Chlorinated solvents are common contaminants in soil and water. Under anaerobic conditions microbes are capable of transforming chlorinated solvents into ethylene which would result in a remediation of the contaminated area. In order to use natural attenuation as a remediation method evidence of continuous degradation is required. Furthermore, the degradation must occur at a sufficient rate and continuous monitoring of the site is needed until the demanded levels are achieved. A field study was performed on the basis of data from a dry-cleaning facility contaminated mainly by perchloroethylene.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the method called zero recognition that is used in accounting for construction contracts when the outcome is uncertain. When this is the case it is hard to make the necessary estimates needed for the percentage of completion method to be used. Both the meaning of the method from an accounting perspective and the practical importance and purpose of the method is investigated. The method used for this study is the qualitative one and the deductive model is used to relate the theory with the empirical research. The theoretical background consists of accounting theory and theories about individuals, companies and markets.

The trend in the transport sector is moving towards eco-friendly, fast and convenient transportation,this results in higher demands on railway transports. To meet the demand and quality requirements,the Swedish railway network will have to expand. The cheapest way is to expand little by little butwhat impact do these small steps actually have on the capacity?This thesis examines the interactions of different improvement for the capacity on a single-trackrailway. Through simulations in the software tool RailSys this report studies what effect block signals,extra meeting stations and rebuilding existing two track passing loops to three track loops have onthe capacity.

The aim of this study is to investigate how the Swedish language proficiency of pupils in vocational programmes in 1977 was measured and assessed with the aid of a national achievement test, and to investigate whether vocational pupils today, in 2014, have similar language proficiency to that of pupils in the 1970s. The study also discusses how the design of the national achievement test from 1977 reflects the view of knowledge that prevailed in society and in the policy documents. The material for the study consists of a total of 75 national achievement tests, 40 of which were taken by pupils on a vocational programme in 1977 and 35 by pupils on a vocational programme in 2014. The national achievement test consists of two parts, the first of which focuses on isolated elements of language proficiency, while the second involves free text production. The material was analysed quantitatively in accordance with the correction material from 1977.

A growing number of Swedish forest owners are choosing to certify their forestry. However, there appears to be a lack of field surveys which describe differences between certified and non-certified forests concerning the degree of completed environmental considerations. In order to know to what extent certified forests contribute towards improved environmental consideration, we need studies on how large the difference is in relation to non-certified forests.Differences between certified and non-certified forest clearings were quantified through an inventory of the number of retention trees, dead trees and snags. The result showed that the retained number of the investigated parameters varied greatly between individual clearings, regardless of certification status. However, the results suggested that the certified clearings had an average higher incidence ofthe investigated parameters.

The wild boar Sus scrofa population in Sweden has increased rapidly in the last decades which has led to conflicts among stakeholders, for example due to crop damages in agriculture. Thus, there is an urgent need of quantified goals and effective strategies for wild boar management. To develop such strategies, knowledge on population dynamics is fundamental. In this study a deterministic matrix model was used to estimate population growth, based on previously published data. The exponential growth rate for a wild boar population was calculated to 1.48.

Cannibalism can have major influence on fish population dynamics. A prerequisite for cannibalism is that the cannibal and the potential victim meet, and besides density effects, the encounter rate between cannibals and their victims is therefore also largely dependent on habitat use and habitat heterogeneity. In this study I quantified and compared the potential for cannibalism in stream-dwelling European grayling populations in three rivers in Jämtland by means of habitat classifications. I also analyzed population dynamic consequences of varying the potential for cannibalism in terms of intensity, using a physiological structured population model. Findings based on habitat characteristics were that the potential for cannibalism is in general not favourable in these types of streams.

The main purpose of the project was to identify potential environmentally harmful substances which can be leached from rubber asphalt. A method for analysing asphalt was developed and three rubber asphalt materials were analysed after being cryogrinded. One of the materials was also tested in a road machine made for testing of asphalt paving. The particles created in the machine were analysed in the same manner as the cryogrinded asphalt materials.The asphalt materials were leached by water during 24 hours. The leachates were extracted with dichloromethane, dried with sodium sulphate and concentrated to a small volume.

