Abstract: These orientation fluctuations trigger the so-called mismatch losses in PV strings, as every PV module along the same string is receiving different irradiance levels. In consequence, the string power output is determined by the PV module producing the least power. As of now, PV project developers do not count with PV modelling software capable of handling the wave dynamics created by wind blowing over water bodies, so they rely on strong gross assumptions in order to make these still inadequate tool work for this purpose, risking a miscalculation of the energy yield of these solar-based installations. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the effect of waves on the performance of floating systems along with the analysis of the cooling effects related to the exposure of PV modules to the free water surface. For this, it was selected three potential sites for the deployment of floating PV plants as well as two of the most popular racking structures used floating photovoltaics: individual floaters where each PV module is supported by a floater, and modular raft in which strings of PV modules are installed on top of rafts. For the wave field modelling, a python script has been developed relying on the PVlib package and meteorological inputs from the Meteonorm software and NASA’s MODIS satellite. The wave fields are modelled by means of the JONSWAP and the SPM wave energy spectrum for deep and shallow waters, respectively. Thus, a stochastic approach is taken for the modelling of the wave field, which is made of overlapping waves. With regards to the wave – PV module interaction, a geometrical approach was implemented supported on simple vector calculus, seeking low computational resource demands for a faster processing. Simulation results show how the direction of wave propagation is set to be the determining factor in the understanding, estimation, and the development of mitigation strategies of mismatch losses, while other wave characteristics do not play a crucial role in this issue. Similarly, it was demonstrated how modular rafts floating PV configurations present, under the right circumstances, energy gains compared to groundmounted setups. In contrast, individual floaters are set to always experience mismatch losses, ranging up to from 5% to 10%.

Abstract: The modelling of the topography, geological and geotechnical conditions is not yet common in the construction industry, and BIM projects usually do not include surface-subsurface models. Hence, information about the topography, geological and geotechnical conditions is often outdated and excluded from the BIM procedures. If the surface and subsurface information is available and included in the BIM models, the processes of design, planning, construction, rehabilitation or demolition could enable advanced uses and applications of BIM that can improve the construction life cycle management. With an increasing inclusion of the subsurface in BIM models, the need for standards for this type of models is emerging. Besides, the interoperability between geological/geotechnical software and BIM is continuously improving. Thus, this thesis first explores relevant project case studies, standards and software that enable modelling of the surface and subsurface in BIM. Based on the review, a digital workflow for modelling of surface-subsurface models for demanding technological facilities is proposed and tested on a case study of the hydro-power plant project HE Mokrice. Also, a proposal for standardisation in terms of the level of development for the surface-subsurface models is discussed, as well as some interoperability analysis between the software involved. Finally, given that the infrastructure projects expose an increasing demand for BIM, consequently, this requires expertise in BIM methodologies for modelling of topography, geological and geotechnical conditions; this theoretical study and practical research work propose valuable workflows that can be implemented in the industry for technological projects. The proposed approach is opening a wide range of possibilities of uses in digital workflows that can generate significant savings in terms of time, costs, management of unforeseen events and problems for the AECO industry in the lifetime of constructions.

Abstract: This study explores a rupturing way of understanding the value of domestic work from a feminist economics perspective based on the voices of Latin American migrant domestic workers in the Netherlands. Using a feminist standpoint view epistemology and qualitative methods of research, this document presents what is the value of domestic work according to their experiences and thoughts. The value of domestic work is defined by domestic workers into three levels: what is value for domestic workers, for employers, and for society. Value is relational, contextual-dependent and contradictory. Despite its importance for the human flourishing, devaluation appears at all levels of value, and it is expressed in the corporeal experiences by domestic workers Findings hope to contribute to making visible the domestic work in a context of migration as well as enriching feminist economics epistemologies and methodologies of research.

Abstract: This study focuses on the ways perceptions and realities of transit migration shape the poli-tics and practices of health-related social provisioning for transit migrants in the Colombian side of the Darien Gap, particularly in the municipalities of Turbo and Necoclí. It contributes to understanding the logics of inclusion and exclusion that justify which services are provided to this population and how. Moreover, it studies the intersection between the vulnerabilities of transit migrants and the precarious conditions that they find in this border zone. This research is based on 15 interviews with formal actors involved in the provisioning of health and 12 residents of Turbo and Necoclí, as well as on observations in strategic locations where migrants access public health services. This study finds that transit migrants arrive to health provisioning system in which non-governmental actors support and complement the public provisioning of health for transit migrants and that the conception of transit migrants as outsiders of the system of provisioning is problematized in a context in which legal citizenship does not guarantee social rights.

