Utility service providers are often challenged with the synchronization of thermostatically controlled loads. Load synchronization, as a result of naturally occurring and demand-response events, has the potential to damage power distribution equipment. Because thermostatically controlled loads constitute most of the power consumed by the grid at any given time, the proper control of such devices can lead to significant energy savings and improved grid stability. The contribution of this paper is the development of an optimal control algorithm for commonly used variable speed heat pumps. By means of selective peer-to-peer communication, our control architecture allows for the regulation of home temperatures while simultaneously minimizing aggregate power consumption, and aggregate load volatility. An optimal centralized controller is also explored and compared against its decentralized counterpart.

This article investigates the design, modeling, and fabrication of small-size (150 × 90 × 1.6 mm) broadband printed biconical antenna. The proposed antenna is intended for use a reference antenna for electromagnetic interference measurement inside the EMC chamber. The reflection coefficient (S11-parameter) is verified by modeling the equivalent circuit of the structure in terms of lumped elements. This structure offers a −10 dB impedance bandwidth (from 0.65 GHz to 2.3 GHz) with the tapered balun feeding method. Therefore, it has a high probability of estimating the electromagnetic waves emitted from several applications such as GSM, LTE, UMTS, 3G, Wi-fi, Bluetooth, ZigBee and more. The simulated standard antenna parameters are compatible with the measured parameters results. Furthermore, azimuth omnidirectional radiation pattern and well-realized gain (3.8 dBi) are achieved, reflecting good values of antenna factor compared to the commercial design.

In order to find the temperature field in the ground with a heat exchanger, it is necessary to determine temperature responses of the ground caused by heat sources and the influence of the environment. To determine the latter, a new model of heat transfer in the ground under natural conditions was developed. The heat flux of the evaporation of moisture from the ground was described by the relationship taking into account the annual amount of rainfall. The analytical solution for the equations of this model is presented. Under the conditions for which the calculations were performed, the following data were obtained: the average ground surface temperature Tsm = 10.67 °C, the ground surface temperature amplitude As = 13.88 K, and the phase angle Ps = 0.202 rad. This method makes it possible to easily determine the undisturbed ground temperature at any depth and at any time. This solution was used to find the temperature field in the ground with an installed slinky-coil heat exchanger tha... [more]

A power transformer is an essential device for stable and reliable power transfer to customers. Therefore, accurate modeling of transformers is required for simulation-based analysis with the model. The paper proposes an efficient and straightforward parameter estimation of power transformers based on sweep frequency response analysis (SFRA) test data. The method first develops a transformer model consisting of repetitive RLC sections and mutual inductances and then aligns the simulated SFRA curve with the measured one by adjusting parameters. Note that this adjustment is based on individual parameter impacts on the SFRA curve. After aligning the two curves, the final transformer model can be obtained. In this paper, actual single-phase, three-winding transformer model parameters were estimated based on field SFRA data, showing that SFRA curves simulated from the estimated model are consistent with the measured data.

This paper addresses the problem of conveyor transfer station design in harsh operating conditions, aiming to identify and eliminate a failure phenomenon which interrupts aggregate supply. The analyzed transfer station is located in a Polish granite quarry. The study employs laser scanning and reverse engineering methods to map the existing transfer station and its geometry. Next, a discrete element method (DEM) model of granite aggregate has been created and used for simulating current operating conditions. The arch formation has been identified as the main reason for breakdowns. Alternative design solutions for transfer stations were tested in DEM simulations. The most uncomplicated design for manufacturing incorporated an impact plate, and a straight chute has been selected as the best solution. The study also involved identifying areas of the new station most exposed to wear phenomena. A new transfer point was implemented in the quarry and resolved the problem of blockages.

Microalgae are natural resources of intracellular compounds with a wide spectrum of applications in, e.g., the food industry, pharmacy, and biofuel production. The extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) released by microalgal cells are a valuable bioproduct. Polysaccharides, protein, lipids, and DNA are the main constituents of EPS. This review presents the recent advances in the field of the determinants of the synthesis of extracellular polymeric substances by microalgal cells and the EPS structure. Physical and chemical culture conditions have been analyzed to achieve useful insights into the development of a strategy optimizing EPS production by microalgal cells. The application of microalgal EPS for flocculation and mechanisms involved in this process are also discussed in terms of biomass harvesting. Additionally, the ability of EPS to remove toxic heavy metals has been analyzed. With their flocculation and sorption properties, microalgal EPS are a promising bioproduct that can... [more]

