The Risk-Free Rate’s Impact on Stock Returns with Representative Fund Managers

In this thesis, the risk-free rate’s impact on stock market excess returns was examined. Firstly, theoretical arguments were made for that a low risk-free rate might lower the excess return on the stock market, since this increases the incentive for fund managers to increase variance of returns. Under the assumption that fund managers affect the preferences of the representative investor, propositions regarding stock returns and the risk-free rate were made. Using the time series of stochastic volatility risk premium estimates created by Bollerslev, Gibson and Zhou’s (2011), it was tested if investor risk aversion is lower when the risk-free rate is low. The risk-free rate’s impact on the cross-section of stock returns was tested through the same methodology used by Black, Jensen, Scholes (1972) with independent variables linked to the risk-free rate added. Support for lower risk aversion during periods of a low risk-free rate was found. In opposite to the proposition regarding the cross-section of stock returns, the tests suggest that excess returns for all portfolios are higher when the risk-free rate is low

Modeling metal oxide nanoparticle GABA interactions: Complexation between the Keggin POM and gamma-aminobutyric acid in the solid state and in solution influenced by additional ligands

Phosphotungstic acid (POM) was crystallized together with the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in acidic medium to form [(HGABA)3PW12O40], compound 1. The latter would only crystalize in the presence of dopamine, while dopamine itself did not become a part of the complex, but crystallized separately as [(Hdopamine)2HPW12O40], compound 2, as previously reported. GABA interacts with POM via hydrogen bonding between the protonated amino group and a terminal oxygen on POM and also via protonated carboxylic acid group. Based on structural information from the crystal structures of 1 and 2 together with complementary studies using other catechols we attempted to provide molecular insight into the well-known structure-directing effect of dopamine. Strong hydrogen bonding between dopamine and POM, together with formation of "dopamine dimers" in the packed structure by interactions between the aromatic rings and intermolecular hydrogen bonding might be important factors for them in directing the self-assembly of polyoxometalates into complex hierarchal structures. Interaction between dopamine and GABA in solution was investigated by diffusion ordered spectrometry (DOSY) NMR in MilliQ-water and in 0.1 M HCl

A framework for flexible and cost-efficient retrofit measures of heat exchanger networks

Retrofitting of industrial heat recovery systems can contribute significantly to meeting energy efficiency targets for industrial plants. One issue to consider when screening retrofit design proposals is that industrial heat recovery systems must be able to handle variations, e.g., in inlet temperatures or heat capacity flow rates, in such a way that operational targets are reached. Consequently, there is a need for systematic retrofitting methodologies that are applicable to multiperiod heat exchanger networks (HENs). In this study, a framework was developed to achieve flexible and cost-efficient retrofit measures of (industrial) HENs. The main idea is to split the retrofitting processes into several sub-steps. This splitting allows well-proven (single period) retrofit methodologies to be used to generate different design proposals, which are collected in a superstructure. By means of structural feasibility assessment, structurally infeasible design proposals can be discarded from further analysis, yielding a reduced superstructure. Additionally, critical point analysis is applied to identify those operating points within the uncertainty span that determine necessary overdesign of heat exchangers. In the final step, the most cost-efficient design proposal within the reduced superstructure is identified. The proposed framework was applied to a HEN retrofit case study to illustrate the proposed framework

Characterization and visualization of industrial excess heat for different levels of on-site process heat recovery

