site de notícias, que tratam de pais e mães que assumem a criação dos filhos sozinhos. Verificamos grande discrepância na representação das figuras femininas e masculinas, e nas formas de operação de ideologia (THOMPSON, 1995) contidas em cada texto jornalístico. Notamos que o discurso das mães é carregado de culpa e de frustração, geralmente gerado por críticas alheias, já, no de pais solteiros, o foco é a superação, a dedicação e o afeto. Concluímos que, em pleno século XXI, a falácia da designação natural da mulher para a maternidade continua fortemente difundida, enquanto ao homem é permitido e natural o abandono dos filhos, e, quando o contrário acontece, o feito parece merecer destaque a ponto de virar pauta de reportagem

Non-professional translation in public institutions of minority language communities: South Tyrolean administration as a case study

L’indagine presentata in questa tesi ha come obiettivo la descrizione della gestione e delle pratiche di traduzione di un’istituzione pubblica ufficialmente bilingue, situata in una regione in cui risiedono comunità linguistiche minoritarie. Si tratta dell’amministrazione della Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano. Lo studio è svolto attraverso l’impiego di una metodologia mista che combina tecniche di ricerca qualitative e quantitative per descrivere tre elementi fondanti di ogni contesto traduttivo: la funzione, il processo e il prodotto (Toury 1995). Abbiamo indagato in primo luogo la funzione della traduzione attraverso l’analisi delle politiche di traduzione dell’Alto Adige svolta da Sandrini (2019), comparandole mediante il suo modello Translation Policy Metrics con le politiche e pratiche di traduzione di alcune istituzioni catalane e basche. Dal confronto è emerso che l’Alto Adige presenta le politiche di traduzione meno avanzate tra le tre regioni. Successivamente, abbiamo costruito un questionario per indagare il processo e le pratiche di traduzione, a cui ha partecipato il 43% del personale dell’amministrazione provinciale (1.276 persone). Dalla sua analisi è emerso che il 67% dei rispondenti traduce testi istituzionali in qualità di traduttore non professionista (Antonini et al. 2017). Infine, abbiamo studiato il prodotto della traduzione considerando la complessità linguistica del linguaggio amministrativo, su un corpus di 45 testi istituzionali. In base agli elementi di maggiore complessità divergenti tra testi in italiano e tedesco, ovvero la subordinazione implicita ed esplicita, abbiamo svolto un approfondimento qualitativo su una selezione di testi. Nell’istituzione provinciale la traduzione e la redazione dei testi emergono come attività strettamente interconnesse, poiché il personale è responsabile di entrambe; si delinea tuttavia con chiarezza la mancanza di una gestione globale e condivisa delle pratiche di traduzione nonché di un sistema di controllo della qualità. A conclusione dell’analisi presentiamo alcune proposte di ottimizzazione delle politiche e pratiche di traduzione istituzionali.This dissertation aims to describe translation management and translation practices of a bilingual public institution in a region with officially recognised minority languages, i.e., the administration of South Tyrol, Italy. Combining qualitative and quantitative research methods, we structured our study around three pillars of any translation context: function, process, and product (Toury 1995). We first addressed the function of institutional translation by studying Sandrini’s (2019) analysis of translation policies in South Tyrol. We then applied his Translation Policy Metrics model to analyse institutional translation policies and practices in Catalonia and in the Basque Country, comparing them with South Tyrol. This showed us that South Tyrol has the least advanced translation policies among the three regions. Second, we created a survey to assess the translation process and practices in the analysed institution. 43% of the staff (1,276 people) completed the survey and the results reveal that 67% of the respondents had translated texts in the previous year. According to the definition by Antonini et al. (2017), they are non-professional translators. Finally, we studied the translation product on a corpus of bilingual institutional texts and evaluated automatically their linguistic complexity. Based on that, we found that institutional texts in Italian and German diverge mostly on subordination strategies. On this particular trait, we performed a contrastive qualitative analysis and two machine translation experiments. Overall, we concluded that in the provincial institution text drafting and translation are closely related to each other, as the staff is often responsible for these two phases of institutional communication. However, the institution clearly lacks a comprehensive and shared management of translation practices as well as a quality control system. Some suggestions for improving institutional translation management close our dissertation

Sustainability assessment of future-oriented scenarios: a review of data modelling approaches in Life Cycle Assessment

Steering policy-making processes and business long term strategies entails tasks such as e.g. setting up sound environmental long term objectives and targets, assessing implications, and comparing options. To best run these tasks in the context of sustainability assessment, two fundamental ingredients are indispensable: life cycle thinking and analysis of future-oriented scenarios. Considering the whole life cycle of goods and services is necessary to avoid the shifting of problems from one life cycle stage to another, from one geographic area to another and from one environmental medium or protection target to another. Given the proliferation of life cycle thinking-based data modelling approaches, a review was conducted to detect where we stand in defining and framing life cycle thinking-based approaches and related data modelling approaches, what their key features are, and how mature they are. In addition, a scientific workshop was arranged to further discuss data modelling approaches and to screen how Environmental Footprint methodologies can be used to assess future-oriented scenarios. This review represents a stepping stone towards recommendations for sustainability assessment of future-oriented scenarios.JRC.H.8-Sustainability Assessmen