Deterministic and stochastic Petri net models of protection schemes

The authors establish the relevance of Petri net modeling to protection studies. They illustrate how the different Petri net models capture the information that is of importance to both qualitative and quantitative evaluation of protection schemes. The marked Petri nets allow one to evaluate the qualitative performance measures of conservativeness, safeness, and properness. Time Petri nets are able to represent the timing parameters of protection schemes, and serve as a tool for the establishment of relationships between these parameters, in order that the coordination between primary and backup protection is ensured. An alternative means of representing timing information is the timed Petri net, which is useful in the computation of the cycle times of the operational cycles of protection schemes. Stochastic Petri nets adequately represent the stochastic nature of protection. Their advantage over simulation techniques as a means of computing the mean sojourn time and the steady-state probability of occupancy of each state of the protection scheme is demonstrated     

Comparison of fatty acid content of milk from Jersey and Holstein cows consuming pasture or a total mixed ration.

Holstein (n = 19) and Jersey (n = 18) cows were used to study effects of two feeding systems on fatty acid composition of milk. Confinement cows were fed a total mixed ration with corn silage and alfalfa silage and pastured cows grazed a crabgrass (90%) and clover (10%) pasture and were allowed 5.5 kg of grain per head daily. Two milk samples were collected from each cow at morning and afternoon milkings 1 d each week for four consecutive weeks in June and July 1998. One set of milk samples was analyzed to determine fatty acid composition, and the second set was used for crude protein and total fat analyses. Data were analyzed by the general linear models procedure of SAS, using a split-plot model with breed, treatment, and breed x treatment as main effects and time of sampling and week as subplot effects along with appropriate interactions. Milk from pastured cows was higher than milk from confinement cows for the cis-9, trans-11 octadecadienoic acid isomer of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Also, milk from Holsteins was higher than milk from Jerseys for C16:1, C18:1, and CLA and lower than Jerseys for C6:0, C8:0, C10:0, C12:0, and C14:0. Several treatment x week interactions existed, but main effects were still important; for example, proportions of CLA in milk of grazed cows were relatively constant across weeks (0.66, 0.64, 0.64, and 0.69% +/- 0.02%, respectively), but the CLA in milk of confinement cows increased in wk 4 (0.35, 0.31, 0.31, and 0.48% +/- 0.02% for wk 1 to 4, respectively). There are potentially important differences in fatty acid composition of milk from cows consuming a warm season pasture species compared with milk from cows consuming a total mixed ration, as well as differences between Holstein and Jersey breeds.     

First evidence of grass carp recruitment in the Great Lakes Basin

We use aging techniques, ploidy analysis, and otolith microchemistry to assess whether four grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella captured from the Sandusky River, Ohio were the result of natural reproduction within the Lake Erie Basin. All four fish were of age 1 +. Multiple lines of evidence indicate that these fish were not aquaculture-reared and that they were most likely the result of successful reproduction in the Sandusky River. First, at least two of the fish were diploid; diploid grass carp cannot legally be released in the Great Lakes Basin. Second, strontium:calcium (Sr:Ca) ratios were elevated in all four grass carp from the Sandusky River, with elevated Sr:Ca ratios throughout the otolith transect, compared to grass carp from Missouri and Arkansas ponds. This reflects the high Sr:Ca ratio of the Sandusky River, and indicates that these fish lived in a high-strontium environment throughout their entire lives. Third, Sandusky River fish were higher in Sr:Ca ratio variability than fish from ponds, reflecting the high but spatially and temporally variable strontium concentrations of southwestern Lake Erie tributaries, and not the stable environment of pond aquaculture. Fourth, Sr:Ca ratios in the grass carp from the Sandusky River were lower in their 2011 growth increment (a high water year) than the 2012 growth increment (a low water year), reflecting the observed inverse relationship between discharge and strontium concentration in these rivers. We conclude that these four grass carp captured from the Sandusky River are most likely the result of natural reproduction within the Lake Erie Basin.     

Preparation of transmission electron microscopy cross-section specimens of crack tips using focused ion beam milling

The preparation of transmission electron microscope (TEM) thin foil specimens from metal alloys containing cracks is usually thwarted by the difficulty in preventing preferential erosion of material along the flanks and at the tips of cracks. Recent developments in focused ion beam (FIB) micromachining methods have the potential to overcome this inherent problem. In this article we describe the development of new procedures, one using FIB alone and the other using a combination of FIB with more conventional ion milling to generate TEM specimens that largely retain the microstructural information at stress corrosion cracks in austentic alloys. Examples of corrosion product phase identification and interfacial segregation are included to verify that detailed information is not destroyed by ion bombardment during specimen preparation.     

Energy efficiency as a resource in the ISO New England Forward Capacity Market

ISO New England, which oversees New England’s bulk electric power system and wholesale electricity markets, recently established a Forward Capacity Market (FCM) that will pay suppliers to ensure sufficient capacity is available to meet future peak loads. Under the FCM, ISO New England projects the needs of the power system 3 years in advance and then holds an annual auction to purchase the resources necessary to satisfy the future regional requirements. This market is groundbreaking in that it was the first to allow energy efficiency and other demand resources to compete directly with generators. In the first auction, held in February 2008, demand resources contributed substantially to eliminating the need for new generating capacity in the near term and to providing low-cost resources to the region’s ratepayers. Two additional successful auctions have now been held. Participating in the FCM requires a considerable and complex bid, financial assurance, and claim activities. Meeting new intensive measurement, tracking, and verification requirements adds new costs. For efficiency portfolio administrators, participation raises policy questions regarding ownership of capacity credits, appropriate disposition of revenues, increasing emphasis on peak savings, and whether traditionally short-term budget cycles should change to enable the longer-term planning necessary to bid resources several years into the future. On the other hand, revenues from the FCM can provide needed funding for additional efficiency investments. This paper describes the FCM, examines the experience and trade-offs involved in participating for efficiency programs, and reviews the benefits of such participation for the program and the region, including the positive value from increased exposure of the part that efficiency can play in our energy mix.     

