Multi-layered solid-PCM thermocline thermal storage concept for CSP plants. Numerical analysis and perspectives

Thermocline storage concept has been considered for more than a decade as a possible solution to reduce the huge cost of the storage system in concentrated solar power (CSP) plants. However, one of the drawbacks of this concept is the decrease in its performance throughout the time. The objective of this paper is to present a new thermocline-like storage concept, which aims at circumventing this issue. The proposed concept consists of a storage tank filled with a combination of solid material and encapsulated PCMs, forming a multi-layered packed bed, with molten salt as the heat transfer fluid. The performance evaluation of each of the prototypes proposed is virtually tested by means of a detailed numerical methodology which considers the heat transfer and fluid dynamics phenomena present in these devices. The virtual tests carried out are designed so as to take into account several charging and discharging cycles until periodic state is achieved, i.e. when the same amount of energy is stored/released in consecutive charging/discharging cycles. As a result, the dependence of the storage capacity on the PCMs temperatures, the total energy and exergy stored/released, as well as the efficiencies of the storing process are compared for the different thermocline, single PCM, cascaded PCM and the proposed multi-layered solid-PCM (MLSPCM) configurations. The analysis shows that the multi-layered solid-PCM concept is a promising alternative for thermal storage in CSP plants.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author’s final draft

The Icy Road towards the First Olympic Winter Games in Chamonix 1924

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) faced many obstacles in deciding to initiate the first Olympic Winter Games and subse- quently organize in Chamonix, in 1924 the "Winter Sports Week", now considered the first winter Olympics. Pierre de Coubertin's own thoughts about winter sports evolved only slowly, which together with his friendship with Viktor Balck, constituted the main obstacle for the winter Olympics. The success of the Nordic Games, the powerful Swedish nationalistic winter sports festival run by Balck, at the beginning of the twentieth century influenced Coubertin's view that an additional winter Olympic competition was unnecessary. Prior limited inclusion of winter sports, such as figure skating, in the summer Olympic programme made the status of some events unclear. Influential members of the IOC disagreed about their possible place in the programme with Balck leading the opposition to include winter sports. Ultimately the French IOC members' advocacy for winter games in 1921, combined with Balck's retirement from the IOC as a result of his age, was instru- mental in the decision to allow Chamonix to host the first winter festival

La asignatura de Informática Aplicada a la Gestión de Empresas en Diplomatura en Ciencias Empresariales

El presente trabajo pretende mostrar no el programa de la asignatura de Informática Aplicada dentro de los estudios de Diplomatura en Ciencias Empresariales, sino de explicar cómo se imparte este programa y las conclusiones sacadas una vez terminado el período docente de la misma, siempre analizando las conclusiones tanto positivas como negativas. Simplemente mostramos el programa para cumplimentar el artículo

Promoción de la participación ciudadana en cuidados de salud a través de PyDEsalud.com

ResumenEste proyecto apoya la iniciativa, promovida por el Sistema Nacional de Salud en España, de facilitar materiales informativos, en formato impreso o interactivo, que impulsen la participación ciudadana en las decisiones y los cuidados de salud. Se presenta la recientemente creada Plataforma Web PyDEsalud.com, dirigida a personas afectadas por enfermedades crónicas de gran impacto socioeconómico, como son el cáncer de mama, la depresión o la diabetes. Siguiendo una metodología científica de trabajo, esta Plataforma incluye tres módulos de servicios informativos (Experiencias de pacientes, Toma de decisiones compartida y Necesidades de investigación), dirigidos a promocionar la educación sanitaria de pacientes y familiares.AbstractThis project supports the initiative promoted by the Spanish National Health System to provide informational materials, in printed or interactive format, to encourage public participation in decision making and healthcare. We present the newly created PyDEsalud.com, a web platform aimed at people with chronic diseases with a high socioeconomic impact, such as breast cancer, depression, and diabetes. This platform uses scientific methodology and contains three information service modules (Patients’ experiences, Shared decision making, and Research needs), aimed at promoting health education for patients and families

