Wolverhampton Intellectual Repository and E-Theses
WIRE is the open access repository for research publications and outputs by researchers based at the University of Wolverhampton.
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Item Characterization and classification of soils on a toposequence around Dutse Jigawa State, Nigeria(Springer Nature, 2025-10-19)Soil characterization and classification is extremely important for land use planning and environmental conservation. The aim of the current study was to characterize and classify the soils present in a toposequence established at the Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) Jigawa state, North-Western Nigeria. Four representative soil profiles were excavated at the crest, upper, middle and lower slope positions in the study area. Across the soil horizons, the textural classes varied from sand to loamy sand, and the bulk density was between 1.21 and 1.55 g cm− 3 in the surface and sub-surface horizons. Soil pH ranged between 4.7 and 7.7 in the surface and sub-surface horizons. Soil organic carbon, cation exchange capacity and available P ranged from 0.88 to 1.61%, 3.54 to 7.17 cmolc kg− 1 and 1.95 to 3.50 mg kg− 1 respectively. The percent base saturation was low to high (30.36–80.00%), with the dominant soluble cations being Ca2+ and Mg2+. The extractable micronutrients in the soils were medium (Fe), low to medium (Mn), low (Zn) and very low (Cu). The soils at the study site were classified as Entisols at the order level of USDA, which correlate to Arenosols in the (FAO/WRB) reference soil group. The quality of the NIFOR soil was divided into five levels, with grade I, being the highest and grade V the lowest. The proportion of grade II and IV soils were the largest, at 26.39% and 23.64% respectively, with grade III being the smallest at 11.17%. The data collected from this study are critical for the development and interpretation of effective, site-specific management practices. Based on the data obtained, soil conservation techniques including continuous organic matter incorporation and mineral fertilizer application to the soils would markedly improve their fertility for agricultural purposes.Item Post-truth politics as discursive violence: Online abuse, the public sphere and the figure of ‘the expert’(SAGE, 2023-10-10)‘Post-truth politics’ indicates a contemporary state of public distrust around the legitimacy of knowledge, shaped by the hybrid media landscape. In the present moment, women, LGBTQ+ and racialised individuals also receive unprecedented levels of online abuse. Scholars have attributed responsibility for disinformation to social media and linked post-truth discourse to angry accusations of lying and dishonesty. Yet, online abuse of experts/academics has not been conceptually or empirically connected to post-truth. We analyse Facebook comments on right-wing news articles that question the expertise of academics during Brexit. Using queer theory, we argue that online abuse of experts staged by newspapers is a form of post-truth communication involving a process of bordering through which gendered, sexualised or racialised bodies are considered incompatible with academic expertise. This process legitimises extraordinary abuse including threats of sexual violence. Only by asking intentional questions about gender, sexuality and race can we fully understand the post-truth condition.Item A maturity assessment model for metal additive manufacturing: additive manufacturing readiness levels(Informa UK Limited, 2025-10-15)Despite many promises, metal additive manufacturing (MAM) adoption is still limited within the industry. To effectively and successfully implement MAM, companies need to assess their maturity status quo, combined with the MAM technology maturity, at both organisational and operational levels. However, existing maturity models (MMs) are either only dedicated to just one of these levels or are not adapted to MAM. Thus, this paper proposes an original and tailored MM: the Additive Manufacturing Readiness Levels (AMRL), a multicriteria MM to evaluate the maturity of a MAM technology coupled with a use case, offering a context-aware approach that bridges technological capability and operational applicability. The model features 8 dimensions, divided into 22 sub-items to be assessed, referring to Industry 5.0 pillars, including environmental and social considerations. To develop and validate the proposal, an iterative methodology is followed where the AMRL is applied to compare the maturity of three Directed Energy Deposition technologies coupled with nine use cases in the context of a French Technology Transfer Centre. Direct interviews with experts and measures of agreement granted validation. AMRL aims to contribute to the adoption of MAM by assisting decision makers. Future research could investigate its use in different industry sectors and decision configurations.Item Understanding the new risks in the digital transition of maritime port’s energy infrastructures: a scoping review(University of Wolverhampton, 2025-05-07)The increasing digitalisation of maritime port energy infrastructure has transformed global trade and supply chains, enhancing operations and energy management. However, this transition also introduces significant risks, particularly in the realms of cybersecurity, infrastructure resilience, and regulatory inconsistencies. Maritime ports play a critical role in energy distribution, supporting the global economy by transporting fossil fuels, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and renewable energy sources. The digital transformation of these infrastructures is essential for optimising operations and reducing environmental impact, yet it also exposes ports to new vulnerabilities. Given the strategic importance of ports in global trade and energy logistics, their increasing dependence on digital technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), and automation, has heightened concerns regarding cyber threats and infrastructure security. Recent cyber incidents, including attacks on critical energy assets and maritime infrastructure, underscore the need to address these risks with urgency. The rapid expansion of digitalisation in ports highlights the need for a comprehensive understanding of emerging vulnerabilities, particularly in underwater and seabed energy infrastructure. This scoping review was commissioned by the Lloyds Register Foundation to the University of Wolverhampton, UK, Moi University, Kenya, and THOST Project Management Netherlands to examine the digital transition of critical energy infrastructure in maritime ports, with a focus on the Port of Southampton in the United Kingdom and the Port of Mombasa in Kenya. The primary objective of the scoping review is to establish the current state of digitalisation in critical energy infrastructure in maritime ports. The findings from this review contribute to a broader understanding of the challenges and opportunities associated with the digital transition in Maritime ports.Item Unified mobility model for grain‑boundary‑limited transport in polycrystalline thermoelectric materials(Elsevier, 2025-09-12)Grain-boundary-limited charge transport is a fundamental bottleneck in polycrystalline thermoelectric materials, where reduced carrier mobility degrades electrical conductivity and suppresses power factors. This degradation arises from the interplay of scattering mechanisms: grain-boundary barriers dominate at low temperatures; thermionic activation enables partial barrier crossing at intermediate temperatures; and phonon scattering limits the mean free path at high temperatures. Hence, there remains a need for a physically transparent framework to quantitatively extract these microstructural parameters. In this study, a semi-empirical mobility model that explicitly integrates these grain-boundary mechanisms was developed and validated, expressed as: μeff(T)=μwexp(−[Formula presented] where μw is the weighted mobility, ΦGB is the grain‑boundary barrier height, kB is Boltzmann's constant, T is temperature, l(T) is the bulk mean free path and wGB is the boundary width. This model was validated for oxide semiconductor, intermetallic, chalcogenide and heuslers polycrystalline materials, achieving excellent agreement with experimental data (R2= 0.97–0.99) and yielding physically consistent parameters: ΦGB ≈ 0–0.056 eV and l300 ≈ 6–368 nm. A case study for Ta doped ZnO thermoelectric material shows that barrier passivation (reduction of ΦGB from 0.056 eV to 0.03 eV) combined with modest grain-interior improvement (l300→60 nm) can significantly enhance carrier mobility across the entire temperature range. The analysis predicts that, at ∼1000 K, grain engineering could nearly double mobility and electrical conductivity. Consequently, tailoring microstructural features enable a power factor approximately of 7.64x10−4Wm−1K−2 at 1000 K, compared with the reported value of 4x10−4Wm−1K−2. This framework provides concrete, process-addressable targets for grain-boundary engineering and mobility-driven performance gains.
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