This study assessed whether methods for capturing the pedestrian experience of outdoor lighting, previously evaluated in a full-scale laboratory, were applicable in a real-world setting. It applied an approach capturing the human response to outdoor lighting in a systematic way, by assessing perception, evaluation and behaviour in the lit environment. The study involved 81 participants from two age groups (Young—n: 48, mean age: 26, 63% women; Elderly—n: 33, mean age: 69, 67% women) and was carried out on a pedestrian path in a park in the centre of Malmö, Sweden, in the evenings during wintertime. Two LED lighting applications, differing in light distribution, uniformity and horizontal illuminance, were presented, and the pedestrians’ perception (facial expression recognition and sign reading), evaluation (arousal, valence and perceived outdoor lighting quality) and behaviour (pedestrian flow) were assessed. The results from the perceptual tasks differed significantly between the ligh... [more]

In order to reach the ambitious decarbonizing goals set by the European Union for 2030, deep renovation of the existing European building stock is a key issue. Within this context, the recently funded H2020 project “e-SAFE” is investigating market-ready wooden envelope renovation solutions for non-historic buildings, which encompass both energy and seismic improvement. The research carried out in the project aims at developing, testing and demonstrating these solutions on a real pilot. More specifically, this paper presents preliminary analyses to verify that the solutions satisfy the requisites set by the national regulations in force in most European countries, in terms of hygrothermal and acoustic performance. The analysis, carried out following relevant technical European Standards and based on calculations, considers different climate conditions and existing wall structures, selected amongst those most commonly adopted in Europe. The results show that the addition of a Cross Lamin... [more]

The Modern Energy Cooking Services (MECS) programme has generated data on the amount of energy required to cook meals using different fuels and cooking devices. Fuel stacking is commonplace, especially among households with access to modern fuels. Experience shows that people tend to use modern fuels for quick tasks, such as preparing a cup of tea, but prefer to use biomass fuels for foods that take longer to cook. Therefore, changes in the choice of foods in the household menu have the potential to affect the transition to modern fuels. This paper discusses the potential of innovative and emerging aspects of food systems in low-income countries to impact on households. It starts by looking at the processing of indigenous crops to create convenient and nutritious food products. This leads to an overview of the rapid growth of the food processing industry and future opportunities. Consuming food that has been prepared outside of the home is also a common and rapidly growing practice, wh... [more]

In recent years, in which a considerable increase in the road traffic volumes has been witnessed, traffic calming has become one the key issues in the area of road engineering. This concerns, in particular, trunk roads passing through small villages with a population of up to 500 and the road section length within the village limits of ca. 1400−1700 m. A successful traffic calming scheme must involve primarily effective reduction in inbound traffic speed. A review of the data from various countries revealed that chicanes installed in the transition zones may have a determining effect on the success of the traffic calming project. The effectiveness of such chicanes depends mainly on the type of chicane, its location on the carriageway, its shape and the size of the lateral deflection imposed by the chicane on the inbound lane. The purpose of this study was to identify the speed reduction determinants in traffic calming schemes in village transition zones, based on a central island horiz... [more]

The exploitation of bioenergy plays a key role in the process of decarbonising the economic system. Huge efforts have been made to develop bioenergy and other renewable energy systems, but it is necessary to investigate the costs and problems associated with these technologies. Soil consumption and, in particular, soil sealing are some of these aspects that should be carefully evaluated. Agricultural biogas plants (ABPs) often remove areas dedicated to agricultural activities and require broad paved areas for the associated facilities. This study aimed to (i) assess the surfaces destined to become facilities and buildings in ABPs, (ii) correlate these surfaces with each other and to the installed powers of the plants, and (iii) estimate the consumption of soil in bioenergy applications in Italy. Two hundred ABPs were sampled from an overall population of 1939, and the extents of the facilities were measured by aerial and satellite observations. An ABP with an installed power of 1000 kW... [more]

The current flexibility of the energy market requires operating steam turbines that have challenging operation requirements such as variable steam conditions and higher number of startups. This article proposes an advanced control system based on the Nonlinear Model Predictive Control (NMPC) technique, which allows to speed up the start-up of steam turbines and increase the energy produced while maintaining rotor stress as a constraint variable. A soft sensor for the online calculation of rotor stress is presented together with the steam turbine control logic. Then, we present how the computational cost of the controller was contained by reducing the order of the formulation of the optimization problem, adjusting the scheduling of the optimizer routine, and tuning the parameters of the controller itself. The performance of the control system has been compared with respect to the PI Controller architecture fed by the soft sensor results and with standard pre-calculated curves. The contr... [more]

