Search results for: utility gains

Authors: Ruchi Agarwal, Jake Ansell

Abstract:

Austerity impacts on all aspects of society. Companies into the future will have to be more capable of dealing with the risks they face. Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) has widely been accepted in recent years as an approach to manage risks within businesses. ERM attempts to tackle risk holistically with gains from opportunities in a managing risk and reduction in the risk of failure. The paper reviews merits and demerits of approaches to risk management in regard to antifragility. A qualitative study has investigated current practices and the problems with ERM implementation by interviewing over 25 chief risk officers and senior management. The findings indicate the gap in ERM description, understanding, and implementation. The paper suggests risk learning and expertise knowledge supports development of effective enterprise risk management by designing systems with inherent resilience.

Keywords: risk management, interviews, antifragility, failure

Procedia PDF Downloads 539

Authors: Stacey Pollard, Henry Baraket, Girish Ganesan, Natalie Kim

Abstract:

One year after U.S.-led coalition operations liberated ISIS-held territories in Iraq and Syria and killed ISIS core leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, ISIS is resurging. Taking a page from its old playbook, the organization is capitalizing on social unrest and a rapidly deteriorating security environment—exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic—to reconstitute in permissive areas of Iraq and Syria. This Short examines ISIS’s pandemic-era ground and information operations through the lens of its state- and nation-making efforts to help analysts and decisionmakers better understand the imminence and scope of the threat. ISIS is rapidly overcoming U.S.-supported counterterrorism gains and, without direct pressure to reverse these advances, is poised for recovery.

Keywords: Terrorism, COVID-19, Islamic State, Instability, Iraq, Syria, Global, Resurgence

Procedia PDF Downloads 51

Authors: Sima Aznavi, Poria Fajri, Hanif Livani

Abstract:

Smart homes are small energy systems which may be equipped with renewable energy sources, storage devices, and loads. Energy management strategy plays a main role in the efficient operation of smart homes. Effective energy scheduling of the renewable energy sources and storage devices guarantees efficient energy management in households while reducing the energy imports from the grid. Nevertheless, despite such strategies, independently day ahead energy schedules for multiple households can cause undesired effects such as high power exchange with the grid at certain times of the day. Therefore, the interactions between multiple smart home day ahead energy projections is a challenging issue in a smart grid system and if not managed appropriately, the imported energy from the power network can impose additional burden on the distribution grid. In this paper, a central energy management strategy for a network consisting of multiple households each equipped with renewable energy sources, storage devices, and Plug-in Electric Vehicles (PEV) is proposed. The decision-making strategy alongside the smart home energy management system, minimizes the energy purchase cost of the end users, while at the same time reducing the stress on the utility grid. In this approach, the smart home energy management system determines different operating scenarios based on the forecasted household daily load and the components connected to the household with the objective of minimizing the end user overall cost. Then, selected projections for each household that are within the same cost range are sent to the central decision-making system. The central controller then organizes the schedules to reduce the overall peak to average ratio of the total imported energy from the grid. To validate this approach simulations are carried out for a network of five smart homes with different load requirements and the results confirm that by applying the proposed central energy management strategy, the overall power demand from the grid can be significantly flattened. This is an effective approach to alleviate the stress on the network by distributing its energy to a network of multiple households over a 24- hour period.

Keywords: energy management, renewable energy sources, smart grid, smart home

Procedia PDF Downloads 223

Authors: Francisca Alves, Diana Figueiredo, Paula Vagos, Luiza Lima, Maria do Céu Salvador, Daniel Rijo

Abstract:

