Hva gjør jeg på mandag?

Vi har i dag 7. juni 2018, offentligjort vår nye bacheloroppgave som vi har kalt Hva gjør jeg på mandag? som en del av studiet HR og Personalledelse ved Høyskolen Kristiania i Oslo. I denne kvalitative studien ønsker vi å se nærmere på fremtidens ledere og lederskap. Ledelse er et stort og interessant tema, og vi har alle en eller annen formening om hva en leder er, om det er gud, læreren, kongen, arbeidsgiveren eller lederen i vennegjengen. Ledere ble ansett av mange som den herskende elite eller som helter, særlig før ledelsesbegrepet fant sted. Lederskap og måten dette utføres på, vil bli nøkkelen for bedrifter som vil lykkes i fremtiden. Vi ønsket å se nærmere på fremtidens ledere og hva som kreves av kompetanse i forhold til kunnskap, ferdigheter og holdninger, for å utføre oppgavene. Vi har valgte å gjøre en litteraturstudie, for å få belyst vårt tema fra flere mulige vinkler. Det er utførte dybdeintervju med èn informant, som har bred ledererfaring gjennom 40 år som toppleder, både nasjonalt og internasjonalt, han har hatt forskjellige lederrolle på ulike nivåer i hierarkiet. Foruten ham, har vi hatt pilotsamtale med HR Norge vedrørende temaet leder og ledelse, og hørt hva de ser på som fremtidens utfordringer. Videre har vi søkt opp både teorier og annen litteratur som vi mente var relevant for oss og vårt mål om å komme frem til en spennende og givende problemstilling som er: Hvilke krav vil stilles til lederens kunnskaper, ferdigheter og holdninger, for å lykkes som leder i fremtiden? Vi har i litteratursøket kommet over veldig mange ulike trender, tendenser og framtidsscenarioer som sier noe om hvilke krav og kriterier som stilles fra omgivelsen til både lederen og ledelse generelt. I motsetning til tidligere syn på ledelse, ser vi at det i dag er høyere tempo, større kompleksitet, ny teknologi, og andre forventninger fra medarbeidere og omgivelsene for hvordan lederen skal være og hvordan lederskapet skal utføres. Etter analyse av data og drøfting, har vi kommet frem til en konklusjon som vi kan stå inne for, og som ledere selv vil legge vårt fokus på i fremtide

On the structure and oxygen transmission rate of biodegradable cellulose nanobarriers

Cellulose nanofibrils have been proposed for novel barrier concepts, based on their capability to form smooth, strong and transparent films, with high oxygen barrier properties. A series of cellulose-based films were manufactured and tested with respect to their oxygen transmission rate (OTR) capabilities. The obtained OTR levels were considerably better than the levels recommended for packaging applications. Part of the nanofibrillated material applied in this study was produced with 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyl-1-oxyl (TEMPO) mediated oxidation as pretreatment. Films made of TEMPO-pretreated samples yielded lower OTR values. The minimum obtained OTR value was 3.0 mL m-2 day-1 atm-1 with a corresponding oxygen permeability of 0.04 mL mm m-2 day-1 atm-1, tested at 50% relative humidity. The good barrier properties are due to the compact and dense structure of the films, as revealed by field-emission scanning electron microscopy. A relationship between OTR and the structure of the corresponding nanofibril-based films was confirmed

Swelling of individual cellulose nanofibrils in water, role of crystallinity: an AFM study

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) can be used to quantitatively study nanomaterials in different media, e.g. vacuum, air, or submerged in a liquid. A technique was developed to study swelling of individual cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) using AFM. As a case study, CNFs with different degrees of crystallinity (DoC) were examined for swellability going from dry to wet (submerged in de-ionized water). Swelling was found to depend on DoC, but no significant correlation between fibril diameter and swellability was seen. Upon introduction of de-ionized water high DoC samples (65±2%) were found to have a diameter increase of 34% on average, whereas low DoC (44±2%) were found to have a diameter increase of 44% on average. A tested control, consisting of platinum nanowires on silisium, did not swell

