We are witnessing in recent years a significant increase in the penetration of small units of distributed generation on electricity networks, motivated by a higher demand of environmental protection ...and a gradual process of liberalization on the energy market. In last decade many countries have begun a liberalization process of their electrical systems by opening access to transmission and distribution networks. This has been accompanied by a fast growth in the presence of small generators distributed, of several technologies, many of them based on renewable energy sources.
However, there are still technical, economic and regulatory barriers that limit the definitive boost of distributed generation (DG). The increase of connections in many cases, has been based on the philosophy “fit and forget” and capacity of installed DG remains limited by Distribution Network Operators. In this article are reviewed those factors that can contribute most to the necessary evolution of DG, to overcome the current paradigm of renewable distributed generation sources “integrated in a real network”, and reach a stage of DG units “embedded in the new distribution networks”.
To do this, aspects such as, Smartgrids and new information and communications technologies, microgeneration and storage technologies, Active Management Network, multiobjetive planning as an optimization tool for sizing and selection of sites DG, or regulatory issues, are examined along of this article.
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•Costs of district heating schemes with different weather conditions are addressed.•The implementation of district energy systems would greatly reduce CO2 emissions.•From the ...quantitative evidence, net primary energy savings obtained are similar.•Even having to transport heat over long distances, significant savings are achieved.•In Southern Europe, district heating and cooling networks should be used together.
The purpose of this paper is to assess the economic impact following as a result of the conversion of conventional stations to cogeneration plants connected to a system for distributing heat and refrigeration. The analysis will be carried out through a financial evaluation in order to assess yearly variations of the whole scheme expenditure.
In particular, yearly capital and operating costs of supplying cold and heat to urban areas that represent weather conditions in northern, central, and southern Europe (Oldenburg–Wilhelmshaven, Bristol, and Cartagena, respectively) were studied. In the base case scenario, today conditions are represented; they will be compared with alternative scenarios in which existing conventional thermal power stations will be converted into cogeneration plants.
•A novel Advanced Superconductor technology application is presented.•The performance of the SFCL installation is analysed.•The economic cost and benefit are analysed.•Results show SFCL good ...performance and possible profitability.
All substations that make up an electric energy distribution system are vulnerable to unwanted voltage or current surges, with negative implications for the affected facilities. The consequence are economic losses for the companies which operate them as well as interruption of energy delivery. This paper presents the implementation of an advanced fault current limiting device based on second generation superconducting. The purpose of the system is to avoid the negative effects of network incidents. The research analyses the performance under the conventional operating conditions of a distribution substation in Spain. The results show a reduction of peak short-circuit currents, low operating losses and the correct operation of substation with interconnected busbars. The implemented system not only prevents economic losses due to the destruction or shortening of useful life of the equipment, but also increases the quality of energy supply to customers. The conclusion from the economic analysis is that the benefit-to-cost ratio of the technology would be positive with the estimated series-produced price for the system of 100000€.
Objective
The objective of this observational, descriptive, cross-sectional, multicentre study was to assess the perceived quality and grade of satisfaction expressed by patients with chronic ...arthropathies regarding the use of musculoskeletal (MSK) ultrasonography by rheumatologists as an integrated clinical care tool.
Methods
All Spanish rheumatology departments with MSK ultrasonography incorporated in their healthcare services were invited to participate in the study. A Spanish-language survey was offered to fill out anonymously to all consecutive patients with chronic arthropathies under follow-up in the rheumatology outpatient clinics who attended their centre for a period of 3 months. The survey consisted of three sections. The first section contained patients’ demographics, disease data, frequency of performing rheumatological ultrasound and information about who performed their ultrasound assessments. The second section consisted of 14 questions about patient’s experience and opinion on different aspects of the management, performance and perceived usefulness of performing ultrasound, to be answered on a Likert scale 1–5. The third section of the survey was addressed to the rheumatologist ultrasonographers.
Results
Nine hundred and four patients from 16 university hospital rheumatology departments completed the survey. All questions reached an overall favourable response ≥ 80%. Patients who reported usual ultrasound examinations in their rheumatology care and those in which it was their attending rheumatologist who performed the ultrasound assessments responded more favourably.
Conclusion
Our encouraging patient-centred results may be useful in facilitating the implementation of rheumatological ultrasound in rheumatology care worldwide.