Increased utilization of industrial excess heat (or waste heat) can reduce primary energy use and thereby contribute to reaching energy and climate targets. To estimate the potential availability of industrial excess heat, it is necessary to capture the significant heterogeneity of the industrial sector. This requires the development of methodologies based on case study assessments of individual plants, adopting a systematic approach and consistent assumptions. Since the recovery of excess heat for power generation or off-site delivery competes with internal recovery for on-site fuel savings, a well-founded approach should enable a comparison of the excess heat availability at different levels of internal process heat recovery. To determine the best solution for excess heat utilization for a given process, there is a need for easy screening of various options, while considering that some techniques require heat at a constant temperature while others can exploit a nonisothermal heat supply. This paper presents a new tool, the excess heat temperature (XHT) signature, for exploring the potential heat availability and trade-offs for excess heat utilization by weighting the heat according to predefined temperature levels and ranges. A set of reference conditions are defined, and an energy targeting approach is proposed that can be used for characterizing the Theoretical XHT signature, which represents the unavoidable excess heat that can be recovered after maximized internal process heat recovery and ideal integration of a power generation steam cycle. The Theoretical XHT signature is contrasted with the Process Cooling XHT signature, which represents the excess heat that can be recovered given the current design and operation of the process and its utility system. The XHT signature curves provide a consistent representation of the excess heat, enabling comparison between sites and aggregation of results from different case studies

Bottom–Up Assessment Framework for Electrification Options in Energy-Intensive Process Industries

Electrification of industrial processes is one of the frequently discussed options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from energy-intensive industries. This paper presents a bottom–up framework to assess process electrification options for energy-intensive industrial process plants in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and energy costs. The framework is based upon pinch analysis energy targetting methods, and accounts for site-specific conditions, including the effects on heat recovery potential and overall mass and energy balances. Furthermore, interactions between the process site and the background energy system are considered and scenarios are introduced in order to assess the impact of electrification options under different possible future energy market conditions. The framework is illustrated by a case study for an existing chemical plant for which there is a broad variety of electrification options that affect the process in different ways. The option of replacing the natural gas based syngas production unit with electrified syngas and steam production is analysed in detail. The results indicate natural gas savings of 173 MW whereas the electricity demand increases by 267 MW, leading to a strong increase in energy costs but also avoided greenhouse gas emissions of 333 kt/a. For two selected energy market scenarios for 2030 and 2040, the energy costs increase by 59 and 50 M€/a, respectively. The framework can be used to compare electrification with other process greenhouse gas emission reduction measures and to support policy and industrial decision making

Potential for Negative Emissions by Carbon Capture and Storage From a Novel Electric Plasma Calcination Process for Pulp and Paper Mills

The pulp and paper industry has a high potential to contribute to negative emissions through carbon capture and storage (CCS) applied to existing processes. However, there is a need to investigate how CCS solutions also can be combined with implementation of other emerging technologies in pulp and paper mills. This paper investigates the integration of a novel calcination process in two kraft mills and evaluates its potential combination with capture and storage of CO2\ua0from the calcination plant. The alternative calcination process uses electric gas-plasma technology combined with steam slaking and allows replacing the conventional fuel-driven lime kilns with a process driven by electricity. The novel calcination process generates a pure, biogenic, CO2\ua0stream, which provides an opportunity to achieve negative emissions at relatively lower costs. The potential reduction of greenhouse gas emissions when replacing the lime kiln with the plasma calcination concept depends strongly on the emissions intensity of grid electricity, and on whether fossil fuel or biomass was used as a fuel in the lime kiln. If fossil fuel is replaced and electricity is associated with very low emissions, avoided CO2\ua0emissions reach ~50 kt/a for the smaller mill investigated in the paper (ca 400 kt pulp per year) and almost 100 kt/a for the larger mill (ca 700 kt pulp per year). Further emission reductions could then be achieved through CCS from the electrified calcination process, with capture potentials for the two mills of 95 and 164 kt/a, respectively, and capture and storage costs estimated to 36–60 EUR/tCO2

Operability and Technical Implementation Issues Related to Heat Integration Measures-Interview Study at an Oil Refinery in Sweden