The effects of pH, time and temperature on the stability and viscosity of cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) dispersions: implications for use in enhanced oil recovery

This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in Cellulose. The final authenticated version is available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10570-013-9871-0.Cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) are currently being investigated as potential additives for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Presented in this paper is a study investigating the effects of different physical and chemical environments that low concentration CNC dispersions may be subjected to at oil reservoir conditions. Different concentrations of CNC dispersed in de-ionized water and in a 1000 ppm NaCl brine were subjected to variations in pH and temperature, and the results showed that the dispersions remained stable in the pH range expected in oil reservoirs (between 5 and 9). Stable dispersions were also observed when heated to temperatures ranging from 50 to 90 °C. At extended heat aging at 90 and 120 °C for seven days; beginning degradation was observed for both types of CNC dispersions; with viscosity increase and pH decrease as the most important indicators. CNC dispersed in 1000 ppm NaCl brine was generally more heat tolerant than the CNC dispersed in de-ionized water. The increase in viscosity during heat aging can be very interesting for EOR applications. A fluid that increases its viscosity with heat and time will be easier to inject due to a low initial viscosity, and when the viscosity increases in the porous reservoir, the effect can be a stable waterfront and less viscous fingering, which again can lead to increased sweep efficiency and better oil recovery.acceptedVersio

Combining cellulose nanofibrils and galactoglucomannans for enhanced stabilization of future food emulsions

The use of wood-derived cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) or galactoglucomannans (GGM) for emulsion stabilization may be a way to obtain new environmentally friendly emulsifiers. Both have previously been shown to act as emulsifiers, offering physical, and in the case of GGM, oxidative stability to the emulsions. Oil-in-water emulsions were prepared using highly charged (1352 ± 5 µmol/g) CNFs prepared by TEMPO-mediated oxidation, or a coarser commercial CNF, less charged (≈ 70 µmol/g) quality (Exilva forte), and the physical emulsion stability was evaluated by use of droplet size distributions, micrographs and visual appearance. The highly charged, finely fibrillated CNFs stabilized the emulsions more effectively than the coarser, lower charged CNFs, probably due to higher electrostatic repulsions between the fibrils, and a higher surface coverage of the oil droplets due to thinner fibrils. At a constant CNF/oil ratio, the lowest CNF and oil concentration of 0.01 wt % CNFs and 5 wt % oil gave the most stable emulsion, with good stability toward coalescence, but not towards creaming. GGM (0.5 or 1.0 wt %) stabilized emulsions (5 wt % oil) showed no creaming behavior, but a clear bimodal distribution with some destabilization over the storage time of 1 month. Combinations of CNFs and GGM for stabilization of emulsions with 5 wt % oil, provided good stability towards creaming and a slower emulsion destabilization than for GGM alone. GGM could also improve the stability towards oxidation by delaying the initiation of lipid oxidation. Use of CNFs and combinations of GGM and CNFs can thus be away to obtain stable emulsions, such as mayonnaise and beverage emulsions.Peer reviewe

Investigation of a new application for cellulose nanocrystals: a study of the enhanced oil recovery potential by use of a green additive

Cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) were investigated for use in a potential new application, enhanced oil recovery. Core flooding experiments were performed on outcrop sandstone cores using CNC particles dispersed in low salinity brine (CNC–LS). Core flooding experiments performed on fully water-saturated cores confirm that a majority of viscosity-generating CNC particles successfully traverse the cores at temperature conditions ranging from 60 to 120 °C. Oil recovery tests performed on crude oil saturated sandstone cores at 60 and 90 °C show that when CNC–LS is applied in tertiary mode, ultimate oil recovery increases. During tertiary CNC–LS injection, CNC particles exacerbate differential pressure fluctuations, a phenomenon attributable to log jamming in pore throats, causing remobilisation of oil trapped within pore space regions. Results from the current work indicate that CNC particles dispersed in low saline brine remain promising for implementation in enhanced oil recovery operations.acceptedVersio

