Mitigating unbalance using distributed network reconfiguration techniques in distributed power generation grids with services for electric vehicles: A review

© 2019 Elsevier Ltd With rapid movement to combat climate change by reducing greenhouse gases, there is an increasing trend to use more electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy sources (RES). With more EVs integration into electricity grid, this raises many challenges for the distribution service operators (DSOs) to integrate such RES-based, distributed generation (DG) and EV-like distributed loads into distribution grids. Effective management of distribution network imbalance is one of the challenges. The distribution network reconfiguration (DNR) techniques are promising to address the issue of imbalance along with other techniques such as the optimal distributed generation placement and allocation (OPDGA) method. This paper presents a systematic and thorough review of DNR techniques for mitigating unbalance of distribution networks, based on papers published in peer-reviewed journals in the last three decades. It puts more focus on how the DNR techniques have been used to manage network imbalance due to distributed loads and DG units. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt to review the research works in the field using DNR techniques to mitigate unbalanced distribution networks. Therefore, this paper will serve as a prime source of the guidance for mitigating network imbalance using the DNR techniques to the new researchers in this field

Intimate partner violence around the time of pregnancy and postpartum depression: The experience of women of Bangladesh.

Background and objectivesIntimate partner violence (IPV) around the time of pregnancy is a serious public health concern and is known to have an adverse effect on perinatal mental health. In order to craft appropriate and effective interventions, it is important to understand how the association between IPV and postpartum depression (PPD) may differ as a function of the type and timing of IPV victimization. Here we evaluate the influence of physical, sexual and psychological IPV before, during and after pregnancy on PPD.MethodsCross-sectional survey data was collected between October 2015 and January 2016 in the Chandpur District of Bangladesh from 426 new mothers, aged 15-49 years, who were in the first six months postpartum. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to estimate the association between IPV and PPD, adjusted for socio-demographic, reproductive and psychosocial confounding factors.ResultsApproximately 35.2% of women experienced PPD within the first six months following childbirth. Controlling for confounders, the odds of PPD was significantly greater among women who reported exposure to physical (AOR: 1.79, 95% CI [1.25, 3.43]), sexual (AOR: 2.25, 95% CI [1.14, 4.45]) or psychological (AOR: 6.92, 95% CI [1.71, 28.04]) IPV during pregnancy as opposed to those who did not. However, both before and after pregnancy, only physical IPV evidences a direct effect on PPD. Results highlight the mental health consequences of IPV for women of Bangladesh, as well as the influence of timing and type of IPV on PPD outcomes.Conclusions and implicationsThe findings confirm that exposure to IPV significantly increases the odds of PPD. The association is particularly strong for physical IPV during all periods and psychological IPV during pregnancy. Results reinforce the need to conduct routine screening during pregnancy to identify women with a history of IPV who may at risk for PPD and to offer them necessary support

Assessment Of Pond Water Quality Of Thakurgaon Sadar Upazila For Fish Production

During dry season, physico-chemical properties of waters from 30 ponds of Thakugaon Sadar Upazila, Thakurgaon, Bangladesh were analyzed for its quality and suitability for aquaculture. The variation in the physico-chemical parameters of the aquaculture ponds above or below standard values has potential effects on the health and productivity of aquaculture. Overall, we found that the pond water were acidic to neutral in nature (pH varied from 6.0 to 7.2) and could be suitable for aquaculture. The dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration was suitable for fish production but more DO level should be present for all aquatic life especially for fish production. Chemical oxygen demands (COD) of all pond waters were within the permissible limits for fish production. The temperature values were remained within the standard values in all the aquaculture ponds. Pond water samples contained Ca2+, Mg2+ and Na+ as the dominant cations and HCO3- and Cl- were the dominant anions. All samples were within soft class regarding hardness. Based on Zn2+, Mn2+, Fe3+, SO42-, NO3- and Cl- all pond water samples were within the safe limit for fish production during dry period. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. & Tech. 3 (1): 29-34, June, 2013 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/ijarit.v3i1.1605

Morphological characterization and genetic diversity in lentil (Lens culinaris medikus ssp. Culinaris) germplasm

