How fast can one overcome the paradox of the energy transition? A physico-economic model for the European power grid

The paradox of the energy transition is that the low marginal costs of new renewable energy sources (RES) drag electricity prices down and discourage investments in flexible productions that are needed to compensate for the lack of dispatchability of the new RES. The energy transition thus discourages the investments that are required for its own harmonious expansion. To investigate how this paradox can be overcome, we argue that, under certain assumptions, future electricity prices are rather accurately modeled from the residual load obtained by subtracting non-flexible productions from the load. Armed with the resulting economic indicator, we investigate future revenues for European power plants with various degree of flexibility. We find that, if neither carbon taxes nor fuel prices change, flexible productions would be financially rewarded better and sooner if the energy transition proceeds faster but at more or less constant total production, i.e. by reducing the production of thermal power plants at the same rate as the RES production increases. Less flexible productions, on the other hand, would see their revenue grow more moderately. Our results indicate that a faster energy transition with a quicker withdrawal of thermal power plants would reward flexible productions faster.Comment: 13 pages, 11 figures and 2 table

A predictive pan-European economic and production dispatch model for the energy transition in the electricity sector

The energy transition is well underway in most European countries. It has a growing impact on electric power systems as it dramatically modifies the way electricity is produced. To ensure a safe and smooth transition towards a pan-European electricity production dominated by renewable sources, it is of paramount importance to anticipate how production dispatches will evolve, to understand how increased fluctuations in power generations can be absorbed at the pan-European level and to evaluate where the resulting changes in power flows will require significant grid upgrades. To address these issues, we construct an aggregated model of the pan-European transmission network which we couple to an optimized, few-parameter dispatch algorithm to obtain time- and geographically-resolved production profiles. We demonstrate the validity of our dispatch algorithm by reproducing historical production time series for all power productions in fifteen different European countries. Having calibrated our model in this way, we investigate future production profiles at later stages of the energy transition - determined by planned future production capacities - and the resulting interregional power flows. We find that large power fluctuations from increasing penetrations of renewable sources can be absorbed at the pan-European level via significantly increased electricity exchanges between different countries. We identify where these increased exchanges will require additional power transfer capacities. We finally introduce a physically-based economic indicator which allows to predict future financial conditions in the electricity market. We anticipate new economic opportunities for dam hydroelectricity and pumped-storage plants.Comment: 6 pages, 8 figure

The Relationship between Arousal, Personality, and Perception of Control in a Gambling Task

The somatic marker hypothesis posits that physiological arousal is partially responsible for decision-making behavior. Arousal, measured by skin conductance responses (SCR), increases before deck choice in the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). These markers co-vary with performance -- pathological gamblers lack these markers and perform poorly. Personality also modulates IGT behavior – high-novelty-seeking (NS) individuals tend to perform worse. In the IGT, participants decide which deck to select, creating a potential confound between personality, performance, and arousal. For example, high-NS individuals select the bad decks more often, potentially causing habituation and a muted SCR. The first goal of this research was to replicate the finding that personality modulates arousal in a task which removes these confounds. Participants selected a series of cards from two decks. Each card was either a win or loss. Real money was used. To remove the potential confound between choice and outcome, all participants experienced the same outcomes regardless of choice. SCR was measured during the task. Personality characteristics previously shown to modulate gambling behavior, such as sensation seeking (SS), were measured. Arousal may also occur during other phases of gambling, for example, before or after the outcome is revealed. To date, few studies have examined the relationship between arousal in these different phases. The second goal was to determine this relationship. The phases of gambling (pre-choice, anticipation, and outcome) were temporally separated to allow for precise SCR measurement in each phase. The final goal was to determine the relationship between perceived control and physiological arousal. An \u27illusion of control\u27, e.g., pulling the lever on a slot machine, promotes gambling, especially in pathological gamblers. Little work has addressed the relationship between personality, control, and arousal. In different sessions, participants either selected the next card or the next card was selected for them. SS decreased arousal during all three gambling phases. The perception of control decreased arousal during the pre-choice phase only. This latter effect was strongest for low-SS individuals. The ramifications of this study are clear: identifying how physiological responses vary with personality opens up avenues for potential treatment of problem gambling

Locating line and node disturbances in networks of diffusively coupled dynamical agents

A wide variety of natural and human-made systems consist of a large set of dynamical units coupled into a complex structure. Breakdown of such systems can have dramatic impact, as for instance neurons in the brain or lines in an electric grid. Preventing such catastrophic events requires in particular to be able to detect and locate the source of disturbances as fast as possible. We propose a simple method to identify and locate disturbances in networks of coupled dynamical agents, relying only on time series measurements and on the knowledge of the (Kron-reduced) network structure. The strength and the appeal of the present approach lies in its simplicity paired with the ability to precisely locate disturbances and even to differentiate between line and node disturbances. If we have access to measurement at only a subset of nodes, our method is still able to identify the location of the disturbance if the disturbed nodes are measured. If not, we manage to identify the region of the network where the disturbance occurs.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figure

Influence d'une alimentation sans fibre longue sur la volumétrie des pré-estomacs chez l'agneau à l'engraissement : approche tomodensitométrique

