Characterizing and comparing monumental churches and their heating performance

In this paper a research on monumental church heating is described. The main focus was preservation of the interior and the monumental building itself and human thermal comfort. The characteristic parameters are described and a comparative study for 8 different monumental churches was performed. Furthermore one particular case study was examined more in depth. For this case a validating measurement program was carried out

Damage to a monumental organ due to wood deformation caused by church heating

In a PhD study on the heating of monumental churches one of the problems, which was encountered, was the damage to wooden interior parts due to the changing of the indoor climate. Particularly warm air heating frequently leads to sudden changes in relative humidity, which turned out to be dramatically hard for monumental organs during wintertime. The warm air inlet conditions and their result on the airflow and air conditions were examined experimentally and by CFD-simulation. These results provided boundary temperature and humidity conditions, to which the monumental organ was exposed. In an experimental study the response of wooden parts to changing indoor conditions was tested. In a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) test setup the moisture content of samples was measured as a function of time and place. These moisture content changes were related to the free mechanical deformation of samples. Together with the measurement of typical material properties of wood, a two-dimensional model was developed in FlexPDE: a finite element program to solve partial differential equations simultaneously

The Action of Chain Extenders in Nylon-6, PET, and Model Compounds

The action of two complementary chain extenders is studied in model systems as well as in poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and nylon–6. Chain extenders are low molecular weight compounds that can be used to increase the molecular weight of polymers in a short time. The reaction must preferably be fast enough to execute this step in an extruder. 1,3-Phenylene bis(2-oxazoline-2) (PBO) and isophthaloyl biscaprolactamate (IBC) are used in this study. Bisoxazolines react quickly with carboxylic acids. With model compounds it is shown that, under processing conditions, high conversions can be reached. However, the conversion is not complete. The high rate and the absence of volatile reactants are the most important characteristics of this reaction. Bislactamates are suitable coupling agents for hydroxy and amino functional polymers. The path of this coupling reaction depends on the type of nucleophile and on the reaction temperature. Under mild conditions the elimination of caprolactam is the main reaction. Under more severe conditions the ring opening mechanism may also be operative. The increase of the viscosity is studied with one as well as with a mixture of the two chain extenders. The effect is larger when both types of chain extenders are used simultaneously

Marine Monitoring Program: Annual report for inshore water quality monitoring 2018-19

[Extract] The program design includes the collection of water samples along transects in the Cape York, Wet Tropics, Burdekin and Mackay-Whitsunday regions year-round, with higher frequency sampling during the wet season to better characterise this period of episodic river discharge. Satellite imagery and modelling simulations are linked with in-situ monitoring data to estimate the exposure of inshore areas to end-of-catchment loads from rivers