The reservoir network: A new network topology for district heating and cooling

Thermal district networks are effective solutions to substitute fossil fuels with renewable energy sources for heating and cooling. Moreover, thermal networking of buildings allows energy efficiency to be further increased. The waste heat from cooling can be reused for heating in thermal district systems. Because of bidirectional energy flows between prosumers, thermal networks require new hydraulic concepts. In this work, we present a novel network topology for simultaneous heating and cooling: the reservoir network. The reservoir network is robust in operation due to hydraulic decoupling of transfer stations, integrates heat sources and heat sinks at various temperature levels and is flexible in terms of network expansion. We used Modelica simulations to compare the new single-pipe reservoir network to a basecase double-pipe network, taking yearly demand profiles of different building types for heating and cooling. The electric energy consumed by the heat pumps and circulations pumps differs between the reservoir and base case networks by less than 1%. However, if the reservoir network is operated with constant instead of variable mass flow rate, the total electrical consumption can increase by 48% compared to the base case. As with any other network topology, the design and control of such networks is crucial to achieving energy efficient operation. Investment costs for piping and trenching depend on the district layout and dimensioning of the network. If a ring layout is applied in a district, the reservoir network with its single-pipe configuration is more economical than other topologies. For a linear layout, the piping costs are slightly higher for the reservoir network than for the base case because of larger pipe diameters

Improving the spatial resolution by effective subtraction technique at Irkutsk incoherent scatter radar: the theory and experiment

We describe a sounding technique that allows us to improve spatial resolution of Irkutsk Incoherent Scatter Radar without loosing spectral resolution. The technique is based on transmitting of rectangle pulses of different duration in various sounding runs and subtracting correlation matrixes. Theoretically and experimentally we have shown, that subtraction of the mean-square parameters of the scattered signal for different kinds of the sounding signal one from another allows us to solve the problem within the framework of quasi-static ionospheric parameters approximation.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, to appear at URSI-2011 conferenc

Interpreting the role of the striatum during multiple phases of motor learning

The synaptic pathways in the striatum are central to basal ganglia functions including motor control, learning and organization, action selection, acquisition of motor skills, cognitive function, and emotion. Here, we review the role of the striatum and its connections in motor learning and performance. The development of new techniques to record neuronal activity and animal models of motor disorders using neurotoxin, pharmacological, and genetic manipulations are revealing pathways that underlie motor performance and motor learning, as well as how they are altered by pathophysiological mechanisms. We discuss approaches that can be used to analyze complex motor skills, particularly in rodents, and identify specific questions central to understanding how striatal circuits mediate motor learning

Asymptotic Reduction of a Lithium-ion Pouch Cell Model

A three-dimensional model of a single-layer lithium-ion pouch cell is presented which couples conventional porous electrode theory describing cell electrochemical behaviour with an energy balance describing cell thermal behaviour. Asymptotic analysis of the model is carried out by exploiting the small aspect ratio typical of pouch cell designs. The analysis reveals the scaling that results in a distinguished limit, and highlights the role played by the electrical conductivities of the current collectors. The resulting model comprises a collection of one-dimensional models for the through-cell electrochemical behaviour which are coupled via two-dimensional problems for the Ohmic and thermal behaviour in the planar current collectors. A further limit is identified which reduces the problem to a single volume-averaged through-cell model, greatly reducing the computational complexity. Numerical simulations are presented which illustrate and validate the asymptotic results.Comment: 27 pages, 6 figures, submitted to SIAM Journal on Applied Mathematics (08/05/2020

An Easy-to-Implement Protocol for Preparing Postnatal Ventral Mesencephalic Cultures.

Postnatally derived cultures of ventral mesencephalic neurons offer several crucial advantages over embryonic ventral mesencephalic cultures, including a higher content of TH-positive cells and the ability to derive cells from the substantia nigra, which contains the neurons most vulnerable to Parkinson's disease. On the other hand, these cultures are more challenging to produce consistently. Here, we provide an easy-to-implement protocol for culturing postnatal ventral mesencephalic cells from the substantia nigra (SN) and the ventral tegmental area using commercially available media, dishes, and general lab equipment, avoiding extensive material and equipment purchases. The protocol can be completed in about 5 h and provides ventral midbrain neuron cultures on cortex glia feeder layers in three weeks' time. The protocol uses an optimized protease digestion, tissue storage in Hibernate A during dissection and purification of neurons on an OptiPrep density gradient

A Suite of Reduced-Order Models of a Single-Layer Lithium-ion Pouch Cell

For many practical applications, fully coupled three-dimensional models describing the behaviour of lithium-ion pouch cells are too computationally expensive. However, owing to the small aspect ratio of typical pouch cell designs, such models are well approximated by splitting the problem into a model for through-cell behaviour and a model for the transverse behaviour. In this paper, we combine different simplifications to through-cell and transverse models to develop a hierarchy of reduced-order pouch cell models. We give a critical numerical comparison of each of these models in both isothermal and thermal settings, and also study their performance on realistic drive cycle data. Finally, we make recommendations regarding model selection, taking into account the available computational resource and the quantities of interest in a particular study