In recent years, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) has been shown to be effective in the treatment of numerous anxiety disorders, including social anxiety disorder (SAD). However, limited evidence exists on its therapeutic gains for adolescents with SAD. The current work presents a weekly 10-session manualized online ACT approach to adolescent SAD, being the first study to do so in a clinical sample of adolescents. The intervention ACT@TeenSAD addresses the six proposed processes of psychological inflexibility (i.e., experiential avoidance, cognitive fusion, lack of values clarity, unworkable action, dominance of the conceptualized past and future, attachment to the conceptualized self) in social situations relevant to adolescents (e.g., doing a presentation). It is organized into four modules. The first module explores the role of psychological (in)flexibility in SAD (session 1 and 2), addressing psychoeducation (i.e., functioning of the mind) according to ACT, the development of an individualized model, and creative hopelessness. The second module focuses on the foundation of psychological flexibility (session 3, 4, and 5), specifically on the development and practice of strategies to promote clarification of values, contact with the present moment, the observing self, defusion, and acceptance. The third module encompasses psychological flexibility in action (sessions 6, 7, 8, and 9), encouraging committed action based on values in social situations relevant to the adolescents. The fourth modules’ focus is the revision of gains and relapse prevention (session 10). This intervention further includes two booster sessions after therapy has ended (3 and 6-month follow-up) that aim to review the continued practice of learned abilities and to plan for their future application to potentially anxious social events. As part of an ongoing clinical trial, the intervention will be assessed on its feasibility with adolescents diagnosed with SAD and on its therapeutic efficacy based on a longitudinal design including pretreatment, posttreatment, 3 and 6-month follow-up. If promising, findings may support the online delivery of ACT interventions for SAD, contributing to increased treatment availability to adolescents. This availability of an effective therapeutic approach will be helpful not only in relation to adolescents who face obstacles (e.g., distance) when attending to face-to-face sessions but also particularly to adolescents with SAD, who are usually more reluctant to look for specialized treatment in public or private health facilities.

Keywords: acceptance and commitment therapy, social anxiety disorder, adolescence, manualized online approach

Procedia PDF Downloads 134

Authors: Rawa Delshada, Sanaa G. Hamab, Rastee D. Koyeec

Abstract:

Eighty patients with suspected ischemic heart disease were enrolled in the present study. They were classified into two groups: patients with positive exercise stress test results (n=40) and control group with negative exercise stress test results (n=40). Serum concentration of troponin I, Heart-type Fatty Acid Binding Protein (H-FABP) and Ischemia Modified Albumin (IMA) were measured one hour after performing stress test. Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay was used to measure both troponin I, H-FABP levels, while IMA levels were measured by albumin cobalt binding test. There was no statistically significant difference in the mean concentration of troponin I between two groups (0.75±0.55ng/ml) for patients with positive test result vs. (0.71±0.55ng/ml) for negative test result group with P>0.05. Contrary to our expectation, mean IMA level was slightly higher among control group (70.88±39.76U/ml) compared to (62.7±51.9U/ml) in positive test result group, but still with no statistically significant difference (P>0.05). Median H-FABP level was also higher among negative exercise stress testing group compared the positive one (2ng/ml vs. 1.9ng/ml respectively), but failed to reach statistically significant difference (P>0.05). When quartiles model used to explore the possible association between each study biomarkers with the others; serum H-FABP level was lowest (1.7ng/ml) in highest quartile of IMA and lowest H-FABP (1.8ng/ml) in highest quartile of troponin I but with no statistically significant association (P>0.05). Myocardial ischemia, more likely occurred after exercise stress test, is not capable of causing troponin I release. Furthermore, an increase in H-FABP and IMA levels after stress test are not reflecting myocardial ischemia. Moreover, the combination of troponin I, H-FABP and IMA after measuring their post exercise levels does not improve the diagnostic utility of exercise stress test enormously.

Keywords: cardiac biomarkers, ischemic heart disease, troponin I, ischemia modified albumin, heart-type fatty acid binding protein, exercise stress testing

Procedia PDF Downloads 232

Authors: Azhan Azhar, Mohammed Sakib, Zaurez Ahmad

Abstract:

The energy we receive from the sun is known as solar energy, and it is a reliable, long-lasting, eco-friendly and the most widely used energy source in the 21st century. It is. There are several techniques for harnessing solar energy, and we are all seeing large utility-scale projects to collect maximum amperes from the sun using current technologies. Solar PV is now on the rise as a means of harvesting energy from the sun. Moving a step further, our project is focused on designing an All-in-one portable Solar Energy based solution. We considered the minimum load conditions and evaluated the requirements of various devices utilized in this study to resolve the power requirements of small stores, hawkers, or travelers.