Short-term Photovoltaic (PV) Power Forecasting (STPF) is considered a topic of utmost importance in smart grids. The deployment of STPF techniques provides fast dispatching in the case of sudden variations due to stochastic weather conditions. This paper presents an efficient data-driven method based on enhanced Random Forest (RF) model. The proposed method employs an ensemble of attribute selection techniques to manage bias/variance optimization for STPF application and enhance the forecasting quality results. The overall architecture strategy gathers the relevant information to constitute a voted feature-weighting vector of weather inputs. The main emphasis in this paper is laid on the knowledge expertise obtained from weather measurements. The feature selection techniques are based on local Interpretable Model-Agnostic Explanations, Extreme Boosting Model, and Elastic Net. A comparative performance investigation using an actual database, collected from the weather sensors, demonstra... [more]

This article contributes to discussions of the social acceptance of renewable energy (RE) by developing an analytical framework that considers three dimensions (community, market, and political-regulator) at three different scales (macro, meso, and micro). This framework is conceived in order to identify those dynamics that are potentially counterproductive to the energy transition and need further policy emphasis, as well as supporting those that demonstrate a positive impact. Using this framework, we critically reflect on the 2010 National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP) policies of three European countries with high wind resources: Denmark, Ireland, and the UK. Within the RE policy landscapes of these three countries lies the contentious issue of social acceptance of wind power. The framework analysis reveals similar policy profiles for each country, characterized by a heavy focus on the market dimension at all scales, an effort to allow private business to steer the transition... [more]

The real-time linearization of a photovoltaic (PV) cell has been implemented well by the proposition of two maximum power point (MPP) linear models (MPP Thevenin cell model and MPP Norton cell model). However, there is no work to specially analyze the circuit parameter range (CPR) to correctly use them, which seriously impedes the development of the linear control theory involving them. To deal with this problem, in this paper, PV systems with three usual outputs are analyzed and the expressions of their CPR are proposed under ideal conditions. Meanwhile, these expressions are improved to match the practical application. They disclose the relationships between load (or bus voltage) and model parameters of the MPP Thevenin cell model (MPP-TCM) when the MPP of PV system always exists. They also reveal the constraints of load (or bus voltage) when the MPP-TCM is always available. Finally, by some simulation experiments, the accuracy of the expressions of the CPR is verified, the regular p... [more]

Ash fouling has been an important factor in reducing the heat transfer efficiency and safety of the coal-fired power plant boilers. Scientific and accurate prediction of ash fouling of heat transfer surfaces is the basis of formulating a reasonable soot blowing strategy to improve energy efficiency. This study presented a comprehensive approach of dynamic prediction of the ash fouling of heat transfer surfaces in coal-fired power plant boilers. At first, the cleanliness factor is used to reflect the fouling level of the heat transfer surfaces. Then, a dynamic model is proposed to predict ash deposits in the coal-fired boilers by combining complete ensemble empirical mode decomposition with adaptive noise (CEEMDAN) and nonlinear autoregressive neural networks (NARNN). To construct a reasonable network model, the minimum information criterion and trial-and-error method are used to determine the delay orders and hidden layers. Finally, the experimental object is established on the 300 MV... [more]

The transition from fossil fuel-based to renewable energy sources is one of the main economic and social challenges of the early 21st century. Due to the volatile character of wind and solar power production, matching supply and demand is essential for this transition to be successful. In this context, the willingness of private consumers to use energy flexibly has gained growing attention. Research indicates that a viable driver to motivate consumers to be demand flexible is to make them (co-)owners of renewable energy production facilities. However, existing research has only analyzed this question from an aggregated perspective. This article analyses whether behavioral changes triggered by (co-)ownership in renewables differ according to the type of installation; be it solar, wind, or bioenergy. In addition, the prosumption options self-consumption/self-consumption and sale/sale are considered. To do so, we collected 2074 completed questionnaires on energy consumption that entered a... [more]

A number of new rural management models have emerged to solve the problems of economic backwardness, insufficient resource utilization, and technical shortages in rural areas in the context of poverty alleviation to the rural revitalization strategy in China. However, the influence of new rural management model under all countermeasures for rural sustainable development with a comprehensive perspective is lacking. Therefore, exploring whether the new rural management model meets the requirements of sustainable development is an urgent issue. From the theory of system metabolism and emergy accounting method, this study classified the government funds for poverty alleviation measures as import resources, and analyzed the metabolic structure, efficiency, and the rural development factors of Chehe Village before and after poverty alleviation measures are carried out (the year of 2012 and 2019) to verify whether the new model was sustainable. According to the results of this study, the new... [more]

This article discusses the optimization of railway transition curves, through the application of polynomials of 9th and 11th degrees. In this work, the authors use a 2-axle rail vehicle model combined with mathematically understood optimization methods. This model is used to simulate rail vehicle movement negotiating both a transition curve and circular arc. Passenger comfort is applied as the criterion to assess which transition is actually is the best one. The 4-axle vehicle was also used to verify the results obtained using the 2-axle vehicle. Our results show that the traditionally used in a railway engineering transition—3rd degree parabola—which is not always the optimum curve. This fact is especially valid for the longest curves, with lengths greater than 150 m. For such cases, the transition curves similar to standard curves of 9th and 11th degrees is the optimum ones. This result is confirmed by the use of the 4-axle vehicle.

