Techno-economic and environmental assessment of the hybrid energy system considering electric and thermal loads

Optimal sizing of hybrid energy systems has been considerably investigated in previous studies. Nevertheless, most studies only focused on providing AC electric loads by renewable energy sources (RESs) and energy storage systems (ESSs). In this paper, a hybrid energy system, including photovoltaic (PV) system, ESS, fuel cell (FC), natural gas (NG) boiler, thermal load controller (TLC), and converter is optimized for supplying different load demands. Three scenarios are introduced to investigate the feasibility of the energy system. Environmental aspects of each system are analyzed, as there are NG-consuming sources in the system structure. A sensitivity analysis is conducted on the influential parameters of the system, such as inflation rate and interest rate. Simulation results show that the proposed hybrid energy system is economically and technically feasible. The net present cost (NPC) and cost of energy (COE) of the system are obtained at 230,223 $and 0.0409$, respectively. The results indicate that the TLC plays a key role in the optimal operation of the PV system and the reduction in greenhouse gas emission productions.Acknowledgments: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (61773120, 61802063), the Special Projects in Key Fields of Universities in Guangdong (2021ZDZX1019) and the Hunan Provincial Innovation Foundation for Postgraduate (CX20200585).Scopu

The Λp\bf{\Lambda p} interaction studied via femtoscopy in p + Nb reactions at sNN=3.18 GeV\mathbf{\sqrt{s_{NN}}=3.18} ~\mathrm{\bf{GeV}}

We report on the first measurement of $p\Lambda$ and $pp$ correlations via the femtoscopy method in p+Nb reactions at $\mathrm{\sqrt{s_{NN}}=3.18} ~\mathrm{GeV}$, studied with the High Acceptance Di-Electron Spectrometer (HADES). By comparing the experimental correlation function to model calculations, a source size for $pp$ pairs of $r_{0,pp}=2.02 \pm 0.01(\mathrm{stat})^{+0.11}_{-0.12} (\mathrm{sys}) ~\mathrm{fm}$ and a slightly smaller value for $p\Lambda$ of $r_{0,\Lambda p}=1.62 \pm 0.02(\mathrm{stat})^{+0.19}_{-0.08}(\mathrm{sys}) ~\mathrm{fm}$ is extracted. Using the geometrical extent of the particle emitting region, determined experimentally with $pp$ correlations as reference together with a source function from a transport model, it is possible to study different sets of scattering parameters. The $p\Lambda$ correlation is proven sensitive to predicted scattering length values from chiral effective field theory. We demonstrate that the femtoscopy technique can be used as valid alternative to the analysis of scattering data to study the hyperon-nucleon interaction.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figure

Verification of electromagnetic calorimeter concept for the HADES spectrometer

The HADES spectrometer currently operating on the beam of SIS18 accelerator in GSI will be moved to a new position in the CBM cave of the future FAIR complex. Electromagnetic calorimeter (ECAL) will enable the HADES@FAIR experiment to measure data on neutral meson production in heavy ion collisions at the energy range of 2-10 A GeVon the beam of the new accelerator SIS100. Calorimeter will be based on 978 massive lead glass modules read out by photomultipliers and a novel front-end electronics. Secondary gamma beam with energies ranging from 81 MeV up to 1399 MeV from MAMI-C Mainz facility was used to verify selected technical solutions. Relative energy resolution was measured using modules with three different types of photomultipliers. Two types of developed front-end electronics as well as energy leakage between neighbouring modules under parallel and declined gamma beams were studied in detail

Modelling, prediction and classification of student academic performance using artificial neural networks

The conventional statistical evaluations are limited in providing good predictions of the university educational quality. This paper presents an approach with both conventional statistical analysis and neural network modelling/prediction of students’ performance. Conventional statistical evaluations are used to identify the factors that likely affect the students’ performance. The neural network is modelled with 11 input variables, two layers of hidden neurons, and one output layer. Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm is employed as the backpropagation training rule. The performance of neural network model is evaluated through the error performance, regression, error histogram, confusion matrix and area under the receiver operating characteristics curve. Overall, the neural network model has achieved a good prediction accuracy of 84.8%, along with limitation

Highly deformed band structures due to core excitations in Xe 123

High-spin states in Xe123 were populated in the Se80(Ca48, 5n)Xe123 reaction at a beam energy of 207 MeV. γ-ray coincidence events were recorded with the Gammasphere spectrometer. Four new high-spin bands have been discovered in this nucleus. The bands are compared with those calculated within the framework of cranked Nilsson-Strutinsky and cranked Nilsson-Strutinsky-Bogoliubov models. It is concluded that the configurations of the bands involve two-proton excitations across the Z=50 as well as excitation of neutrons across the N=82 shell gaps resulting in a large deformation, 2≈0.30 and γ≈5°C

Optimising UK urban road verge contributions to biodiversity and ecosystem services with cost-effective management

Urban road verges can contain significant biodiversity, contribute to structural connectivity between other urban greenspaces, and due to their proximity to road traffic are well placed to provide ecosystem services. Using the UK as a case study we review and critically evaluate a broad range of evidence to assess how this considerable potential can be enhanced despite financial, contractual and public opinion constraints. Reduced mowing frequency and other alterations would enhance biodiversity, aesthetics and pollination services, whilst delivering costs savings and potentially being publically acceptable. Retaining mature trees and planting additional ones is favourable to residents and would enhance biodiversity, pollution and climate regulation, carbon storage, and stormwater management. Optimising these services requires improved selection of tree species, and creating a more diverse tree stock. Due to establishment costs additional tree planting and maintenance could benefit from payment for ecosystem service schemes. Verges could also provide areas for cultivation of biofuels and possibly food production. Maximising the contribution of verges to urban biodiversity and ecosystem services is economical and becoming an increasingly urgent priority as the road network expands and other urban greenspace is lost, requiring enhancement of existing greenspace to facilitate sustainable urban development

High-spin rotational bands in 123I

High-spin states in 123I were populated in the reaction 80Se(48Ca,p4n)123I at a beam energy of 207 MeV and γ-ray coincidence events were measured using the Gammasphere spectrometer. Three weakly populated, high-spin rotational bands have been discovered with characteristics similar to those of the long collective bands recently observed in other nuclei of this mass region. Configuration assignments are proposed based on calculations within the framework of the cranked Nilsson-Strutinsky approach