LE GALLERIE METROPOLITANE COME SCAMBIATORI DI CALORE: UNA IDEA DI APPLICAZIONE A TORINO

L'attivazione termica dei rivestimenti delle gallerie urbane può consentire di sfruttare l'inerzia termica del sottosuolo al fine di riscaldare o raffrescare gli edifici in superficie. Nell'ambito di una ricerca in corso al Politecnico di Torino, la nota descrive una possibile applicazione alla metropolitana di Torino descrivendo alcuni risultati di analisi numeriche finalizzate a studiare gli effetti dell'attivazione termica del rivestimento della galleria sulla falda preesistent

Characterization and digital restauration of XIV-XV centuries written parchments by means of non-destructive techniques. Three case studies

Parchment is the primary writing medium of the majority of documents with cultural importance. Unfortunately, this material suffers of several mechanisms of degradation that affect its chemical-physical structure and the readability of text. Due to the unique and delicate character of these objects, the use of nondestructive techniques is mandatory. In this work, three partially degraded handwritten parchments dating back to the XIV-XV centuries were analyzed by means of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, µ-ATR Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and reflectance and UV-induced fluorescence spectroscopy. 'e elemental and molecular results provided the identification of the inks, pigments, and superficial treatments. In particular, all manuscripts have been written with iron gall inks, while the capital letters have been realized with cinnabar and azurite. Furthermore, multispectral UV fluorescence imaging and multispectral VIS-NIR imaging proved to be a good approach for the digital restoration of manuscripts that suffer from the loss of inked areas or from the presence of brown spotting. Indeed, using ultraviolet radiation and collecting the images at different spectral ranges is possible to enhance the readability of the text, while by illuminating with visible light and by collecting the images at longer wavelengths, the hiding effect of brown spots can be attenuated

Characterization and digital restauration of XIV-XV centuries written parchments by means of non-destructive techniques. Three case studies

Parchment is the primary writing medium of the majority of documents with cultural importance. Unfortunately, this material suffers of several mechanisms of degradation that affect its chemical-physical structure and the readability of text. Due to the unique and delicate character of these objects, the use of nondestructive techniques is mandatory. In this work, three partially degraded handwritten parchments dating back to the XIV-XV centuries were analyzed by means of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, µ-ATR Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and reflectance and UV-induced fluorescence spectroscopy. 'e elemental and molecular results provided the identification of the inks, pigments, and superficial treatments. In particular, all manuscripts have been written with iron gall inks, while the capital letters have been realized with cinnabar and azurite. Furthermore, multispectral UV fluorescence imaging and multispectral VIS-NIR imaging proved to be a good approach for the digital restoration of manuscripts that suffer from the loss of inked areas or from the presence of brown spotting. Indeed, using ultraviolet radiation and collecting the images at different spectral ranges is possible to enhance the readability of the text, while by illuminating with visible light and by collecting the images at longer wavelengths, the hiding effect of brown spots can be attenuated

Physiological aspects of lime-induced chlorosis in some Vitis species. 2. Genotype response to stress conditions

Research NoteOne-year-old cuttings from 7 Vitis species (V. amurensis Rupr., V. berlandieri Planch., V. californica Bentham, V. cinerea Engelm., V. longii Prince, V. monticola Buckl., V. riparia Michx.) were grown in pots containing non-calcareous and calcareous soil. Leaves selected in the middle of the second year's growing season were assayed to test the iron concentration of the dry matter and the total iron uptake. The most significant findings of the trial were: a) shoot growth of V. amurensis, V. longii, V. monticola and V. riparia was strongly depressed by the calcareous soil; b) V. berlandieri and V. californica took up higher amounts of iron when growing in the calcareous soil; c) a high ash alkalinity occurred in chlorotic leaves of V. riparia compared to non-chlorotic leaves at the same iron concentration

Numerical model for solar thermal collectors and thermal energy storages based on phase change slurry

The efficiency of conventional solar thermal collectors and related thermal energy storages is often reduced by the requirement for high irradiation levels and the heat losses due to the relatively high temperature of the heat transfer fluid. In order to overcome those limitations, a solar thermal system capable of working at low temperatures through the exploitation of latent heat storage is presented in this paper. The proposed system was based on a novel heat transfer fluid and storage media, composed by a mixture of water and micro-encapsulated phase change material (PCM), named Phase Change Slurry (PCS). This paper introduces a numerical model capable of accurately describe the physical process and the dynamics of the proposed technology (collector, thermal energy storage and control logics). Results were validated by means of experimental tests and a long-term monitoring on a real full-scale prototype. Furthermore, experimental tests were performed to carry out the actual PCS thermo-dynamical properties that are strongly dependent on the concentration of micro-capsules in the heat transfer fluid

Energy Performance and Comfort Level in High Rise and Highly Glazed Office Buildings