Mixing of cellulose nanofibrils and individual furnish components: Effects on paper properties and structure

Thermo-mechanical pulp (TMP) handsheets with different fractions of cellulose nano fibrils (CNF) and ground calcium carbonate (GCC) were made. CNF and retention chemicals were added in three different ways; to GCC, to long fibre fraction (LFF) or to complete furnish. The different addition strategies affected dewatering time, tensile strength and permeability, however opacity was not affected. Depending on filler and CNF levels, adding CNF to GCC produced the most beneficial effects on paper properties; CNF had a lower impact on dewatering times and permeability and GCC reduced strength less than for competing strategies. Adding CNF to LFF produced the least beneficial results using the same metrics. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis of the sheets reveal that sheets produced using the different strategies are structurally different; adding CNF and retention chemicals to GCC appears to have increased GCC clustering, whereas adding CNF and retention chemicals to LFF appears to have increased the fraction of GCC adsorbed on the fiber walls. CNF and retention chemical addition to complete furnish showed GCC clustering and adhering to the fiber walls, of which clustering appeared the most common

Lignin-Based Wax Inhibitors

This article tested a novel concept for synthesizing green wax inhibitors. Four technical lignins were reacted with stearoyl chloride to produce esterified C18 esterified lignin. The effect of the reaction on the lignin molecular weight, characteristic FTIR spectra, and thermal degradation was surveyed. In addition, wax inhibition testing was performed by rheology on model waxy oils. The grafting reactions increased the mass-average molecular weight of the lignin and in some cases also the polydispersity index. FTIR analysis confirmed the success of esterification reactions as the O-H stretching band decreased, whereas the C-H and C═O stretching bands significantly increased. The thermal degradation was further found to occur at temperatures above 170 °C, indicating that the lignin wax inhibitors were thermally stable enough for crude oil production. The effect on waxy gelation was varied, showing that the low molecular weight waxes benefited more than the high molecular ones. A gelation point reduction of up to 6 °C was found after lignin addition. After the wax type, wax concentration, lignin concentration, and lignin type were varied, it was found that C18 esterified Kraft lignin exhibited the most beneficial effect. The results from viscometry agreed with the observations from the rheometric gelation point. Cross-polarized microscopy was used to map the effect on the wax crystal morphology. A difference was found only in the case of one esterified Kraft lignin, which yielded smaller and more finely dispersed wax crystals. In conclusion, a new wax inhibitor was synthesized by reacting technical lignin with stearoyl chloride. This lignin showed wax inhibitor activity in some of the tested cases. At this point, the length of the pendant alkyl chains (C18) is likely a limiting factor. However, this study attributes the potential for a new concept to synthesize green wax inhibitors. This work was carried out as a part of project “LignoWax – Green Wax Inhibitors and Production Chemicals based on Lignin”, grant number 326876. The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Norwegian Research Council, Equinor ASA, and ChampionX Norge AS.</p

Cross-linking cellulose nanofibrils for potential elastic cryo-structured gels

Cellulose nanofibrils were produced from P. radiata kraft pulp fibers. The nanofibrillation was facilitated by applying 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyl-1-oxyl-mediated oxidation as pretreatment. The oxidized nanofibrils were cross-linked with polyethyleneimine and poly N-isopropylacrylamide-co-allylamine-co-methylenebisacrylamide particles and were frozen to form cryo-structured gels. Samples of the gels were critical-point dried, and the corresponding structures were assessed with scanning electron microscopy. It appears that the aldehyde groups in the oxidized nanofibrils are suitable reaction sites for cross-linking. The cryo-structured materials were spongy, elastic, and thus capable of regaining their shape after a given pressure was released, indicating a successful cross-linking. These novel types of gels are considered potential candidates in biomedical and biotechnological applications