This paper presents a control strategy for residential battery energy storage systems, which is aware of volatile electricity markets and uncertain daily cycling loads. The economic benefits of ...energy trading for prosumers are achieved through a novel modification of a conventional model predictive control (MPC). The proposed control strategy guarantees an optimal global solution for the applied control action. A new cost function is introduced to model the effects of volatility on customer benefits more effectively. Specifically, the newly presented cost function models a probabilistic relation between the power exchanged with the grid, the net load, and the electricity market. The probabilistic calculation of the cost function shows the dependence on the mathematical expectation of market price and net load. Computational techniques for calculating this value are presented. The proposed strategy differs from the stochastic and robust MPC in that the cost is calculated across the market price and net load variations rather than across model constraints and parameter variations.
The goal of this research was a comprehensive analysis of four wild edible mushroom species, Cantharellus cinereus, Clavariadelphus pistillaris, Clitocybe nebularis and Hygrocybe punicea, which have ...not been analyzed so far. Extracts of different polarities have been prepared and evaluated for their antioxidant activities by DPPH, ABTS, FRAP, TRP and CUPRAC methods. For all extracts, total phenolic content was determined. Based on the analysis, it was shown that solvent type had a significant effect on the antioxidant capacities of mushroom extracts, so water extracts showed the highest activity. Furthermore, the analysis includes determination of mineral composition, fatty acid profiles and antimicrobial activity. Unsaturated fatty acids, which are very important for human health, are dominant in the studied mushroom species. Linoleic and oleic acid consist of over 50 % of the total fatty acid composition. Seventeen biologically important and toxic elements have been analyzed by ICP‐OES and ICP‐MS and results showed that the element concentrations were species‐dependent. Also, it has been found that analyzed mushrooms did not show any antimicrobial activity. Chemometric analysis was used to understand the connection between the extracts of different polarities.
► Wild fire impact on soil characteristics and heavy metal distribution. ► Abundance of heavy metals in plant’s of Lamiaceae family roots and shoots. ► Elevated heavy metal concentrations in some ...plants of post-fire area. ► Improved organic matter, redox potential, cation exchange capacity of post-fire soil. ► Amounts of heavy metal in soil and plant of post-fire area below harmful limits.
Fire has been considered as an improving factor in soil quality, but only if it is controlled. Severe wild fire occurred in the summer 2007 on the Vidlic Mountain (Serbia) overspreading a huge area of meadows and forests.
Main soil characteristics and content of heavy metals (Cu, Pb, Cd, Zn) in different fractions obtained after sequential extraction of soil from post-fire areas and from fire non disturbed areas were studied. In four plant species of Lamiaceae family (Ajuga genevensis L., Lamium galeobdolon (L.) L., Teucrium chamaedrys L., Acinos alpinus (L.) Moench.), that grow in typical habitats of the mountain, distribution of heavy metals in aerial parts and roots was investigated too.
For all samples from post-fire area cation exchange capacity and soil organic matter content are increased while rH is decreased. Fire caused slightly increased bioavailability of the observed metals but more significant rise happened in metal amounts bound to oxides and organics. The plants showed variable behavior. T. chamaedrys collected on the post-fire area contained elevated concentrations of all analyzed metals. A. alpinus showed higher phytoaccumulation for Zn and Cd, while the other two plant species for Pb and Cd in the post-fire areas.
One of the most intriguing scenarios proposed to explain how active galactic nuclei are triggered involves the existence of a supermassive binaiy black hole (BH) system in their cores. Here, we ...present an observational evidence for the first spectroscopically resolved sub-parsec orbit of a such system in the core of Seyfert galaxy NGC 4151. Using a method similar to those typically used for spectroscopic binaiy stars, we obtained radial velocity curves of the supermassive binary system, from which we calculated orbital elements and made estimates about the masses of the components. Our analysis shows that periodic variations in the light and radial velocity curves can be accounted for by an eccentric, sub-parsec Keplerian orbit with a 15.9 year period. The flux maximum in the light curve corresponds to the approaching phase of the secondaiy component toward the observer. According to the obtained results, we speculate that the periodic variations in the observed H alpha line shape and flux are due to shock waves generated by the supersonic motion of the components through the surrounding medium. Given the large observational effort needed to reveal this spectroscopically resolved binary orbital motion, we suggest that many such systems may exist in similar objects even if they are hard to find. Detecting more of them will provide us with insight into the BH mass growth process.