Keywords: DOD-depth of discharge, pulse width modulation charge controller, renewable energy, solar PV- solar photovoltaic

Procedia PDF Downloads 346

Authors: Rukshani Wickrama-Arachchi, Tanner Metz, James M. Takacs

Abstract:

Amines bearing γ-stereocenters are important structural motifs found in many biologically active compounds. Regioselective Rh-catalyzed asymmetric hydroboration of acyclic allylamines is used to synthesize amines bearing chiral β- and γ-boronic esters yields up to 70% with 98:2 enantioselectivity. The major enantiomeric outcome can be independent of starting alkene geometry, revealing that cis/trans-isomerization of alkene can occur before hydroboration. Stereospecific transformations of the newly generated C-B bond illustrates the utility of these chiral synthons.

Keywords: allylamines, borylated amines, chiral amines, hydroboration, rhodium-catalysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 169

Authors: A. Assad, T. Zayed

Abstract:

Water networks (WNs) are responsible of providing adequate amounts of safe, high quality, water to the public. As other critical infrastructure systems, WNs are subjected to deterioration which increases the number of breaks and leaks and lower water quality. In Canada, 35% of water assets require critical attention and there is a significant gap between the needed and the implemented investments. Thus, the need for efficient rehabilitation programs is becoming more urgent given the paradigm of aging infrastructure and tight budget. The first step towards developing such programs is to formulate a Performance Index that reflects the current condition of water assets along with its criticality. While numerous studies in the literature have focused on various aspects of condition assessment and reliability, limited efforts have investigated the criticality of such components. Critical water mains are those whose failure cause significant economic, environmental or social impacts on a community. Inclusion of criticality in computing the performance index will serve as a prioritizing tool for the optimum allocating of the available resources and budget. In this study, several social, economic, and environmental factors that dictate the criticality of a water pipelines have been elicited from analyzing the literature. Expert opinions were sought to provide pairwise comparisons of the importance of such factors. Subsequently, Fuzzy Logic along with Analytical Network Process (ANP) was utilized to calculate the weights of several criteria factors. Multi Attribute Utility Theories (MAUT) was then employed to integrate the aforementioned weights with the attribute values of several pipelines in Montreal WN. The result is a criticality index, 0-1, that quantifies the severity of the consequence of failure of each pipeline. A novel contribution of this approach is that it accounts for both the interdependency between criteria factors as well as the inherited uncertainties in calculating the criticality. The practical value of the current study is represented by the automated tool, Excel-MATLAB, which can be used by the utility managers and decision makers in planning for future maintenance and rehabilitation activities where high-level efficiency in use of materials and time resources is required.

Keywords: water networks, criticality assessment, asset management, fuzzy analytical network process

Procedia PDF Downloads 129

Authors: M. Ali Mandegari, S. Farzad, J. F. Görgens

Abstract:

Sugar is one of the main agricultural industries in South Africa and approximately livelihoods of one million South Africans are indirectly dependent on sugar industry which is economically struggling with some problems and should re-invent in order to ensure a long-term sustainability. Second generation bio-refinery is defined as a process to use waste fibrous for the production of bio-fuel, chemicals animal food, and electricity. Bio-ethanol is by far the most widely used bio-fuel for transportation worldwide and many challenges in front of bio-ethanol production were solved. Bio-refinery annexed to the existing sugar mill for production of bio-ethanol and electricity is proposed to sugar industry and is addressed in this study. Since flow-sheet development is the key element of the bio-ethanol process, in this work, a bio-refinery (bio-ethanol and electricity production) annexed to a typical South African sugar mill considering 65ton/h dry sugarcane bagasse and tops/trash as feedstock was simulated. Aspen PlusTM V8.6 was applied as simulator and realistic simulation development approach was followed to reflect the practical behavior of the plant. Latest results of other researches considering pretreatment, hydrolysis, fermentation, enzyme production, bio-ethanol production and other supplementary units such as evaporation, water treatment, boiler, and steam/electricity generation units were adopted to establish a comprehensive bio-refinery simulation. Steam explosion with SO2 was selected for pretreatment due to minimum inhibitor production and simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) configuration was adopted for enzymatic hydrolysis and fermentation of cellulose and hydrolyze. Bio-ethanol purification was simulated by two distillation columns with side stream and fuel grade bio-ethanol (99.5%) was achieved using molecular sieve in order to minimize the capital and operating costs. Also boiler and steam/power generation were completed using industrial design data. Results indicates 256.6 kg bio ethanol per ton of feedstock and 31 MW surplus power were attained from bio-refinery while the process consumes 3.5, 3.38, and 0.164 (GJ/ton per ton of feedstock) hot utility, cold utility and electricity respectively. Developed simulation is a threshold of variety analyses and developments for further studies.