Although the Korean government plans to increase its share of variable renewable energies (VREs), the Korean power market is not sufficiently mature to accommodate a large increase in VRE generation. Thus, the Korean system operator plans to introduce a two-settlement, and an imbalance settlement is also under consideration, among several options. Therefore, this study analyzes how many incentives are given for prediction accuracy under several imbalance settlement schemes adopted from European and US power markets. Results show that the imbalance settlement consisting of threshold and penalty terms is useful for rule-makers, who can control revenue differences between the groups with different prediction accuracies by adjusting the two terms. The suggestion given in the paper will be useful for not only the Korean power market but also for the countries that plan to establish the imbalance settlement rules while increasing renewable energy.

Recently, the number of electric vehicles (EVs) is increasing due to the decline of oil resources and the rising of greenhouse gas emissions. However, EVs have not received full acceptance by consumers due to the limitations of the stored energy and charging problems. The dynamic or in-motion charging solution has become a suitable choice to solve the battery-related issues. Many researchers and vehicle manufacturers are working to develop an efficient charging system for EVs. In order to improve the efficiency of the dynamic wireless power transfer (DWPT), the electromagnetic coupling coefficient between the two parts of the coupler must be maximized. This paper was dedicated to find the optimal topology of a magnetic coupler with the best coupling factor while taking in consideration the displacement and the misalignment of the EV. The article is introduced by developing a methodology for characterizing the electrical parameters of couplers, followed by a comparative study of differe... [more]

The combined microwave-assisted sorting and microwave-assisted comminution of minerals has been proposed to reduce the huge grinding energy consumption in mineral processing. However, gangue minerals would be discarded after the sorting process despite the microwave energy absorbed during their treatment. Therefore, this paper investigates the effect of microwave pretreatment on the Bond work index (BWI) of quartz and calcite samples, as they represent the dominant gangues in many ores and are key inputs in the cement industry, which requires intensive grinding. The samples were characterized using a scanning electron microscope coupled with energy dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) methods. The BWIs of the two samples were determined before and after the microwave treatment (2.45 GHz, 1.7 kW) at 2, 4 and 6 minutes. SEM image analyses of the untreated and microwave-treated samples were performed using ImageJ software. The resul... [more]

This contribution discusses the degrees of freedom that could be advantageously exploited in the conception of permanent magnet (PM) machines in the context of very demanding applications, such as electrical vehicle traction. The aim is to inventory degrees of freedom identified in scientific and technical literatures. Identifying these additional degrees of freedom will help positively respond to highly constrained design problems, which are appearing due to the higher usage of electrical energy in many industrial and consumer products. The goal is also to stimulate new ideas in the design of PM synchronous machines.

Organic solar cells (OSCs) are an attractive technique for next-generation renewable energy. However, the intrinsically unstable nature of the organic compounds involved is delaying their commercialization. Therefore, it is essential to improve the lifetime of OSCs significantly. Here, we investigated the effect of the hydrophobic cyclized transparent optical polymer (CYTOP) as a solution-processable encapsulation layer based on shelf lifetime measurement, current−voltage characteristics, and impedance spectroscopy. We found that CYTOP utilization greatly enhanced OSCs’ shelf lifetime, maintaining 96% of initial performance when unencapsulated devices decreased to 82%. Furthermore, based on the dark current characteristics, ideality factor (n), and Cole−Cole plots, the CYTOP encapsulation is revealed to effectively inhibit unfavorable changes of parasitic resistive components and trap-assisted recombination. These findings provide an inclusive perspective on the shelf lifetime issue an... [more]

Freight tram systems can potentially reduce commercial road vehicle use and, consequently, reduce congestion, accidents, air pollution, noise levels, and road maintenance costs. This paper explores the new application for the urban rail system as a sustainable solution for urban freight distribution. A significant problem in using rail for urban freight is determining the most efficient tram route, in terms of related costs and accessibility for the distribution centers and end-users. The study takes a systematic approach, based on identifying scenarios, existing tramlines, traveled distances, and time durations, and appraises the scheme through an energy consumption analysis to assess a hypothetical freight tram scheme. In a German case study in Berlin, a freight tram system delivered the goods of five delivery companies from their logistics hubs in the Pankow district to a micro depot instead of to the trucks. Three different path scenarios from logistics hubs to the micro depot were... [more]