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Coupled wellbore-reservoir simulation of thermal effects during multiphase CO2 injection
Get PDFT2Well-ECO2M is a coupled wellbore reservoir simulator still under development at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (USA) with the ability to deal with a mixture of H2O-CO2-NaCl and includes the simulation of CO2 phase transition and multiphase flow. The code was originally developed for the simulation of CO2 injection into deep saline aquifers and the modelling of enhanced geothermal systems; however, the focus of this research was to modify and test T2Well-ECO2M to simulate CO2 injection into depleted gas reservoirs.
To this end, the original code was properly changed in a few parts and a dedicated injection case was developed to study CO2 phase transition inside of a wellbore and the corresponding thermal effects.
In the first scenario, the injection case was run applying the fully numerical approach of wellbore to formation heat exchange calculation. Results were analysed in terms of wellbore pressure and temperature vertical profiles, wellhead and bottomhole conditions, and characteristic reservoir displacement fronts. Special attention was given to the thorough analysis of bottomhole temperature as the critical parameter for hydrate formation. Besides the expected direct effect of wellbore temperature changes on reservoir conditions, the simulation results indicated also the effect of CO2 phase change in the near wellbore zone on BH pressure distribution.
To test the implemented software changes, in a second scenario, the same injection case was reproduced using the improved semi-analytical time-convolution approach for wellbore to formation heat exchange calculation. The comparison of the two scenarios showed that the simulation of wellbore and reservoir parameters after one year of continuous CO2 injection are in good agreement with the computation time to solve the time-convolution semi-analytical reduced. The new updated T2Well-ECO2M version has shown to be a robust and performing wellbore-reservoir simulator that can be also used to simulate the CO2 injection into depleted gas reservoirs
Towards a full cosmological exploitation of cosmic voids
Get PDFA stately fraction of the Universe volume is dominated by almost empty space. Alongside the luminous filamentary structures that make it up, there are vast and smooth regions that have remained outside the Cosmology spotlight during the past decades: cosmic voids. Although essentially devoid of matter, voids enclose fundamental information about the cosmological framework and have gradually become an effective and competitive cosmological probe.
In this Thesis work we present fundamental results about the cosmological exploitation of voids. We focused on the number density of voids as a function of their radius, known as void size function, developing an effective pipeline for its cosmological usage. We proposed a new parametrisation of the most used theoretical void size function to model voids identified in the distribution of biased tracers (i.e. dark matter haloes, galaxies and galaxy clusters), a step of fundamental importance to extend the analysis to real data surveys. We then applied our built methodology to study voids in alternative cosmological scenarios. Firstly we exploited voids with the aim of breaking the degeneracies between cosmological scenarios characterised by modified gravity and the inclusion of massive neutrinos. Secondly we analysed voids in the perspective of the Euclid survey, focusing on the void abundance constraining power on dynamical dark energy models with massive neutrinos. Moreover we explored other void statistics like void profiles and clustering (i.e. the void-galaxy and the void-void correlation), providing cosmological forecasts for the Euclid mission. We finally focused on the probe combination, highlighting the incredible potential of the joint analysis of multiple void statistics and of the combination of the void size function with different cosmological probes. Our results show the fundamental role of the void analysis in constraining the fundamental parameters of the cosmological model and pave the way for future studies on this topic
The Legacy of Frankenstein’s Creature: Monstrosity and Female Grotesque in Mary Shelley, Angela Carter and Jeanette Winterson
Get PDFThis English Literature thesis (European PhD EDGES – Women’s and Gender Studies – 34th cycle) is an investigation into the representation of the monstrous body according to the British writers Mary Shelley, Angela Carter and Jeanette Winterson. The main objective is to observe how the representation of the categories of monstrous, abject and grotesque in Western cultural imagination have been influenced across time and literary genres. In the novels of Shelley, Carter and Winterson, the monstrous subject is configured as an alternative to the anthropocentric ideal embodied by the normative subject, of which Victor Frankenstein is the paradigmatic exponent. Plus, there are places considered anti-topoi within which the monster acquires a situatedness and claims a voice, generating an opposed counter-narrative to the imaginary conveyed by the normative subject. Monstrosity outlined by Shelley in the novels Frankenstein and The Last Man constitutes the starting point of my research, aiming