Prefeasibility study of a space environment monitoring system /Semos/

Prefeasibility study of Space Environment Monitoring System within framework of Apollo Applications Progra

Improving the road planning process

Two Swedish road projects were studied to find ways to shorten the time spent in the road planning process. The results indicated that the road projects developed very differently. One planning project developed rather smoothly, while the other received an escalating flood of letters. Concerns about the environment and landscape were present in the majority of these letters, pointing to the importance of involving the expertise of landscape planners or environmentalists in the management of road development projects. This article's conclusion stresses the importance of inviting early submission of viewpoints and of responding to people's questions in order to achieve acceptance of a project; it also stresses the significance of keeping communication open with affected sectors of the public from the very beginning of a project

The acceptance process in road planning

This paper presents a case study of the dialogue between the road department and the general public during the early stages of two Swedish road projects. The two road projects were located in Skåne in southern Sweden. Both concerned bypasses past villages and passed valuable recreational areas as well as environmentally sensitive areas. The study focused on the public’s reaction to landscape information. The basis for the discussion comprises two articles: Article 1, concerning letters sent to the road department, is in press, while Article 2, analyzing the official documents of the two projects, is currently under review. The road projects studied were very similar at the outset, but the dialogue between the involved parties took different turns in the two projects. One project ran into difficulties, whereas the other managed to build acceptance established early on, which proved to be beneficial for all involved

Site selection criteria for resort development and a case study in northern New England

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 1990.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 167-170).by Hormoz Lashkari and Christopher Voutsinas.M.S

Architectural and Management Strategies for the Design, Construction and Operation of Energy Efficient and Intelligent Primary Care Centers in Chile

Primary care centers are establishments with elevated social relevance and high operational energy consumption. In Chile, there more than 628 family healthcare centers (CESFAM) have been built in the last two decades and with plans for hundreds more in the next few years. We revised the architecture, construction management and energy performance of five CESFAM centers to determine possible instances of overall improvement. Staff was interviewed, and state documents reviewed, which allowed the conceptualization of the architectonic and energy structure of the centers, as well as the process of implementation. At the same time, energy simulations were done for each one of the centers, controlling for different climates, construction solutions and orientations. Our study revealed that strategies employed by the primary healthcare centers in Chile have aided a progressive implementation of establishments with elevated costs and materialization times, as well as neglect for climatic conditions. These energy evaluations show relevant and consistent impacts of the architectural form and material conditions, especially in southern zones, demonstrating the need to work with shared knowledge resources such as BIM. There is a clear necessity to define technological, morphological and construction strategies specific to each climate zone in order to achieve energetically efficient and intelligent healthcare establishments

Implementation of a 150kva biomass gasifier system for community economic empowerment in South Africa

There is growing interest in research and development activities on biomass gasification technologies as an alternative to fossil fuels technologies. However not much has been done in terms of technology transfer, particularly in under-developed and developing countries such as South Africa. This is mainly because of the lack of resources such as funding. Most parts of the under-developed and developing countries fall within rural areas and semi-urban centers, which are endowed with biomass resources. South Africa has a number of sawmill operators who generate tons of biomass waste during processing of timber; the large proportion of this is burned in furnaces as a means for waste management while a very small proportion is collected and used by people in rural areas for cooking their food. The majority of people in rural areas of South Africa are either unemployed or cannot afford the current energy services. The main aim of this research was to establish the viability of electricity generation for community economic development through biomass gasification, specifically using the locally designed System Johansson Biomass Gasifier™ (SJBG), and to establish the efficiency of the gasifier and associated components with a view of developing strategies to enhance it. The study established the technical and economic feasibility of using the SJBG to generate low-cost electricity for community empowerment. The study also developed strategies to improve the particle collection efficiency of the cyclone. In addition to this, a low-cost gas and temperature monitoring system capable of monitoring gas and temperature at various points of the gasifier was developed. The system was built from three Non- Dispersive Infrared gas sensors, one Palladium/Nickel gas sensor and four type K thermocouples. The study also investigated the impact of fuel compartment condensates on gasifier conversion efficiency. This is an area that has not yet been well researched since much has been done on energy recovery using combined heat and power applications that do not utilize the energy in condensates because these are produced in the gasifier and drained with chemical energy stored in them. The study established that the condensates do not have a significant impact on efficiency

Technical and economical prefeasibility study of a solar water heating (SWH) system in an apartment building in Cape Town

Solar power has significant potential to reduce reliance on conventional energy sources in South Africa. A prefeasibility study for a communal solar water heating system (SWHS) is performed for an apartment building in the Cape Town area. Energetic-economic modelling of the system is performed via the calculation of the solar fraction, and fundamental indicators of the financial analysis such as internal rate of return (IRR), net present value (NPV), and benefit-cost ratio. Results indicate that a SWHS with a solar fraction of 32% and a benefit-cost ratio of 3.05 is realizable. Additionally, sensitivity analysis of financial results with respect to incentive rebate amount and electricity escalation rate is performe

Preliminary Economic Feasibility Analysis of High Fructose Corn Syrup Processing in the United States with Emphasis on North Dakota

This prefeasibility analysis directed at the HFCS industry was carried out under a short-term turnaround basis with the intent of accomplishing two objectives. First, provide a current economic overview of the United States HFCS industry; secondly, to develop some major HFCS processing plant operating benchmarks in an effort to provide a timely informational base for state economic development interests.Agribusiness,