9,249 research outputs found
Strategic planning optimisation of "Napoli Est" water distribution system
The District Meter Areas (DMA) design is an innovative methodology of water networks management, based on the pressure patterns control and on the water flows monitoring, in order to reduce water losses and to optimize the water systems management. A District Meter Area is an area supplied from few water inputs, into which discharges can be easily measured to determine leaks. So, the DMA design represents an alternative to the traditional approach based on heavy looped distribution network. In the present paper the DMA design of the “Napoli Est” water distribution system (approximately 65.000÷70.000 customers), performed with the support of the Water Agency ARIN S.p.A., is discussed.
After analysis of authorized consumption, by means of a monitoring campaign of water flows over the area, the system water balance was performed, showing significant water losses, as a consequence of high pressure patterns. This situation was confirmed by the high number of maintenance operations performed in the area during the year 2005. In order to characterize the piezometric heads on the network, ARIN S.p.A. supplied to the installation of six pressure transducers in the most vulnerable areas. The water level in the supply reservoir was also measured in order to estimate its influence on the network pressure heads.
Hydraulic simulations were carried out with the EPANET software version 2.0 applied to a network layout resulted from the system “skeletonization”, achieved by eliminating out of order pipes, integrating pipelines of same diameter and roughness, replacing dead-end branches and small networks supplied by a single junction with an equivalent discharge.
After the skeletonizated network was calibrated, several hypothesis of designing and implementing DMA to reduce physical losses were performed, providing adequate operating pressure of the system. Many numerical simulations were performed to guarantee adequate head pressure especially for peak hours demand, break of transmission mains and fire hydrant service. A chlorine residuals analysis was also effected, by simulating the transport and decay of chlorine through the network.
District Meter Areas, therefore, were designed, and the corresponding hydraulic and water quality investigations and simulations were carried out. Six District Meter Areas were planned, assembling 14 intercepting valves and 9 pressure reducing valves to prevent the downstream pressure head from exceeding the set value, achieving a remarkable water saving, approximately equal to 34% of the physical losses, corresponding to 16% of system input volume
Optimal investment with intermediate consumption under no unbounded profit with bounded risk
We consider the problem of optimal investment with intermediate consumption
in a general semimartingale model of an incomplete market, with preferences
being represented by a utility stochastic field. We show that the key
conclusions of the utility maximization theory hold under the assumptions of no
unbounded profit with bounded risk (NUPBR) and of the finiteness of both primal
and dual value functions.Comment: 10 pages, revised version, to appear in the Applied Probability
Journal
New distinguished classes of spectral spaces: a survey
In the present survey paper, we present several new classes of Hochster's
spectral spaces "occurring in nature", actually in multiplicative ideal theory,
and not linked to or realized in an explicit way by prime spectra of rings. The
general setting is the space of the semistar operations (of finite type),
endowed with a Zariski-like topology, which turns out to be a natural
topological extension of the space of the overrings of an integral domain,
endowed with a topology introduced by Zariski. One of the key tool is a recent
characterization of spectral spaces, based on the ultrafilter topology, given
in a paper by C. Finocchiaro in Comm. Algebra 2014. Several applications are
also discussed
Observing the very low-surface brightness dwarfs in a deep field in the VIRGO cluster: constraints on Dark Matter scenarios
We report the discovery of 11 very faint (r< 23), low surface brightness
({\mu}_r< 27 mag/arcsec^2) dwarf galaxies in one deep field in the Virgo
cluster, obtained by the prime focus cameras (LBC) at the Large Binocular
Telescope (LBT). These extend our previous sample to reach a total number of 27
galaxies in a field of just of 0.17 deg^2 located at a median distance of 390
kpc from the cluster center. Their association with the Virgo cluster is
supported by their separate position in the central surface brightness - total
magnitude plane with respect to the background galaxies of similar total
magnitude. For a significant fraction (26\%) of the sample the association to
the cluster is confirmed by spectroscopic follow-up. We show that the mere
abundance of satellite galaxies corresponding to our observed number in the
target field provides extremely tight constraints on Dark Matter models with
suppressed power spectrum compared to the Cold Dark Matter case, independently
of the galaxy luminosity distribution. In particular, requiring the observed
number of satellite galaxies not to exceed the predicted abundance of Dark
Matter sub-halos yields a limit m_X >3 keV at 1-{\sigma} and m_X > 2.3 keV at
2-{\sigma} confidence level for the mass of thermal Warm Dark Matter particles.