to observe how the discourse of the normative body vs. the anti-normative body intersects with the discourse of the spaces of the centre vs. the spaces of the margin. In Carter's novels The Passion of New Eve and Nights at the Circus, the monstrous female constitutes the embodiment of wills, desires and claims challenging the heteronormative system. The space of otherness in which Carter's monster-woman is confined becomes a possibility of reshaping identity for the Subject, deconstructing the logic of power that moulded her within society. Finally, Winterson creates two monstrous women in Sexing the Cherry and The Passion who move through urban spaces, going from the centre to the margins and testifying to the arbitrariness of the system and its weaknesses. Similarly, in Frankissstein, Winterson recovers Shelley's original novel and transforms it into a parodic and intertextual speculation on the fluidity of identity and the limits of transhumanism.Tale tesi in Letteratura inglese (European PhD EDGES – Women’s and Gender Studies, XXXIV ciclo) costituisce un'indagine sulla rappresentazione del corpo mostruoso secondo le scrittrici inglesi Mary Shelley, Angela Carter e Jeanette Winterson. Obiettivo del lavoro è osservare attraverso quali modalità la rappresentazione delle categorie di mostruoso, abietto e grottesco nell'immaginario culturale occidentale sia stata influenzata nel tempo e attraverso i generi letterari. Nelle autrici prese in esame, il soggetto mostruoso si configura come alternativa all'ideale antropocentrico incarnato dal soggetto normativo, di cui Victor Frankenstein costituisce il massimo esponente. Allo stesso tempo, sarà possibile osservare come all'interno dei romanzi di Shelley, Carter e Winterson siano presenti luoghi considerati anti-topoi all'interno dei quali il mostro può acquisire un posizionamento e rivendicare una voce, finalizzata a generare una contronarrazione dell'immaginario veicolato dal soggetto normativo. La mostruosità delineata da Shelley in Frankenstein e The Last Man costituisce il punto di partenza dell'indagine, con lo scopo di osservare come il discorso del corpo normativo vs. il corpo antinormativo si intersechi con il discorso degli spazi del centro vs. gli spazi del margine. In The Passion of New Eve e Nights at the Circus di Carter, il mostruoso femminile incarna volontà, desideri e rivendicazioni che mettono in crisi il sistema eteronormativo. Lo spazio dell'alterità in cui la donna-mostro viene confinata diviene possibilità di rimodellamento dell'identità per il soggetto, decostruendo la logica del potere che l'ha plasmato all'interno della società. Winterson, infine, crea due donne mostruose in Sexing the Cherry e The Passion che si muovono negli spazi urbani oscillando tra centro e margine, e testimoniando l'arbitrarietà del sistema e i suoi punti deboli. Allo stesso modo, in Frankissstein Winterson recupera il romanzo di Shelley trasformandolo in una speculazione parodica e intertestuale sulla fluidità identitaria e sui limiti del transumanismo.Esta tesis doctoral en literatura inglesa (European PhD EDGES - Women's and Gender Studies, Cycle XXXIV) investiga la representación del cuerpo monstruoso según Mary Shelley, Angela Carter y Jeanette Winterson. El objetivo del trabajo es observar cómo haya influido la representación de las categorías de lo monstruoso, lo abyecto y lo grotesco en el imaginario cultural occidental a lo largo del tiempo y a través de los géneros literarios. En las autoras examinadas, el sujeto monstruoso se configura como una alternativa al ideal antropocéntrico encarnado por el sujeto normativo, del que Victor Frankenstein constituye el máximo exponente. Al mismo tiempo en las novelas de Shelley, Carter y Winterson hay lugares considerados anti-topoi dentro de los cuales el monstruo pueda adquirir una posición y reclamar una voz, generando una contranarrativa del imaginario del sujeto normativo. La monstruosidad esbozada por Shelley en Frankenstein y The Last Man constituye el punto de partida de la investigación, observando cómo el discurso del cuerpo normativo y antinormativo se cruza con el discurso sobre los espacios del centro y del margen. En The Passion of New Eve y Nights at the Circus de Carter, la mujer monstruosa encarna voluntades, deseos y reivindicaciones que desafían el sistema heteronormativo. El espacio de alteridad en el que está confinada se convierte en una posibilidad de reconfiguración de la identidad para el sujeto, deconstruyendo la lógica del poder que la ha moldeado dentro de la sociedad. Winterson, por último, crea en Sexing the Cherry y The Passion dos mujeres monstruosas que se mueven en espacios urbanos oscilando entre el centro y el margen, testimoniando la arbitrariedad del sistema y de sus debilidades. Asimismo, en Frankissstein Winterson recupera la novela de Shelley transformándola en una especulación paródica e intertextual sobre la fluidez de la identidad y los límites del transhumanismo
Enabling 5G and beyond: millimeter wave propagation and cloud RAN evolution
Get PDFIn the last few years, mobile wireless technology has gone through a revolutionary change. Web-enabled devices have evolved into essential tools for communication, information, and entertainment. The fifth generation (5G) of mobile communication networks is envisioned to be a key enabler of the next upcoming wireless revolution.
