Integrated Environmental Process Planning for the Design & Manufacture of Automotive Components

Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) logic is widely used by manufacturers for the design and manufacture of automotive components. Manufacturers are increasingly finding difficulties to incorporate environmental considerations in the broad range of products that they manufacture. Therefore, there is a need for a systematic method for environmental process planning to evaluate product configurations and their associated environmental impact. The framework and models discussed in this paper can deal with a variety of product characteristics and environmental impacts through a selection of Environmental Performance Indicators (EPIs) for a final product configuration. The framework and models have been applied in a real-life application and have proven that changes in product design or process selection can reduce the product's environmental impact and increase process efficiency. Hence, manufacturers can use the framework and models during the Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) process to benchmark each product variation that they manufacture in a standardised manner and realise cost saving opportunities

Co2MnSi Heusler alloy thin films

This thesis investigates the growth of intermetallic compounds by co-sputtering from single elemental targets. The preliminary work involved constructing a sputtering set-up to grow a binary alloy (Sm-Co) and investigating how to control the composition spread that was obtained. Having achieved this, a larger sputtering flange was built up to grow the ternary Heusler alloy, Co2MnSi. Co2MnSi has been predicted to be a half-metallic ferromagnet, which means that there is an energy gap in the minority spin band at the Fermi energy. This leads to 100 % spin polarised conduction electrons, which would enable ideal spin-device performance to be obtained. Co2MnSi is particularly promising because it is predicted to have a large energy gap in the minority band of ~0.4 eV and has the highest Curie temperature among the known Heuslers of 985 K. Initially, Co2MnSi was grown on a-plane sapphire and stoichiometric films were single phase and highly (110) textured, without the use of a seed layer. They exhibited the bulk value of the saturation magnetisation, Ms and films grown at the highest deposition temperature (715 K) showed the lowest resistivity (47 µΩcm at 4.2 K) and the lowest room temperature coercivity (18 Oe). The spin polarisation of the transport current, Pt of a 400 nm film grown at this deposition temperature was 54 %, consistent with measurements on bulk single crystals. Ms decreased with decreasing film thickness indicating a graded disorder. By growing on GaAs (001), which has a similar lattice parameter to Co2MnSi it was expected that this disordered region would be confined to the first few atomic layers. However, this was not the case because interfacial reactions resulted in the formation of an epitaxial Mn-As region, and a thin interfacial layer that was Co-Ga rich. This prevented the lattice matching of the Co2MnSi to the GaAs(001) hence hindering epitaxial growth of the Heusler. The reaction zone also meant that films exhibited a Ms slightly below the bulk value. The expected fourfold anisotropy was not obtained for this cubic material, which is most likely due to the anisotropy of the reconstructed GaAs surface. In spite of this anomalous behaviour, Pt was 55 %, similar to the result obtained on sapphire, indicating that either Pt is independent of orientation or that the Heusler surface reconstructs in the same way. Films showed some improved properties to films grown on a-plane sapphire, indicating the potential of growing on this technologically important substrate. With this in mind, pseudo spin valves involving Co2MnSi as one of the ferromagnetic electrodes were fabricated in both the CIP and CPP configurations. Clear low-field spin-valve contributions were observed at 15 K but the MR values are much lower than that expected from a PSV with a predicted 100 % spin polarised electrode.EPSR

Adaptive Guidance: Effects On Self-Regulated Learning In Technology-Based Training

Guidance provides trainees with the information necessary to make effective use of the learner control inherent in technology-based training, but also allows them to retain a sense of control over their learning (Bell & Kozlowski, 2002). One challenge, however, is determining how much learner control, or autonomy, to build into the guidance strategy. We examined the effects of alternative forms of guidance (autonomy supportive vs. controlling) on trainees’ learning and performance, and examined trainees’ cognitive ability and motivation to learn as potential moderators of these effects. Consistent with our hypotheses, trainees receiving adaptive guidance had higher levels of knowledge and performance than trainees in a learner control guidance. Controlling guidance had the most consistent positive impact on the learning outcomes, while autonomy supportive guidance demonstrated utility for more strategic outcomes. In addition, guidance was generally more effective for trainees with higher levels of cognitive ability and autonomy guidance served to enhance the positive effects of motivation to learn on the training outcomes

A Sikh Boy’s Exclusion in Australian School: A Phenomenological Study of Parent’s Response

Diasporic relocation and resettlement ideally generate new experiences for diasporic communities and their host societies. At times, host societies (in general) and education (in concomitance) could remain impervious towards the unique cultural practices of diasporic communities, fostering a cultural gap. Such gaps may result in conflicts that impact social engagement, including education, posing cultural and educational challenges for diasporic people. Towards realisation of social justice and whilst balancing diversity, contemporary multi-cultural Australian society and educational institutions may cultivate the enactment of exclusion for students with unique diasporic cultural backgrounds. Hence, the search for equity within Australian education may remain elusive. Considering the responses of two diasporic Sikh parents faced by potential exclusion of their child in a Melbourne suburban school due to wearing a Patka (turban for young Sikh boys), this qualitative study provides a phenomenological exploration of their experiences