In many energy-intensive industrial process plants, significant improvements in energy efficiency can be achieved through increased heat recovery. However, retrofitting plants for heat integration purposes can affect process operability. The aim of this paper is to present a comprehensive overview of such issues by systematically relating different types of heat recovery retrofit measures to a range of technical barriers associated with process operability and practical implementation of the measures. The paper presents a new approach for this kind of study, which can be applied in the early-stage screening of heat integration retrofit measures. This approach accounts for the importance of a number of selected operability factors and their relative significance. The work was conducted in the form of a case study at a large oil refinery. Several conceptual heat exchanger network retrofit design proposals were prepared and discussed during semi-structured interviews with technical staff at the refinery. The results show that many operability and practical implementation factors, such as spatial limitations, pressure drops and non-energy benefits, influence the opportunities for implementation of different types of heat exchanger network retrofit measures. The results indicate that it is valuable to consider these factors at an early stage when designing candidate heat exchanger network retrofit measures. The interview-based approach developed in this work can be applied to other case studies for further confirmation of the results

A computational tool for guiding retrofit projects of industrial heat recovery systems subject to variation in operating conditions

Heat exchanger networks (HEN) in industrial heat recovery systems often consist of large and complex subsystems. Usually, such HENs are subject to variation in operating conditions, such as varying inlet conditions or changing heat capacity flow rates. Additionally, complexities such as stream splits and recycle loops are commonly present in industrial HENs. Therefore, extensive modelling and/or analytical calculations may be necessary when analyzing different retrofit proposals. Furthermore, retrofit opportunities in industrial heat recovery systems are often constrained by operability considerations, i.e. retrofit actions are supposed to have as little impact as possible on the production process to maintain the quality of the core product. In this work, a computational analysis tool is proposed for effective screening of HEN retrofit design proposals at an early stage in the design process. The proposed tool enables fast evaluation of the network\u27s response, i.e. temperatures and heat loads, when operating conditions change and/or operational settings are manipulated, and it is applicable for a wide range of HEN structures. The practical use of the analysis tool is demonstrated in a case study on the HENs of a large modern Kraft pulp mill