Keywords: bio-refinery, bagasse, tops, trash, bio-ethanol, electricity

Procedia PDF Downloads 505

Authors: Abdelkarim Ait Brik, Abdelaziz Khoukh, Mustapha Jammali, Hamid Chaikhy

Abstract:

The energy audit is the essential initial step to ensure a good definition of energy control actions. The in-depth study of the various energy-consuming equipments makes it possible to determine the actions and investments with best cost for the company. The analysis focuses on the energy consumption of production equipment and utilities (lighting, heating, air conditioning, ventilation, transport). Successful implementation of this approach requires, however, to take into account a number of prerequisites. This paper proposes a number of useful recommendations concerning the energy audit in order to achieve better results, and a case study concerning the lighting audit of a Moroccan company by showing the gains that can be made through this audit.

Keywords: energy audit, energy diagnosis, consumption, electricity, energy efficiency, lighting audit

Procedia PDF Downloads 675

Authors: Jose D. Herrera, Mario A. Rios

Abstract:

This paper deals with the coordinated tuning of the Power System Stabilizer (PSS) controller and Power Oscillation Damping (POD) Controller of Flexible AC Transmission System (FACTS) in a multi-machine power systems. The coordinated tuning is based on the critical eigenvalues of the power system and a model reduction technique where the Hankel Singular Value method is applied. Through the linearized system model and the parameter-constrained nonlinear optimization algorithm, it can compute the parameters of both controllers. Moreover, the parameters are optimized simultaneously obtaining the gains of both controllers. Then, the nonlinear simulation to observe the time response of the controller is performed.

Keywords: electromechanical oscillations, power system stabilizers, power oscillation damping, hankel singular values

Procedia PDF Downloads 568

Authors: Shiksha Thakur, Rashmi Jain

Abstract:

Maternal health is the most crucial element in the primary health care delivery system of any healthy society. We aware that the maternal health situation in India has been a cause of concern for us, in spite of the rapidly progressing socio-economic environment overall. India has realized impressive gains in Mother & Child survival over the last two decades. MMR as per 2012-2013 in India is 167 as per MMR bulletin, though there are variations between states in the Country. In 2013, an estimated 2,89,000 women worldwide died from complications arising from pregnancy & childbirth. In view of the above facts, a study was conducted in Indore to analyse the maternal health status among urban slums and non-slums women.

Keywords: antenatal care, postnatal care, JSY, maternal health, child health, reproductive health

Procedia PDF Downloads 133

Authors: Athina Thanou, Eirini Eleni Tsiropoulou, Symeon Papavassiliou

Abstract:

The problem of museum visitor experience and congestion management – in various forms - has come increasingly under the spotlight over the last few years, since overcrowding can significantly decrease the quality of visitors’ experience. Evidence suggests that on busy days the amount of time a visitor spends inside a crowded house museum can fall by up to 60% compared to a quiet mid-week day. In this paper we consider the aforementioned problem, by treating museums as evolving social systems that induce constraints. However, in a cultural heritage space, as opposed to the majority of social environments, the momentum of the experience is primarily controlled by the visitor himself. Visitors typically behave selfishly regarding the maximization of their own Quality of Experience (QoE) - commonly expressed through a utility function that takes several parameters into consideration, with crowd density and waiting/visiting time being among the key ones. In such a setting, congestion occurs when either the utility of one visitor decreases due to the behavior of other persons, or when costs of undertaking an activity rise due to the presence of other persons. We initially investigate how visitors’ behavioral risk attitudes, as captured and represented by prospect theory, affect their decisions in resource sharing settings, where visitors’ decisions and experiences are strongly interdependent. Different from the majority of existing studies and literature, we highlight that visitors are not risk neutral utility maximizers, but they demonstrate risk-aware behavior according to their personal risk characteristics. In our work, exhibits are organized into two groups: a) “safe exhibits” that correspond to less congested ones, where the visitors receive guaranteed satisfaction in accordance with the visiting time invested, and b) common pool of resources (CPR) exhibits, which are the most popular exhibits with possibly increased congestion and uncertain outcome in terms of visitor satisfaction. A key difference is that the visitor satisfaction due to CPR strongly depends not only on the invested time decision of a specific visitor, but also on that of the rest of the visitors. In the latter case, the over-investment in time, or equivalently the increased congestion potentially leads to “exhibit failure”, interpreted as the visitors gain no satisfaction from their observation of this exhibit due to high congestion. We present a framework where each visitor in a distributed manner determines his time investment in safe or CPR exhibits to optimize his QoE. Based on this framework, we analyze and evaluate how visitors, acting as prospect-theoretic decision-makers, respond and react to the various pricing policies imposed by the museum curators. Based on detailed evaluation results and experiments, we present interesting observations, regarding the impact of several parameters and characteristics such as visitor heterogeneity and use of alternative pricing policies, on scalability, user satisfaction, museum capacity, resource fragility, and operation point stability. Furthermore, we study and present the effectiveness of alternative pricing mechanisms, when used as implicit tools, to deal with the congestion management problem in the museums, and potentially decrease the exhibit failure probability (fragility), while considering the visitor risk preferences.

