On an application of extended kalman filtering to activated sludge processes: a benchmark study

The growing demand for performance improvements of urban wastewater system operation coupled with the lack of instrumentation in most wastewater treatment plants motivates the need for non-linear observers to be used as virtual sensors for estimation and control of effluent quality. This paper is focused on the development of a general procedure for on-line monitoring of activated sludge processes, using an extended Kalman filter (EKF) approach. The Activated Sludge Model no.1 (ASM1) is selected to describe the biological processes in the reactor. On-line measurements are corrupted by additive white noise and unknown inputs are modelled using fast Fourier transform (FFT) and spectrum analyses. The given procedure aims at reducing the original ASM1 model to an observable and identifiable model, which can be used for joint non-linear state and parameter estimations. Simulation results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed methods and show that on-line monitoring of SND and XND concentrations is achieved when dynamic input data are used tocharacterize the influent wastewater for the model

The use of historical collections to estimate population trends: a case study using Swedish longhorn beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae)

Long term data to estimate population trends among species are generally lacking. However, Natural History Collections (NHCs) can provide such information, but may suffer from biases due to varying sampling effort. To analyze population trends and range-abundance dynamics of Swedish longhorn beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), we used collections of 108 species stretching over 100 years. We controlled for varying sampling effort by using the total number of database records as a reference for non-red-listed species. Because the general frequency of red-listed species increased over time, a separate estimate of sampling effort was used for that group. We observed large interspecific variation in population changes, from declines of 60\% to several hundred percent increases. Most species showed stable or increasing ranges, whereas few seemed to decline in range. Among increasing species, rare species seemed to expand their range more than common species did, but this pattern was not observed in declining species. Historically, rare species did not seem to be at larger risk of local extinction, and population declines were mostly due to lower population density and not loss of sub-populations. We also evaluated the species' declines under IUCN red-list criterion A, and four currently not red-listed species meet the suggested threshold for Near Threatened (NT). The results also suggested that species' declines may be overlooked if estimated only from changes in species range

A Differentiated, Balanced and Patient Approach? The EU’s Involvement with Georgia’s Secessionist Conflicts beyond the August 2008 War. EU Diplomacy Paper 06/2015.

The August war in 2008 between Russia and Georgia caught the world by surprise but nevertheless brought the European Union (EU) to the forefront of the international efforts to end the hostilities, and the EU became the leading international actor involved with the conflict resolution process. However, in the years following the armed conflict, the conflict resolution process lost pace, and the impact of the EU beyond the immediate aftermath of the August 2008 war has been put into question. By undertaking a qualitative case study, this paper aims to explore to what extent the EU has impacted on the conflict resolution process of Georgia’s secessionist conflicts in 2008-2015. It will argue that the EU’s policies have only to a limited extent impacted on this conflict resolution process, which can be related to the objectives, priorities and time perspectives of the EU’s conflict resolution policies. The EU’s efforts have significantly contributed to the objective of conflict prevention, but the profile of the EU in the field of international conflict management weakened its position in the area of conflict transformation, where the lack of progress in turn limited the EU’s impact in the areas of international conflict management and conflict settlement. The main conclusion put forward is that in order to have a true impact, the EU needs to undertake a differentiated, balanced and patient approach to conflict resolution

Upholding Moral Responsibilities: a normative analysis of the Joint Way Forward on migration issues between Afghanistan and the EU

Strict deportation policies have emerged as an increasingly popular way for more developed countries to tackle the issue of irregular migration. Estimations tell us that more that 3 million Afghan refugees will be deported in 2017 and it is argued that such massive returns to Afghanistan, despite the ongoing and escalated conflict, will risk contributing to severe human right violations as well as risk worsening the economic, social and political instability that the country is struggling with. In this study, I explore what normative obligations developed states should have towards developing countries in terms of the consequences of their deportation polices. Using methods of a normative policy analysis, the analysis specifically examines whether a declaration between the European Union and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan that focuses on strengthening deportation efforts, lives up to those obligations. The findings include that the deportation policies enforced by this declaration do not meet the normative obligations of developed states and this thesis argues that greater attention on how the political response in receiving countries affects the development prospects in refugee generating countries needs to be incorporated into deportation policies to a greater extent

Decentralization and National Health Policy Implementation in Uganda - a Problematic Process.