Grön asfalt och NCC

NCC ROADS Sweden east is a part of the NCC Corporation. The company mainly produces aggregates, asphalt and concrete. They have taken the environmental issues seriously and been working with that since the middle of the nineties. When manufacturing asphalt large a quantity of fossil energy is needed. The company is now about to make further progresses by manufacturing environmental friendly asphalt ("green asphalt") with using bio-energy. With the concept "green asphalt" means asphalt produced with using bio-energy instead of fossil energy when heating the asphalt mix. This study tries to find out if there is any market for environmental friendly manufactured asphalt. The purpose of this study has also been to find out if there is any market-benefits in offering "green asphalt" on the market. And if its possible to get more profit out of it. The market research has been confined to the public sector. Swedish road administration and communities consume the main part of the asphalt in Sweden. As a conclusion it can be said that some extra profit can be made by selling "green asphalt". But the main part of the costs of investing in "green asphalt" has to be charged on the good-will account, at least at the first years. By increased market shares and increased selling the investments can be paid back on a long view. Producing environmental friendly asphalt in a sustainable way is probably a big step to take.Vid diskussion om företag och deras utveckling kan man tillämpa olika teoretiska modeller. En av dessa är Ansoffs strategimodell för tillväxt. Enligt denna modell kan fyra strategier för tillväxt urskiljas. En av dessa strategier är tillväxt genom produktutveckling som innebär att företaget utvecklar en ny eller modifierad produkt som marknadsförs till nuvarande kunder. Ett företag som funderar på att välja denna strategi är NCC Roads Sverige Öst, nedan förkortat till NCC. För att denna strategi ska vara intressant måste givetvis även kunderna vara intresserade av denna nya eller modifierade produkt. Detta examensarbete behandlar därför även kundernas intresse för tillväxt. NCC Roads Sverige Öst är en del av NCC koncernen som tillverkar krossprodukter, asfalt och betong. Vid tillverkning av asfaltmassa används till ca 95 % stenmaterial av olika fraktioner, resterande del bitumen som är en tjock mineraloljeprodukt. Bitumen används som bindemedel i asfaltmassan. Det åtgår stora mängder energi vid uppvärmningen av såväl stenmaterial som bindemedlet. Största delen energiförbrukningen utgörs av eldningsolja 1 som är av fossilt ursprung. För att minska miljöpåverkan har företaget sedan flera år tillbaka modifierat sina asfaltverk för att kunna blanda in begagnad asfalt, returasfalt. Detta medför att man reducerar förbrukningen av bindemedlet bitumen. Företaget har arbetat aktivt med miljöfrågorna sedan mitten av nittiotalet och är nu anslutna till ISO 14001. Trots detta aktiva arbete med miljöfrågorna förbrukas fortfarande stora mängder fossil energi. NCC har konstaterat att det inte går att göra någon väsentlig minskning av denna förbrukning. Nästa stora miljöåtgärd skulle därför vara att byta energislag från fossil energi till bioenergi. Syftet med detta arbete är att utgöra en del av NCCs beslutsunderlag om företaget ska satsa på tillväxt med av ”grön asfalt”, en ny/modifierad produkt. Med ”grön asfalt” avses miljövänligt producerad asfalt med hjälp av bioenergi istället för fossil energi. Detta syfte medför att jag kommer att undersöka efterfrågan och möjliga konkurrensfördelar för miljövänligt framställt asfalt, ”grön asfalt” på marknaden, samt om marknaden är villig att betala ett merpris för detta. Marknadsundersökningen har begränsats till delar av den offentliga sektorn i Sverige. Från början skulle jag intervjua Vägverket och ett antal kommuner men Vägverket kunde/ville, trots många kontakter, av olika orsaker inte deltaga i undersökningen. Arbetet behandlar i huvudsak marknadssidan varför tekniska och ekonomiska förutsättningar för tillverkningen av grön asfalt inte behandlas. Sammanfattningsvis kan jag konstatera att det finns ett intresse hos kunderna för grön asfalt. Det merpris som kunderna för närvarande är villiga att betala motsvarar dock inte investeringen i grön asfalt. Vid en satsning på grön asfalt får därför en stor del av kostnaden, på kort sikt, sannolikt betraktas som en marknadsföringskostnad, i varje fall inledningsvis. Att vara först på marknaden med denna produkt väcker ett sannolikt intresse på marknaden och ett positivt mediafokus på företaget som i sin tur skulle kunna utnyttjas och ge ytterligare volymökningar. Att kunna tillverka asfalt på ett miljövänligt och långsiktigt hållbart sätt är sannolikt ett stort steg att ta. Min slutsats är därför att jag rekommenderar NCC att satsa på grön asfalt eftersom denna satsning troligtvis är rätt strategi för tillväxt

Addressing dairy production challenges through a shared value approach : a case study of an Indonesian cooperative