Impulse control disorders in Parkinson's disease: decreased striatal dopamine transporter levels

Objective Impulse control disorders are commonly associated with dopaminergic therapy in Parkinson's disease (PD). PD patients with impulse control disorders demonstrate enhanced dopamine release to conditioned cues and a gambling task on [11C]raclopride positron emission tomography (PET) imaging and enhanced ventral striatal activity to reward on functional MRI. We compared PD patients with impulse control disorders and age-matched and gender-matched controls without impulse control disorders using [123I]FP-CIT (2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl)tropane) single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), to assess striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) density. Methods The [123I]FP-CIT binding data in the striatum were compared between 15 PD patients with and 15 without impulse control disorders using independent t tests. Results Those with impulse control disorders showed significantly lower DAT binding in the right striatum with a trend in the left (right: F(1,24)=5.93, p=0.02; left: F(1,24)=3.75, p=0.07) compared to controls. Conclusions Our findings suggest that greater dopaminergic striatal activity in PD patients with impulse control disorders may be partly related to decreased uptake and clearance of dopamine from the synaptic cleft. Whether these findings are related to state or trait effects is not known. These findings dovetail with reports of lower DAT levels secondary to the effects of methamphetamine and alcohol. Although any regulation of DAT by antiparkinsonian medication appears to be modest, PD patients with impulse control disorders may be differentially sensitive to regulatory mechanisms of DAT expression by dopaminergic medications

Autoimmunity in Parkinson's Disease: The Role of α-Synuclein-Specific T Cells

Evidence from a variety of studies implicates a role for the adaptive immune system in Parkinson's disease (PD). Similar to multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who display a high number of T cells in the brain attacking oligodendrocytes, PD patients show higher numbers of T cells in the ventral midbrain than healthy, age-matched controls. Mouse models of the disease also show the presence of T cells in the brain. The role of these infiltrating T cells in the propagation of disease is controversial; however, recent studies indicate that they may be autoreactive in nature, recognizing disease-altered self-proteins as foreign antigens. T cells of PD patients can generate an autoimmune response to α-synuclein, a protein that is aggregated in PD. α-Synuclein and other proteins are post-translationally modified in an environment in which protein processing is altered, possibly leading to the generation of neo-epitopes, or self-peptides that have not been identified by the host immune system as non-foreign. Infiltrating T cells may also be responding to such modified proteins. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have shown associations of PD with haplotypes of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II genes, and a polymorphism in a non-coding region that may increase MHC class II in PD patients. We speculate that the inflammation observed in PD may play both pathogenic and protective roles. Future studies on the adaptive immune system in neurodegenerative disorders may elucidate steps in disease pathogenesis and assist with the development of both biomarkers and treatments

Inhibition of osteoclast differentiation and bone resorption by N-methylpyrrolidone

Regulation of RANKL (receptor activator of nuclear factor κB ligand)-induced osteoclast differentiation is of current interest in the development of antiresorptive agents. Osteoclasts are multinucleated cells that play a crucial role in bone resorption. In this study, we investigated the effects of N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP) on the regulation of RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis. NMP inhibited RANKL-induced tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase activity and the formation of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase-positive multinucleated cells. The RANKL-induced expression of NFATc1 (nuclear factor of activated T cells, cytoplasmic 1) and c-Fos, which are key transcription factors for osteoclastogenesis, was also reduced by treatment with NMP. Furthermore, NMP induced disruption of the actin rings and decreased the mRNAs of cathepsin K and MMP-9 (matrix metalloproteinase-9), both involved in bone resorption. Taken together, these results suggest that NMP inhibits osteoclast differentiation and attenuates bone resorption. Therefore, NMP could prove useful for the treatment of osteoporosis or other bone diseases associated with excessive bone resorption

Loss of Striatonigral GABAergic Presynaptic Inhibition Enables Motor Sensitization in Parkinsonian Mice

SummaryDegeneration of dopamine (DA) neurons in Parkinson’s disease (PD) causes hypokinesia, but DA replacement therapy can elicit exaggerated voluntary and involuntary behaviors that have been attributed to enhanced DA receptor sensitivity in striatal projection neurons. Here we reveal that in hemiparkinsonian mice, striatal D1 receptor-expressing medium spiny neurons (MSNs) directly projecting to the substantia nigra reticulata (SNr) lose tonic presynaptic inhibition by GABAB receptors. The absence of presynaptic GABAB response potentiates evoked GABA release from MSN efferents to the SNr and drives motor sensitization. This alternative mechanism of sensitization suggests a synaptic target for PD pharmacotherapy