Millimeter wave (mmWave) spectrum and the evolution of Cloud Radio Access Networks (C-RANs) are two of the main technological innovations of 5G wireless systems and beyond. Because of the current spectrum-shortage condition, mmWaves have been proposed for the next generation systems, providing larger bandwidths and higher data rates. Consequently, new radio channel models are being developed. Recently, deterministic ray-based models such as Ray-Tracing (RT) are getting more attractive thanks to their frequency-agility and reliable predictions.
A modern RT software has been calibrated and used to analyze the mmWave channel. Knowledge of the electromagnetic properties of materials is therefore essential. Hence, an item-level electromagnetic characterization of common construction materials has been successfully achieved to obtain information about their complex relative permittivity. A complete tuning of the RT tool has been performed against indoor and outdoor measurement campaigns at 27 and 38 GHz, setting the basis for the future development of advanced beamforming techniques which rely on deterministic propagation models (as RT).
C-RAN is a novel mobile network architecture which can address a number of challenges that network operators are facing in order to meet the continuous customers’ demands. C-RANs have already been adopted in advanced 4G deployments; however, there are still some issues to deal with, especially considering the bandwidth requirements set by the forthcoming 5G systems. Open RAN specifications have been proposed to overcome the new 5G challenges set on C-RAN architectures, including synchronization aspects. In this work it is described an FPGA implementation of the Synchronization Plane for an O-RAN-compliant radio system
The tax regime of CFCs: evolution in the Italian experience and in the context of European Union law
Get PDFIl presente lavoro di ricerca ha ad oggetto la disciplina della CFCrule, analizzata su tre diversi livelli. Il primo è quello internazionale, con l’analisi delle raccomandazioni OCSE contenute nel progetto BEPS 3, dedicato ai suggerimenti per progettare regole CFC efficaci. L’esame delle conclusioni del BEPS 3 è stato accompagnato da un raffronto delle CFCrule in vigore nei principali ordinamenti nazionali (US, Germania, Francia, UK), le cui caratteristiche hanno influenzato i lavori BEPS. Il secondo livello di analisi è quello dell’Unione Europea nella quale, a seguito delle spinte politiche volte al contrasto all’elusione fiscale internazionale, sono state recepite le raccomandazioni BEPS varando un importante pacchetto antielusione. La Direttiva ATAD 1164/2016 prevede disposizioni relative all’introduzione, in ambito europeo, di una norma CFC con caratteristiche di minimum standard al fine di neutralizzare le pratiche illegittime di delocalizzazione fittizia che danneggiano, oltre la base imponibile degli Stati membri, anche l’integrità stessa del Mercato Unico. I numerosi arresti della Corte di Giustizia Europea riguardanti le normative CFC nazionali, in materia di imposizione diretta e libertà fondamentali, hanno offerto una cornice dentro la quale è stata emanata la ATAD ed è stata recepita dagli ordinamenti nazionali. Il terzo livello di studio, quello nazionale, ha visto l’esame del recepimento della Direttiva nell’ordinamento tributario italiano con il nuovo articolo 167 del TUIR, indagando le innovazioni e le ripercussioni operative della nuova disciplina, anche attraverso la lente di osservazione delle libertà fondamentali sancite dal Trattato. È stato inoltre operato un raffronto tra la nuova CFCrule italiana rispetto agli altri principali istituti di contrasto all’erosione o abuso (quali il transfer pricing, la tassazione in uscita, la GAAR, la disciplina dei costi black list e le regole di residenza fiscale delle società) cercando di sottolineare le differenze funzionali ed operative tra gli stessi.This research was developed in the field of tax regime of CFCs, with three different levels of analysis. At the international level, it explores the BEPS recommendations, dedicated to the best way to adopt consistent and effective CFCrule in the national jurisdictions of the OECD members. It also compares the main national CFCrules (US, Germany, France, UK), whose characteristics had influenced the conclusions of the BEPS 3 project. The second level of analysis is focused on the issues arised, in the context of the European Union law, from the implementation of the BEPS conclusions, with the release of the anti-avoidance tax package. The Directive 1164/2016 (Anti Tax Avoidance Directive) introduced a common framework, as a minimum standard, by which all Member state, for the first time ever, must adopt a CFC law in their jurisdiction. The aim of the directive was tackling the aggressive tax planning and the tax avoidance, that risk to damage the tax base of the EU Member states and the integrity of the unified common market. The ATAD was issued according to the principles fixed in the rulings of the European Court of Justice, in the field of fundamental freedom (establishment and movement of capitals). At the domestic level the thesis explores the implementation of the ATAD, in the Italian tax code, by the recent amendment of the article 167. The research analyses the consequences and the main issues of the new discipline, through the lens of European freedoms guaranteed from the Tractate. The work also contains a comparison between the Italian (new) CFCrule and the other national instruments for the contrast of tax avoidance, as: transfer pricing, exit tax, GAAR, black-list costs regime and the rules for asses the fiscal residence of the corporation
QTL mapping identifies novel major loci for ear fasciation, ear prolificacy and tillering in maize (ZEA MAYS L.)