Keywords: museum resource and visitor management, congestion management, propsect theory, cyber physical social systems

Procedia PDF Downloads 162

Authors: Djehich Mohamed Yousri

Abstract:

In this paper, we explore the extent to which states seek to promote regional foreign policy. More specifically, the analytical feasibility is to find out exactly what countries seek to export, and how they have used their relations and foreign policies to enhance cooperation with other countries. The first part discusses the development of regional interests and theoretical approaches that attempted to explain the push for regionalism in the field of foreign policy. The second part of the paper presents the motives and mechanisms through which states spread the idea of regionalism in making foreign policy. Finally, we assess the implications of regionalism for the nature and practice of foreign policy, particularly with regard to the gains or constraints to which various actors are exposed in their regional endeavors. We conclude with some considerations that indicate that strengthening regionalism has become an additional and real program in the field of foreign policy analysis.

Keywords: foreign policy, collective foreign policy, regionalization and foreign policy, regional foreign policy, foreign affairs

Procedia PDF Downloads 225

Authors: Wasif Mughees, Malik Al-Ahmad, Muhammad Naeem

Abstract:

This research involves the design and analysis of pinch-based water/wastewater networks to minimize water utility in the petrochemical and petroleum industries. A study has been done on Tehran Oil Refinery to analyze feasibilities of regeneration, reuse and recycling of water network. COD is considered as a single key contaminant. Amount of freshwater was reduced about 149m3/h (43.8%) regarding COD. Re-design (or retrofitting) of water allocation in the networks was undertaken. The results were analyzed through graphical method and mathematical programming technique which clearly demonstrated that amount of required water would be determined by mass transfer of COD.

Keywords: minimization, water pinch, water management, pollution prevention

Procedia PDF Downloads 426

Authors: Shota Gulbani

Abstract:

At the present stage, for the countries with developing economies, studying, and researching financial markets, gains special importance, because the situation of financial markets shapes an exact views about the carried out economic policy of the country. Besides, it’s unimaginable any country with developed economy, without healthy and functioning financial markets, whereas, for any kind of business it has got a great importance in terms of finding diversified and alternative capital. In this regard; it should be noted that the segments of Georgian financial markets are developed quite unequally, as evidenced by the fact that the Georgian financial sector is represented by 93% of commercial banks, what does not create an conformable environment for non-bank financial institutions development. In spite of the fact that Georgia has got one of the best banking system of region, it is important to properly analyze that this system should not hinder the development of other participants of Georgian financial sector.

Keywords: financial markets, macroeconomics, investments, stock exchange

Procedia PDF Downloads 341

Authors: Patricia Portugal Marques de Carvalho Lourenco

Abstract:

This paper presents the richness of product placement usage in Chinese IP dramas. It shows the artistry of storytellers in craftily intertwining the drama’s storyline with the items promoted, resulting in a flawless Chinese tapestry that perfectly blends internet visual entertainment with advertising, significantly enhancing the production’s worth. Successful IQIYI drama We are all alone, is a flawless example of that, attracting collaborative interest from products and brands across a spectrum of market segments, motivated to showcase their utility, value, benefits, and appeal to viewers.