The global demand for agricultural outputs are increasing due to the earth’s growing population and the numerous challenges related to it has been presented with many proposed solutions. In countries defined as developing markets and economies, challenges associated with the needs of the population are particularly difficult to meet. Emerging markets in this context, such as the dairy industry, struggle with productivity and output due to resource restrictions. Meanwhile, businesses accountability towards the society, addressing social issues and environmental objectives, have transformed into contemporary business practice. Businesses embracing corporate social responsibility has become the modern way to conduct business activities, in both developing countries and developed countries. There has also been a wider recognition in the academic society and among corporations that the society can possess the key for a prosperous business. New concepts such as shared value has evolved to explain the interdependencies between business and society. Ultimately, pure philanthropic behaviour has been introduced to a competitor when it comes to solving the issues related to the context of a developing market. The resource scarcity among these local businesses entails challenges to achieve the most prosperous economy as possible. Resources, such as knowledge, therefore need to be sourced externally and networks are a good example for fostering knowledge transfer. The intrinsic capabilities for the network members to absorb knowledge have not widely been investigated among smaller firms in developing markets. With the help of shared value, knowledge and network the aim of this study is to identify factors that have an impact milk production in the context of a dairy cooperative in a developing country. Further objective is to investigate how the cooperative interacts with its members to reach an increased milk production. This study contains a case study of the business activities performed by an Indonesian dairy cooperative, KAN Jabung, that has given attention to the importance of knowledge and networking to improve production and productivity. The research is based on literature review and several sources of empirical data such as semi-structured personal interviews, observations and secondary data. Furthermore, the study has a flexible design and took ethical considerations into account. The results of this study suggest that a small-scale cooperative in a developing country can achieve social objectives and transformation, engage in collaborative exchanges of knowledge while simultaneously increase its production. The result also indicates that not all factors for enhancing production are within range of influence from a cooperative middleman in the supply chain and that individual or family aspects are important when addressing family businesses. A general observation is that in order to conduct business (for example selling milk), a company in a developing country may be forced to create its own supplier. In this case it is represented by the activities the cooperative undertook to educate and collaborate with dairy farmers, aiming for a higher production and improved local society.Den globala efterfrågan på jordbruksprodukter ökar i samband med jordens växande befolkning och de många utmaningar som är förknippade med detta har fått flertalet lösningar presenterade. I länder som definieras som utvecklingsmarknader och -ekonomier är utmaningar relaterade till befolkningens behov särskilt svåra att uppfylla. Tillväxtmarknader i denna kontext, såsom mejeriindustrin, kämpar med produktivitet och produktion på grund av begränsade resurser. Samtidigt har företagens ansvarsskyldighet gentemot samhället, att ta itu med sociala frågor och miljömål, förvandlats till den moderna metoden för affärsverksamhet. För företag har anammandet av socialt ansvar blivit det moderna sättet att bedriva verksamhet på, både i utvecklingsländer och industriländer. Det existerar också ett större erkännande bland forskare och företag om att samhället kan inneha nyckeln till ett framgångsrikt företag. Nya begrepp såsom shared value växer fram för att förklara det ömsesidiga beroendet mellan företag och samhälle. I slutändan har rent filantropiskt handlande fått en konkurrent om att lösa de problem som uppkommer i ett utvecklingslands kontext. Resursbristen bland lokala företag innebär utmaningar för att uppnå ett så framgångsrikt företagande som möjligt. Resurser, såsom kunskap, måste därför anskaffas externt och nätverk är ett bra exempel för att främja kunskapsöverföring. Bland mindre företag i utvecklingsländer har den egentliga kapaciteten för nätverkets medlemmar att tillvarata kunskap inte vida undersökts. Med hjälp av shared value, kunskap och nätverk så är syftet med den här studien att identifiera faktorer för att öka mjölkproduktionen hos ett mejerikooperativ, med ett utvecklingslands kontext. Ytterligare en avsikt är att undersöka hur kooperativet samverkar med sina medlemmar för att nå en ökad mjölkproduktion. Denna studie innehåller en fallstudie av verksamheten hos ett indonesiskt mejerikooperativ, KAN Jabung, som har uppmärksammat vikten av kunskap och nätverk för att förbättra produktionen och produktiviteten. Studien grundar sig i en litteraturgenomgång och flera källor av empiriska data såsom semi-strukturerade personliga intervjuer, observationer och sekundära uppgifter. Dessutom har studien en flexibel design och tog etisk hänsyn. Resultaten från denna studie tyder på att ett småskaligt kooperativ i ett utvecklingsland kan uppnå sociala mål och förändring, delta i samverkans utbyten gällande kunskap och samtidigt öka sin produktion. Den visar också att inte alla faktorer för att öka produktionen är inom räckhåll för påverkan från en mellanhand i leveranskedjan och att individuella- eller familjeaspekter är viktiga när man vänder sig till familjeföretag. En generell observation gäller att företag i ett utvecklingsland som vill bedriva sin verksamhet (till exempel sälja mjölk) kan förmås att skapa sin egen leverantör. I detta fall representeras det av verksamheten kooperativet genomför för att utbilda och samarbeta med mjölkbönder med avsiktet att nå en högre produktivitet, produktion och förbättrat lokal samhälle