Strategic initiatives to increase the uptake of rooftop photovoltaic systems

This thesis has focused on the strategies that can be implemented by electricity utilities and private investors in increasing the penetration of rooftop photovoltaic systems (RPVs). Even though the proposals are general and applicable for any locality, the key studies of this research have been focused on the Australian electricity market. First, a detailed review and comparison of all Australian power distribution companies has been carried out in terms of the percentage of the supplied customers and the customer density per kilometre length of their power lines. Following that, the daily electricity supply and the electricity unit charges offered by the active electricity retail companies in the zones of each of these power distribution companies are reviewed and compared. Based on this information, the annual electricity bill of a customer supplied by different power distribution companies and retailers is calculated. Through this study, the national average annual electricity bill has been determined for Australia and the power distribution companies are categorised under four segments of very cheap, cheap, expensive, and very expensive companies. This study has highlighted some of the key challenges faced by power distribution companies in Australia in supplying power through a more localised renewable based generation. Installing an RPV by a household is a big decision, and there are many factors which need to be considered before this decision. It can be highly rewarding in some cases and for others, it may bring a loss in the investment. The main factors which need to be considered are the electricity consumption tariff, electricity consumption pattern, the location of the household and the tariffs offered by the utility in that area. In this thesis, economic incentives of installing a RPV and battery energy storage (BES) are discussed for a household in different states, served by various utilities. A comparison is made to find which states are more suitable in terms of gaining financial benefits from RPVs. A flat rate feed-in tariff is an incentive offered by many utilities to encourage their customers to invest in electricity generation from RPVs. Such a scheme is usually designed by financial techniques that mostly consider the initial capital cost and electricity spot price. However, such an incentive cannot help the utilities to address the technical challenges in networks with large renewable penetration. In this thesis, a dynamic feed-in tariff has been proposed and designed based on the value of electricity, hosting capacity, ambient temperature and time of day. This feed-in tariff will specifically support utilities that experience challenges in the electrification of remote areas or observe excessive stress on their networks at demand peak periods. The proposed feed-in tariff encourages the rural customers to install RPVs while discouraging the urban customers from installing RPVs without BES. Solar leasing is another opportunity to enhance the rapid uptake of RPVs. Even though solar leasing has attracted widespread acceptance in some countries, it has not been successful in being popular in some other places mainly due to lack of awareness of the model and economic viability in relation to outright buying a RPVs. One of the solar leasing models is roof rental in which a company leases the roof of residential premises for installing RPVs and selling the generated electricity to the utility. This thesis has explored an economically viable alternative for roof rental from the perspective of the engaged leasing company. To this end, an economic analysis has been performed to determine the net present value from the roof rental payments and versus different ratings of RPVs, desired interest rate and existing feed-in tariff. Furthermore, a BES can play an important role in realising maximum benefit from RPVs. However, the cost of a BES is comparatively high, and the BES of individual households may not be optimally utilised during a significant portion of the year as there may not be enough generation from RPVs during winter to charge the BES to its full capacity. Community solar on the other hand, if optimally designed, can give the opportunity to use a BES to its maximum capacity. Such systems can benefit many of the remote and rural communities, that are usually supplied by diesel generators, or long traditional distribution lines, which in addition to being expensive often don’t provide the reliability at desired level. These systems can also benefit most of the urban areas since the unmanaged penetration of RPVs has resulted in the undesired duck curve profile in the network. To this end, this thesis has proposed and validated the appropriate design criteria for community solar projects with an aim to improve the network duck curve profile, enable peak-shaving and increase the self-sufficiency of the community

Modern Techniques in Synthesis of Organometallic Compounds of Germanium

Germanium is one of the most significant semiconductors to be used for electronic devices due to small bandgap and high intrinsic mobility of holes and electrons. Germanium has received a large attention due to its extraordinary reactivity and properties. It is commonly used in fluorescent lamps and as catalyst as well to produce various types of plastic. Germanium nanomaterials have broad range of applications from photovoltaic devices to phase-change memory materials. Germanium forms complexes by reacting with numerous elements such as carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and phosphorous as a part of several organic compounds. Germanium coordinates with these elements by single, double, and triple linkages. Interestingly, all such reactions occur at ambient temperature usually in tetrahydrofuran under vacuum. Germanium may also react directly with primary and secondary nitrogen in the presence of a suitable base, whereas with tertiary nitrogen, it may react directly even in the absence of a base. Nevertheless, this chapter describes the modern techniques in synthesis of organometallic compounds of germanium

