Estimating charging demand by modelling EV drivers' parking patterns and habits

The diffusion of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) requires a proper charging infrastructure to supply users the chance to charge their vehicles according to energy, time, and space needs. Thus, city planners and stakeholders need decision support tools to estimate the impacts of potential charging activities and compare alternative scenarios. The paper proposes a modelling approach to represent parking activities in urban areas and obtain key indicators of the electric energy required. The agent-based model reproduces the dynamics of user parking and assesses the impacts on the electricity grid during the day. Since the focus is on parking activities, no detailed data on vehicle trips are required to apply the standard demand modelling approach, which would require Origin-Destination matrices to simulate traffic flows on the road network. Preliminary results concerning the city of Turin are presented for simulated scenarios to identify zones where charging demand can be critical and peak events in electric power over the day. The model is designed to be scalable for all European cities because, as the case study shows, it uses available data. The results obtained can be used for the design of charging infrastructure (power and type) by zones

Effectiveness of cyclosporine and mycophenolate mofetil in a child with refractory evans syndrome

Evans Syndrome is a rare autoimmune disease consisting of hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia and/or neutropenia. It may be associated with other autoimmune or lymphoproliferative diseases. Its course can be extremely serious and, rarely, even life-threatening; thus it represents a excellent treatment challenge for the pediatric hematologist. First line treatment consists of steroids and/or immunoglobulin; further therapy with rituximab, vincristine, cyclophosphamide and other immunosuppressive drugs can be considered in unresponsive patients. We describe a baby with refractory Evans Syndrome that was cured by prolonged administration of mycophenolate mofetil and remained disease-free for 4 years after the discontinuation of treatment

Exploring Red Wine Aging: Comparative Analysis of Cellar and Sea Underwater Aging on Chemical Composition and Quality

The aging process of wine is influenced by various factors, including the presence of oxygen, the temperature, and the storage conditions. While oxygen can have both positive and negative effects on wine quality, temperature fluctuations during storage can impact its chemical composition. This study has investigated the aging of Merlot and Sangiovese wines under traditional cellar conditions and underwater, exploring the influence of storage parameters on their chemical evolution. Analyzing parameters such as temperature, pressure, and chemical composition, the research revealed subtle but significant changes in the wines over time. Both wines showed a gradual reduction in total phenols, anthocyanins, non-flavonoid compounds, and total sulfur dioxide, irrespective of the storage conditions. Preliminary findings suggested that aging wine underwater does not induce significant alterations in its fundamental characteristics compared to traditional cellar aging. These results contribute to a deeper understanding of wine aging processes and highlight the importance of storage conditions in preserving wine quality. Further research is needed to fully elucidate the complexities of underwater aging and its broader implications for wine production

Assessment of post-competition peak blood lactate in male and female master swimmers aged 40–79 years and its relationship with swimming performance

The main purpose of this study was to measure the postcompetition blood lactate concentration ([La]b) in master swimmers of both sexes aged between 40 and 79 years in order to relate it to age and swimming performance. One hundred and eight swimmers participating in the World Master Championships were assessed for [La]b and the average rate of lactate accumulation (La’;mmol l-1 s-1) was calculated. In addition, 77 of them were also tested for anthropometric measures. When the subjects were divided into 10-year age groups, males exhibited higher [La]b than women (factorial ANOVA, P < 0.01) and a steeper decline with ageing than female subjects. Overall, mean values (SD) of [La]b were 10.8 (2.8), 10.3 (2.0), 10.3 (1.9), 8.9 (3.2) mmol l-1 in women, and 14.2 (2.5), 12.4 (2.5), 11.0 (1.6), 8.2 (2.0) mmol l-1 in men for, respectively, 40–49, 50–59, 60–69, 70–79 years’ age groups. When, however, [La]b values were normalised for a ‘‘speed index’’, which takes into account swimming speed as a percentage of world record, these sex-related differences, although still present, were considerably attenuated. Furthermore, the differences in La’ between males and females were larger in the 40–49 age group (0.34 vs 0.20 mmol l-1 s-1 for 50-m distance) than in the 70–79 age group (0.12 vs 0.14 mmol l-1 s-1 for 50-m distance). Different physiological factors, supported by the considered anthropometric measurements, are suggested to explain the results

International genome-wide meta-analysis identifies new primary biliary cirrhosis risk loci and targetable pathogenic pathways.

