Martec (Canada)

Cannabis research has historically focused on the most prevalent cannabinoids. However, extracts with a broad spectrum of secondary metabolites may have increased efficacy and decreased adverse effects compared to cannabinoids in isolation. Cannabis’s complexity contributes to the length and breadth of its historical usage, including the individual application of the leaves, stem barks, and roots, for which modern research has not fully developed its therapeutic potential. This study is the first attempt to profile secondary metabolites groups in individual plant parts comprehensively. We profiled 14 cannabinoids, 47 terpenoids (29 monoterpenoids, 15 sesquiterpenoids, and 3 triterpenoids), 3 sterols, and 7 flavonoids in cannabis flowers, leaves, stem barks, and roots in three chemovars available. Cannabis inflorescence was characterized by cannabinoids (15.77–20.37%), terpenoids (1.28–2.14%), and flavonoids (0.07–0.14%); the leaf by cannabinoids (1.10–2.10%), terpenoids (0.13–0.28%), and flavonoids (0.34–0.44%); stem barks by sterols (0.07–0.08%) and triterpenoids (0.05–0.15%); roots by sterols (0.06–0.09%) and triterpenoids (0.13–0.24%). This comprehensive profile of bioactive compounds can form a baseline of reference values useful for research and clinical studies to understand the “entourage effect” of cannabis as a whole, and also to rediscover therapeutic potential for each part of cannabis from their traditional use by applying modern scientific methodologies.

The characteristic aerodynamics of inlets in a fuselage-embedded propulsion system of an air-vehicle vary from one configuration to other, making it necessary to document the performance of each and every type of inlet in various flight conditions. This paper focuses on the internal performance evaluation of a baseline S-duct diffuser for a future parametric investigation of a generic S-duct inlet. The generic baseline was a rectangular-entrance, transitioning S-duct diffuser in high subsonic (Mach number > 0.8) flow. The test section was manufactured using rapid prototyping for facilitating a future parametric investigation of geometry. Streamwise static pressure and exit-plane total pressure were measured in a test-rig using surface pressure taps and a 5-probe rotating rake, respectively and was simulated through computational fluid dynamics. The investigation indicated the presence of streamwise and circumferential pressure gradients leading to three dimensional flow in the S-duct diffuser and distortion at the exit plane. Total pressure losses and circumferential and radial distortions at the exit plane were higher than that of the podded nacelle type of inlet. The work represents the beginning of the development of a database for the performance of a particular type of generic inlet. This database will be useful for predicting the performance of aero-engines and air vehicles in high subsonic flight.

Air blast characteristics of Al and Ni-Al laminated materials were experimentally investigated in a 23 m3 closed chamber. Ni and Al foils, 50 to 100 micrometers in thickness, were rolled and compacted to form a cylindrical casing with a density of 95% TMD through an explosive formation technique. Charges were prepared using 2 kg C4 explosive packed in the laminated casing to a metal-explosive mass ratio of 1.75. The blast pressure history measured on the chamber wall showed a double-shock front structure with a precursor shock followed by the primary blast. The front peak pressure for the Ni-Al cased charge reaches 1.5-2 times that of the Al cased, consistent with the larger fireball recorded for the Ni-Al cased. The long time quasi-static explosion pressure (QSP) from the Ni- Al cased charge is 0.8 of that of the Al cased, due to half of Al mass in the Ni-Al.

Focusing on improving security in public transports (here: trains), this paper presents a research project implementing an audio-video surveillance system. Combining audio analysis, video tracking and dedicated integration of audio-video acquisition and storage equipments, the proposed system addresses the task of providing an operator with a partially-supervised tool for tracking suspected persons along the train.