Résumé: Ce èémoire de première année de master cherche à établir des réflexions et des dialogues entre, d'une part, une tradition graphique et historique et, d'autre part, une dynamique creative expérimentale et interdisciplinaire. A partir de l'étude et de l'analyse de définitions précises concernant l'univers des arts graphiques, un parcours est proposé à travers différents ateliers et manifestations artistiques permettant d'apprécier l'évolution des arts graphiques jusqu'à nos jours. Cela confirme que la pratique artistique des arts graphiques continue de susciter l'intérêt de nombreux artistes contemporains. Resumen: Esta tesis de primer año de maestria, busca establecer reflexiones y diálogos entre, por un lado, una tradición gráfica e histórica y, por otro, una dinámica creativa experimental e interdisciplinar. A partir del estudio y análisis de definiciones precisas concernientes al universo de las artes gráficas se plantea un recorrido por diferentes talleres y manifestaciones artísticas que permiten apreciar la evolución de las artes gráficas hasta la actualidad. Lo que permite confirmar que la práctica artistique alrededor de las artes gráficas continua a interesar a varios artistas contemporáneos.

Abstract: The evolution of multidrug resistance in Klebsiella species in response to selective pressure and the extent to which this may be reversible is not fully understood. The spread of carbapenemresistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) is considered a public health threat by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As such, more studies are needed to understand the evolution of antibiotic resistance mechanisms to determine if it is possible to reverse this trend. Highlighted In this study, a comprehensive characterisation of a clinical Klebsiella quasipneumoniae isolate called FK688 is performed. The FK688 strain is resistant to multiple antibiotics, including third-generation cephalosporins and carbapenems and caused a bloodstream infection in a hospitalised patient. A combinational approach of genomic, enzymatic, and machine learning analyses did not uncover any carbapenemase-encoding genes in FK688. Rather, this research showed that epistatic changes are necessary for FK688 to acquire a CRE phenotype. Evolution experiments demonstrated the fitness burden associated with antimicrobial resistance determinants and the reversion to a carbapenem-susceptible phenotype in an antibiotic-free environment. Fitness assays showed that a low concentration of ceftazidime selects for a ?- lactamase gene and can potentiate evolution to carbapenem resistance by a single-step mutation in the porin OmpK36. This study demonstrated the importance of epistatic events and how variation in drug exposure can shape the evolutionary pathway to antibiotic resistance in bacteria.

Abstract: Background: Although Latin American migrants (LAMs) are one of the fastest-growing migrant populations in England, they still face health barriers that make them unaware of their HIV status, leading to late HIV diagnosis, AIDS, and even death. Thus, this study aims to assess the differences in HIV outcomes among newly HIV-diagnosed LAMs compared to other England populations. Methods: Data on new HIV/AIDS diagnoses in the UK during the 2011-2020 period were obtained from the HIV and AIDS New Diagnoses and Deaths Database (HANDD) and the HIV and AIDS Reporting System (HARS). Potential associations between the region of birth and late HIV diagnosis, AIDS at HIV diagnosis, and mortality were analysed by logistic regression. Furthermore, a comparison between LAMs and the main populations living in the UK was examined. Lastly, a descriptive trend analysis was made. Results: From 2011 to 2020, 47,828 new HIV diagnoses were reported in the UK, with almost a third (29.2%) being late diagnoses. Over half of new diagnoses (52%) were made in migrants, LAMs representing 9.3% of those diagnoses. In general, newly diagnosed HIV LAMs are not more likely to be diagnosed late than UK residents (aRRR: 1.02; 95%CI: 0.90–1.15). However, some subgroups are more likely to be diagnosed late than their UK counterparts (e.g., 15-24 years old). Regarding AIDS and mortality, LAMs are less likely to be diagnosed with AIDS (aOR: 0.50; 95%CI: 0.35–0.71) or die by any cause (aOR: 0.29; 95%CI: 0.16–0.52) than UK residents. Finally, the number of new HIV diagnoses among LAMs increased in those ten years, but the number of late diagnoses remained nearly constant. Conclusions: Although the current HIV epidemiological situation of LAMs living in the UK is not troublesome, the expansion of the LAM population and their increasing number of new HIV diagnoses could become a public health challenge in the coming years. Therefore, to accomplish the 2030 zero HIV transmission goal, it is necessary to integrate the migrant community into future public policies and categorise them as the ‘sixth’ HIV key population in the UK.

