Full AC analysis of value of DER to the grid and optimal DER scheduling

This paper presents part of the work ComEd and Quanta Technology have performed to quantify the locational and temporal value of DER to avoid distribution grid upgrade investments. It focuses on the formulation of a robust and efficient algorithm for DER optimal dispatch on a distribution feeder to mitigate the violation of current and voltage limits using the allocated cost of capacity and locational marginal value of real and reactive DER injection/withdrawal.     

Structure and thermoelectric properties of higher manganese silicides synthesized by pack cementation

Higher manganese silicides (HMS) are promising alternative materials for middle to high temperature thermoelectric applications as a low-cost, non-toxic and highly stable p-type leg. Many of the preparation methods that have been reported previously require long-time and energy consuming processes, as well as expensive equipment, and often do not result in a material of sufficient quality. In this study, the simple, cost-effective and eco-friendly technique of pack cementation is applied. HMS powders synthesized at different experimental conditions are studied and compared considering their structure, composition, short-term thermal stability in air and thermoelectric properties. X-ray diffraction analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetry and thermoelectric measurements (in terms of Seebeck coefficient, electrical and thermal conductivity) were employed for the characterization of the material and evaluation of its performance. All samples were identified as HMS and only some negligible traces of MnSi were detected. They moderately oxidize when heated non-isothermally under air atmosphere up to 1473 K, while the presence of HMS remains dominant even at such high temperatures. Their thermoelectric properties were remarkable for an undoped material, with a maximum figure of merit (ZT) of 0.47 at 777 K. Pack cementation appeared to have a great potential as the synthesis route of high-efficiency HMS.     

Short communication: Identification of variation in the ovine prolactin gene of Chios sheep with a cost-effective sequence-based typing assay

The present study identified single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in the coding and untranslated regions of the ovine prolactin gene of Chios sheep. By developing a cost-effective direct sequence-based typing assay, around 600 bp of reliable sequencing data and clear identification of heterozygous positions was achieved. Five SNP were found, located in exons 2 (KC764410:g.567G>A, g.625C>T, g.683C>A) and 3 (KC764410:g.2015C>A, g.2101G>A), whereas the remaining exons were monomorphic. The identified SNP were synonymous, with the exception of the g.567G>A SNP, which results in an Arg to His amino acid change. As the sequencing cost of the sequence-based typing assay was 20 orders of magnitude lower compared with a standard Sanger method, the assay was also used as a genotyping tool. The identified polymorphism was genotyped for 247 ewes and was subsequently used in mixed model association analyses of milk yield, milk fat content, and litter size at birth. The association analysis revealed a significant dominance effect of 0.17 ± 0.07 of the g.2015C>A SNP on milk fat percentage, whereas a dominance effect of ?21.33 ± 10.51 of the same SNP on total lactation milk yield was also estimated. The g.2015C>A SNP explained 2.47 and 3.68% of the total phenotypic variance of milk yield and milk fat percentage, respectively, whereas the corresponding values for the animal variance were 7.14 and 11.75%. A suggestive association of the nonsynonymous g.567G>A SNP with litter size at birth was also detected.     

Variants in the 3′ untranslated region of the ovine acetyl-coenzyme A acyltransferase 2 gene are associated with dairy traits and exhibit differential allelic expression

The acetyl-CoA acyltransferase 2 (ACAA2) gene encodes an enzyme of the thiolase family that is involved in mitochondrial fatty acid elongation and degradation by catalyzing the last step of the respective β-oxidation pathway. The increased energy needs for gluconeogenesis and triglyceride synthesis during lactation are met primarily by increased fatty acid oxidation. Therefore, the ACAA2 enzyme plays an important role in the supply of energy and carbon substrates for lactation and may thus affect milk production traits. This study investigated the association of the ACAA2 gene with important sheep traits and the putative functional involvement of this gene in dairy traits. A single nucleotide substitution, a T to C transition located in the 3′ untranslated region of the ACAA2 gene, was used in mixed model association analysis with milk yield, milk protein yield and percentage, milk fat yield and percentage, and litter size at birth. The single nucleotide polymorphism was significantly associated with total lactation production and milk protein percentage, with respective additive effects of 6.81 ± 2.95 kg and ?0.05 ± 0.02%. Additionally, a significant dominance effect of 0.46 ± 0.21 kg was detected for milk fat yield. Homozygous TT and heterozygous CT animals exhibited higher milk yield compared with homozygous CC animals, whereas the latter exhibited increased milk protein percentage. Expression analysis from age-, lactation-, and parity-matched female sheep showed that mRNA expression of the ACAA2 gene from TT animals was 2.8- and 11.8-fold higher in liver and mammary gland, respectively. In addition, by developing an allelic expression imbalance assay, it was estimated that the T allele was expressed at an average of 18% more compared with the C allele in the udder of randomly selected ewes. We demonstrated for the first time that the variants in the 3′ untranslated region of the ovine ACAA2 gene are differentially expressed in homozygous ewes of each allele and exhibit allelic expression imbalance within heterozygotes in a tissue-specific manner, supporting the existence of cis-regulatory DNA variation in the ovine ACAA2 gene. This is the first study reporting differential allelic imbalance expression of a candidate gene associated with milk production traits in dairy sheep.     