Análisis del sector exterior de la economía española

El proceso de apertura al exterior que ha atravesado la economía española es un punto clave para entender la situación actual. La integración de España en la Unión Económica y Monetaria en 1999 marcó una nueva senda de crecimiento con la entrada del euro. La introducción del euro ha permitido grandes ventajas en términos de integración económica, pero tiene efectos negativos a la hora de analizar la competitividad debido a las continuas apreciaciones del euro sobre las principales monedas, y la imposibilidad de realizar devaluaciones en la moneda para solucionar posibles desequilibrios exteriores. Es importante señalar que, en un momento de aumento de los precios respecto a otros países, y elevada inflación, la cuota de exportaciones de España sobre las mundiales sigue manteniéndose. En un país en el que cada vez hay una mayor tendencia emigratoria, y además, los inmigrantes que residían en España se están yendo fuera del país, debido a las condiciones económicas y la situación del mercado laboral, las remesas de trabajadores están teniendo una trayectoria contraria a la vivida en años anteriores, ya que están aumentando las recibidas por España y disminuyendo las que se envían fuera. Después del proceso de expansión vivido por España hasta la crisis, el endeudamiento externo ha llegado a niveles muy elevados, y la financiación cada vez resulta más difícil. Aunque en 2013 la deuda externa ha disminuido ligeramente ha repercutido directamente al crédito de las familias y las empresas

Una herramienta de apoyo para la enseñanza de informática en estudios empresariales

En este artículo se presenta una experiencia llevada a cabo en la Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales de Badajoz. Esta se centra en la metodología utilizada para la realización, impartición y seguimiento de las prácticas de las asignaturas de informática que existen en dicho Centro, si bien esta metodología se puede poner en práctica en cualquier asignatura de informática de cualquier titulación. Con ese objetivo se han adaptado las características de un software de administración remota de libre distribución, comentando las ventajas e inconvenientes que hemos encontrado para el desarrollo de una clase interactiva. Por una parte desde el punto de vista de rendimiento de la computadora, y por otra parte, las ventajas e inconvenientes que tiene para los alumnos el seguimiento de la clase de prácticas utilizando esta metodología

Palatal perforations secondary to inhaled cocaine abuse: presentation of five cases

The estimated incidence of complications associated with cocaine abuse is 4.8%. Palatal perforation is a very infrequent condition within the range of complications associated with cocaine abuse. No epidemiological cha- racteristics relating to patient age or gender have been established, and the diagnosis of the disorder requires a detailed clinical history, including antecedents of cocaine abuse. The clinical and radiological studies show palatal bone erosion and perforation of the soft or hard palate. The present study describes five cases of palatal perforation secondary to inhaled cocaine abuse. As a result of the increase in cocaine use in recent years, particularly among young adults, clinicians must be alerted to the need to include this condition when establishing a differential diagnosis

Drug-induced oral lichenoid reactions: a literature review

The terms oral lichenoid reactions or oral lichenoid lesions refer to lesions histologically and clinically similar to oral lichen planus, though with the particularity that in these cases the underlying cause is identifiable. In addition, these lesions are described according to the causal factor involved, including alterations resulting from direct contact with dental restoration materials, drug-related lesions, and lesions associated to graft-versus-host disease. Drug-induced oral lichenoid reactions or oral lichenoid lesions were first cited in 1971 by Almeyda and Levantine. Since then, many drug substances have been associated with such lesions. The most common agents are nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors

A new thermocline-PCM thermal storage concept for CSP plants. Numerical analysis and perspectives

Thermocline storage concept has been considered for more than a decade as a possible solution to reduce the huge cost of the storage system in CSP plants. However, one of the drawbacks of this concept is the decrease in its performance throughout the time. The objective of this paper is to present a new thermocline-PCM storage concept which aims at circumventing this issue. The concept proposed is built of different solid filler materials and encapsulated PCMs combined into a multi-layer storage tank with molten salt as heat transfer fluid. The performance evaluation of each of the prototypes proposed is virtually tested by means of a detailed numerical methodology which considers the heat transfer and fluid dynamics phenomena present in these devices. The virtual tests carried out are designed so as to take into account several charging and discharging cycles until equilibrium is achieved, i.e. the same amount of energy stored in the charging phase is delivered in the discharge. As a result, the dependence of the storage capacity on the PCMs temperatures, the total energy stored/released, as well as the efficiencies of the storing process have been compared for the different thermocline, PCM-only and multi-layered thermocline-PCM configurations. Based on this analysis the selection of the best option for a given case/plant is proposed.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Numerical simulations of thermal energy storage systems with phase cahnge materials

This paper deals with the numerical simulation of thermal energy storage systems with PCM. Numerical simulations are a powerful tool for predicting the thermal behaviour of thermal systems, as well as for optimizing their design. The system under study is a cylindrical container, filled with spheres containing paraffin wax (PCM) and water occupying the space left between the spheres. Two different processes are studied: charging and discharging. In charging mode, hot water coming from the solar field passes through the container, delivering energy to the PCM spheres. In the discharging mode, cold water from supply comes through, extracting the energy previously stored in the PCM and leaving the tank at a higher temperature.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author’s final draft