The ability to detect protein-based biomarkers, which are linked to different diseases like colorectal cancer, is very important as a diagnostic tool. Usually complex biological samples like blood are studied which will contribute to different technical issues when performing an assay. The aim with the project is to optimize and develop the high throughput protein detection technique Proximity Extension Assay, PEA, into a 96-plex panel, in hopes of discovering an expression profile for colorectal cancer. PEA was developed by Olink Bioscience and allows specific proteins in a sample to be quantitatively transformed into nucleic acid sequences that are subsequently detected and quantified with real-time PCR. Two proximity probes containing oligonucleotide sequences bind pairwise to target protein and when brought in proximity, a DNA polymerase will extend a hybridization arm from one probe over to the second forming a double-stranded DNA sequence that can serve as a template in real-time PCR.

This thesis has identified and studied measures to allow for reduced use of electricity in a waste incineration plant in western Sweden. The energy extracted from the waste at the powerplant is utilized and sold in form of electricity and heat. Technical and environmentally the combined heat and power plant is by today's standards among the leading waste incineration plants in the world. The owners are constantly striving to improve the efficiency of the waste incineration plant. They have seen the opportunities for savings in reducing internal usage of electricity.

The purpose with this study is to find out how much dead wood we can expect us to find in a Russian reference river and compare with studies from Swedish streams. Dead wood are an important structure for the biodiversity in forest streams, studies have shown that population of trout can increase with up to 300 % when the amount of dead wood are increasing from 0 to 8 ? 16 LWD (Large woody debris)/100 m2. Dead wood are also an important structure for the stream character, formations of dams and pools which are important habitats and reproduction areas for salmon and brown trout. The study where taken place in tributaries to the Russian river Varzuga in the North West part of Russia outside Murmansk. Varzuga has low impact of human activity and is considered to be a reference river to rivers in northern Sweden.

Testing and analysis of measurement data is a major part of the workday for development engineers within the section Fluid and Emission Treatment to assure the quality of products developed by Scania CV. The ineluctable variation and therefore uncertainty of results can be quantified and discussed with the use of statistical methods.The overall objective of this study is to examine how the competence of development engineers can be improved within the area of statistics. This has been done by relating the concept of competence with the use of statistical methods to analyse experimental data and by investigating which factors that influence the competence of the engineers. Observations of the daily operations, interviews and a focus group with development engineers and a workshop with management personnel, has been used as research methods in this study.The results show that the desired competence, from the perspective of the individual, consists of knowledge, motivation and support. It is important that none of these parts are neglected when the competence of engineers is to be strengthened.

News graphics as a part of journalism is something that?s constantly developing along with the news. That?s what we believed when we started this paper including its study. And we still believe the same, now that we?re done.News graphics itself is fairly common in Swedish newspapers, it can be seen every day in almost any major newspaper and is perfect for describing an event like the pollution of the sea over many years or just simply point out on a map where a city is located.This is one of the reasons to why we wrote this; another reason is that there?s almost nothing else written on the subject in northern Europe.

Eutrophication of the Baltic Sea is a serious problem. A major contributing factor is diffuse losses of phosphorus (P) from agricultural land in surrounding countries. In order to estimate P losses, environmental monitoring of small agriculture-dominated catchments is being carried out in most of these countries. Evaluation of the risk of P leaching to waters is usually based on chemical tests originally developed to quantify the amount of soil P available for plant production. The tests are performed in different ways in the different countries and a number of different extraction agents are in use.

Wheat yield depends on the number of ears per m2, the number of kernels per ear and the kernel weight. By knowing the ability of different cultivars to compensate for the different yield components and knowing which yield component that is the most important for the final yield, the farmer can match the cultivar and management to the location. The objective of the study was to investigate how the yield components of winter wheat vary depending on genotype, environment, sowing density and date of sowing.Seven varieties were grown in four locations in Sweden with three different sowing densities and with an early and a late sowing date. On each experimental site, the surviving plants after winter were counted, as well as the number of shoots at early and late spring and the number of ears. Ten ears from each site were cut at three different occasions, starting from the time of blooming, with 200 day degrees between each cut.