The effect of residential solar photovoltaic systems on home value: A case study of Hawai‘i

An investment in solar photovoltaic (PV) is considered a home improvement, and should be reflected in home sales prices. However, uncertainty about PV policies and information asymmetries may result in an imperfect pass-through. Hawai‘i serves as an illustrative case study to assess the impact of PV on home prices because Hawai‘i has the highest number of PV installations per capita nationwide. Applying a hedonic pricing model using home resale and PV building permit data from 2000 to 2013 for Oʻahu, I find that the presence of PV adds on average 5.4% to the value of a home. The value of PV exceeds total average installed costs because many of Hawai‘i's electricity circuits have reached legal limits for PV installations and thus many neighborhoods could technically no longer install additional PV capacity. Therefore, the value of the system goes beyond its capital investment—on average, by $5000—to incorporate expected electricity savings.     

Female-Headed Households and Achieving Home Ownership in Australia

This paper begins by identifying the growth in female-headed households in Australia. Despite this increase, it is argued that females still lag males in terms of home ownership rates (HORs) with women in Australia facing similar ownership challenges as those experienced in the UK and the USA. In seeking to establish any dynamic change, the study analyses female home ownership rates in Australia for two points in time, 1998 and 2008. Logit models are used to predict HORs. The results indicate that factors such as household type, income and source of income have an impact on rates of ownership. The paper concludes that female-headed households in Australia show an increasing propensity to purchase which match, or even exceed, those of male-headed households.     

Stable imposition of stiff constraints in explicit dynamics for embedded finite element methods

We investigate various strategies to enforce the kinematics at an embedded interface for transient problems within the extended finite element method. In particular, we focus on explicit time integration of the semi‐discrete equations of motion and extend both dual and primal variational frameworks for constraint enforcement to a transient regime. We reiterate the incompatibility of the dual formulation with purely explicit time integration and the severe restrictions placed by the Courant–Friedrichs–Levy condition on primal formulations. We propose an alternate, consistent formulation for the primal method and derive an estimate for the stabilization parameter, which is more amenable in an explicit dynamics framework. Importantly, the use of the new estimate circumvents the need for any tolerances as an interface approaches an element boundary. We also show that with interfacial constraints, existing mass lumping schemes can lead to prohibitively small critical time steps. Accordingly, we propose a mass lumping procedure, which provides a more favorable estimate. These techniques are then demonstrated on several benchmark numerical examples, where we compare and contrast the accuracy of the primal methods against the dual methods in enforcing the constraints. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Market response to the public display of energy performance rating at property sales

Energy labels have generally received positive response from consumers and have moved the market for white goods and cars in the direction of more energy-efficient products. On the real estate market, it was expected that an energy label, rating the energy performance of a property based on a national energy performance certificate (EPC) might receive similar response. However, in Denmark no response to the energy performance rating was observed for 15 years. This was a surprise considering that Denmark was the first country to implement an A to G rating of the energy performance of buildings. A statistical examination of data on property sales prices and energy performance ratings was carried out. All relevant property transaction data from 2007 till 2012 were examined and they showed that energy performance ratings had an impact on property sales prices. However, before June 2010, the impact was modest, whereas after June 2010 the impact of energy performance ratings on property sales prices increased significantly as a result of an EU requirement to display the energy performance rating in connection with property sales. On this background, it was concluded that a public display of the energy performance rating is fundamental for market response.     

A high-order compact scheme for the one-dimensional Helmholtz equation with a discontinuous coefficient

In this paper, based on the idea of the immersed interface method, a fourth-order compact finite difference scheme is proposed for solving one-dimensional Helmholtz equation with discontinuous coefficient, jump conditions are given at the interface. The Dirichlet boundary condition and the Neumann boundary condition are considered. The Neumann boundary condition is treated with a fourth-order scheme. Numerical experiments are included to confirm the accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method.     

Innovation at the end of the life cycle: discontinuous innovation strategies by incumbents

This paper focuses on the strategies of incumbents that seek to develop discontinuous innovations within the boundaries of a mature innovation system. Mature innovation systems do not provide support for these discontinuous innovations. This article focuses on exploring why incumbents in these setting engage in discontinuous innovation and what strategies they deploy to become successful. We analyse 10 cases of incumbents developing discontinuous innovations in the mature Dutch greenhouse horticulture sector. The results of our analysis show that the incumbents are primarily triggered by dissatisfaction with the current way of doing business and that the existing institutions are the main barrier to discontinuous innovation. In response, the incumbents try to circumvent the existing innovation system in their innovation process, but when successful also engage in changing the existing innovation system. This paper contributes to the understanding of the role of incumbents as source of discontinuous innovation in mature innovation systems.     

Algorithmic estimation of risk factors in financial markets with stochastic drift

We assume a financial market governed by a diffusion process reverting to a stochastic mean which is itself governed by an unobservable ergodic diffusion, similar to those observed in electricity and other energy markets. We develop a moment method algorithm for the estimation of the parameters of both the observable process and the unobservable stochastic mean. Our approach is contrasted with other methods for parameter estimation of partially observed diffusions, and applications to the modelling of interest rates and commodity prices are discussed.     

Modelling and optimization of a wellhead gas flowmeter using concentric pipes

A novel configuration of a landfill wellhead was analysed to measure the flow rate of gas extracted from sanitary landfills. The device provides access points for pressure measurement integral to flow rate computation similarly to orifice and Venturi meters, and has the advantage of eliminating the problem of water condensation often impairing the accuracy thereof. It is proved that the proposed configuration entails comparable computational complexity and negligible sensitivity to geometric parameters. Calibration for the new device was attained using a custom optimization procedure, operating on a quadri-dimensional parameter surface evincing discontinuity and non-smoothness.     

Companies

Net earnings after pre-tax profits. Profiles include: Anadarko Petroleum, Chevron Texaco, Conoco Phillips, Exxon Mobil, Occidental, Schlumberger, YPF SA, EnCana Corporation, Imperial Oil, Petroleo Brasileiro, Total SA, E.ON, ENI, Repsol, Ecopetrol SA, Norsk Hydro, Statoil, Devon Energy Corporation. BP, Shell, BHP Billiton, CNOOC, Sinopec and PetroChina. Updated on a monthly basis.     

公租房工程项目合同类型的选择

公租房项目工期紧任务重,工程内容构成复杂,需根据工程实际情况综合考虑各种因素,灵活运用多种合同类型,确保工程顺利实施。合理选择承发包双方都能接受的工程项目合同类型是公租房项目合同管理的关键一环,是保障公租房项目建设快速有序推进,实现较为理想的投资效益的重要手段。