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is a significant factor in the pathogenesis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma, especially in the undifferentiated carcinoma of nasopharyngeal type (UCNT, World Health ...Organization type III), which is the dominant histopathological type in high-risk areas. The major EBV oncogene is latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1). LMP1 gene shows variability with different tumorigenic and immunogenic potentials. EBV nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA1) regulates progression of EBV-related tumors; however, the influence of EBNA1 sequence variability on tumor pathogenesis is controversial. The aims of this study were to characterize polymorphisms of EBV genes in non-endemic nasopharyngeal carcinoma biopsies and to investigate potential sequence patterns that correlate with the clinical presentation of nasopharyngeal carcinoma. In total, 116 tumor biopsies of undifferentiated carcinoma of nasopharyngeal type (UCNT), collected from 2008 to 2014, were evaluated in this study. The genes EBNA2, LMP1, and EBNA1 were amplified using nested-PCR. EBNA2 genotyping was performed by visualization of PCR products using gel electrophoresis. Investigation of LMP1 and EBNA1 included sequence, phylogenetic, and statistical analyses. The presence of EBV DNA was significantly distributed between TNM stages. LMP1 variability showed six variants, with the detection of the first China1 and North Carolina variants in European nasopharyngeal carcinoma biopsies. Newly discovered variants Srb1 and Srb2 were UCNT-specific LMP1 polymorphisms. The B95-8 and North Carolina variants are possible predictors for favorable TNM stages. In contrast, deletions in LMP1 are possible risk factors for the most disfavorable TNM stage, independent of EBNA2 or EBNA1 variability. A newly discovered EBNA1 subvariant, P-thr-sv-5, could be a potential diagnostic marker, as it represented a UCNT-specific EBNA1 subvariant. A particular combination of EBNA2, LMP1, and EBNA1 polymorphisms, type 1/Med/P-thr was identified as a possible risk factor for TNM stage IVB or progression to the N3 stage.
In modern clinical practice and research on behavioral changes in patients with oncological problems, there are several one-sided approaches to these problems. Strategies for early detection of ...behavioral changes are considered, but they must take into account the specifics of the localization and phase in the course and treatment of somatic oncological disease. Behavioral changes, in particular, may correlate with systemic proinflammatory changes. In the up-to-date literature, there are a lot of useful pointers on the relationship between carcinoma and inflammation and between depression and inflammation. This review is intended to provide an overview of these similar underlying inflammatory disturbances in both oncological disease and depression. The specificities of acute and chronic inflammation are considered as a basis for causal current and future therapies. Modern therapeutic oncology protocols may also cause transient behavioral changes, so assessment of the quality, quantity, and duration of behavioral symptoms is necessary to prescribe adequate therapy. Conversely, antidepressant properties could be used to ameliorate inflammation. We will attempt to provide some impetus and present some unconventional potential treatment targets related to inflammation. It is certain that only an integrative oncology approach is justifiable in modern patient treatment.
To optimally control the energy storage system of the battery exposed to the volatile daily cycling load and electricity tariffs, a novel modification of a conventional model predictive control is ...proposed. The uncertainty of daily cycling load prompts the need to design a new cost function which is able to quantify the associated uncertainty. By modelling a probabilistic dependence among flow, load, and electricity tariffs, the expected cost function is obtained and used in the constrained optimization. The proposed control strategy explicitly incorporates the cycling nature of customer load. Furthermore, for daily cycling load, a fixed-end time and a fixed-end output problem are addressed. It is demonstrated that the proposed control strategy is a convex optimization problem. While stochastic and robust model predictive controllers evaluate the cost concerning model constraints and parameter variations. Also, the expected cost across the flow variations is considered. The density function of load probability improves load prediction over a progressive prediction horizon, and a nonlinear battery model is utilized.
Uric acid (UA) has been shown to have neuroprotective or neurotoxic properties, in relation to specific tissues and diseases that have been studied. Previous studies provided contradictory results on ...the role of UA in schizophrenia as a neurodegenerative disorder. The aim of this brief report was an additional analysis of UA sera levels in different phases of schizophrenia. Here, 86 patients with first-episode psychosis (FEP) vs. 45 patients with schizophrenia in relapse (SC in relapse) vs. 35 healthy control subjects (HC) were studied before and 1 month after antipsychotic therapy. Further, we aimed to explore the possible correlation of UA with scores presenting clinical features and with serum concentrations of the proinflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-17. When comparing the data between all three groups, we did not find significant differences in UA levels, either before or after the applied therapy. Also, comparing sera concentrations of UA in every single group, the analysis did not reveal statistically significant differences between FEP patients, but statistically, a significant difference was found in SC in relapse before and after treatment (334.71 ± 116.84 vs. 289.37 ± 109.15 μmol/L,
= 0.05). Uric acid serum levels correlated with negative sub-score (
= 0.001,
= 0.306), general sub-score (
= 0.015,
= 0.236), and total PANSS score (
= 0.009,
= 0.3) after 1 month of therapy. We have established a statistically significant positive correlation between serum concentrations of UA and IL-6 in exacerbation (
= 0.01,
= 0.220) and with IL-17 after treatment and in the stabilization of psychosis (
= 0.01,
= 0.34), suggesting potential cascades in different phases of schizophrenia that potentiate inflammation.
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