Evaluating the Hydrologic and Thermal Performance of a Green Roof in Syracuse: Measurements and Modeling of a Full-Scale System

Climate change and urbanization have increased the risk of flooding and combined sewer overflows as well as other stormwater related problems. Given the high costs of traditional infrastructure rehabilitation, green infrastructure, which mimics natural systems, has become a popular solution. Green roofs are one prominent example of green infrastructure. These are engineered vegetative systems positioned on the top of roof structures have been widely adopted around the world, owing to an abundance of roof area in urban neighborhoods. However, their hydrologic performance and thermal properties are unclear, due to a lack of qualitative and quantitative analyses on monitored full-scale green roofs. In particular, few studies have focused on factors that impact the hydrologic performance of green roofs, such as soil properties which change as the roof ages, and evapotranspiration (ET) which dries the soil and enables the green roof to store water from the next storm. Understanding water exchange on a green roof also requires investigation into the thermal properties of the system. To quantify thermal impacts, field measurements and a model that couples energy with soil moisture would be of value. My study aims to fill these gaps by advancing understanding of green roof behavior, including the aging effect of soil media, ET, and heat transfer, and by developing methods to predict the hydrologic performance and related thermal properties of green roofs. In this research, rainfall, runoff, soil moisture content, and meteorological data have been measured in a green roof system at the Onondaga County Convention Center in Syracuse, NY (OnCenter) since 2015. This study included controlled laboratory experiments for soil characterization, monitoring the OnCenter green roof under a variety of weather conditions, and use of computer modeling to predict green roof performance. In the first phase of the study, in which I investigated the effects of aging on green roof functions, virgin and 7-year-old growth media were characterized and the impact of the observed changes on hydrologic performance was assessed. Differences in structure (particle size distribution, porosity, organic content, density) and some hydrologic properties were observed. The aged growth medium experienced a shift to finer particles and smaller pores with a 60% increase in the organic content. An increase in water filled porosity indicated more water can be stored in aged growth medium than in the original medium. The observed aging effects on hydrologic performance were modelled using HYDRUS-1D. Five 24-hour design storms were applied to predict the retention and detention performance. A 4% improvement in retention performance was calculated for 7-year-old growth medium for significant storms over the original medium. Runoff was detected around an hour later in simulations in aged growth medium compared to original medium. Better retention and detention performance of the green roof was suggested from both monitored data and simulated data from HYDRUS-1D. The second phase of the study focused on evapotranspiration (ET), a vital component of the water balance and also an important term in the soil surface energy balance of green roofs. Quantifying ET for green roofs helps quantify the thermal and hydrologic benefits of green roof systems, enabling informed design and installation decisions. In this work, a soil water balance method was applied to quantify ET using continuous field monitoring for the period May through November during 2015, 2016, and 2017. Results show daily ET ranged from 0 to 5.4 mm/day with an average of 0.76 mm/day. No clear seasonal variation of ET in the seven-month period was observed. The ET rate was significantly influenced by initial soil moisture content and solar radiation. The ET measurements were also compared to fourteen potential ET models together with soil moisture extraction functions (SMEF), the Thornthwaite-Mather (T-M) equation, and antecedent precipitation index (API). The crop coefficient (Kc) was obtained through backward least squares optimization. When soil moisture data are available, the Blaney-Criddle model and the Priestley-Taylor model together with SMEF and monthly Kc values are recommended for predicting ET for the northeastern U.S. due to their limited data input requirements. When soil moisture data are not available, the modified API model with monthly Kc is recommended. In the third phase of the study, the focus shifted to energy storage and transfer. Green roofs have the potential to improve thermal performance of building systems through evapotranspiration, thermal mass, insulation and shading, thus decreasing the cooling energy consumption in summer. A combined energy and moisture model for the retrofit green roof at the OnCenter was developed in CHAMPS software with a hourly time step. Reasonable agreement was observed between the simulated output and monitored data. From the simulated data, the green roof demonstrated the ability to significantly reduce the temperature fluctuations of the roof membrane. In summer, the green roof moderated the heat flow through the roofing system and reduced the air conditioning cost. In winter, under the accumulation of snow, the protection provided by the growth medium was negligible compared with the protection provided by the snow. The temperature of the growth medium on the Convention Center remained slightly above freezing and was relatively steady when heavy snow coverage was present, even during extremely cold air temperatures. Heat flux is dominated by the temperature gradient between interior space and the snow layer. Overall, this research provides valuable understanding on the hydrologic and thermal behavior of green roofs, especially extending knowledge of the effect of soil aging, quantification of the ET process, and prediction of energy flows. The methods and results in this study are valuable for informing future green roof design, planning, retrofit, maintenance, and policy decision making

Thermal performance of a green roof based on CHAMPS model and experimental data during cold climatic weather

