Integration of economic MPC and modifier adaptation in slow dynamic processes with structural model uncertainty

Real-Time Optimization, known by its acronym RTO, uses a steady-state nonlinear model of the process to optimize a plant's economic objective subject to process constraints. This is the technology currently used in commercial RTO applications. However, no model is a perfect representation of reality, and structural and parametric model uncertainties make the optimum calculated by RTO do not match those of the actual process. One way to address this problem is to modify the optimization problem so that the Necessary Conditions of Optimality (NCO) of the problem match those of the actual plant. This strategy is known as Modifier Adaptation (MA) methodology. The MA methodology requires the gradient values of the real plant and the model to calculate the modifiers. There are several ways to accurately estimate model gradients, but estimation of the real process gradients are more difficult. In addition, the need to use stationary data is a limitation of RTO with MA, especially for slow dynamic systems. This thesis focuses on ways to mitigate the weaknesses of RTO and MA unification that we consider most critical for its application in industry. To this end, it is proposed to couple the RTO and control layers with the concepts of the Modifier Adaptation (MA) methodology by estimating process gradients or directly the MA modifiers using transient data.La Optimización en Tiempo Real, conocida por la sigla en inglés RTO usa un modelo no lineal estacionario del proceso para optimizar un objetivo económico de la planta frente a restricciones del proceso. Esta es la tecnología usada actualmente por las aplicaciones comerciales de RTO. Sin embargo, ningún modelo es una representación perfecta de la realidad y las incertidumbres estructurales y paramétricas de los modelos hacen que los óptimos calculados por la RTO no coincidan con los del proceso real. Una forma de abordar este problema es modificar el problema de optimización de modo que las condiciones necesarias de optimalidad del problema (NCO) se igualen a los de la planta real. Esa estrategia es conocida como la metodología de adaptación de modificadores (Modifier Adaptation, MA). La metodología MA necesita de los valores de gradiente de la planta real y del modelo para el cálculo de los modificadores. Hay diversas formas de estimar los gradientes del modelo con exactitud, sin embargo, la estimación en proceso real es más difícil. Además, la necesidad de usar datos en estacionario sigue siendo una limitación fundamental de la RTO con MA, principalmente para sistemas dinámicos lentos. Esta tesis se enfoca en formas de mitigar las debilidades de la unificación RTO y MA que consideramos las más críticas para su aplicación en la industria. Para eso se propone que las capas de RTO y control se unan con los conceptos de la metodología de adaptación de modificadores (Modifier Adaptation, MA) estimando los gradientes de proceso o directamente los modificadores de MA usando datos de transitorio.Escuela de DoctoradoDoctorado en Ingeniería Industria

The sky view factor and its influence on the intra-urban thermal-hygrometric features in Pelotas city - Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil

O clima urbano é resultado das ações de diversas variáveis, entre elas o fator de visão do céu (FVC). Este artigo apresenta incialmente a metodologia utilizada para calcular o fator de visão do céu em dez postos de coleta de temperatura e umidade do ar na cidade de Pelotas-RS e, na sequência, um estudo comparativo do comportamento da temperatura e da umidade relativa do ar entre estes mesmos dez locais. Os dados resultam de três períodos de registro no ano de 2014: o primeiro em agosto/setembro, o segundo em novembro, o terceiro em dezembro. Cada ponto de coleta consistiu num pequeno coletor eletrônico de dados de temperatura e umidade relativa do ar (ONSET - U23-001), disposto dentro de um abrigo fixo a um tripé distante 1,5 metros do chão, que registrou dados de 30 em 30 minutos. Os resultados mostram relação entre o microclima e o FVC. Nos levantamentos considerados os registros nos locais de maior obstrução foram em mais de 70% das vezes superiores à média. As áreas menos obstruídas também foram aquelas que apresentaram temperaturas mais baixas que a média. Os locais mais frios que a média também apresentaram umidade relativa do ar mais alta que a média.Sem bols

Pobreza econômica e sociocultural no abuso de drogas: da responsabilidade individual à sociopolítica