The Ugandan Government has aimed at creating a needs-based and cost-effective health care system. The means to carry out this aim have been 1) a decentralization of the health sector in order to increase lower-level responsibility, accountability, and participation, and 2) a strong national policy formulation capacity, facilitating needs assessment and cost-effective prioritization. Aim The aim of this study is to investigate the process of ascertaining goal achievement with regard to needs-based health care services and national health policy implementation in the decentralized health care system of Uganda. Population and method The health sector of Uganda is examined from the national to the district level. Focus is on the process of decentralization, which includes a more efficient mechanism for implementing policy goals throughout the decentralized system, since traditional hierarchical methods of directing institutions become obsolete. The concepts of diffusion and translation have been adopted from the theoretical framework of new institutionalism in organizational theory, and are used as tools in the analysis. Results Financial decentralization was studied under the assumption that districts would prioritize health care financially in implementing the new national health policy. It was, however, observed that this was not the case. As the Sector-Wide Approach Process (SWAP) was studied, it was observed that, while the policy formulation capacity of the Ministry of Health (MOH) (which is no longer supposed to focus on detailed health systems planning as in the past) became stronger, the central level had difficulties in maintaining efficient interaction with those responsible for implementation. This had resulted in an increasing gap between the centre and the periphery. The adoption of new policies, paradigms, and strategies, such as SWAP, the restructuring of the MOH, and the formulation of a new health policy, has strengthened ties with the global institutions. Sharing paradigms and values has probably further promoted the independence of the MOH. Also studied was the application of two normative rationalist instruments, Burden of Disease (BOD) and Cost-Effectiveness (CE), intended to implement national health policy priorities at a district level. This application was a failure. Discussion The increasing decentralization of the health care system in Uganda during the period studied has not been followed promptly by the implementation of a global national health policy necessary for a decentralized system. It appears as if the government assumed that new health policies could be implemented by means of a fairly uncomplicated process of diffusion. However, an analysis of the near total failure of the BOD/CE initiative shows that implementation of policy in the decentralized system in Uganda is complex and must be understood as a misdirected translation process whose prerequisites were lacking. The main factors that have inhibited the adoption of a new policy and have crated a gap between centre and periphery have been different values, the absence of a common frame of reference, and the lack of government support. As a result, local obligations and local accountability have been the main factors guiding the translation

Investigation of Anaerobic Digestion Alternatives for Henriksdal's WWTP

On the request of Dr Daniel Hellström (Stockholm Water AB), IEA was asked to perform a preliminary investigation of two alternatives for anaerobic digestion operation at Henriksdal’s WWTP in Stockholm, Sweden. The system should be analysed based on parallel or series operation of two existing AD reactors. Moreover, the input load should be based on the current situation and a future scenario (estimated 10 years ahead)

Radial infall of pebbles and dust pile-up at the ice line in a protoplanetary disk

We investigate the radial infall of ice pebbles in a protoplanetary disk, and how these tend to end up in relatively close proximity to eachother, providing a possible spawning ground for planets. These pebbles have dust particles embedded in them, which are released as the pebble crosses the so-called ice- line, where the ice evaporates. This is interesting as the dust will pile up around this ice line and possibly form planets over time. A simple model of the radial infall is set up, using the programming language IDL, and evidence of this dust pile-up at the ice line is shown. We use an ice-line situated at 3 AU, and the Minimum Mass Solar Nebula equations of Hayashi. We find that the test particles do indeed collect inside the radius of 3 AU after an elapsed time of 105 − 106 years. We also find that the streaming instability mechanic is a probable culprit in attaining high particle density. Finally, we correlate the results with the currently known exoplanets, and find that the thus far detected exoplanets seem to exist in close proximity to their respective stars, inside their ice-line radius

Annexation and Assimilation: An ethnic approach to the roots of conflict in Thailand's deep south

The purpose of this study is to investigate the root causes of the conflict in southern Thailand. Ethnicity is central to the theoretical approach as the Malay Muslims of Pattani, being one part, and Thailand, being the other, are displaying very contrasting ethnical and cultural benchmarks. Power mechanisms have been able to function through a politicized ethnic ideology and have as such legitimized policies in a nation-building context that have ranked the Malay Muslisms as second-class citizens. The empirical research ranges between the end of the 19th century up to 1947 and focuses mainly on an outlining of the political creed of ?nation, religion and king? as well as on various policies that have been carried out in the Pattani region by Thai authorities. The conclusion suggests that ethnic politics works well in amalgamating the ethnic majority of a nation, but that this strategy simultaneously works subordinatingly for ethnic minorities that fail to adjust to the policies of a mono-ethnic state. Consequently, the conclusion also suggests that the contemporary Pattani conflict is a result of historical circumstances and must be analysed as such in order to be comprehended in full