Price Spikes in Electricity Markets: A Strategic Perspective

This paper aims to analyze the issue of price spikes in electricity markets through the lens of noncooperative game theory. The case we consider is Australia’s long established National Electricity Market (NEM). Specifically, we adapt von der Fehr and Harbord’s multi-unit auction model to settings that more closely reflect the structure of the NEM, showing that price spikes can be related to a specifiable threshold in demand.Electricity Markets, Spot Price Behaviour, Non-Cooperative Game Theory.

Metal etching composition

The present invention is directed to a chemical etching composition for etching metals or metallic alloys. The composition includes a solution of hydrochloric acid, phosphoric acid, ethylene glycol, and an oxidizing agent. The etching composition is particularly useful for etching metal surfaces in preparation for subsequent fluorescent penetrant inspection

An energy and cost analysis of residential ground-coupled heat pumps in Iowa

Residential homes throughout the state of Iowa were used in a comprehensive study to evaluate performance, efficiency, and economics of existing vertical and horizontal GCHP systems. The objective of this study was to compare vertically-configured and horizontally-configured ground-coupled heat pumps without radiant floor heating. All homes were constructed between 1997 through 2001 and are of typical construction. The homes studied are distributed throughout the state of Iowa. It was also desired to compare heat pumps to natural gas furnaces for economics. The energy analysis predicted how much energy was required to condition the homes studied, and then estimated the coefficient of performance of each heat pump. Energy audits were performed on each home to determine physical characteristics necessary for the analysis. The utility bills for each home and actual weather data was acquired for analysis of the homes. Through the energy analysis of the heat pumps, the average (heating) coefficient of performance between vertical and horizontal configurations differed by less than 10%. Thus, it was determined that vertically and horizontal configurations of ground-coupled heat pumps operate at approximately the same efficiency. The economic analysis determined the cost to heat a home using a heat pump and a natural gas furnace. Two different electrical rates were used for the heat pumps, and one rate for the natural gas furnace. The economic analysis of winter operating cost showed significant savings of operating a ground-coupled heat pump over a natural gas furnace

Molecular organisation of water and alcohols at solid-liquid interfaces

The organisation and self-assembly of molecules at solid-liquid interfaces is central to numerous natural processes and can be used to create supramolecular architectures with functional applications. Historically, studies into surface-based self-assembly in liquids in ambient conditions are limited to molecules with significant surface interactions predisposed to durably reside at the surface. Outside of extreme conditions, such as low temperatures or under confinement, the self-assembly of small molecules (< 20 atoms) without significant surface interactions remains relatively unexplored. Here, a joint approach involving atomic force microscopy and molecular dynamics simulations is used to explore the self-assembly of small alcohols and water into supramolecular structures on hydrophobic surfaces in ambient conditions. This self-assembly can occur because of the formation of extended hydrogen bonded networks between the assembling molecules at the interface, enabling the molecules to adsorb as a group. Investigations into this system has led to three, major, novel observations. The first is that graphite catalyses a reaction involving water and volatile organics to produce small quantities of methanol. This reaction is enhanced by applied electric fields and the methanol produced can subsequently self-assembly with the water, thus changing the behaviour of the interfacial liquid. The second is that at hydrophobic interfaces, the structure of small alcohol-water mixtures displays a strong concentration dependence; with alcohol molecules at the surface switching between states of hydrogen bonding with the bulk liquid and with other molecules in the same plane. The final result is that due to the weak molecular surface interactions, the hydrogen bond networks of these group-effect stabilised assemblies can be influenced through multiple approaches to create a wide variety of supramolecular structures. The generality and importance of group-effect self-assembly is demonstrated to be applicable to multiple hydrophobic interfaces. Overall these results form the foundation for further investigations into small molecule self-assembly, along with having wider implications for other fields including the development of novel carbon-based catalytic materials, studies into transfer properties at electrodes as well as understanding friction and lubrication in many systems

Homesickness and the Location of Home: Germans, Heimweh, and the American Civil War

The subject of immigrant soldiers during the American Civil War has recently received an increase of attention among historians. Military and social historians have examined such themes as nativism, Americanization, and national identity. Although historians have often examined homesickness among soldiers, none have done so from a migrant point of view. As the largest foreign-born group in the Union army, constituting ten percent, the focus of this paper will be on immigrants from Germany. By looking at letters immigrants wrote to their families, both in the United States and Germany, this paper will examine how both married and single immigrant men interacted with home and war. In many cases, soldiers sought to structure their military environments to resemble the homes, familiar faces, customs, and foods they had left behind. This study seeks to add greater understanding of both the American Civil War and the migrant experience during the nineteenth century

Document, Joseph Foster to Stuart & Lincoln, December 5, 1837

This handwritten document, dated December 5, 1857 and sent by Joseph Foster, informs Stuart and Lincoln, Esq. of a forthcoming deposition of John Calhoun, Seth Cutter and others to be used as evidence in a trial in which Foster is the complainant. Stuart and Lincoln\u27s response, dated December 6, 1857 is at the bottom of the document.https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/fvw-manuscripts-original-manuscripts/1000/thumbnail.jp