Research on drug abuse has often ignored users’ own opinions and perceptions about their addiction. In this study, we wanted to hear their voice on the reasons and motives why they engaged in drug abuse, and on the consequences this behavior had on their lives. Data were collected in Portugal from interviews with fifteen people under treatment for addictive behavior relative to alcohol and illegal drugs. The interviews were analyzed through Thematic Analysis and revealed the existence of several structural factors impacting on the lives of the participants, namely, gender discrimination, poor schooling, socioeconomic marginalization and exclusion associated to insufficient and inadequate public policies. The action of more symbolic structural factors – for instance, their widespread beliefs on drug addiction as a result of free will – through its internalization by families, friends and by addicts themselves, became visible in interviewees’ narratives, in which the rejection by close ones, as well as their own feelings of guilt, sadness and self-disapproval, are prominent features. As a conclusion, we call attention to the need for an integrated public policy in the educational, health and justice areas, and the implementation of awareness-raising actions aimed at the general public, in order to attenuate the impact of structural factors on the lives of current and potential drug addicts.A pesquisa sobre o abuso de drogas tem frequentemente ignorado as opiniões dos próprios usuários e as suas perceções sobre a sua dependência. Neste estudo, quisemos ouvir a sua voz sobre as razões e os motivos por que se engajaram no abuso de drogas e sobre as consequências que este comportamento teve nas suas vidas. Os dados foram coletados em Portugal a partir de entrevistas com quinze pessoas sob tratamento para comportamento aditivo em relação a álcool e drogas ilegais. As entrevistas foram analisadas através de análise temática e revelaram a existência de diversos fatores estruturais impactando na vida dos participantes, ou seja, discriminação de gênero, escolaridade baixa, marginalização socioeconômica e exclusão associados a políticas públicas insuficientes e inadequadas. A ação de fatores estruturais mais simbólicos – por exemplo, suas crenças generalizadas na toxicodependência como resultado do livre-arbítrio – através de sua interiorização pelas famílias, amigos e pelos viciados em si, tornou-se visível nas narrativas dos entrevistados, em que a rejeição pelos próximos, além de seus próprios sentimentos de culpa, tristeza e autodesaprovação, são características proeminentes. Como conclusão, chamamos atenção para a necessidade de uma política pública integrada nas áreas de educação, saúde e justiça, e a implementação de ações de sensibilização visando o público em geral, a fim de atenuar o impacto dos fatores estruturais sobre a vida dos atuais e potenciais viciados em drogas

Recycling Stories: Community Art and Deliberative Democracy Opening Spaces for Civic Engagement

How can we create meaningful spaces of engagement for citizens who work in the recycling industry in Brazil who suffer marginalization? What can we learn from the Brazilian experience of opening spaces of engagement? Seeking answers for these questions, we entered the journey of participatory action and arts–based research and developed a series of visual arts workshops and public exhibits in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. In this context, the objective of this study is to explore the diverse role of the arts in not just creating spaces for engagement that are inherently deliberatively democratic, but also holding the space for dialogue, knowledge construction and mobilization, and civic engagement

Constructed wetlands as an alternative to conventional wastewater treatment systems: a review

As águas residuais apresentam um elevado teor de nutrientes, como fósforo, azoto, e matéria orgânica que podem causar problemas ambientais nas massas de água, se não forem tratadas de forma eficiente. A utilização de leitos húmidos construídos (LHC) como método de tratamento de águas residuais tem vindo a expandir-se, dada a necessidade de diminuição dos custos operacionais e utilização de métodos de tratamento mais sustentáveis. Os leitos húmidos construídos além do tratamento das águas residuais, também promovem outras funções, como a conservação da biodiversidade e dos seus habitats, a regulação do clima do ciclo hidrológico e o uso público. Os leitos híbridos nasceram da necessidade de melhorar a eficiência de tratamento e consistem na conjugação de vários tipos de tratamento individuais num só sistema. Os LHC permitem reduzir os impactes da atividade humana relacionados com as águas residuais. Este artigo apresenta uma revisão da diversidade de LHC’s existentes.Wastewater has a high content of nutrients, such as phosphorus, nitrogen, and organic matter can cause environmental problems in water bodies, if not treated efficiently. The use of Constructed Wetlands (CW’s) as a wastewater treatment method has been expanding, given the need to reduce operating costs and use more sustainable treatment methods. CW’s in addition to wastewater treatment also promote other functions, such as the conservation of biodiversity and its habitats, the regulation of the climate, the hydrological cycle and public use. Hybrid beds were born out of the need to improve treatment efficiency and consist in the conjugation of several individual treatment types into one system. CW’s reduce the impact of human activity on wastewater. This paper presents a review of the diversity of existing wetted beds.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Observing Grasping Actions Directed to Emotion-Laden Objects: Effects upon Corticospinal Excitability

