Decentralized thermal control of building systems

Energy requirements for heating and cooling of buildings constitute a major fraction of end use energy consumed. Therefore, it is important to provide the occupant comfort requirements in buildings in an energy efficient manner. However, buildings are large scale complex systems, susceptible to sensor, actuator or communication network failures in their thermal control infrastructure, that can affect their performance in terms of occupant comfort and energy efficiency. The degree of decentralization in the control architecture determines a fundamental tradeoff between performance and robustness. This thesis studies the problem of thermal control of buildings from the perspective of partitioning them into clusters for decentralized control, to balance underlying performance and robustness requirements. Measures of deviation in performance and robustness between centralized and decentralized architectures in the Model Predictive Control framework are derived. Appropriate clustering algorithms are then proposed to determine decentralized control architectures which provide a satisfactory trade-off between the underlying performance and robustness objectives. Two different partitioning methodologies – the CLF-MCS method and the OLF-FPM method – are developed and compared. The problem of decentralized control design based on the architectures obtained using these methodologies is also considered. It entails the use of decentralized extended state observers to address the issue of unavailability of unknown states and disturbances in the system. The potential use of the proposed control architecture selection and decentralized control design methodologies is demonstrated in simulation on a real world multi-zone building

Scalable Computation of 2D-Minkowski Sum of Arbitrary Non-Convex Domains: Modeling Flexibility in Energy Resources

The flexibility of active ($p$) and reactive power ($q$) consumption in distributed energy resources (DERs) can be represented as a (potentially non-convex) set of points in the $p$-$q$ plane. Modeling of the aggregated flexibility in a heterogeneous ensemble of DERs as a Minkowski sum (M-sum) is computationally intractable even for moderately sized populations. In this article, we propose a scalable method of computing the M-sum of the flexibility domains of a heterogeneous ensemble of DERs, which are allowed to be non-convex, non-compact. In particular, the proposed algorithm computes a guaranteed superset of the true M-sum, with desired accuracy. The worst-case complexity of the algorithm is computed. Special cases are considered, and it is shown that under certain scenarios, it is possible to achieve a complexity that is linear with the size of the ensemble. Numerical examples are provided by computing the aggregated flexibility of different mix of DERs under varying scenarios

Tension band wiring in a rare case of isolated acromion fracture: a case report

Fracture of the acromion process is an uncommon injury. The most common mechanism of injury is direct trauma to the acromion. Isolated acromion fractures are rare as usually they are associated with concomitant skeletal and soft tissue injuries of the shoulder. We present a case of a 45-year-old male with a type 3 fracture of acromion process with reduction of subacromial space. Patient was managed surgically and fracture was fixed using tension band wiring. Patient was followed up using UCLA, DASH and VAS scores and showed good radiological and functional outcomes. Minimally displaced fractures should be regularly followed up for displacement and sub-acromial space compromise. Although acromion fractures are usually treated conservatively, albeit a higher non-union rate, they should be treated surgically in the event of displacement or sub-acromial space reduction, in order to achieve good functional recovery.

Biotransformation: A Novel Approach of Modulating and Synthesizing Compounds

Transformation of potential compounds into utilizable and beneficial forms is often cost involving and time consuming. Chemical transformation though was an existing opportunity catering our needs but due to environmental impacts and cost- benefit ratio analysis it proved futile and a new branch of transformation came into existence termed as biotransformation. Biotransformation is an excellent opportunity of tailoring compounds to cater our needs in a simple and is an eco-friendly approach. Biotransformation allows conversion of one component to another compound by application of biological systems. Fermentation based biotransformation of plant extract is a well-established world-wide standard technique used to maximize shelf-life, nutritional and organoleptic properties and to eliminate harmful substances from primary food substrates. Biotransformation by microbes has grown greatly from a small involvement in highly active fields of green chemistry, including the preparation of pharmaceutical drugs, in recent years. In addition fermentation processes have been targeted and optimized to enhance the production of active microbial metabolites using sufficient or suitable nutrients and with the correct microbial target for functional benefits. At present, significant attention has been given to biotransformation technology worldwide to develop medicines through the processing and enrichment of additional medicinally essential bioactive metabolites including terpenes, alkaloids, phenols, flavonoids and saponins. Biotransformation utilizing various biological systems can be used to modulate and in the enhancement of bioactive compounds in an environment promising way. Biotransformation is assumed to play a key role in green chemistry in future because of its sustainable approach. This review represents an overview of biotransformation techniques and its applications in a nutshell

MemSPICE: Automated Simulation and Energy Estimation Framework for MAGIC-Based Logic-in-Memory

Existing logic-in-memory (LiM) research is limited to generating mappings and micro-operations. In this paper, we present~\emph{MemSPICE}, a novel framework that addresses this gap by automatically generating both the netlist and testbench needed to evaluate the LiM on a memristive crossbar. MemSPICE goes beyond conventional approaches by providing energy estimation scripts to calculate the precise energy consumption of the testbench at the SPICE level. We propose an automated framework that utilizes the mapping obtained from the SIMPLER tool to perform accurate energy estimation through SPICE simulations. To the best of our knowledge, no existing framework is capable of generating a SPICE netlist from a hardware description language. By offering a comprehensive solution for SPICE-based netlist generation, testbench creation, and accurate energy estimation, MemSPICE empowers researchers and engineers working on memristor-based LiM to enhance their understanding and optimization of energy usage in these systems. Finally, we tested the circuits from the ISCAS'85 benchmark on MemSPICE and conducted a detailed energy analysis.Comment: Accepted in ASP-DAC 202

Comparison of functional outcomes and complications of conservative management verses surgical fixation with a locking compression plate in the treatment of displaced middle third clavicular fracture

Background: About 3 to 5 percent of all fractures are clavicle fractures, which account for 45 percent of fractures at the shoulder. While fractures of the lateral and medial thirds of the clavicle account for 15% and 5% of all clavicle fractures, respectively, middle third fractures account for 80% of all clavicle fractures.Methods: patients were divided into two groups at random. Patients selected for conservative treatment with figure of eight Clavicle Brace and arm sling/pouch were treated with the brace immediately and for surgical intervention with locking plating. Constant and Murley's scoring system was used to check for signs of healing and functional improvementResults: The 40 patients in the current study include 20 with a new fracture of the mid-third clavicle who underwent surgical treatment with clavicular locking compression plate and screws and 20 who underwent conservative treatment with a figure-eight clavicle brace and arm pouch/sling. There was a statistically significant difference in the Constant and Murley score between the surgical group and the conservative group.Conclusions: According to the present study, patients with a displaced mid-third clavicle fracture may benefit more from surgery than from conservative treatment.