Key Points
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This is the largest multicentre survey carried out in patients with chronic joint diseases designed to assess their experience and perceived benefits with the use of ultrasonography performed by rheumatologists in daily practice.
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Musculoskeletal ultrasound incorporated into rheumatology care was very well accepted and valued by most patients.
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The patients perceived that ultrasonography helps not only their rheumatologist but also themselves to better understand their condition.
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The patients believed that ultrasonography helps them accept and comply with the proposed treatment.
This paper describes a new methodology for carrying out quantitative extraction of cloxacillin from drinking and river water samples using a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) as a selective sorbent ...for solid-phase extraction (MISPE). Several polymers were synthesized via thermal polymerization using cloxacillin as a template, methacrylic acid (MAA) as a functional monomer, ethyleneglycoldimethacrylate (EGDMA) as a cross-linker and different solvents as porogens. Binding characteristics of the adequate molecularly imprinted and non-imprinted (NIP) polymers were evaluated via batch adsorption assays following the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms and Scatchard assays. The parameters related to the extraction approach were studied to select the most appropriate polymer for cloxacillin determination. Using the optimized MIP as the SPE sorbent, a simple sample treatment methodology was combined with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to analyze cloxacillin residues in drinking and river water. Under the optimum experimental conditions, the MISPE methodology was validated using spiked samples. The linearity for cloxacillin was assessed within the limits of 0.05–1.5 µg L−1 and the recovery percentage was higher than 98% (RSD < 4%). The limits of detection and limits of quantification were 0.29 and 0.37 µg L−1 and 0.8 and 0.98 µg L−1 for drinking and river water, respectively. The selectivity of MIP against other ß-lactam antibiotics with similar structures (oxacillin, cefazoline, amoxicillin and penicillin V) was studied, obtaining a good recovery higher than 85% for all except cefazoline. The proposed MISPE-HPLC methodology was successfully applied for the detection of cloxacillin in drinking water from Canal de Isabel II (Madrid) and river water from the Manzanares River (Madrid).
Critical parameters affecting the stereoselective amination of (hetero)aromatic ketones using transaminases have been studied, such as temperature, pH, substrate concentration, cosolvent, and source ...and percentage of amino donor, to further optimize the production of enantiopure amines using both (S)- and (R)-selective biocatalysts from commercial suppliers. Interesting enantiopure amino building blocks have been obtained, overcoming some limitations of traditional chemical synthetic methods. Representative processes were scaled up, affording halogenated and heteroaromatic amines in enantiomerically pure form and good isolated yields.
Compounds with specific cytotoxic activity in senescent cells, or senolytics, support the causal involvement of senescence in aging and offer therapeutic interventions. Here we report the ...identification of Cardiac Glycosides (CGs) as a family of compounds with senolytic activity. CGs, by targeting the Na+/K+ATPase pump, cause a disbalanced electrochemical gradient within the cell causing depolarization and acidification. Senescent cells present a slightly depolarized plasma membrane and higher concentrations of H+, making them more susceptible to the action of CGs. These vulnerabilities can be exploited for therapeutic purposes as evidenced by the in vivo eradication of tumors xenografted in mice after treatment with the combination of a senogenic and a senolytic drug. The senolytic effect of CGs is also effective in the elimination of senescence-induced lung fibrosis. This experimental approach allows the identification of compounds with senolytic activity that could potentially be used to develop effective treatments against age-related diseases.
Bismuth titanate (BTO) nanoparticles were obtained by pulsed laser ablation in liquid media (PLAL). Distilled water, ethanol, isopropanol, and acetone were used as media for laser ablation ...experiments, in which the colloidal solutions were obtained. Laser ablation was carried out using the second harmonic and fundamental wavelength of a pulsed Nd:YAG laser (532 nm and 1064 nm, respectively) with laser fluences of 25 and 12 mJ/cm2, respectively. Transmission electron microscopy was utilized for morphological characterization. BTO nanoparticles obtained have spherical shapes with orthorhombic structure and the average size distribution depended on the liquid media nature. In alcohols, BTO NPs were spherical with a carbon layer around them. X-ray diffraction, UV-Vis absorption spectra, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to confirm the structural, optical, and elemental properties of the ablated products. The presented results show that PLAL is a viable technique for the synthesis of high-quality BTO nanoparticles with enhanced optical properties for possible applications in photocatalysis.
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