Genetic divergence of 110 lentil germplasm with checks was assessed based on morphological traits using multivariate analysis. Mahalanobis generalized distance (D2) analysis was used to group the lentil genotypes. Significant variations among lentil genotypes were observed in respect of days to 1st flowering, days to 50% flowering, days to maturity, plant height, and number of pods per peduncle, number of pods per plant, number of seeds per plant, 100 seed weight and yield per plant. Considering the mean values, the germplasm were grouped into ten clusters. The highest number of genotypes (17) was in cluster X and lowest (5) both in cluster II and IV. Cluster IV had the highest cluster mean for number of pods per plant (297.08), number of seeds per plant (594.16), 100 seed weight (1.44 g) and yield per plant (8.53 g). Among them, the highest inter-cluster distance was obtained between the cluster IV and I (24.61) followed by IV and III (22.33), while the lowest was between IX and II (1.63). The maximum value of inter-cluster distance indicated that genotypes belonging to cluster IV were far diverged from those of cluster I. The first female flower initiation was earlier in BD-3812 (49 days) in cluster I and cluster IV had highest grain yield per plant (8.53). BD-3807 produced significant maximum number of pods per plant (298.40) in cluster IV. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/ijarit.v4i1.21095 Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. & Tech. 4 (1): 70-76, June, 201

Toxicity bioassay of chlorpyrifos on some local fish species of northern Bangladesh

Four fish species namely, stinging catfish (Heteropneustes fossilis), spotted snakehead (Channa punctatus), climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) and tangra (Batasio tengana) were exposed to various concentrations of chlorpyrifos (Expert 20 EC) to investigate the mortality rate of fish species and the toxicity level of the pesticide. The LC50 values of chlorpyrifos on these fish species were 23.10, 20.32, 16.61 and 13.94 ppm, respectively at 96 hours of exposure. Among these results, it is clear that the lethal concentration is varying species to species because their strengths are different. During the experiments, some water quality parameters such as temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, total dissolved solids and electrical conductivity were also analyzed. The temperature values remained within the ranges of 17-20°C and the pH was 6.64-7.30. Fish behaved irregular and erratic movements followed by hyper excitability, loss of balance and settling to the bottom of the test chamber. At higher concentration of chlorpyrifos, alterations in physiological and behavioural responses especially erratic swimming, gulping, mucus secretion, increased opercular movement and profuse emission of mucus all above the body were observed during the primary stages of contact after which it became occasional. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. & Tech. 9 (1): 42-47, June, 201

PdCu single atom alloys supported on alumina for the selective hydrogenation of furfural

Single-atom catalysts serve as a skilful control of precious metals on heterogenous catalysts where all active sites are accessible for catalytic reactions. Here we report the adoption of PdCu single-atom alloys supported on alumina for the selective hydrogenation of furfural. This is a special class of an atom efficient, single-site catalyst where trace concentrations of Pd atoms (0.0067 wt%) displace surface Cu sites on the host nanoparticle. Confirmed by EXAFS, the Pd atoms are entirely coordinated to Cu, with Pd-Cu bond lengths identical to that of a Cu-Cu bond. Selectively surface oxidised catalysts also confirm surface Pd atoms by EXAFS. These catalysts improve the conversion of furfural to furfuryl alcohol compared to monometallic catalysts, as they have the advantages of Cu (high selectivity but poor activity) and Pd catalysts (superior activity but unselective) without the drawbacks, making them the optimal catalysts for green/atom efficient catalysis

Electronic Devices Based on Purified Carbon Nanotubes Grown By High Pressure Decomposition of Carbon Monoxide

The excellent properties of transistors, wires, and sensors made from single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) make them promising candidates for use in advanced nanoelectronic systems. Gas-phase growth procedures such as the high pressure decomposition of carbon monoxide (HiPCO) method yield large quantities of small diameter semiconducting SWNTs, which are ideal for use in nanoelectronic circuits. As-grown HiPCO material, however, commonly contains a large fraction of carbonaceous impurities that degrade properties of SWNT devices. Here we demonstrate a purification, deposition, and fabrication process that yields devices consisting of metallic and semiconducting nanotubes with electronic characteristics vastly superior to those of circuits made from raw HiPCO. Source-drain current measurements on the circuits as a function of temperature and backgate voltage are used to quantify the energy gap of semiconducting nanotubes in a field effect transistor geometry. This work demonstrates significant progress towards the goal of producing complex integrated circuits from bulk-grown SWNT material.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Nature Material

