Analysis of the Status of Research and Innovation Actions on Electrofuels under Horizon 2020

Europe stated the ambitious target of becoming carbon neutral by 2050 to combat climate change and meet the requirements imposed by the Paris Agreement, and renewable energy has proved to be a promising solution for the decarbonization of many sectors. Nonetheless, their aleatory nature leads to grid unbalances due to the difference between supply and demand. Storage solutions are needed, and electrofuels become a key factor in this context: they are fuels produced from electricity, which leads to carbon-neutral fuels if it originates from renewable sources. These can constitute a key solution to store the surplus energy and to decarbonize the so-called hard-to-abate sectors. Electrofuel production technologies have not yet been fully developed, and, in this context, extensive study of the state-of-the-art of existing projects can be very useful for researchers and developers. This work researches the European projects funded by the Horizon 2020 Programme regarding electrofuel production. The projects were analyzed in-depth using specific features, and the results were presented

Predictive Controller for Refrigeration Systems Aimed to Electrical Load Shifting and Energy Storage

The need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is leading to an increase in the use of renewable energy sources. Due to the aleatory nature of these sources, to prevent grid imbalances, smart management of the entire system is required. Industrial refrigeration systems represent a source of flexibility in this context: being large electricity consumers, they can allow large-load shifting by varying separator levels or storing surplus energy in the products and thus balancing renewable electricity production. The work aims to model and control an industrial refrigeration system used for freezing food by applying the Model Predictive Control technique. The controller was developed in Matlab® and implemented in a Model-in-the-Loop environment. Two control objectives are proposed: the first aims to minimize total energy consumption, while the second also focuses on utilizing the maximum amount of renewable energy. The results show that the innovative controller allows energy savings and better exploitation of the available renewable electricity, with a 4.5% increase in its use, compared to traditional control methods. Since the proposed software solution is rapidly applicable without the need to modify the plant with additional hardware, its uptake can contribute to grid stability and renewable energy exploitation

Optimal Pressure Boundary Control of Steady Multiscale Fluid-Structure Interaction Shell Model Derived From Koiter Equations

The fluid-structure interaction (FSI) problem has been extensively studied, and many papers and books are available in the literature on the subject. In this work, we consider some optimal FSI pressure boundary control applications by using a membrane model derived from the Koiter shell equations where the thickness of the solid wall can be neglected and the computational cost of the numerical problem reduced. We study the inverse problem with the aim of achieving a certain objective by changing some design parameters (e.g. forces, boundary conditions or geometrical domain shapes) by using an optimal control approach based on Lagrange multipliers and adjoint variables. In particular, a pressure boundary optimal control is presented in this work. The optimality system is derived from the first-order optimality condition by taking the Fréchet derivatives of the Lagrangian with respect to all the variables involved. This system is solved by using a finite element code with mesh-moving capabilities. In order to support the proposed approach, we perform numerical tests where the pressure on a fluid domain boundary controls the displacement that occurs in a well-defined region of the solid domain

Paclitaxel and concomitant radiotherapy in high-risk endometrial cancer patients: preliminary findings

BACKGROUND: There is still much debate about the best adjuvant therapy after surgery for endometrial cancer (EC) and there are no current guidelines. Radiotherapy (RT) alone does not seem to improve overall survival. We investigated whether concomitant Paclitaxel (P) and RT gave better clinical results. METHODS: Twenty-three patients with high-risk EC (stage IIB, IIIA, IIIC or IC G3 without lymphadenectomy or with aneuploid tumor) underwent primary surgery and were then referred for adjuvant therapy. P was given at a dose of 60 mg/m2 once weekly for five weeks during RT, which consisted of a total radiation dose of 50.4 Gy. Three further weekly cycles of P at a dose of 80 mg/m2 were given at the end of RT. Overall survival and disease-free survival were calculated from the time of surgery. Patterns of failure were recorded by the sites of failure. RESULTS: A total of 157 cycles of P were administered both during radiotherapy and consolidation chemotherapy. Relapses occurred in five patients (21.7%). Median time to recurrence was 18.6 months (range 3–28). Survival rate for all the patients was 78.2%. Overall survival for the patients who completed chemo-radiation was of 81%. In this group median time to recurrence was 19.2 months (range 3–28). All recurrences were outside the radiation field. Mortality rate was 14.2%. CONCLUSION: This small series demonstrates pelvic radiotherapy in combination with weakly P followed by three consolidation chemotherapy cycles as an effective combined approach in high risk endometrial carcinoma patients

Controllo ottimo di problemi di interazione fluido-struttura multiscala attraverso simulazioni agli elementi finiti