Thermal and visual comfort in buildings play a significant role on occupants' performance but on the other hand achieving energy savings and high comfort levels can be a quite difficult task especially in high rise buildings with highly glazed facades. Many studies suggest that the energy needed to keep the interior conditions at required comfort levels in buildings depends on several factors such as physical and optical properties of building elements, indoor and outdoor climate and behaviour of the occupants, etc. Moreover depending on the different orientation of building facade, the impact of these parameters might vary. The buildings are usually designed without paying much attention to this fact. The needs of each building zone might differ greatly and in order to achieve better indoor environment, different actions might be needed to taken considering the individual characteristics of each zone. In the proposed research the possibilities of evaluating building energy and comfort performance simultaneously taking into account the impact of facade orientation with use of whole building energy simulation tools are investigated through a case study

Physiological aspects of lime-induced chlorosis in some Vitis species. I. Pot trial calareous soil

One-year-old cutting from eleven Vitis spp. (V. aestivalis Michx., V. amurensis Rupr., V. andersonii Rehder, V. arizonica Engelm., V. berlandieri Planch., V. californica Bentham, V. champini Plancch., V. cinerea Engelm., V. longii Prince, V. monticola Buckl., V. riparia Michx.) were grown in pot of a calcareous soil. Leaves selected in the middle of the annual growing season were assayed for total chlorophyll, macronutrients, oligo-element and ash alkalinity. At the end of the annual growing cycle the whole plants were analyzed for the iron concentration of the dry matter. The most significant findings were:V. berlandieri, V champini and V. cinerea ranked in the high tolerant group; V. arizonica, V. californica, V. longii and V. monticola in the tolerant group; V. aestivalis, V. amurensis, V. andersonii and V. riparia in the susceptible group;it is likely to exist two different mechanisms of tolerance to lime-induced chlorosis: an adaptive one for V. berlandieri and V. cinerea and a protective one for V. champin

The effect of different materials joint in Vacuum Insulation Panels

During recent years the use of Vacuum Insulation Panels in buildings applications has been improved, because of their both higher performances and lower thickness compared to traditional insulation materials. These performances are due to the interior vacuum degree, which represent also the main problem connected with the applications of this technological solution in buildings constructions: to maintain the vacuum condition the panels are enclosed in an envelope layer, characterized by an higher thermal conductivity. Moreover they have to be assembled to each other or to additional different joint materials in practical building application, generating a thermal bridging effect. The aim of present work is to analyse the critical aspects related to this insulation technology for building application. An experimental campaign through heat flow meter apparatus was carried out with the purpose of assessing the decrease of performance due to the thermal bridges effects considering different joint materials in VIPs assemblies

Characterization and energy performance of a slurry PCM-based solar thermal collector: a numerical analysis

Flat plate solar thermal collector is the most common technology for solar energy conversion at the building scale. This technology has been established since long time and continuous developments have been achieved as time passed by; significant improvements of flat plate solar thermal collectors are thus now limited. A novel approach to increase further the performance of this technology is based on the exploitation of the latent heat of the heat carrier fluid. In order to assess this strategy, a previously developed numerical model of flat plate solar thermal collector with slurry PCM as heat carrier is herewith used to simulate the technology. The characterization and energy performance of such a system are herewith presented, based on the outcome of the numerical analysis. The results demonstrate that the novel approach is able to improve the performance of the system under different boundary conditions and in different climates: the improvement in the instantaneous efficiency is in the range 5-10%, while during the winter season the converted heat by the slurry PCM-based system is 20-40% higher than that of a conventional water based solar collector, depending on the climates – the colder the climate, the larger the improvement

Overview of the benefitsand potential issues of the nonavalent HPV vaccine

HPV-related diseases affect anogenital and oropharyngeal regions, heavily affecting the psychosexual dimension of both male and female individuals. HPV vaccination programs based on a bivalent or quadrivalent vaccine have opened broad perspectives for primary prevention. A nonavalent HPV vaccine (9vHPV), covering nine genotypes (HPV6, HPV11, HPV16, HPV18, HPV31, HPV33, HPV45, HPV52, and HPV58), might provide further improvement in terms of direct protection. In the present report, efficacy and safety data from 9vHPV vaccine development programs are examined. Efficacy data come from a pivotal trial, which was conducted among women aged 16–26 years randomly assigned to receive either the 9vHPV or the quadrivalent HPV (4vHPV) vaccine. The 9vHPV vaccine was shown to have potential benefits as compared with 4vHPV, increasing the overall estimated rate of prevention to 90% for cervical cancer and up to 80% for precancerous cervical lesions. For all other HPV-related pre-invasive and invasive lesions, 9vHPV showed potentially greater disease reduction, depending on the anatomic region examined. Thus, the 9vHPV vaccine shows clinical potential for the prevention of HPV-related diseases in both sexes. Future adoption of 9vHPV will depend on factors including market price, cost-effectiveness data, use of a two-dose schedule, and safety and efficacy monitoring in real-life programs