Changes of organic phosphorus in river waters in northern Bangladesh

The variability in phosphorus concentrations and the decomposition rates of organic phosphorus were measured in five selected rivers through four surveys in July and November of 2012, and February and May of 2013. After collection the water samples were incubated for 20 days in a dark incubator and the change of forms of phosphorus such as particulate organic phosphorus (POP), dissolved organic phosphorus (DOP) and dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP) were analyzed. By fitting the changes to two types of models, the decomposition rates of organic phosphorus were determined. The mean total organic phosphorus (TOP) decomposition rate coefficients in the studied rivers was 0.039 day-1. The average POP decomposition rate coefficient (POP?DOP?DIP model) was 0.038 day-1 while the mean DOP decomposition rate coefficient was 0.251 day-1. The decomposition rate coefficients measured in this study might be applicable for modeling of river water quality.Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. & Tech. 5 (2): 31-36, December, 201

The effectiveness of digital interventions for increasing physical activity in individuals of low socioeconomic status: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

This is the final version. Available from Springer via the DOI in this record. All data and code to replicate our analysis are freely available at https://github.com/MarkKelson/REPAIDBACKGROUND: Digital technologies such as wearables, websites and mobile applications are increasingly used in interventions targeting physical activity (PA). Increasing access to such technologies makes an attractive prospect for helping individuals of low socioeconomic status (SES) in becoming more active and healthier. However, little is known about their effectiveness in such populations. The aim of this systematic review was to explore whether digital interventions were effective in promoting PA in low SES populations, whether interventions are of equal benefit to higher SES individuals and whether the number or type of behaviour change techniques (BCTs) used in digital PA interventions was associated with intervention effects. METHODS: A systematic search strategy was used to identify eligible studies from MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, Web of Science, Scopus and The Cochrane Library, published between January 1990 and March 2020. Randomised controlled trials, using digital technology as the primary intervention tool, and a control group that did not receive any digital technology-based intervention were included, provided they had a measure of PA as an outcome. Lastly, studies that did not have any measure of SES were excluded from the review. Risk of Bias was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool version 2. RESULTS: Of the 14,589 records initially identified, 19 studies were included in the final meta-analysis. Using random-effects models, in low SES there was a standardised mean difference (SMD (95%CI)) in PA between intervention and control groups of 0.06 (- 0.08,0.20). In high SES the SMD was 0.34 (0.22,0.45). Heterogeneity was modest in both low (I2 = 0.18) and high (I2 = 0) SES groups. The studies used a range of digital technologies and BCTs in their interventions, but the main findings were consistent across all of the sub-group analyses (digital interventions with a PA only focus, country, chronic disease, and duration of intervention) and there was no association with the number or type of BCTs. DISCUSSION: Digital interventions targeting PA do not show equivalent efficacy for people of low and high SES. For people of low SES, there is no evidence that digital PA interventions are effective, irrespective of the behaviour change techniques used. In contrast, the same interventions in high SES participants do indicate effectiveness. To reduce inequalities and improve effectiveness, future development of digital interventions aimed at improving PA must make more effort to meet the needs of low SES people within the target population.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research CouncilHealth and Care Research Wales Health Fellowship AwardGW4 AllianceUK Centre for Ageing BetterElizabeth Blackwell InstituteMedical Research CouncilUniversity of BristolCentre for the Development and Evaluation of Complex Interventions for Public Health Improvement (DECIPHer)Alan Turing Institut

British South Asian ancestry participants views of pharmacogenomics clinical implementation and research: a thematic analysis.

BACKGROUND: South Asian ancestry populations are underrepresented in genomic studies and therapeutics trials. British South Asians suffer from multi-morbidity leading to polypharmacy. Our objective was to elucidate British South Asian ancestry community perspectives on pharmacogenomic implementation and sharing pharmacogenomic clinical data for research. METHODS: Four focus groups were conducted (9-12 participants in each). Two groups were mixed gender, while one group was male only and one was female only. Simultaneous interpretation was available to participants in Urdu and Bengali. Focus groups were recorded and abridged transcription and thematic analysis were undertaken. RESULTS: There were 42 participants, 64% female. 26% were born in the UK or Europe. 52% were born in Bangladesh and 17% in Pakistan. 36% reported university level education. Implementation of pharmacogenomics was perceived to be beneficial to individuals but pose a risk of overburdening resource limited systems. Pharmacogenomic research was perceived to be beneficial to the community, with concerns about data privacy and misuse. Data sharing was desirable if the researchers did not have a financial stake, and benefits would be shared. Trust was the key condition for the acceptability of both clinical implementation and research. Trust was linked with medication compliance. Education, outreach, and communication facilitate trust. CONCLUSIONS (SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY): Pharmacogenomics implementation with appropriate education and communication has the potential to enhance trust and contribute to increased medication compliance. Trust drives data sharing, which would enable enhanced representation in research. Representation in scientific evidence base could cyclically enhance trust and compliance