Green roofs are increasingly implemented in cities around the world. They have the potential to improve thermal performance of building systems through evapotranspiration, thermal mass, insulation and shading. Several studies have analyzed the heat flow impact of green roofs in hot weather, but few studies have examined the thermal performance during cold conditions. Roof membranes are known to fail in cold climates due to stress caused by large temperature fluctuations. A green roof can reduce the daily membrane temperature fluctuations (Tmax - Tmin) by an average of 7◦C. This study presents an experimental investigation of a large extensive green roof on the Onondaga County Convention Center in Syracuse, NY from November 2017 to March 2018. The model known as CHAMPS has been applied to simulate the temperature profile through the layers of the green roof. In early winter without snow, the temperatures of the growth medium and roof membrane follow the diurnal cycle of ambient air temperatures with smaller amplitude. An average seven hour peak delay is observed. Under extremely cold weather, snow acts as an insulator. The temperature of the growth medium on the Convention Center remains slightly above freezing and is relatively steady when there is significant snow, even during extremely cold temperatures. Heat flux is dominated by the temperature gradient between interior space and the snow layer. On the basis of this work, it is shown that the CHAMPS model can play a valuable role in informing green roof design decisions

A Rain Simulator to Examine Green Roof and Soil Moisture Sensor Performance

Green roof technology plays a large role managing stormwater runoff in urban areas, where impervious surfaces cause substantial amounts of stormwater runoff to enter combined sewer systems. If the stormwater flow exceeds the capacity of treatment plants, this often results in the discharge of raw sewage into nearby bodies of water. Green roofs can reduce the occurrence of raw sewage discharge by decreasing the amount of mixed wastewater and stormwater flowing into combined sewers. Engineers and designers are looking for ways to improve the performance of green roofs and to understand parameters such as field capacity and time to onset of runoff. A better understanding of field capacity could be used to test hydrologic models that predict how much water a green roof could store under different conditions and to estimate how much runoff could be reduced. In this project, a drip-type rain simulator is used to estimate field capacity of a plot of soil and sedum taken from the green roof on the Onondaga County Convention Center in Syracuse, NY. Three soil moisture sensors place d into the plot are used with different rain intensities to track the increase in soil water content during rain and the decrease following the end of the rain. The experimental results show that the field capacity of the Convention Center green roof is about 0.081 m3 water / m3 soil. This value is lower than expected and additional testing is underway. It is also shown that as rain intensity increases, time to onset of runoff decreases. With additional experiments to be conducted in Summer 2018, results of this work can be used by engineers to design and install green roofs with field capacities that complement average rain intensities and peak rain intensities and effectively reduce runoff

The Use of a Large, Extensive Green Roof for Multiple Research Objectives

The Green Roof on the Onondaga County Convention Center in Syracuse, NY is planted with several varieties of sedum over an area of 0.56 hectares. The roof was constructed in 2011, and has been instrumented with sensors to enable research and education over an extended period. The purpose of the current work on this roof is to quantify its performance with respect to water storage and energy transfer, and to identify chemical constituents in the runoff that might be contributed by the growth medium. The scope of the project also includes a number of measurements on traditional roofs in the vicinity of the Convention Center as controls. Experimental methods include measurements with temperature probes installed in different layers of the green roof, a meteorological station, soil moisture sensors positioned around the roof, and an electromagnetic flowmeter connected to the roof drains. Chemical analysis of incoming precipitation and stormwater runoff is conducted by ion chromatography. Besides the research underway, an educational website is under construction that shows realtime data from many of the instruments. The website includes explanations of the energy flow through the roof layers, water flow and water storage in the growth medium, and runoff through the roof drains. The website is designed for use by teachers of K-12 and undergraduate courses to enable students to learn about green roofs as a tool for managing urban stormwater. Results of the research show that heat flow through the roof is largely controlled by extruded polystyrene insulation below the growth medium, and that the growth medium is not a major barrier to heat flow. Substantial amounts of stormwater can be stored by the roof, as long as the growth medium is able to dry somewhat between storms. Precipitation events in close succession may cause the growth medium to stay saturated, preventing the roof from storing additional stormwater. The results of this work are important for assisting designers and engineers to improve the performance of green roofs

Elemental topological Dirac semimetal: {\alpha}-Sn on InSb(111)

Three-dimensional (3D) topological Dirac semimetals (TDSs) are rare but important as a versatile platform for exploring exotic electronic properties and topological phase transitions. A quintessential feature of TDSs is 3D Dirac fermions associated with bulk electronic states near the Fermi level. Using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), we have observed such bulk Dirac cones in epitaxially-grown {\alpha}-Sn films on InSb(111), the first such TDS system realized in an elemental form. First-principles calculations confirm that epitaxial strain is key to the formation of the TDS phase. A phase diagram is established that connects the 3D TDS phase through a singular point of a zero-gap semimetal phase to a topological insulator (TI) phase. The nature of the Dirac cone crosses over from 3D to 2D as the film thickness is reduced

Combining the Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor Cabozantinib and the mTORC1/2 Inhibitor Sapanisertib Blocks ERK Pathway Activity and Suppresses Tumor Growth in Renal Cell Carcinoma.