Surface adsorption of comb polymers by Monte Carlo simulations

This paper reports off-lattice Monte Carlo simulations of highly-branched comb homopolymers weakly adsorbed on a flat, featureless surface showing only covolume and dispersion interactions with the adsorbate. A minimal coarse-grained model, described by hard spheres connected by harmonic springs, was employed. The interaction energy of the adsorbed combs and linear chains is first discussed as a function of the molecular mass and of the number of beads in contact with the surface. The molecular size is then investigated as a function of backbone length and branching density at a fixed arm size. The apparent swelling exponents of the adsorbed combs are larger than those of the corresponding linear chains, and much larger than that of the free molecules. This result indicates a surface-induced stiffening of the comb backbone, further studied through the persistence length l_pers. It is found that l_pers increases upon adsorption over the free-molecule value, more so the larger is the branching density. Finally, the thickness of the adsorbed layer, the surface-induced molecular anisotropy and the molecular aspect ratio are investigated as a function of branching density and molecular mass.     

Fibrillary glomerulonephritis in Castleman's disease

Castleman's disease is an uncommon lymph node disorder which can be associated with renal disease. In this report we describe a patient with fever, weight loss, anorexia, increase in inflammatory proteins, anemia and nephrotic syndrome. Castleman's disease, plasma cell type, was diagnosed by histologic analysis after surgical excision of a pelvic lymph node. The disease was considered localized, since further investigations did not show any other pathologic mass. After resection of the pelvic lymphoid mass, clinical remission of systemic symptoms and laboratory abnormalities was observed, with the exception of the nephrotic syndrome. Renal biopsy was performed and showed a pattern compatible with fibrillary glomerulonephritis. Progressive decline in renal function was observed, despite immunosuppressive therapy.     

连续生产1,1,1,3,3,3—六氟丙烷和1—氯—1,1,3,3,3—五氟丙烷的工艺

介绍了在液相中连续生产１,１,１,３,３,３,－六氟丙烷（ＨＦＣ２３６ｆａ）和／或１－氯－１,１,３,３,３－五氟内烷（ＨＣＦＣ２３５ｆａ）的工艺,反应中使用ＨＣＦＣ－２３５ｆａ和／或ＨＦＣ２３６ｆａ作为溶剂。当反应是在ＳｂＦ３、ＳｂＦ５或ＳｂＦ５和ＨＳＯ３Ｆ的混合物催化剂存在下进行时,反应物料对所用容器的腐蚀非常低。     

Alternative storage options for solar thermal systems

The efficient implementation of solar systems in buildings depends on the storage of energy yielded, as it can both increase the solar system's autonomy and make it a feasible solution for zero energy buildings, and make storage vessels more compact, reducing precious space requirements. This is of particular important in places with reduced time of sunshine, where solar systems are less effective, because of the deviation between solar radiation and the demand. The traditional storage options use water, which is practical, safe and low‐cost, especially when the storage requirements are small. However, when larger storage is needed, limits concerning the use of water exist, mainly due to the need for larger installation space and the increased thermal losses. The use of phase change materials (PCM) for thermal energy storage seems an upcoming technology. The main idea is the substitution of water with PCM, which feature larger specific energy storage capacity compared to other conventional materials. In the context of the specific paper, a combined solar thermal system used for the preparation of domestic hot water (DHW) and space heating (Solar Combi System) with two different types of storage is studied, for two Greek cities. The aim is to find out which is the most efficient way of storing energy with respect to the autonomy of the system, for a solar combi system. This is being achieved by determining the comparative autonomy of PCM and water storage system for various climates. It was proven that using PCM is advantageous, as it can extend the autonomy duration of the solar system for 2 to 8 hours, depending on the season and the climatic conditions. However, it was also seen that in solar combi systems used throughout the whole year, PCM are inefficient during summer period.     

Handling multiple materials for exposure of digital forgeries using 2-D lighting environments

The distribution of incident light is an important physics-based cue for exposing image manipulations. If an image has been composed from multiple sources, it is likely that the illumination environments of the spliced objects differ. Johnson and Farid introduced a proof-of-principle algorithm for a forensic comparison of lighting environments. However, this baseline approach suffers from relatively strict assumptions that limit its practical applicability. In this work, we address one of the biggest limitations, namely the need to compute a lighting environment from patches of homogeneous material. To compute a lighting environment from multiple-color surfaces, we propose a method that we call “intrinsic contour estimation” (ICE). ICE is able to integrate reflectances from multiple materials into one lighting environment, as long as surfaces of different materials share at least two similar normal vectors. We validate the proposed method in a controlled ground-truth experiment on two datasets, with light from three different directions. These experiments show that using ICE can improve the median estimation error by almost 50 %, and the mean error by almost 30 %.