Get PDFMaize ear fasciation originates from excessive or abnormal proliferation of the ear meristem and usually manifests as multiple-tipped ear, ear flatness and/or disordered kernel arrangement. Ear prolificacy expresses as multiple ears per node. Both traits can affect grain yield. In this study, the genetic control of the two traits was analyzed using two recombinant inbred lines (RIL) populations (B73 × Lo1016 and Lo964 × Lo1016) with Lo1016 and Lo964 as donors of ear fasciation and prolificacy, respectively. Four ear fasciation-related traits (ear fasciation, kernel distribution and ear ovality indexes and ratio of ear diameters), number of kernel rows, ear prolificacy and number of tillers were phenotyped in multi-year field experiments. Ear fasciation traits and number of kernel rows showed relatively high heritability (h2 > 0.5) except ratio of ear diameters, and showed correlation. Prolificacy and tillering h2 ranged 0.41 - 0.78 and did not correlate. QTL mapping identified four QTL for ear fasciation, on chr. 1 (two QTLs), 5 and 7, the latter two overlapping with QTLs for number of kernel rows. However, the strongest effect QTL for number of kernel rows mapped on chr. 2 independently from ear fasciation. Four and five non-overlapping QTLs were mapped for ear prolificacy and tillering, respectively. Two ear fasciation QTLs from this study, qFas1.2 and qFas7, overlapped with formerly known fasciation QTLs and spanned candidate genes expressed in ear meristems namely compact plant2 and ramosa1. Our study identified novel ear fasciation, ear prolificacy and tillering loci which are unexpectedly still segregating in elite maize materials, and provides foundation for genomics-assisted breeding for yield component
The fact in the administrative process
Get PDFPartendo dal dato oramai pacifico secondo cui il giudice amministrativo ha piena conoscenza del fatto, anche tecnico, l’analisi ha ad oggetto il processo amministrativo, per come è strutturato e per come concretamente si svolge, al fine di verificare se garantisca davvero l’emersione del fatto per come davvero è e non per come lo rappresenta a se stesso il giudice.
L’indagine muove dall’evoluzione del sistema di giustizia amministrativa per poi dare atto, da un lato, del mutato rapporto tra cittadino, amministrazione e potere e, dall’altro lato, del mutato ruolo del giudice, che da garante della legittimità fine a se stessa sembra oramai abbandonare anche i confini del “giudizio sul rapporto”, per varcare le soglie di un giudizio sempre più penetrante in cui nel processo si rifa il procedimento.
Il ragionamento conduce così all’analisi dell’istruttoria nel processo, in quanto se il giudice amministrativo ha una «piena signoria sul fatto», anche tecnico, diviene necessario rimeditare sull’utilizzo degli strumenti probatori, in quanto nelle concrete modalità di accesso e, dunque, nella valutazione del fatto permangono rilevanti criticità e certamente non è identificabile un unico modello di sindacato.
Come emerge dall’analisi giurisprudenziale condotta nell’ultimo Capitolo con riguardo ad alcuni rilevanti settori (tra cui quello degli appalti pubblici, delle interdittive antimafia, delle sanzioni irrogate dall’Autorità antitrust etc.), ancora si assiste a un sindacato sul fatto differenziato non solo tra settore e settore, ma anche tra giudice e giudice, che oltre che rendere sempre meno prevedibili le decisioni, non pare rispondere a quell’idea di tutela giurisdizionale piena ed effettiva e a quel modello di un unico processo «giusto», che invece è imposto dall’art. 111 Cost. e dalle norme europee.Starting from the consideration that the administrative judge has full knowledge of the fact, even technical, the analysis concerns the administrative process, how it is structured and how it actually takes place, in order to verify whether it really guarantees the emergence of the fact as it really is and not as the judge represents it to himself.