Abstract The Nova Scotian Offshore has many undeveloped fields which contain various amounts of recoverable oil and gas. The amount of recoverable product, however, does not support the capital expense of major physical infrastructure which has been the norm for the previous offshore developments in this region. These marginal fields will require alternative types of infrastructure which will lower the overall requirement and costs of production. Minimal platforms have been known to reduce the size and cost of production developments, and in some cases eliminating the requirement of heavy lift vessels for offshore installation. This paper presents a study of the application of minimal structures for use in the severe environment of the Nova Scotian Offshore. A survey of the global fleet of the minimal structures is reviewed along with a comparative wave study to confirm the degree of increased severity of the Nova Scotian conditions. Three minimum platform concepts, which have no requirements for heavy lift vessels, are presented. Case Studies are provided to confirm the performance of the structures in the Nova Scotian conditions. Introduction The economic viability of an offshore development is not only dependent upon the quality of the discovery itself, but is also heavily influenced by the cost of the offshore facility that will extract and distribute the hydrocarbon. Offshore fields, which have questionable economic viability, are considered ‘marginal fields’. Some marginal fields have become economically viable by reducing the cost of the offshore facility used to extract and distribute the product. The reduction in cost of the facility is significantly attributed to reducing the size of the offshore installation. These types of installations are referred to as ‘minimal platforms’. Minimal platforms as designed to current standards have been shown to be robust and suitable for many different offshore regions (WS Atkins 2002). Minimal platforms reduce the cost of the facility in a number of ways:–Reduction in steel weight–Simplified fabrication methods–Reduction in production equipment–Elimination of heavy lift vessels Currently the Nova Scotian Offshore (NSO) region has many discoveries which could be defined as marginal fields. Historically offshore field development for the NSO has used standard large scale and capital intensive infrastructure which would likely be uneconomical for these marginal fields. Minimal platforms may provide more cost effective options for future developments. The reduction in platform size and weight has many advantages. These smaller and lighter platforms may eliminate the requirement for extremely expensive offshore heavy lift vessels. The mobilization of these vessels to the remote NSO can have a huge impact on the cost of an offshore installation. Utilization of innovative transport and installation techniques can eliminate the need for these vessels and greatly reduce the installation costs. However, the NSO seastate is of significant importance in consideration of the use of minimal platforms. The environmental conditions offshore of Eastern Canada are considered severe. Large waves, high tides, strong currents, high winds, spray ice and cold temperatures are some of the factors to be contended with in the design of an offshore facility. These environmental conditions play a significant role in determining the structural robustness of the facility. This study sets out to develop appropriate minimal structure concepts which would provide suitable structural and operational robustness for consideration in future marginal field developments for the NSO.

Depending on charge parameters, the near-field blast flow from multi-phase explosives can exhibit a wide range of wave-dynamic and hydrodynamic behaviour, including the development of jetting and previously unidentified transient interfaces. Jetting from the fireball is consistently observed in many experiments and may be a key mechanism controlling particle combustion, yet is not reproduced by CFD modelling when particle/particle interactions are neglected. Although not explicitly including the necessary physics for jetting, multi-phase explosion modelling was used to investigate the early blast-wave flow for a range of charge types to identify what controls particle distributions, including the conditions which may lead to jetting observed in reality.

Resume : Une chaine de calcul de modelisation hydrosedimentaire globale a ete mise en place pour etudier et dimensionner une plage artificielle et un port de plaisance sur le littoral de Tripoli. Cet article s’articule selon deux axes avec tout d’abord la description de chaine de modelisation, les differents couplages utilises ainsi que la theorie sous-jacente a ces codes de calcul puis l’etude d’un cas caracterise par un environnement microtidal du sud de la mediterranee. La conclusion de cet article abordera la problematique du calage des modeles dont la validite doit reposer sur des donnees environnementales fiables. L’expertise de terrain par un sedimentologue et un hydrodynamicien basee sur des observations reste indispensable pour la comprehension des phenomenes et leur reproduction en modele numerique.

System-level performance analyses of pulse detonation engines (PDE) have not demonstrated the same increases in performance, when compared to constant-pressure-based engine cycles, as those predicted by thermodynamic cycle analyses. This question is revisited in the present work, in which the performance of a PDE, based on specific impulse, is compared to that of a ramjet Mach 1.2 to 3.5. Using a constant-volume analytical model, event timing, geometric and injection parameters providing optimal performance were determined. These were then used as input to a one-dimensional model, based on the method of characteristics, and a two-dimensional model, based on computational fluid dynamics. The effect of partial fill and nozzle expansion ratio on specific impulse was also evaluated. For all models and over the range of Mach numbers considered, the specific impulse of the PDE was consistently greater than that of a ramjet. In addition, partial fill and nozzle expansion ratio were also identified as important factors influencing performance.