Initial conditions from the shadowed Glauber model

The two component Monte-Carlo Glauber model predicts a knee-like structure in the centrality dependence of elliptic flow $v_2$ in Uranium+Uranium collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}=193$ GeV. It also produces a strong anti-correlation between $v_2$ and $dN_{ch}/dy$ in the case of top ZDC events. However, none of these features have been observed in data. We address these discrepancies by including the effect of nucleon shadowing to the two component Monte-Carlo Glauber model. Apart from addressing successfully the above issues, we find that the nucleon shadow suppresses the event by event fluctuation of various quantities, e.g. $\varepsilon_2$ which is in accordance with expectation from the dynamical models of initial condition based on gluon saturation physics.Comment: version accepted for publication in Physics Letters

Using the Energy and Momentum Conceptual Survey to investigate progression in student understanding from introductory to advanced levels

The Energy and Momentum Conceptual Survey (EMCS) is a multiple-choice survey that contains conceptual problems involving a variety of energy and momentum concepts covered in a typical introductory physics course for science and engineering majors. Prior studies suggest that many concepts on the survey are challenging for introductory physics students and the average student scores after traditional lecture-based instruction are low. The research presented here investigates the progression in student understanding of the EMCS concepts including their evolution from the beginning to the end of their courses in introductory and advanced level undergraduate physics after traditional lecture-based instruction. We find that on all EMCS questions on which less than 50% of the introductory physics students answered a question correctly after traditional instruction, less than two-thirds of the upper-level undergraduate students provided the correct response after traditional lecture-based instruction. We discuss the EMCS questions that remain challenging and the common alternate conceptions among upper-level students. The findings presented here are consistent with prior research showing that traditional instruction in upper-level courses, which typically focuses primarily on quantitative problem solving and often incentivizes use of algorithmic approaches, is not effective for helping many students develop a functional understanding of underlying concepts

Using the Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism to investigate progression in student understanding from introductory to advanced levels

The Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM) is a multiple-choice survey that contains a variety of electricity and magnetism concepts from Coulomb's law to Faraday's law at the level of introductory physics used to help inform instructors of student mastery of those concepts. Prior studies suggest that many concepts on the survey are challenging for introductory physics students and the average student scores after traditional instruction are low. The research presented here investigates the progression in student understanding on the CSEM. We compare the performance of students in introductory and advanced level physics courses to understand the evolution of student understanding of concepts covered in the CSEM after traditional lecture-based instruction. We find that on all CSEM questions on which less than 50% of the introductory physics students answered a question correctly after instruction, less than two thirds of the upper-level undergraduate students provided the correct response after traditional instruction. We also analyzed the CSEM data from graduate students for benchmarking purposes. We discuss the CSEM questions that remain challenging and the common alternative conceptions among upper-level students. The findings presented here at least partly point to the fact that traditional instruction in upper-level courses which typically focuses primarily on quantitative problem solving and incentivizes use of algorithmic approaches is not effective for helping students develop a solid understanding of these concepts. However, it is important for helping students integrate conceptual and quantitative aspects of learning in order to build a robust knowledge structure of basic concepts in electricity and magnetism.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:2311.1705

Peer interaction facilitates co-construction of knowledge in quantum mechanics

Collaborative learning with peers can lead to students learning from each other and solving physics problems correctly not only in situations in which one student knows how to solve the problems but also when none of the students can solve the problems alone. We define the rate of construction as the percentage of groups collaborating on problem-solving that solve the problem correctly out of all groups having at least one member who answered correctly and one incorrectly while solving the same problem individually first. We define the rate of co-construction on each problem as the percentage of collaborating groups that answered it correctly if no student in the group individually answered it correctly before the collaborative work. In this study, we investigated student learning measured by student performance on a validated quantum mechanics survey and rates of construction and co-construction of knowledge when students first worked individually after lecture-based instruction in relevant concepts and then worked with peers during class without receiving any feedback from the course instructor. We find that construction of knowledge consistently occurred at a high rate during peer collaboration. However, rates of co-construction were more varied. High rates of co-construction were generally achieved when approximately half of the students knew the correct answers initially. We also conducted an analysis of some of the survey questions that correlate with high rates of co-construction to gain some insight into what students converged on after peer interaction and what types of difficulties were reduced. Our findings can be valuable for instructors who want to provide in-class and out-of-class opportunities for peer collaboration in their physics courses

Characterization of HSP90 isoforms in transformed bovine leukocytes infected with Theileria annulata

HSP90 chaperones are essential regulators of cellular function, as they ensure the appropriate conformation of multiple key client proteins. Four HSP90 isoforms were identified in the protozoan parasite Theileria annulata. Partial characterisation was undertaken for three and localisation confirmed for cytoplasmic (TA12105); endoplasmic reticulum (TA06470) and apicoplast (TA10720) forms. ATPase activity and binding to the HSP90 inhibitor geldanamycin, were demonstrated for recombinant TA12105 and all three native forms could be isolated to varying extents by binding to geldanamycin beads. Because it is essential, HSP90 is considered a potential therapeutic drug target. Resistance to the only specific Theileriacidal drug is increasing and one challenge for design of drugs that target the parasite is to limit the effect on the host. An in vitro cell culture system that allows comparison between uninfected bovine cells and the T. annulata-infected counterpart was utilised to test the effects of geldanamycin and the derivative 17-AAG. T. annulata-infected cells had greater tolerance to geldanamycin than uninfected cells yet exhibited significantly more sensitivity to 17-AAG. These findings suggest that parasite HSP90 isoform (s) can alter the drug sensitivity of infected host cells and that members of the Theileria HSP90 family are potential targets worthy of further investigation