The investigation starts from the evolution of the administrative justice system and then deals with the changed relationship between citizen, administration and power and the changed role of the judge, that in some cases seems to redone the procedure in the process.
Because of the full access of the judge over the fact, it becomes necessary to remedy the use of evidence instruments, as in the concrete methods of access.
As emerges from the jurisprudential analysis conducted in the last Chapter with regard to some relevant sectors (including that of public procurement, anti-mafia prohibitions, sanctions imposed by the antitrust Authority, etc.), there are still differentiated process on the fact not only between sector and sector, but also between judge and judge, which in addition to making decisions less predictable, does not seem to respond to the idea of full and effective judicial protection, which is imposed by art. 111 of the Constitution and European regulations
Numerical simulation of rapid flow-like landslides and some related phenomena based on improved depth-averaged models
Get PDFNumerical simulation is an efficient tool for the run-out analysis of rapid flow-like landslide. In this thesis, I address three topics related to the modeling of flow-like landslide which were not sufficiently investigated in the previous studies. Three improved depth-averaged models are used to simulate the selected typical flow-like landslides and related phenomena. In the first topic, a two-layer depth-averaged model is proposed to simulate the frontal plowing phenomenon in some rapid flow-like landslides. The propagation process of a loess landslide in Shaanxi Province, China and its interaction with the terrace material is analyzed. The second topic is related to the influence of the slope gradient and gully channel on the run-out behavior (especially the entrainment and deposition characteristics) of rockslide-debris flow. The run-out process of the Verghereto landslide in Italy is analyzed by using an improved depth-averaged model. The third topic is related to the numerical assessment of the impeding effect of check dam on debris flow. Another improved depth-averaged model, which takes both entrainment and the impeding effect of check dam into account, is proposed and adopted to analyze the interaction of debris flow and check dams in a debris flow gully in Sichuan province, China. The model is then used to assess the efficiency of the actual check dams in this debris flow gully. The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate the capacity of the improved depth-averaged models on the simulation of rapid flow-like landslides and the related phenomena (frontal plowing, entrainment, and interaction between debris flow and check dam). The simulation results of the case studies in this thesis show that these improved models perform well in simulating the rapid flow-like landslides and the phenomena mentioned above, which demonstrates the potential application ability of these models for the risk assessment of rapid flow-like landslides
Moduli Stabilisation and the Statistics of Low-Energy Physics in the String Landscape
Get PDFIn this thesis we present a detailed analysis of the statistical properties of the type IIB flux landscape of string theory. We focus primarily on models constructed via the Large Volume Scenario (LVS) and KKLT and study the distribution of various phenomenologically relevant quantities. First, we compare our considerations with previous results and point out the importance of Kähler moduli stabilisation, which has been neglected in this context so far. We perform different moduli stabilisation procedures and compare the resulting distributions. To this end, we derive the expressions for the gravitino mass, various quantities related to axion physics and other phenomenologically interesting quantities in terms of the fundamental flux dependent quantities , and , the parameter which specifies the nature of the non-perturbative effects. Exploiting our knowledge of the distribution of these fundamental parameters, we can derive a distribution for all the quantities we are interested in. For models that are stabilised via LVS we find a logarithmic distribution, whereas for KKLT and perturbatively stabilised models we find a power-law distribution. We continue by investigating the statistical significance of a newly found class of KKLT vacua and present a search algorithm for such constructions. We conclude by presenting an application of our findings. Given the mild preference for higher scale supersymmetry breaking, we present a model of the early universe, which allows for additional periods of early matter domination and ultimately leads to rather sharp predictions for the dark matter mass in this model. We find the dark matter mass to be in the very heavy range
Challenges and Opportunities of Machine Learning for Clinical and Omics Data
Get PDFClinical and omics data are a promising field of application for machine learning techniques even though these methods are not yet systematically adopted in healthcare institutions. Despite artificial intelligence has proved successful in terms of prediction of pathologies or identification of their causes, the systematic adoption of these techniques still presents challenging issues due to the peculiarities of the analysed data. The aim of this thesis is to apply machine learning algorithms to both clinical and omics data sets in order to predict a patient's state of health and get better insights on the possible causes of the analysed diseases. In doing so, many of the arising issues when working with medical data will be discussed while possible solutions will be proposed to make machine learning provide feasible results and possibly become an effective and reliable support tool for healthcare systems