Keywords: product placement, band-aid ads, post ads, barrage advertising, China, internet drama series, Latin Europe

Procedia PDF Downloads 63

Authors: Marcio Emilio Dos Santos, Kelly C. F. Dos Santos

Abstract:

Caregivers of patients diagnosed with ASD are subjected to high stress situations due to the complexity and multiple levels of daily activities that require the organization of events, behaviors and socioemotional situations, such as immediate decision making and in public spaces. The cognitive and emotional requirement needed to fulfill this caregiving role exceeds the regular cultural process that adults receive in their process of preparation for conjugal and parental life. Therefore, in many cases, caregivers present a high level of overload, poor capacity to organize and mediate the development process of the child or patient about their care. Aims: Improvement in the cognitive and emotional capacities related to the caregiver function, allowing the reduction of the overload, the feeling of incompetence and the characteristic level of stress, developing a more organized conduct and decision making more oriented towards the objectives and procedural gains necessary for the integral development of the patient with diagnosis of ASD. Method: The study was performed with 20 relatives, randomly selected from a total of 140 patients attended. The family members were submitted to the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale III intelligence test and the Family assessment Management Measure (FaMM) questionnaire as a previous evaluation. Therapeutic activity in a small group of family members or caregivers, with weekly frequency, with a minimum workload of two hours, using the Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment Cognitive Development Program - Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment for ten months. Reapplication of the previous tests to verify the gains obtained. Results and Discussion: There is a change in the level of caregiver overload, improvement in the results of the Family assessment Management Measure and highlight to the increase of performance in the cognitive aspects related to problem solving, planned behavior and management of behavioral crises. These results lead to the discussion of the need to invest in the integrated care of patients and their caregivers, mainly by enabling cognitively to deal with the complexity of Autism. This goes beyond the simple therapeutic orientation about adjustments in family and school routines. The study showed that when the caregiver improves his/her capacity of management, the results of the treatment are potentiated and there is a reduction of the level of the caregiver's overload. Importantly, the study was performed for only ten months and the number of family members attended in the study (n = 20) needs to be expanded to have statistical strength.

Keywords: caregiver overload, cognitive development program ASD caregivers, feuerstein instrumental enrichment, family assessment management measure

Procedia PDF Downloads 104

Authors: O. Esmen, A. Beduk, K. Eryesil, F. Karacelebi

Abstract:

Entrepreneurship is crucial for the economy of countries in development of economy, creating new jobs and increasing employment; therefore improving welfare and a modern point of view in the society. In the development of a country encouragement of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial qualities also play a paramount role. The increase in the world population results in more production, which brings excessive use of resources and inevitably shortage of them. In addition to this; development in technology, mismanagement in production and deficiency of waste system cause negative effects on the environmental ecological balance. Nowadays, with the societies getting awareness of environment while buying products and services, they prefer companies which are careful about environment. And as a result of this, ecoentrepreneurship gains importance. In this study; ecoentrepreneurship, which we think will gain more importance in the world and Turkey, is presented with the examples from the world and Turkey.

Keywords: ecoentrepreneurship, entrepreneurship, environmental awareness, development of economy

Procedia PDF Downloads 247

Authors: Chivon Choeung, Heng Tang, Panha Soth, Vichet Huy

Abstract:

This paper presents a robust control strategy for a single-phase DC-AC inverter with an output LC-filter. An all-pass filter is utilized to create an artificial β-signal so that the proposed controller can be simply used in dq-synchronous frame. The proposed robust controller utilizes a state feedback control with integral action in the dq-synchronous frame. A linear matrix inequality-based optimization scheme is used to determine stabilizing gains of the controllers to maximize the convergence rate to steady state in the presence of uncertainties. The uncertainties of the system are described as the potential variation range of the inductance and resistance in the LC-filter.

Keywords: single-phase inverter, linear matrix inequality, robust control, all-pass filter

Procedia PDF Downloads 120

Authors: H. Tédjini, Y. Meslem, B. Guesbaoui, A. Safa

Abstract:

Flexible AC Transmission Systems (FACTS) are potentially becoming more flexible and more economical local controllers in the power system; and because of the high MVA ratings, it would be expensive to provide independent, equal, regulated DC voltage sources to power the multilevel converters which are presently proposed for STATCOMs. DC voltage sources can be derived from the DC link capacitances which are charged by the rectified ac power. In this paper a new stronger control combined of nonlinear control based Lyapunov’s theorem and Ant Colony Algorithm (ACA) to maintain stability of multilevel STATCOM and the utility.