Molecular genetic analysis of leucine tRNA in relevance to type 2 diabetes mellitus

Background. Several point mutations in the mitochondrial DNA cause maternally inherited metabolic disorders. The most common type of mutation A3243G in the gene of transfer RNA leucine (tRNALeu(UUR)) is thought to be responsible for the prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus. This study was designed to analyze the tRNALeu(UUR) gene of mtDNA of the diabetic individuals with familial history of diabetes to identify the point mutations A3243G. Material and methods. Saliva samples were preferred as a source of DNA to minimize the risk of infection. DNA was successfully extracted from their saliva. Samples of high-quality DNA was amplified with PCR and sequenced in Macrogen Inc. Korea. Results. The m.3243A>G mutation in mitochondrial tRNALeu(UUR) gene was not observed. Conclusion. The result shows that the m.3243A>G mutation in mitochondrial tRNALeu(UUR) gene is not frequent cause of type 2 and some other factors may be possible i.e. genetic, behavioral or environmental. It is recommended that the sample size for diabetic individuals need to be increased for a future study and screened for the mitochondrial as well as other mutations of nuclear origin

Impact of technology usage and improved teaching styles on effective learning of students: The moderating effect of resistance to change

This paper examines the causes of food waste in the grocery retail sector and develops a framework for how logistics and supply chain management actions could mitigate this problem. Customer preferences and perceptions for food are analyzed to determine their influence on the structure of food supply chains and their indirect contribution to food waste at grocery store levels. Based on the literature review, our study identifies five main categories that influence food waste: information flow, demand uncertainties and forecast, inefficiencies in the safety stock and inventory management, disruptions of the cold supply chain, and customers’ perceptions and preferences for food in stores. We propose solutions to these causes as a possible way to alleviate and minimize food waste in the grocery retail sector. At a managerial level, the findings of this paper can lead to positive changes by creating a more efficient food supply chain structure that minimizes food waste in the grocery retail sector. Additionally, the results can have individual implications at a social level regarding customer preferences for and perceptions of food at grocery stores

Attributable causes of chronic kidney disease in adults: a five-year retrospective study in a tertiary-care hospital in the northeast of the Malaysian Peninsula

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is an escalating medical and socioeconomic problem worldwide. Information concerning the causes of CKD, which is a prerequisite for reducing the disease burden, is sparse in Malaysia. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the attributable causes of CKD in an adult population at a tertiary referral hospital. DESIGN AND SETTING: Retrospective study at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM). METHODS: This was an analysis based on medical records of adult patients at HUSM. Data regarding demographics, laboratory investigations, attributable causes and CKD stage were gathered. RESULTS: A total of 851 eligible cases were included. The patients’ mean age was 61.18 ± 13.37 years. CKD stage V was found in 333 cases (39.1%) whereas stages IV, IIIb, IIIa, and II were seen in 240 (28.2%), 186 (21.9%), 74 (8.7%) and 18 (2.1%), respectively. The percentage of CKD stage V patients receiving renal replacement therapy was 15.6%. The foremost attributable causes of CKD were diabetic nephropathy (DN) (44.9%), hypertension (HPT) (24.2%) and obstructive uropathy (9.2%). The difference in the prevalence of CKD due to DN, HPT and glomerulonephritis between patients ≤ 50 and > 50 years old was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that DN and HPT are the major attributable causes of CKD among patients at a Malaysian tertiary-care hospital. Furthermore, the results draw attention to the possibility that greater emphasis on primary prevention of diabetes and hypertension will have a great impact on reduction of hospital admissions due to CKD in Malaysia

3-[(E)-(2,4-Dichloro­pbenzyl­idene)amino]­benzoic acid

In the crystal of the title compound, C14H9Cl2NO2, inversion-related dimers with R 2 2(8) ring motifs are formed by inter­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bonding. The 3-amino­benzoic acid group and the 2,4-dichlobenzaldehyde moiety subtend a dihedral angle of 55.10 (2)°. The H atom of the carboxyl group is disordered over two sites with equal occupancies

Effect of Fruit/Vegetable-Drug Interactions on CYP450, OATP and p-Glycoprotein: A Systematic Review

