Quantifying net energy metering subsidies

Net energy metering (NEM) is the policy available in many states that promotes customer-owned rooftop solar power generation by compensating rooftop solar owners for each kWh that it generates at the retail rates. To help understand the magnitude of the residential net metering subsidies, we conducted a study to assess the subsidies for 16 US utilities with varying geographic location, size, rooftop solar penetration, and NEM policy.     

Arcturus 2.0: A meta-analysis of time-varying rates for electricity

With the rapid deployment of smart meters, utilities and regulators across the globe are considering the deployment of time-varying rates for residential customers. Our analysis of the impact of several studies of time-varying rates from across the globe finds that much of the discrepancy in results across the studies goes away once demand response is expressed as a function of the peak to off-peak price ratio.     

Dynamic pricing of electricity for residential customers: the evidence from Michigan

The rollout of smart meters has enabled the provision of dynamic pricing to residential customers. However, doubts remain whether households can respond to time-varying price signals and that is preventing the full-scale rollout of dynamic pricing and the attainment of economic efficiency. Experiments are being conducted to test price responsiveness. We analyze data from a pilot in Michigan which featured two dynamic pricing rates and an enabling technology. Unlike most other pilots, it also included a group of “information only” customers who were provided information on time-varying prices but billed on standard rates. Similarly, unlike most other pilots, it also included two control groups, one of whom knew they were in the pilot and one of whom did not. This was designed to test for the presence of a Hawthorne effect. Consistent with the large body of experimental literature, we find that customers, including low-income participants, do respond to dynamic pricing. We also find that the response to critical peak pricing rates is similar to the response to peak time rebates, consistent with the finding of one prior experiment but inconsistent with the finding of two prior experiments. We also find that the “information only” customers respond to the provision of pricing information but at a substantially lower rate than the customers on dynamic pricing. We find that the response to enabling technology is muted. We do not find any evidence to suggest that a Hawthorne effect existed in this experiment.     

Consistent dynamic model identification of the Stäubli RX-160 industrial robot using convex optimization method

Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology - Dynamic models of robot manipulators with standard dynamic parameters are required for simulations, model-based controller design and external force...     

Efficient selective replication of critical code regions for SDC mitigation leveraging redundant multithreading

The Journal of Supercomputing - Redundant multithreading (RMT) is an effective reliability solution that provides thread-level replication; however, it imposes additional overheads in terms of...     

Software‐only TDOA/RTT positioning for 3G WCDMA wireless network

A hybrid location finding technique based on time difference of arrival (TDOA) with round‐trip time (RTT) measurements is proposed for a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) network. In this technique, a mobile station measures timing from at least three base stations using user equipment receive—transmit (UE Rx—Tx) time difference and at least three base stations measure timing from the mobile station using RTT. The timing measurements of mobile and base stations are then combined to solve for both the location of the mobile and the synchronization offset between base stations. A software‐only geolocation system based on the above mobile/base stations timing measurements is implemented in Matlab platform and the performance of the system is investigated using large‐scale propagation models. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The impact of AMI-enabled conservation voltage reduction on energy consumption and peak demand

Conservation voltage reduction reduces energy consumption and peak demand by lowering the voltage at which power is delivered to customers, without any loss of comfort to customers. CVR has been around for a long time but the inability to verify the drop in voltage at the customer's premise has prevented its wide-scale implementation. The adoption of advanced metering infrastructure, now deployed in half the country, finally is making feasible the rapid deployment of CVR.     

Characterization of Polyurethane Foam Dielectric Strength

Internal flashovers in hollow insulation systems can produce serious damage. Frequently, SF₆ or N₂ is used to eliminate this problem, but possible gas leakage may endanger the insulation. This paper proposes the use of polyurethane foams to fill the hollow spaces in insulation systems. Thus far, few publications deal with the dielectric properties of foams. This paper demonstrates the dielectric strength of three different foams which are investigated using ac and lightning impulse voltages under different humidity and temperature conditions. The results show that polyurethane foams have 2-3 times better dielectric strength than air. The breakdown strength decreases with the thickness of the foam; temperature and humidity have negligible effects on the breakdown voltage. The major parameter is the size of the voids in the foam. Reducing the size of the voids increases the breakdown strength. This can be achieved by improving the manufacturing technology.