Integration of Incinerator Plants and Utilization of Forest Biomass on the Basis of FIT

Feed‐in tariff (FIT) has been enforced in order to promote the utilization of renewable energy since 2012 in Japan. In consideration of FIT, we propose an integration plan for incinerator plants (IPs) with highly efficient power generation for the whole area of a prefecture. The plan includes disposal of forest biomass using the reserve capacity of IPs. The model prefecture's population is set to 1,200,000 and the proportion of the forested area is set to 70% of the model area based on data for northeastern Japan. The present 16 IPs are integrated into three new IPs. A relay transportation (RT) facility for waste is located at a decommissioned IP, and the waste from the area is transported to the new IP. In order to calculate the RT costs, an approximation formula for the RT distance is estimated via the IPs integration study. The plan will realize about 37% cost reduction and 1.8‐fold CO₂ reduction including RT as compared to the plan to update the current IP situation. Forest biomass of 56,500 tons per year, which is about 43% of available forest biomass volume in the model prefecture, can be disposed of at new IPs. On the other hand, enough profit is not expected from the dedicated biomass power generation plant as a result of wood chip processing fees. The plan will help to develop local forestry.     

NETWORK REPRESENTATION OF THERMO-OSMOTIC AND THERMOELECTRIC PHENOMENA

Using the availability function and assuming local equilibrium, the thermodynamic basis for network thermodynamics is discussed. The applicability of bond graphs to the analysis of non-isothermal systems which include thermal conduction, thermo-osmotic and thermoelectric phenomena is shown. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Highly Efficient dc–dc Transformer Based on Multicell Converter Topology for Next Generation dc Distribution System

A multicell dc–dc transformer (DCX) with an efficiency of 98.0% is developed for a next generation dc distribution system. Input series output parallel (ISOP) and input parallel output series (IPOS) connection topologies of highly efficient dc–dc cell converters have been applied to realize DCXs that have arbitrary I/O voltages and a high transfer factor. The behavior of a DCX based on multicell topology using nonregulated dc–dc converters is analyzed, and the voltage stress in each cell converter is discussed quantitatively considering the variation in converter circuit parameters. Further, the availability of the applied topology and the validity of the analysis are confirmed by fabricating a prototype of a 384 V to 12 V 2400 W DCX. The multicell topology contributes to realizing a low‐carbon society pushing the promotion of highly efficient, space‐saving, and low cost dc power supplies with standardized, highly efficient cell converter modules.     

Ferroelectric Properties and Memory Characteristics of Pb(Zr0.52 Ti0.48)O3 Thin Films Crystallized by Hot Isostatic Pressing

Pb(Zr_0.52Ti_0.48)O₃ films with highly uniform c-axis orientation were fabricated on PbTiO₃ (PT)/ Pt(111)/SiO₂/Si(100) substrates by hot isostatic pressing (HIP) from the amorphous state. All the PZT samples HIP-treated 500°C for 1 h under gas pressures of 1.0–2.0 MPa showed the preferred (001) orientation with c-axis orientation, α > 0.80. The relative permittivity tended to decrease gently with increasing HIP pressure, whereas the dielectric loss increased almost linearly in the 1.5–100 MPa. The PZT sample treated at 1.5 MPa had a symmetric and slim hysteresis loop shape with a remanent polarization, P _r = 15 μ C/cm² and coercive field, E _c = 60 kV/cm. Both samples treated at 10 and 100 MPa exhibited almost the fatigue-free behavior that resisted degradation even after 3 × 10¹⁰ cycles.