Keywords: Static Compensator (STATCOM), ant colony optimization (ACO), lyapunov control theory, Decoupled power control, neutral point clamped (NPC)

Procedia PDF Downloads 535

Authors: Carolina Silva Ansélmo

Abstract:

Airports are demand-generating poles that affect the flow of traffic around them. The airport access system must be fast, convenient, and adequately planned, considering its potential users. An airport with good ground access conditions can provide the user with a more satisfactory access experience. When several transport options are available, service providers must understand users' preferences and the expected quality of service. The present study focuses on airport access in a comparative scenario between bus, private vehicle, subway, taxi and urban mobility transport applications to São Paulo/Guarulhos International Airport. The objectives are (i) to identify the factors that influence the choice, (ii) to measure Willingness to Pay (WTP), and (iii) to estimate the market share for each modal. The applied method was Adaptive Choice-based Conjoint Analysis (ACBC) technique using Sawtooth Software. Conjoint analysis, rooted in Utility Theory, is a survey technique that quantifies the customer's perceived utility when choosing alternatives. Assessing user preferences provides insights into their priorities for product or service attributes. An additional advantage of conjoint analysis is its requirement for a smaller sample size compared to other methods. Furthermore, ACBC provides valuable insights into consumers' preferences, willingness to pay, and market dynamics, aiding strategic decision-making to provide a better customer experience, pricing, and market segmentation. In the present research, the ACBC questionnaire had the following variables: (i) access time to the boarding point, (ii) comfort in the vehicle, (iii) number of travelers together, (iv) price, (v) supply power, and (vi) type of vehicle. The case study questionnaire reached 213 valid responses considering the scenario of access from the São Paulo city center to São Paulo/Guarulhos International Airport. As a result, the price and the number of travelers are the most relevant attributes for the sample when choosing airport access. The market share of the selection is mainly urban mobility transport applications, followed by buses, private vehicles, taxis and subways.

Keywords: adaptive choice-based conjoint analysis, ground access to airport, market share, willingness to pay

Procedia PDF Downloads 54

Authors: Reinhard Neck, Guido Schäfer

Abstract:

In this paper, we explore the macroeconomic effects of the European Single Market on Austria by simulating the McKibbin-Sachs Global Model. Global interdependence and the impact of long-run effects on short-run adjustments are taken into account. We study the sensitivity of the results with respect to different assumptions concerning monetary and fiscal policies for the countries and regions of the world economy. The consequences of different assumptions about budgetary policies in Austria are also investigated. The simulation results are contrasted with ex-post evaluations of the actual impact of Austria’s membership in the Single Market. As a result, it can be concluded that the Austrian participation in the European Single Market entails considerable long-run gains for the Austrian economy with nearly no adverse side-effects on any macroeconomic target variable.

Keywords: macroeconomics, European Union, simulation, sensitivity analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 262

Authors: Sawitree Suvanno

Abstract:

The objective of this study is to investigate the Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University (SSRU) image among people in Bangkok. This study was conducted in the quantitative research and the questionnaires were used to collect data from 360 people of a sample group. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used in data analysis. The result showed that the SSRU’s image among people in Bangkok is in the “rather true” level of questionnaire scale in all aspects measured. The aspect that gains the utmost average is that the university is considered as royal-oriented and conservative; 2) the instructional supplies, buildings and venue promoting Thai art and tradition; 3) the moral and honest university administration; 4) the curriculum and the skillful students as well as graduates. Additional, people in Bangkok with different profession have the different view to the SSRU’s image at the significant level 0.05; there is no significant difference in gender, age and income.

