5,895 research outputs found
Development of a simulation-based decision support tool for renewable energy integration and demand-supply matching
This paper describes a simulation-based decision support tool, MERIT, which has been developed to assist in the assessment of renewable energy systems by focusing on the degree of match achievable between energy demand and supply. Models are described for the prediction of the performance of PV, wind and battery technologies. These models are based on manufacturers' specifications, location-related parameters and hourly weather data. The means of appraising the quality of match is outlined and examples are given of the application of the tool at the individual building and community levels
Development and demonstration of a renewable energy based demand/supply decision support tool for the building design profession
Future cities are likely to be characterised by a greater level of renewable energy systems deployment. Maximum impact will be achieved when such systems are used to offset local energy demands in contrast to current philosophy dictating the grid connection of large schemes. This paper reports on the development of a software tool, MERIT, for demand/ supply matching. The purpose of MERIT is to assist with the deployment of renewable energy systems at all scales. This paper describes the procedures used to match heterogeneous supply technologies to a set of demand profiles corresponding to the different possible fuel types
On the fidelity of the core mass functions derived from dust column density data
Aims: We examine the recoverability and completeness limits of the dense core
mass functions (CMFs) derived for a molecular cloud using extinction data and a
core identification scheme based on two-dimensional thresholding.
Methods: We performed simulations where a population of artificial cores was
embedded into the variable background extinction field of the Pipe nebula. We
extracted the cores from the simulated extinction maps, constructed the CMFs,
and compared them to the input CMFs. The simulations were repeated using a
variety of extraction parameters and several core populations with differing
input mass functions and differing degrees of crowding.
Results: The fidelity of the observed CMF depends on the parameters selected
for the core extraction algorithm for our background. More importantly, it
depends on how crowded the core population is. We find that the observed CMF
recovers the true CMF reliably when the mean separation of cores is larger than
their mean diameter (f>1). If this condition holds, the derived CMF is accurate
and complete above M > 0.8-1.5 Msun, depending on the parameters used for the
core extraction. In the simulations, the best fidelity was achieved with the
detection threshold of 1 or 2 times the rms-noise of the extinction data, and
with the contour level spacings of 3 times the rms-noise. Choosing larger
threshold and wider level spacings increases the limiting mass. The simulations
show that when f>1.5, the masses of individual cores are recovered with a
typical uncertainty of 25-30 %. When f=1 the uncertainty is ~60 %. In very
crowded cases where f<1 the core identification algorithm is unable to recover
the masses of the cores adequately. For the cores of the Pipe nebula f~2.0 and
therefore the use of the method in that region is justified.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Recommended from our members
Enhancing Small Group Teaching in Plant Sciences: A Research and Development Project in Higher Education
The Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Cambridge uses a range of learning and teaching environments including lectures, practical laboratories and small group tutorials'. Under the auspices of the Cambridge-MIT Institute's Pedagogy Programme, a two-year research and development project concerned with the development of small-group teaching is being undertaken. The research element of this project endeavours to illuminate current practice and identify areas in which evidence-based development might take place. The development element will include professional development activities and the production of curriculum resources including appropriate online material. This is a multi-method study including a series of student questionnaires; focus groups of students; semi-structured interviews with staff members; and the collection of video of small group teaching. In this paper we report selected findings from the 'student data' of the first year of this project.The questionnaire, conducted with two cohorts of students (2nd and 3rd year Undergraduates), used a double-scale questionnaire in which students were asked to report both on the prevalence of a range of teaching and learning practices and on how valuable these were in supporting their learning. This type of questionnaire instrument is particularly appropriate because the data it generates is suggestive of areas for changes in practice. The gaps between 'practices' and 'values' (across both cohorts) suggested that students valued activities which improved their understanding of how elements of the course were interrelated; which related course content to 'authentic' examples; and those in which teachers made explicit the characteristics of 'high quality' student work. Small group teaching, in the view of most students, was best used to extend and explore concepts introduced in lectures rather than simply reinforcing them or assessing student understanding.Data gathered through focus group activities illuminated the questionnaire data, providing detailed accounts of how students managed their own learning, and the roles played in this by lectures, small group teaching and other resources. Students identified the processes of planning and writing essays as key learning activities during which they integrated diverse course content and reflected on problematic knowledge. Questionnaire and focus group data suggested that students had less clear views regarding the value of collaborative learning, peer-assessment or activities such as making presentations to other students. When students talked in positive terms about these activities, they often referred to the learning benefits of preparation for the tasks rather than of the collaborative activities themselves. These views may provide indications of potential barriers to changes in learning and teaching environments, and suggest that any such changes may have to be carefully justified to students in terms of benefits to their own learning. Many of our findings are broadly in accord with other work on teaching and learning in Higher Education settings (such as the 'Oxford Learning Context Project' and the 'Enhancing Teaching-Learning Environments in Undergraduate Courses' Project) in that 'deep learning' and 'authenticity' in learning activities are valued by students, and that the introduction of specific formative practices (such as sharing notions of 'quality') would be welcomed. At the same time, amongst the students in our sample, a view of learning as an individual process of 'learning-as-acquisition' predominates over a view that it is a social process of 'learning-as-participation', and this will inform the planning of the 'development' aspect of the project. We conclude with a discussion of how the approach we have used might be more widely applied both within and beyond the Cambridge-MIT partnership. We also identify potential affordances of, and barriers to, the development of research-informed teaching in Higher Education