A model of PV generation suitable for stability analysis

This paper describes a model of photovoltaic (PV) generation suitable for studying its interactions with the power system. Experimental results suggest that the maximum power point tracking part of the control system of the PV generator dominates the dynamic behavior of the system. These experimental results are used to develop and validate the proposed model. It is shown that the model accurately reflects the behavior of the generator following both small and fast changes in irradiance and AC grid voltage. The proposed model is designed to be integrated in a dynamic simulation program.     

Power system frequency response from fixed speed and doubly fed induction generator‐based wind turbines

Throughout Europe there is an increasing trend of connecting high penetrations of wind turbines to the transmission networks. This has resulted in transmission system operators revising their grid code documents for the connection of large wind farms. These specifications require large MW capacity wind farms to have the ability to assist in some of the power system control services currently carried out by conventional synchronous generation. These services include voltage and frequency control. It is now recognized that much of this new wind generation plant will use either fixed speed induction generator (FSIG)‐ or doubly fed induction generator (DFIG)‐based wind turbines. The addition of a control loop to synthesize inertia in the DFIG wind turbine using the power electronic control system has been described. The possibility of deloading wind turbines for frequency response using blade pitch angle control is discussed. A pitch control scheme to provide frequency response from FSIG and DFIG wind turbines is also described. A case study of an FSIG wind turbine with frequency response capabilities is investigated. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of a high‐head dam as a dispersal barrier to fish community structure of the Upper Mississippi River

In river systems, high‐head dams may increase the distance‐decay of fish community similarity by creating nearly impermeable dispersal barriers to certain species from upstream reaches. Substantial evidence suggests that migratory species are impacted by dams, and most previous studies in stream/river networks have focused on small streams and headwaters. Here, we assess whether a high‐head dam (Lock and Dam 19; LD 19) on a large river, the Upper Mississippi River (UMR), substantially alters fish community structure relative to variability expected to occur independent of the dam's effect as a fish dispersal barrier. Using fish catch per unit effort data, we modelled the distance‐decay function for the UMR fish community and then estimated the similarity that would be expected to occur across LD19 and compared it with measured similarity. Measured similarity in the fish community above and below LD19 was close to the expected value based on the distance‐decay function, suggesting LD19 does not create an abrupt transition in the fish community. Although some migratory fish species no longer occur above LD19 (e.g., skipjack herring, Alosa chrysochloris), these species do not occur in high abundance below the dam and so do not drive variation in fish community structure. Instead, much of the variation in species structure is driven by the loss/gain of species across the latitudinal gradient. Lock and Dam 19 does not appear to be a clear transition point in the river's fish community, although it may function as a meaningful barrier for particular species (e.g., invasive species) and warrant future attention from a management perspective.     

Influence of rotor structural dynamics representations on the electrical transient performance of FSIG and DFIG wind turbines

An assessment of the impact that the representation of rotor structural dynamics has on the electrical transient performance of fixed‐speed induction generators (FSIGs) and doubly fed induction generators (DFIGs) wind turbines is presented. A three‐mass model that takes into account not only the shaft flexibility but also the blade flexibility in the structural dynamics is developed and used to derive an effective two‐mass model of the drive train dynamics, which represents the dominant natural frequency of vibration of the rotor structure. For the purposes of this investigation, the dynamic performance of both FSIG and DFIG wind turbines is evaluated during electrical transients such as a three‐phase fault in the network. The studies are conducted in the software code Bladed, where a detailed representation of the structural dynamics is used to derive the three‐mass model and the effective two‐mass model. Simulation results which illustrate how these representations of the rotor dynamics affect the response of the wind turbine during the fault are presented and discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Salt recovery from agricultural drainage water using a liquid film solar-assisted concentrator – Simulation and model validation

Salt management in irrigated agriculture is critical to the economies of the San Joaquin Valley of California and many other areas around the world. Purified salts can be recovered as marketable products through fractional crystallization following concentration of final stage drainage water from integrated on-farm drainage management systems. To obtain recovered salt and use as a commercial product, new systems which can perform with higher efficiency and lower environmental impact than solar evaporation basins or solar ponds that have previously been used for the final stage are in need of development. For this purpose, a number of solar-assisted brine concentration concepts have been explored, including an open liquid film-type using a tilted evaporation surface described here. Model performance was conceptually evaluated and then experimentally verified.A transient model was developed from energy and component mass balances and employed constitutive heat and mass transfer relationships from various other sources for simulating concentration of agricultural drainage water using a liquid film solar-assisted concentrator.Measured maximum evaporation rate and productivity were between 1.3 and 1.5 kg m⁻² h⁻¹, and 80 kg m⁻² over a 7 day experimental period respectively which was about a third better performance compared with a shallow basin horizontal concentrator. Measurements were in good agreement with model predictions: within 2 °C at the peak and 4 °C at the lowest evaporation, and 0.2 kg m⁻² h⁻¹ for evaporation rates during the peak evaporation periods of the day when compared with independent data sets. Cumulative evaporation rates were from 75 to 85 kg m⁻² for the tilted concentrator model and 60 to 65 kg m⁻² for the horizontal concentrator model after 7 days. The tilted concentrator yielded productivity and efficiency that were 33% higher than the horizontal concentrator according to the experimental result for the same period and location.