Keywords: Bangkok, demographics, image, Suan Sunandha Rajabhpat University

Procedia PDF Downloads 226

Authors: V. Srikanth, K. Balasubramanian, Rajath R. Bhat, A. S. Arjun, Nandhu Venugopal, Ananthu Unnikrishnan

Abstract:

Indirect vector control is known to produce high performance in Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM) drives by decoupling flux and torque producing current components of stator current. The most commonly used controller or the vector control of AC motor is Proportional-Integral (P-I) controller. However, the P-I controller has some disadvantages such as high starting overshoot, sensitivity to controller gains and slower response to sudden disturbance. Therefore, the Integral-Proportional controller for PMSM drives to overcome the disadvantages of the P-I controller. Simulations results are presented and analyzed for both controllers and it is observed that Integral-Proportional (I-P) controllers give better responses than the traditional P-I controllers.

Keywords: PMSM, FOC, PI controller, IP controller

Procedia PDF Downloads 340

Authors: Salem Ben Said

Abstract:

In recent times the decimal number system to which we are accustomed has received serious competition from the binary number system. In this note, an approach is suggested to teaching and learning the binary number system using examples from the real world. More precisely, we will demonstrate the utility of the binary system in describing the optimal strategy to win the Chinese Nim game, and in telegraphy by decoding the hidden message on Perseverance’s Mars parachute written in the language of binary system. Finally, we will answer the question, “why do modern computers prefer the ternary number system instead of the binary system?”. All materials are provided in a format that is conductive to classroom presentation and discussion.

Keywords: binary number system, Nim game, telegraphy, computers prefer the ternary system

Procedia PDF Downloads 163

Authors: Paola Bordon, Breno Braga

Abstract:

This paper investigates whether firms use university prestige to statistically discriminate among college graduates. The test is based on the employer learning literature which suggests that if firms use a characteristic for statistical discrimination, this variable should become less important for earnings as a worker gains labor market experience. In this framework, we use a regression discontinuity design to estimate a 19% wage premium for recent graduates of two of the most selective universities in Chile. However, we find that this premium decreases by 3 percentage points per year of labor market experience. These results suggest that employers use college selectivity as a signal of workers' quality when they leave school. However, as workers reveal their productivity throughout their careers, they become rewarded based on their true quality rather than the prestige of their college.

Keywords: employer learning, statistical discrimination, college returns, college selectivity

Procedia PDF Downloads 562

Authors: E.George, P. Ojeaga, O. Matthew, A. Adekola

Abstract:

Can foreign direct investment (FDI), promote growth in Africa? What does the inflow of investment hold for African emerging economies? Are the determinants of FDI different for different regional blocs in Africa? This study reviews the implication of FDI for different regional blocs in Africa. FDI was found to have a significant effect on growth in North Africa but had no significant effect in East, Southern and West Africa. FDI was also found not to be driving growth in the whole of Africa in a significant manner. The implications of the findings are that even though trade openness seems to be a major factor driving FDI. Poor domestic markets were still preventing many African economies from taking full advantage of the gains from foreign direct investment. The study results could be useful to scholars who study the dynamics surrounding FDI disbursement and strategies on how FDI can drive growth in developing countries.

Keywords: Africa, political economy, FDI, regional policy, markets

Procedia PDF Downloads 551

Authors: Jun-Yong Lee, Hyoung-Gook Kim

Abstract:

In this paper, we propose a smart music player that combines the musical genre classification and the spatial audio processing. The musical genre is classified based on content analysis of the musical segment detected from the audio stream. In parallel with the classification, the spatial audio quality is achieved by adding an artificial reverberation in a virtual acoustic space to the input mono sound. Thereafter, the spatial sound is boosted with the given frequency gains based on the musical genre when played back. Experiments measured the accuracy of detecting the musical segment from the audio stream and its musical genre classification. A listening test was performed based on the virtual acoustic space based spatial audio processing.

Keywords: automatic equalization, genre classification, music segment detection, spatial audio processing

Procedia PDF Downloads 407

Authors: Tea Poklepović, Zdravka Aljinović, Mario Matković

Abstract:

Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT) according to Markowitz states that investors form mean-variance efficient portfolios which maximizes their utility. Markowitz proposed the standard deviation as a simple measure for portfolio risk and the lower semi-variance as the only risk measure of interest to rational investors. This paper uses a third volatility estimator based on intraday data and compares three efficient frontiers on the Croatian Stock Market. The results show that range-based volatility estimator outperforms both mean-variance and lower semi-variance model.

Keywords: variance, lower semi-variance, range-based volatility, MPT

Procedia PDF Downloads 494