Purpose: To review the concomitant use of certain drugs with fruit/vegetable juices that may lead to drug-juice interactions resulting in medication-related problems.Method: In this systematic review, online databases (PubMed, Google Scholar and Science Direct) were searched for information on juices derived from fruits and vegetables that are reported to have inhibitory effects on cytochrome P450, p-glycoprotein and organic anion transporting polypeptides (OATPs).Results: Fruits can inhibit CYP1A1, CYP1A2, CYP1A4, CYP3A1, CYP3A4, CYP2C6, CYP2C9,CYP2E1 and drug transporters (P-glycoprotein, OATP). On the other hand CYP1A1, CYP1A2, CYP2A2, CYP3A1, CYP1B1, CYP2B1, CYP2B2, CYP2C1, CYP2C6, CYP2E1 can be inhibited by some vegetables. Antihypertensives, antidiabetics, statins, analgesics and antipsychotics were the most common drugs interacting with fruits and vegetables. The inhibition of their metabolism by fruits and vegetables can cause serious toxic effects, e.g., hypertension, poor glycemic control, rhabdomyolosis and drug overdose-related toxic effects. Overall, active components of fruits and vegetables can interact with many drugs leading to adverse effects.Conclusion: Screening of fruits/vegetables for possible risk of interaction, and patient counseling are some effective strategies for preventing such interactions for optimal patient care.Keywords: Fruits and vegetables, Cytochrome P450, Drug interactions, p-Glycoprotein, Organic anion transporting polypeptide

Association Mapping for Improving Fiber Quality in Upland Cottons

Improved fiber yield is considered a constant goal of upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) breeding worldwide, but the understanding of the genetic basis controlling yield-related traits remains limited. Dissecting the genetic architecture of complex traits is an ongoing challenge for geneticists. Two complementary approaches for genetic mapping, linkage mapping and association mapping have led to successful dissection of complex traits in many crop species. Both of these methods detect quantitative trait loci (QTL) by identifying marker–trait associations, and the only fundamental difference between them is that between mapping populations, which directly determine mapping resolution and power. Nowadays, the availability of genomic tools and resources is leading to a new revolution of plant breeding, as they facilitate the study of the genotype and its relationship with the phenotype, in particular for complex traits. Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technologies are allowing the mass sequencing of genomes and transcriptomes, which is producing a vast array of genomic information with the development of high-throughput genotyping, phenotyping will be a major challenge for genetic mapping studies. We believe that high-quality phenotyping and appropriate experimental design coupled with new statistical models will accelerate progress in dissecting the genetic architecture of complex traits

Public health utility of cause of death data : applying empirical algorithms to improve data quality

Background: Accurate, comprehensive, cause-specific mortality estimates are crucial for informing public health decision making worldwide. Incorrectly or vaguely assigned deaths, defined as garbage-coded deaths, mask the true cause distribution. The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study has developed methods to create comparable, timely, cause-specific mortality estimates; an impactful data processing method is the reallocation of garbage-coded deaths to a plausible underlying cause of death. We identify the pattern of garbage-coded deaths in the world and present the methods used to determine their redistribution to generate more plausible cause of death assignments. Methods: We describe the methods developed for the GBD 2019 study and subsequent iterations to redistribute garbage-coded deaths in vital registration data to plausible underlying causes. These methods include analysis of multiple cause data, negative correlation, impairment, and proportional redistribution. We classify garbage codes into classes according to the level of specificity of the reported cause of death (CoD) and capture trends in the global pattern of proportion of garbage-coded deaths, disaggregated by these classes, and the relationship between this proportion and the Socio-Demographic Index. We examine the relative importance of the top four garbage codes by age and sex and demonstrate the impact of redistribution on the annual GBD CoD rankings. Results: The proportion of least-specific (class 1 and 2) garbage-coded deaths ranged from 3.7% of all vital registration deaths to 67.3% in 2015, and the age-standardized proportion had an overall negative association with the Socio Demographic Index. When broken down by age and sex, the category for unspecified lower respiratory infections was responsible for nearly 30% of garbage-coded deaths in those under 1 year of age for both sexes, representing the largest proportion of garbage codes for that age group. We show how the cause distribution by number of deaths changes before and after redistribution for four countries: Brazil, the United States, Japan, and France, highlighting the necessity of accounting for garbage-coded deaths in the GBD