Such a limit is competitive with other limits set by the abundance of
ultra-faint satellite galaxies in the Milky Way, is completely independent of
baryon physics involved in galaxy formation, and has the potentiality for
appreciable improvements with next observations. We extend our analysis to Dark
Matter models based on sterile neutrinos, showing that our observations set
tight constraints on the combination of sterile neutrino mass m_{\nu} and
mixing parameter sin^2(2{\theta}). We discuss the robustness of our results
with respect to systematics.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic
A novel procedure for medial axis reconstruction of vessels from Medical Imaging segmentation
A procedure for reconstructing the central axis from diagnostic image processing is presented here, capable of solving the widespread problem of stepped shape effect that characterizes the most common algorithmic tools for processing the central axis for diagnostic imaging applications through the development of an algorithm correcting the spatial coordinates of each point belonging to the axis from the use of a common discrete image skeleton algorithm. The procedure is applied to the central axis traversing the vascular branch of the cerebral system, appropriately reconstructed from the processing of diagnostic images, using investigations of the local intensity values identified in adjacent voxels. The percentage intensity of the degree of adherence to a specific anatomical tissue acts as an attraction pole in the identification of the spatial center on which to place each point of the skeleton crossing the investigated anatomical structure. The results were shown in terms of the number of vessels identified overall compared to the original reference model. The procedure demonstrates high accuracy margin in the correction of the local coordinates of the central points that permits to allocate precise dimensional measurement of the anatomy under examination. The reconstruction of a central axis effectively centered in the region under examination represents a fundamental starting point in deducing, with a high margin of accuracy, key informations of a geometric and dimensional nature that favours the recognition of phenomena of shape alterations ascribable to the presence of clinical pathologies
Some closure operations in Zariski-Riemann spaces of valuation domains: a survey
In this survey we present several results concerning various topologies that
were introduced in recent years on spaces of valuation domains
The detection of ultra-faint low surface brightness dwarf galaxies in the Virgo Cluster: a Probe of Dark Matter and Baryonic Physics
We have discovered 11 ultra-faint () low surface brightness
(LSB, central surface brightness ) dwarf galaxy
candidates in one deep Virgo field of just arcmin obtained by the
Large Binocular Camera (LBC) at the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT). Their
association with the Virgo cluster is supported by their distinct position in
the central surface brightness - total magnitude plane with respect to the
background galaxies of similar total magnitude. They have typical absolute
magnitudes and scale sizes, if at the distance of Virgo, in the range
and pc,
respectively. Their colors are consistent with a gradually declining star
formation history with a specific star formation rate of the order of
yr, i.e. 10 times lower than that of main sequence star
forming galaxies. They are older than the cluster formation age and appear
regular in morphology. They represent the faintest extremes of the population
of low luminosity LSB dwarfs that has been recently detected in wider surveys
of the Virgo cluster. Thanks to the depth of our observations we are able to
extend the Virgo luminosity function down to (corresponding to
total masses M), finding an average faint-end slope
. This relatively steep slope puts interesting constraints
on the nature of the Dark Matter and in particular on warm Dark Matter (WDM)
often invoked to solve the overprediction of the dwarf number density by the
standard CDM scenario. We derive a lower limit on the WDM particle mass
keV.Comment: accepted for publication in ApJ, 13 pages, 6 figure
Editorial: hepatocellular carcinoma – a rare complication of hepatic venous outflow tract obstruction
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111131/1/apt13198.pd
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