UNLABELLED: Current treatment approaches for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) face challenges in achieving durable tumor responses due to tumor heterogeneity and drug resistance. Combination therapies that leverage tumor molecular profiles could offer an avenue for enhancing treatment efficacy and addressing the limitations of current therapies. To identify effective strategies for treating RCC, we selected ten drugs guided by tumor biology to test in six RCC patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models. The multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) cabozantinib and mTORC1/2 inhibitor sapanisertib emerged as the most effective drugs, particularly when combined. The combination demonstrated favorable tolerability and inhibited tumor growth or induced tumor regression in all models, including two from patients who experienced treatment failure with FDA-approved TKI and immunotherapy combinations. In cabozantinib-treated samples, imaging analysis revealed a significant reduction in vascular density, and single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) analysis indicated a decreased proportion of endothelial cells in the tumors. SnRNA-seq data further identified a tumor subpopulation enriched with cell-cycle activity that exhibited heightened sensitivity to the cabozantinib and sapanisertib combination. Conversely, activation of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition pathway, detected at the protein level, was associated with drug resistance in residual tumors following combination treatment. The combination effectively restrained ERK phosphorylation and reduced expression of ERK downstream transcription factors and their target genes implicated in cell-cycle control and apoptosis. This study highlights the potential of the cabozantinib plus sapanisertib combination as a promising treatment approach for patients with RCC, particularly those whose tumors progressed on immune checkpoint inhibitors and other TKIs. SIGNIFICANCE: The molecular-guided therapeutic strategy of combining cabozantinib and sapanisertib restrains ERK activity to effectively suppress growth of renal cell carcinomas, including those unresponsive to immune checkpoint inhibitors

Spatially restricted drivers and transitional cell populations cooperate with the microenvironment in untreated and chemo-resistant pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is a lethal disease with limited treatment options and poor survival. We studied 83 spatial samples from 31 patients (11 treatment-naïve and 20 treated) using single-cell/nucleus RNA sequencing, bulk-proteogenomics, spatial transcriptomics and cellular imaging. Subpopulations of tumor cells exhibited signatures of proliferation, KRAS signaling, cell stress and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Mapping mutations and copy number events distinguished tumor populations from normal and transitional cells, including acinar-to-ductal metaplasia and pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia. Pathology-assisted deconvolution of spatial transcriptomic data identified tumor and transitional subpopulations with distinct histological features. We showed coordinated expression of TIGIT in exhausted and regulatory T cells and Nectin in tumor cells. Chemo-resistant samples contain a threefold enrichment of inflammatory cancer-associated fibroblasts that upregulate metallothioneins. Our study reveals a deeper understanding of the intricate substructure of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma tumors that could help improve therapy for patients with this disease

Pathogenic Germline Variants in 10,389 Adult Cancers

We conducted the largest investigation of predisposition variants in cancer to date, discovering 853 pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in 8% of 10,389 cases from 33 cancer types. Twenty-one genes showed single or cross-cancer associations, including novel associations of SDHA in melanoma and PALB2 in stomach adenocarcinoma. The 659 predisposition variants and 18 additional large deletions in tumor suppressors, including ATM, BRCA1, and NF1, showed low gene expression and frequent (43%) loss of heterozygosity or biallelic two-hit events. We also discovered 33 such variants in oncogenes, including missenses in MET, RET, and PTPN11 associated with high gene expression. We nominated 47 additional predisposition variants from prioritized VUSs supported by multiple evidences involving case-control frequency, loss of heterozygosity, expression effect, and co-localization with mutations and modified residues. Our integrative approach links rare predisposition variants to functional consequences, informing future guidelines of variant classification and germline genetic testing in cancer. A pan-cancer analysis identifies hundreds of predisposing germline variants

Android attendance management system based on bluetooth technology

To improve the performance of attendance management system, a new mobile phone application based on Bluetooth technology is designed in this dissertation. The principle idea is to use mobile phone’s Bluetooth address as the unique sign to recognize user and record their attendance information. The whole system can be divided into 3 parts. The first part is the Bluetooth Scanning Application. This App is to scan employees' Bluetooth devices regularly, get device address and transmit address information to server side. This Procedure is the core of attendance management. According to the result of scanning, server can make judgment of employees' state and generate the attendance table everyday. The second part is Manager’s Application, which provides a tool for manager to: check attendance status in time; edit employee's information; sending message to employees; publish events information. The third part is designing the website flt for administration. Manager can view each employee's attendance status and working time, decide fine and awards, arrange notice board. Also, employees can log in with their account to check their own attendance information,view company news and ask for leave. The test result shows that the speed and throughput of this system is working well and can be widely used in many companies and industries.Master of Science (Communications Engineering