The motor system is recruited whenever one executes an action as well as when one observes the same action being executed by others. Although it is well established that emotion modulates the motor system, the effect of observing other individuals acting in an emotional context is particularly elusive. The main aim of this study was to investigate the effect induced by the observation of grasping directed to emotion-laden objects upon corticospinal excitability (CSE). Participants classified video-clips depicting the right-hand of an actor grasping emotion-laden objects. Twenty video-clips differing in terms of valence but balanced in arousal level were selected. Motor evoked potentials (MEPs) were then recorded from the first dorsal interosseous using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) while the participants observed the selected emotional video-clips. During the video-clip presentation, TMS pulses were randomly applied at one of two different time points of grasping: (1) maximum grip aperture, and (2) object contact time. CSE was higher during the observation of grasping directed to unpleasant objects compared to pleasant ones. These results indicate that when someone observes an action of grasping directed to emotion-laden objects, the effect of the object valence promotes a specific modulation over the motor system.Fil: Nogueira Campos, Anaelli A.. Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora; BrasilFil: Saunier, Ghislain. Universidade Federal do Pará; BrasilFil: Della Maggiore, Valeria Monica. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Fisiología y Biofísica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Fisiología y Biofísica Bernardo Houssay; ArgentinaFil: De Oliveira, Laura A. S.. Centro Universitário Augusto Motta; BrasilFil: Rodrigues, Erika C.. Centro Universitário Augusto Motta; BrasilFil: Vargas, Claudia D.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; Brasi

Hazardous thoracic and ultrafine particles from road dust in a Caribbean industrial city

In this study, inorganic geochemical characterization of the thoracic (or < 10 μm) fraction of road dust in Barranquilla (a major industrial city in the Caribbean region) was conducted. Samples were collected directly from street pavements, and the fraction of particles <10 μm was analyzed by inductively coupled plasma - optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma - mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Major elements including Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Na, and S were the most abundant species, accounting for 23 ± 18% of the mass of thoracic particles. Enrichment factor was calculated obtaining that Sb, Sn, Cu, Zn, Pb, and Fe had a dominant anthropogenic influence. An exploratory analysis of morphology and geochemical composition of ultrafine particles was conducted using a field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM). Iron particles were identified as enriched compounds and as a mineral (magnetite). Hazardous ultrafine particles (UFPs, with diameter < 100 nm) such as TiO2 and Pb (agglomerated shape), and V and Ni (almost-spherical carbonaceous particles) were also detected. The braking process was identified as a crucial urban source of thoracic particles and UFPs. The results provide data that can be used to better understand and manage road dust

Sarcopenia and mortality risk in community-dwelling Brazilian older adults

We estimated the impact of sarcopenia parameters on mortality risk and assessed its prevalence and associated factors in the older adults according to the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People’s 2010 (EWGSOP1) and 2018 (EWGSOP2) criteria. This was a 10-year follow-up cohort study. Low muscle mass (MM) was defined as low skeletal muscle mass index (SMI) using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and low calf circumference (CC). Cox regression and the Kaplan–Meier method were performed. The prevalence of sarcopenia and associated factors were influenced by the MM measurement method and diagnostic criteria used [6.8% (SMI and EWGSOP2), 12.8% (CC and EWGSOP2; and SMI and EWGSOP1) and 17.4% (CC and EWGSOP1)]. While a low BMI was associated with sarcopenia regardless of the sarcopenia definitions, diabetes, and high TGs were associated with sarcopenia only when using the EWGSOP1 criteria. Low SMI increased mortality risk (EWGSOP1: HR = 2.01, 95% CI 1.03–3.92; EWGSOP2: HR = 2.07, 95% CI 1.05–4.06). The prevalence of sarcopenia was higher according to EWGSOP1 than EWGSOP2. A low BMI, diabetes, and high TGs were associated with sarcopenia. A low SMI doubled the risk of mortality in community-dwelling older adults