Durante la fase di progettazione di un sistema fisico è ormai consuetudine costruire un modello matematico per simularne il comportamento. Il passo successivo è l’ottimizzazione del sistema stesso con lo scopo di poterlo controllare, modificando i parametri che vi compaiono, affinché agisca come desiderato. Spesso questo tipo di problemi viene affrontato con un approccio di tipo try and fail. Questo metodo risulta però essere molto dispendioso sia da un punto di vista dei calcoli che delle tempistiche. È piuttosto utile in questi casi passare allo studio del problema inverso. Si parte cioè dall’obiettivo, e si ricavano i valori dei parametri di progetto adeguati per ottenere i risultati desiderati attraverso la minimizzazione di un funzionale di costo, nel quale vengono imposte le condizioni di ottimo. In questa tesi si affrontano problemi inversi di interazione fluido-struttura (FSI) utilizzando la teoria del controllo ottimo. Un problema FSI è un sistema fisico in cui un fluido e un solido interagiscono tra loro, il moto del fluido comporta una deformazione del solido ed essa incide a sua volta sul moto del fluido. Il problema di ottimo è risolto con il metodo dell’equazione aggiunta ed è proposto un controllo ottimo per il problema stazionario, in cui l’obiettivo è ottenere un valore di deformazione del solido desiderato, tramite un controllo sulla pressione del fluido in ingresso. Il sistema di ottimo viene ricavato utilizzando il teorema dei moltiplicatori di Lagrange per la minimizzazione del funzionale, e si risolve iterativamente attraverso il metodo di discesa del gradiente. Si utilizza inoltre un approccio multiscala per modellare il solido, semplificato a un’entità di una dimensione inferiore rispetto al dominio del fluido, diventando così una condizione al contorno per il moto del fluido. La risoluzione del problema viene effettuata attraverso il metodo agli elementi finiti e il problema di controllo ottimo trovato viene implementato nel codice FEMuS

Dento-alveolar features and diet in an Etruscan population (6th-3rd c. B.C.) from northeast Italy.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of some dento-alveolar features (caries, dental calculus, tooth wear, enamel hypoplasia, abscesses, retraction of the alveolar bone, chipping, and ante mortem tooth loss) on an Iron Age sample from the Etruscan necropolis of Spina (North-Eastern Italy) and to make a relation with dietary evidence found in the archaeological records. These dental features were used to evaluate the oral health status and dietary habits with the aim of shedding light on the lifestyle and living conditions of this population. Materials and methods: The sample analysed consisted of 680 permanent teeth from 80 burials. Results: Overall, individuals at Spina exhibited a low incidence of caries, abscesses and ante mortem tooth loss, high calculus rates and severe attrition, suggesting a subsistence pattern based on a mixture of fishing, pastoralism and agriculture. The low incidence of hypoplasia was probably related to their good nutritional conditions and weak metabolic stresses during early childhood. Conclusions: These findings, quite similar to those of Etruscans from other parts of Italy, are very different from those of other populations living in the same territory during the same time. This pattern is indicative of a general good health status in this Iron Age population and may be related, at least in part, to the Etruscan diet

Synergic Functions of miRNAs Determine Neuronal Fate of Adult Neural Stem Cells

Summary: Adult neurogenesis requires the precise control of neuronal versus astrocyte lineage determination in neural stem cells. While microRNAs (miRNAs) are critically involved in this step during development, their actions in adult hippocampal neural stem cells (aNSCs) has been unclear. As entry point to address that question we chose DICER, an endoribonuclease essential for miRNA biogenesis and other RNAi-related processes. By specific ablation of Dicer in aNSCs in vivo and in vitro, we demonstrate that miRNAs are required for the generation of new neurons, but not astrocytes, in the adult murine hippocampus. Moreover, we identify 11 miRNAs, of which 9 have not been previously characterized in neurogenesis, that determine neurogenic lineage fate choice of aNSCs at the expense of astrogliogenesis. Finally, we propose that the 11 miRNAs sustain adult hippocampal neurogenesis through synergistic modulation of 26 putative targets from different pathways. : In this article, the authors demonstrate that Dicer-dependent miRNAs are required for the generation of new neurons, but not astrocytes, in the adult hippocampus in vivo and in vitro. The authors identify a new set of 11 miRNAs that synergistically converge on multiple targets in different pathways to sustain neurogenic lineage fate commitment in aNSCs. Keywords: mouse, hippocampus, neural stem cells, fate choice, adult neurogenesis, astrogliogenesis, DICER, microRNAs, synerg

Correlation between histogram-based DCE-MRI parameters and 18F-FDG PET values in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma: Evaluation in primary tumors and metastatic nodes.

OBJECTIVES:To investigate the correlation between histogram-based Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) parameters and positron emission tomography with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG-PET) values in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC), both in primary tumors (PTs) and in metastatic lymph nodes (LNs). METHODS:52 patients with a new pathologically-confirmed OPSCC were included in the present retrospective cohort study. Imaging including DCE-MRI and 18F-FDG PET/CT scans were acquired in all patients. Both PTs and the largest LN, if present, were volumetrically contoured. Quantitative parameters, including the transfer constants, Ktrans and Kep, and the volume of extravascular extracellular space, ve, were calculated from DCE-MRI. The percentiles (P), P10, P25, P50, P75, P90, and skewness, kurtosis and entropy were obtained from the histogram-based analysis of each perfusion parameter. Standardized uptake values (SUV), SUVmax, SUVpeak, SUVmean, metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and total lesion glycolysis (TLG) were calculated applying a SUV threshold of 40%. The correlations between all variables were investigated with the Spearman-rank correlation test. To exclude false positive results under multiple testing, the Benjamini-Hockberg procedure was applied. RESULTS:No significant correlations were found between any parameters in PTs, while significant associations emerged between Ktrans and 18F-FDG PET parameters in LNs. CONCLUSIONS:Evident relationships emerged between DCE-MRI and 18F-FDG PET parameters in OPSCC LNs, while no association was found in PTs. The complex relationships between perfusion and metabolic biomarkers should be interpreted separately for primary tumors and lymph-nodes. A multiparametric approach to analyze PTs and LNs before treatment is advisable in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC)