Based on the drought severity index (DSI), which is derived from the ratio of evapotranspiration (ET) to potential evapotranspiration (PET) and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), as ...measured by remote sensing, we replaced the ET/PET ratio with soil moisture (0-10 cm) to establish an improved index (IDSI) and evaluated the drought situation in Inner Mongolia. The two components in IDSI are independently derived; however, the effects of evapotranspiration are contained in the soil moisture, and even precipitation changes could be reflected. We used monthly IDSI data for Inner Mongolia to evaluate drought throughout the growing season (May–September) during 2001-2010. The IDSI showed that 2001, 2007, and 2009 were years with significant drought. Areas that experienced extreme drought were less extensive than those found by the DSI because we removed the ET/PET component, which already contains the effects of the NDVI. IDSI results not only contained the degree of precipitation change for a given month through soil moisture, but also reflected the influence of water and heat in the previous month through the NDVI. Moreover, IDSI results were generally consistent with agricultural drought disaster records.
The integration of distributed energy resources and advancement in information technology has enabled the transition of traditional power distribution systems to active cyber‐physical distribution ...systems. A growing amount of research has been done on the modelling, analysis, and optimisation of power distribution system behaviour. However, existing publicly available distribution test feeders are limited in numbers and have minimal features. Furthermore, these test feeders do not include cyber models and are not customisable. To bridge this gap, we propose and develop Cyber‐physical synthetic distribution system network (CP‐SyNet), a tool for generating customisable cyber‐physical synthetic distribution test feeders. CP‐SyNet generates three‐phase unbalanced test feeders according to users' requirements, while simultaneously considering both the cyber side and the physical side of the network for cyber‐physical analysis. The physical test network is developed using a graph‐theoretical approach that employs information from existing test feeders. The cyber side considers an equivalent communication network by transforming the physical topology into possible and feasible simulated network. Two examples are presented to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed framework to generate cyber‐physical test feeders.
We proposed and developed CP‐SyNet, a tool to generate customizable cyber‐physical synthetic distribution test feeders. CP‐SyNet generates three‐phase unbalanced test feeders according to users’ requirements, while simultaneously considering both the cyber side and the physical side of the network for more advanced analysis.
Electric vehicles (EVs) are becoming a promising source of grid ancillary services due to the temporal and spatial charging flexibility, quick response and storage capability. Such advantages are ...increasing with government policy promotion and technology improvement. However, the exploration of EV flexibility requires the coordination of both transmission system operators (TSOs) and distribution system operators (DSOs), to ensure the safe and reliable operation of power network. In this paper, we propose a coordinated evaluation method that determines the optimal utilization of EV temporal flexibility without compromising EV owners' usage. At the distribution level, DSOs first evaluate EV aggregators' operational boundaries to exploit distribution level services. At the transmission level, TSOs then determine EV charging schedules and ancillary service capacity simultaneously, taking into account the requirement from DSOs. We validate the model in a case study using the IEEE 123 node test feeder and EV charging sessions obtained from a transportation simulation tool that uses real-world data.
Recent guidelines have revealed that allergic rhinitis (AR) impairs quality of life. Neuropeptides play a central role in AR. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of posterior nasal ...neurectomy (PNN) for the treatment of AR and for the suppression of neuropeptides and type 2 cytokine expression.
In total, 77 patients undergoing PNN were recruited. Subjective symptoms, including sneezing and rhinorrhea, were elicited with a questionnaire using a 10 cm visual analogue scale (VAS). Nasal lavage fluid taken from a random sample of 17 patients both preoperatively and 1 year postoperatively was screened with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.
Postoperative rhinorrhea (6.03 ± 1.31vs 2.12 ± 1.40, P < 0.001) and sneezing (5.53 ± 1.25vs 2.04 ± 1.29, P < 0.001) were significantly improved relative to the preoperative levels; the mean SP and NPY concentrations in the nasal lavage fluid were 91.6 ± 20.9 pg/ml and 71.5 ± 10.5 pg/ml, which decreased significantly to 52.9 ± 16.7 pg/ml and 31.8 ± 8.2 pg/ml, respectively, and the mean periostin and IL-5 concentrations were 215.2 ± 87.7 pg/ml and 984.5 ± 181.8 pg/ml, which decreased significantly to 146.1 ± 70.1 pg/ml and 281.6 ± 74.0 pg/ml, respectively.
PNN was safe and well tolerated, and the symptom (sneezing and rhinorrhea) scores were significantly decreased by 1 year postoperatively.
Metropolitansworldwide are increasingly adopting electric taxis (ET) to address concerns about transportation-related emissions. However, the widespread deployment of electric taxis presents ...challenges in terms of increased electricity demand and changing demand profiles. This transition impacts both the urban transportation network (TN) and the electricity power distribution network (PDN), highlighting the interdependence between these two systems. In this paper, we propose a two-stage stochastic programming planning model that aims to optimize both the TN and PDN, enabling efficient deployment of charging stations and grid upgrades. Our model seeks to strike a balance between meeting ET drivers' charging preferences, minimizing the costs associated with infrastructure deployment and grid expansion, and harmonizing the coordination between the TN and PDN. Additionally, we explore the potential benefits of utilizing an autonomous ET fleet to enhance overall system performance.
Distribution systems are growing rapidly in size and complexity with increased penetrations of distributed energy resources (DER) and electric vehicles (EVs), leading to operational challenges. ...Reactive power compensation from photovoltaic (PV) inverters and active power curtailment of PV output are commonly used to mitigate voltage-related problems. However, the charging/discharging flexibility of EVs can be used to avoid PV output curtailment and save energy motivating methods to coordinate EV charging with PVs. Unfortunately, a large number of control variables makes the centralized voltage control computationally expensive. In this work, a decentralized voltage control algorithm which considers the active and reactive power compensation from PV inverters and EVs is presented. The proposed approach helps to solve the voltage issues in a more effective way. The approach involves clustering of the distribution network based on modified modularity, an index that considers EV flexibility and prediction time period. A model predictive control (MPC)-based algorithm is proposed for each cluster to solve the voltage problem using the respective PVs and EVs, while ensuring that the EV charging demand is satisfied while contributing to the voltage regulation. The proposed algorithm is validated using the IEEE 123 node test systems under two PV and EV penetration levels and shown to be effective in solving the voltage regulation problem.