A Physical Limit to the Magnetic Fields of T Tauri Stars
Recent estimates of magnetic field strengths in T Tauri stars yield values
--. In this paper, I present an upper limit to the
photospheric values of by computing the equipartition values for different
surface gravities and effective temperatures. The values of derived from
the observations exceed this limit, and I examine the possible causes for this
discrepancy
Merit - An evaluation tool for 100% renewable energy provision
Islands represent an interesting challenge in terms of energy supply. A great deal of work has been carried out to look at specific aspects of this issue on different islands. Unfortunately, results from one study cannot be easily applied to other islands due to island-specific resources and energy-use profiles. A quantitative evaluation tool (MERIT) is presented here, which is able to match half-hourly energy demands (heat, electricity, hot water and transport) with local supplies. The program examines the energy balance on any scale, from an individual building through to an entire country, thereby providing a powerful and generic aid to decision making. This paper demonstrates the generality and usefulness of MERIT by using it to analyse the options for creating an energy-autonomous community on a typical, small island off the west coast of Scotland. Results are presented showing the feasibility of accomplishing 100% renewable provision on this island using available local resources
Environmental Conditions and Vegetation Recovery at Abandoned Drilling Mud Sumps in the Mackenzie Delta Region, Northwest Territories, Canada
Historical data from oil and gas exploration in the delta of the Mackenzie River, Northwest Territories, in the 1970s provided an opportunity to estimate decadal-scale impacts of exploratory oil and gas drilling on native plant communities in low Arctic tundra. We assessed changes in vegetation composition and associated environmental gradients across seven drilling mud sumps in the Kendall Island Bird Sanctuary, Mackenzie Delta. Three decades after disturbance, drilling sumps had developed vegetation coverage equivalent to that in undisturbed areas, although bare soil persisted in ponded areas and where a salt crust was present. Vegetation on sumps was composed of communities dominated by forbs, grasses, and tall shrubs that were distinct from adjacent, undisturbed sedge and low shrub communities. The area of altered vegetation around a sump was generally larger in upland or saline environments than in lowland areas. Pooled water observed around many sumps was likely associated with thaw subsidence that occurred following construction, which was subsequently compounded by snow drifting and increased soil temperatures along the margins of the sump mound. Changes in drainage, active-layer depth, and surface salt concentrations appear to be key environmental factors that have helped shape plant communities established on drilling sumps in the three decades after disturbance.Les donnĂ©es historiques relatives Ă lâexploration pĂ©troliĂšre et gaziĂšre rĂ©alisĂ©e dans le delta du fleuve Mackenzie, Territoires du Nord-Ouest, dans les annĂ©es 1970 ont permis dâestimer les incidences dĂ©cadaires des forages pĂ©troliers et gaziers exploratoires sur les peuplements de vĂ©gĂ©taux rĂ©gionaux de la basse toundra arctique. Nous avons Ă©valuĂ© les changements caractĂ©risant la composition de la vĂ©gĂ©tation et les gradients environnementaux connexes relativement Ă sept bassins Ă boue du refuge dâoiseaux de lâĂźle Kendall, dans le delta du Mackenzie. Trois dĂ©cennies aprĂšs la perturbation, la couverture vĂ©gĂ©tale des bassins Ă boue Ă©tait Ă©quivalente Ă celle des endroits non perturbĂ©s, bien quâil restait toujours du sol dĂ©nudĂ© dans les endroits en prĂ©sence dâĂ©tangs et de croĂ»tes salĂ©es. Le vĂ©gĂ©tation se retrouvant sur les bassins Ă©tait composĂ©e dâherbes non graminĂ©ennes, de graminĂ©es et de grands arbrisseaux diffĂ©rents des peuplements adjacents constituĂ©s de laiche et de petits arbrisseaux non perturbĂ©s. La zone caractĂ©risĂ©e par la nouvelle vĂ©gĂ©tation autour dâun bassin Ă©tait gĂ©nĂ©ralement plus volumineuse dans les hautes terres ou les milieux salins que dans les basses terres. Lâeau accumulĂ©e autour de nombreux bassins dĂ©coulait vraisemblablement de la subsidence attribuable au dĂ©gel qui sâest manifestĂ© aprĂšs la construction, ce qui a Ă©tĂ© aggravĂ© par la poudrerie et les tempĂ©ratures du sol Ă la hausse le long des marges du monticule des bassins. Les changements en matiĂšre de ruissellement, de profondeur de la couche active et de concentrations de sel de surface semblent constituer dâimportants facteurs environnementaux ayant aidĂ© Ă façonner les peuplements de vĂ©gĂ©taux qui se sont Ă©tablis sur les bassins de forage au cours des trois dĂ©cennies ayant suivi la perturbation
The effect of a strong external radiation field on protostellar envelopes in Orion
We discuss the effects of an enhanced interstellar radiation field (ISRF) on
the observables of protostellar cores in the Orion cloud region. Dust radiative
transfer is used to constrain the envelope physical structure by reproducing
SCUBA 850 micron emission. Previously reported 13CO, C17O and H2CO line
observations are reproduced through detailed Monte Carlo line radiative
transfer models. It is found that the 13CO line emission is marginally
optically thick and sensitive to the physical conditions in the outer envelope.
An increased temperature in this region is needed in order to reproduce the
13CO line strengths and it is suggested to be caused by a strong heating from
the exterior, corresponding to an ISRF in Orion 10^3 times stronger than the
"standard" ISRF. The typical temperatures in the outer envelope are higher than
the desorption temperature for CO. The C17O emission is less sensitive to this
increased temperature but rather traces the bulk envelope material. The data
are only fit by a model where CO is depleted, except in the inner and outermost
regions where the temperature increases above 30-40 K. The fact that the
temperatures do not drop below approximately 25 K in any of the envelopes
whereas a significant fraction of CO is frozen-out suggest that the
interstellar radiation field has changed through the evolution of the cores.
The H2CO lines are successfully reproduced in the model of an increased ISRF
with constant abundances of 3-5x10^{-10}.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures. Accepted for publication in A&
- âŠ