La filière de production de viande ovine Lacaune cherche actuellement à améliorer la qualité des peaux des agneaux afin de les intégrer au sein de la maroquinerie de luxe Française. Le principal élément incriminé dans la dégradation des peaux étant la présence de paille dans l’alimentation des agneaux à l’engraissement, une nouvelle ration dépourvue de fibres longues a été conçue. Il est néanmoins nécessaire de s’assurer que ce projet soit compatible avec le bien-être animal et le maintien des performances zootechniques. C’est pourquoi cette thèse vise à évaluer les conséquences d’une telle alimentation sur le développement des pré-estomacs des agneaux. Pour cela des examens tomodensitométriques ont été réalisés sur les agneaux afin de déterminer la volumétrie de ces compartiments digestifs à partir du logiciel Horos. Les résultats obtenus montrent que l’absence de fibres longues dans la ration d’engraissement n’a pas d’impact sur la volumétrie des pré-estomacs des agneaux

The Cenozoic evolution of the Roer Valley Rift System integrated at a European scale

International audienceThe Roer Valley Rift System (RVRS) is located between the West European rift and the North Sea rift system. During the Cenozoic, the RVRS was characterized by several periods of subsidence and inversion, which are linked to the evolution of the adjacent rift systems. Combination of subsidence analysis and results from the analysis of thickness distributions and fault systems allows the determination of the Cenozoic evolution and quantification of the subsidence. During the Early Paleocene, the RVRS was inverted (Laramide phase). The backstripping method shows that the RVRS was subsequently mainly affected by two periods of subsidence, during the Late Paleocene and the Oligocene–Quaternary time intervals, separated by an inversion phase during the Late Eocene. During the Oligocene and Miocene periods, the thickness of the sediments and the distribution of the active faults reveal a radical rotation of the direction of extension by about 70–80j (counter clockwise). Integration of these results at a European scale indicates that the Late Paleocene subsidence was related to the evolution of the North Sea basins, whereas the Oligocene–Quaternary subsidence is connected to the West European rift evolution. The distribution of the inverted provinces also shows that the Early Paleocene inversion (Laramide phase) has affected the whole European crust, whereas the Late Eocene inversion was restricted to the southern North Sea basins and the Channel area. Finally, comparison of these deformations in the European crust with the evolution of the Alpine chain suggests that the formation of the Alps has controlled the evolution of the European crust since the beginning of the Cenozoic

Quelles pratiques littéraciées sont mobilisées par les futurs professeurs des écoles lorsqu’ils « font de la grammaire » ?

Nous proposons de transposer la notion de co-construction des inégalités et de malentendus sociocognitifs développés au sein du CIRCEFT au contexte de formation universitaire des futurs professeurs des écoles. Le concept de malentendu sociocognitif invite à prendre en compte le travail interprétatif de l’apprenant. C’est cette préoccupation qui nous a conduits à nous intéresser aux literacy studies et à chercher à mettre en évidence le sens que les étudiants ont effectivement construit des situations d’enseignement-apprentissage de la grammaire. Ainsi, les étudiants ne semblent pas inscrire ces « évènements de littéracie » dans les pratiques spécifiques de littéracie que constitue justement ce que l’on nomme la littéracie scolaire. Au-delà du sens que les étudiants donnent aux catégories grammaticales (sujet, phrase, verbe, etc.), nous nous sommes intéressés au sens qu’ils donnent à des opérations linguistiques (segmentation, suppression, déplacement, commutation) et aux enjeux d’apprentissage de l’activité grammaticale en analysant comment ils utilisent ces manipulations linguistiques et ces catégories.We propose to translate the concept of co-construction of inequalities and of sociocognitive misunderstanding developed within the CIRCEFT to the context of university training of future teachers of schools. The concept of sociocognitive misunderstanding invites to take into account the interpretative work of the learner. It is this concern that has led us to take an interest in Literacy Studies. From these concepts, we highlight the meaning that the students have actually constructed of situations of teaching-learning of grammar. Thus, students do not seem to be putting these “literacy events” in the specific literacy practices of what is called school literacy. Beyond the meaning that students give to the grammatical categories (subject, sentence, verb, etc.), we are interested in the meaning they give to linguistic operations (segmentation, suppression, displacement, commutation) and learning issues of grammatical activity by analyzing how they use these linguistic manipulations and categories

Differentiable Simulator For Dynamic & Stochastic Optimal Gas & Power Flows

In many power systems, particularly those isolated from larger intercontinental grids, operational dependence on natural gas becomes pivotal, especially during fluctuations or unavailability of renewables coupled with uncertain consumption patterns. Efficient orchestration and inventive strategies are imperative for the smooth functioning of these standalone gas-grid systems. This paper delves into the challenge of synchronized dynamic and stochastic optimization for independent transmission-level gas-grid systems. Our approach's novelty lies in amalgamating the staggered-grid method for the direct assimilation of gas-flow PDEs with an automated sensitivity analysis facilitated by SciML/Julia, further enhanced by an intuitive linkage between gas and power grids via nodal flows. We initiate with a single pipe to establish a versatile and expandable methodology, later showcasing its effectiveness with increasingly intricate examples.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures, submitted to PSCC 202

Проектирование оборудования автоцистерны для применения в подразделениях добровольной пожарной охраны на базе специального автомобиля АРС-14

Актуальность данной работы заключается в том, что пожары с течением времени охватывают большую территорию и наносит значительный экономический ущерб сельским поселениям, удаленным на значительное расстояние от подразделений ФПС МЧС России. В связи с этим укомплектование добровольно пожарных команд ВДПО является решением данной проблемы. Целью данной работы является повышение эффективности ведения пожаротушения подразделениями ВДПО.The relevance of this work is that fires over time cover a large area and cause significant economic damage to rural settlements remote from a significant distance from the units of the Federal Emergency Service of Russia. In this regard, the manning of volunteer firefighters VDPO is the solution to this problem. The purpose of this work is to increase the efficiency of firefighting by VDPO units