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a classical autoimmune liver disease for which effective immunomodulatory therapy is lacking. Here we perform meta-analyses of discovery data sets from genome-wide association studies of European subjects (n=2,764 cases and 10,475 controls) followed by validation genotyping in an independent cohort (n=3,716 cases and 4,261 controls). We discover and validate six previously unknown risk loci for PBC (Pcombined<5 × 10(-8)) and used pathway analysis to identify JAK-STAT/IL12/IL27 signalling and cytokine-cytokine pathways, for which relevant therapies exist

Effects of confinement level, cross-section shape and corner radius on the cyclic behavior of CFRCM confined concrete columns

The main results of an experimental research aiming to investigate the behavior of medium-size low-strength concrete columns wrapped with Carbon Fiber Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (CFRCM) under monotonic and cyclic compressive axial loads are presented. Thirty columns with circular, square and rectangular cross-sections were tested under monotonic and cyclic axial loads to investigate the effect of the confinement level, the cross-section shape and the corner radius on the stiffness, strength, and ductility of CFRCM confined concrete columns under cyclic loads. The results prove that CFRCM confining jackets provide substantial gain in compressive strength, deformability and absorbed energy

Analisi sperimentale del comportamento ciclico di elementi in calcestruzzo a bassa resistenza confinati con FRCM

Vengono riportati i principali risultati di una campagna sperimentale finalizzata alla caratterizzazione della risposta sotto carichi assiali ciclici di colonne di calcestruzzo a bassa resistenza con sezione circolare, quadrata e rettangolare, rinforzate con fibre di carbonio immerse in matrice cementizia (CFRCM). Sono state condotte prove di compressione assiale su 30 campioni di altezza 600 mm, 10 a sezione cilindrica di diametro 300 mm, 10 quadrata di lato 200 mm, e 10 rettangolare di lato 200x400 mm. Le prove sono finalizzate a indagare gli effetti del carico ciclico, della forma della sezione, del raggio di curvatura degli spigoli e del numero di strati di tessuto di rinforzo sul legame tensione-deformazione dell’elemento confinato. I risultati ottenuti mostrano che il composito ottenuto dall’accoppiamento delle fibre di carbonio e della matrice cementizia impiegata è in grado di assicurare un notevole incremento di resistenza e di duttilità anche negli elementi a sezione rettangolare, dove l’incremento di prestazioni è stato minore, e che il sistema di rinforzo CFRCM è in grado di far fronte alle azioni cicliche senza significativo degrado dell’efficacia del sistema di confinamento. Non trascurabile si è rivelata la dipendenza delle prestazioni dal valore del raggio di curvatura degli spigoli, che risulta certamente meno significativa di quanto accade negli interventi di rinforzo con FRP, in ragione dell’azione di diffusione degli sforzi garantita dalla malta di accoppiamento

Strength and ductility of confined concrete columns under axial load and biaxial bending

The behaviour of prismatic reinforced concrete columns under increasing eccentric compression load was experimentally investigated and analytically modelled. Columns with distributed longitudinal reinforcement and closely spaced transverse reinforcement were tested up to failure, considering different values and directions of eccentricity. Preliminary tests were carried out under concentric compression in order to validate the choice of the stress-strain laws adopted for the confined concrete and the longitudinal steel bars in compression. In the paper, closed form expressions able to approximate the experimental results in the case of uniaxial bending are presented. Finally, a fibre numerical model is utilized for the cases of biaxial bending. The results show the reliability of the analytical models and suggest further studies to relate analytically the components of ultimate bending moment and curvature, in the cases of biaxial bending, to the values corresponding to two separate cases of uniaxial bending under the same level of compression