Abstract: This research aims to identify a transformative model to regenerate the first-cycle school buildings in the post-pandemic city. Starting from the school infrastructure in Turin and compared with international cases, the research focuses on outdoor spaces, intended as a resource to face the pandemic’s critical situation and facilitate the integration of innovative learning processes. The two-step analysis findings concentrate firstly on the whole stock of first-cycle school buildings in Turin and secondly on a selection of representative cases. Those are the basis to propose a spatial toolkit that identifies design principles and architectural devices that could be generalized to other design contexts. Based on this theoretical and statistical work, the intervention is conducted in three schools in Turin, an experiment that follows a morphological and typological study as the base for identifying the transformative potential of the outdoor spaces. As a result, it has been possible to create the first spatial toolkit that summarises and conceptualizes design tools that could be put in action on school open spaces. Those strategies must improve the quality of the available space for a possible regeneration and new relations between the city and the school buildings, giving children the opportunity to have innovative outdoor learning activities and practical classes. Resumen: Esta investigación tiene como objetivo identificar un modelo transformador para regenerar los edificios escolares de primer ciclo en la ciudad postpandemia. Partiendo de la infraestructura escolar de Turín y en comparación con casos internacionales, la investigación se centra en los espacios al aire libre, pensados como un recurso para enfrentar la situación crítica de la pandemia y facilitar la integración de procesos de aprendizaje innovadores. Los resultados del análisis en dos pasos se concentran, en primer lugar, en todo el stock de edificios escolares de primer ciclo en Turín y, en segundo lugar, en una selección de casos representativos. Esas son la base para proponer un conjunto de herramientas espaciales que identifica principios de diseño y dispositivos arquitectónicos que podrían generalizarse a otros contextos de diseño. Sobre la base de este trabajo teórico y estadístico, la intervención se lleva a cabo en tres escuelas de Turín, un experimento que sigue un estudio morfológico y tipológico como base para identificar el potencial transformador de los espacios al aire libre. Como resultado, ha sido posible crear el primer kit de herramientas espaciales que resume y conceptualiza las herramientas de diseño que podrían ponerse en práctica en los espacios abiertos de la escuela. Esas estrategias deben mejorar la calidad del espacio disponible para una posible regeneración y nuevas relaciones entre la ciudad y los edificios escolares, brindando a los niños la oportunidad de tener actividades innovadoras de aprendizaje al aire libre y clases prácticas.

Resumen: La investigación nace del proceso actual de reconstrucción (postconflicto) de la sociedad colombiana, profundamente dividida por el conflicto armado y se detiene en una práctica de comunicación comunitaria popular y alternativa: el colectivo de comunicación comunitaria Alharaca por la paz, para comprender la participación de niños, niñas y adolescentes de 8 a 12 años de la región del piedemonte amazónico ubicada en el departamento de Caquetá - Colombia en acciones de cambio social. A través de la pregunta: ¿Cómo el colectivo de comunicación Alharaca por la paz promueve acciones de cambio social dentro de una comunidad afectada por el conflicto armado? Se describe cómo los y las niñas son agentes de cambio en sus comunidades a través de la producción de cortometrajes y estrategias de comunicación comunitaria, local y participativa. Abstract: The research stems from the current process of reconstruction (post-conflict) of Colombian society, deeply divided by the armed conflict, and focuses on a popular and alternative community communication practice: the community communication group Alharaca por la paz, to understand the participation of children and adolescents from 8 to 12 years of age from the Amazonian piedmont region located in the department of Caquetá - Colombia in actions of social change. Through the question: How does the communication group Alharaca por la paz promote actions of social change within a community affected by the armed conflict? It describes how boys and girls are agents of change in their communities through the production of short films and community, local and participatory communication strategies.

Abstract: Polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are hazardous compounds mainly produced during combustion and pyrolysis processes which also act as precursors for soot formation. The reduction of these air pollutants contributes to mitigate their impact on human health and on the environment. Moreover, the combustion chemistry of PAHs is not yet fully understood due to the vast number of chemical compounds isomers. Consequently, the development of a detailed kinetic mechanism capable of predicting PAH formation is necessary to understand the chemical phenomena behind these pollutants. The work of this thesis aims to systematically study the kinetics of growth, pyrolysis, and oxidation of three different chemical families of two-ring PAHs through the application of rate rules that have been derived for all the different reaction classes by analogy from monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (MAH) characterized by the same functional group. The benefit of such an approach allows rate rules based optimization where needed, immediate rate rules revision when theoretical calculations become available. The new model is validated against several experimental data in a wide range of operative conditions in different ideal reactors and 1-D premixed flames. The comparison is performed between the new model predictions, the experimental data, and other kinetic models available in the literature. Firstly, indene decomposition is investigated under pyrolysis conditions in a flow reactor and its formation mechanisms in toluene primary reference fuels (TPFR) with further validations under flame conditions. Then, a detailed study on the reactivity of alphamethylnaphthalene based on new ignition delay times in shock tubes and rapid compression machines and laminar flame speed measurements is performed. The new model demonstrates the strong relation between indene and phenanthrene concentration and corroborates the analogy of characterizing chemical families by the same functional group. Finally, alpha-methylnaphthalene reactivity is predicted by using the application rate rules approach on H-abstraction reactions by OH, HO2, O, and O2 from toluene oxidation. The results shows that indeed kinetic modelling based of the rate rules application within chemical families represents a valid agreement between the simulations and experimental data. Overall, the model cannot satisfactorily predict all the operative conditions reviewed, but through the detailed analysis of the performance is possible to observe the contributions from the updated rates, which can be integrated and extended to further theoretical and experimental investigations. Moreover, further studies should be aimed at overcoming possible limits of the rate rules based optimization approach.