The regional electricity generation mix in Scotland: A portfolio selection approach

Standalone levelised cost assessments of electricity supply options miss an important contribution that renewable and non-fossil fuel technologies can make to the electricity portfolio: that of reducing the variability of electricity costs, and their potentially damaging impact upon economic activity. Portfolio theory applications to the electricity generation mix have shown that renewable technologies, their costs being largely uncorrelated with non-renewable technologies, can offer such benefits. We look at the existing Scottish generation mix and examine drivers of changes out to 2020. We assess recent scenarios for the Scottish generation mix in 2020 against mean-variance efficient portfolios of electricity-generating technologies. Each of the scenarios studied implies a portfolio cost of electricity that is between 22% and 38% higher than the portfolio cost of electricity in 2007. These scenarios prove to be “inefficient” in the sense that, for example, lower variance portfolios can be obtained without increasing portfolio costs, typically by expanding the share of renewables. As part of extensive sensitivity analysis, we find that Wave and Tidal technologies can contribute to lower risk electricity portfolios, while not increasing portfolio cost.

Autosuficiència energètica en nuclis de muntanya: experiència a Araós

A aquest estudi s’ha analitzat si és viable l’autosuficiència energètica en base a un estudi pilot al nucli d’Araós a partir dels recursos renovables locals. S’ha realitzat un anàlisi del consum energètic del nucli d’Araós i s’ha comparat amb el potencial de producció energètica dels recursos renovables locals, incloent energia provinent de la biomassa forestal dels boscos de què disposa el municipi d’Alins i energia solar. Igualment s’han analitzat les emissions de CO2 derivades del consum energètic del poble. S’ha comprovat així que la mitjana de consum per habitant i any d’Araós supera en 1Tep a la mitjana de Catalunya. El 38% del consum d’Araós però, prové de biomassa forestal local, que compta amb unes emissions de CO2 associades pràcticament nul·les. Finalment s’ha detectat que és possible assolir l’autosuficiència energètica d’Araós, mitjançant diferents estratègies d’implantació d’energies renovables. S’han considerat dues estratègies que cobreixen de 3 a 5 vegades el consum energètic: estratègia individual amb instal·lació d’energia solar en teulada i, calefacció i ACS a partir de calderes de biomassa; estratègia col·lectiva mitjançant una central de biomassa forestal. Ambdues representen beneficis energètics, econòmics i fins un 92% de reducció d’emissions de CO2.

Estudio de gestión de la finca La Esperanza, municipio de Pueblo Nuevo, Nicaragua

El presente proyecto tiene como finalidad el análisis de la Finca la Esperanza, en la localidad de Pueblo Nuevo, en la República de Nicaragua. En dicho análisis se estudian parámetros edáficos, calidad de agua y económicos, con el objetivo de poder plantear una propuesta de mejora en los rendimientos de la finca tanto a nivel económico como ambiental. La iniciativa de realizar este estudio surge de las necesidades del propio agricultor, que plantea el desarrollo rural sobre la base de actividades respetuosas con el medio. Las estrategias a los problemas sociales originados por la producción agraria industrial, como el éxodo rural, la pérdida de la agricultura convencional, la nueva función de los espacios agrarios de la sociedad, etc., se formalizaron en el denominado Desarrollo Sostenible. A nivel de finca cualquier concepción de sustentabilidad necesita que el agrosistema sea considerado como un ecosistema, en el que la investigación y la producción busquen no solamente altos rendimientos sino la optimización del sistema como un todo. Tal propósito requiere armonizar una viabilidad económica con otras variables, como estabilidad ecológica y equidad social. Para ello, los principios básicos de un sistema sostenible son: la conservación de los recursos renovables, la adaptación del cultivo al ambiente y el mantenimiento de un moderado pero sostenible nivel de producción. Como resultado de los análisis y observaciones hechas a lo largo de la estancia en la finca, se propone un plan de actuación de 10 años de duración en los cuales se procura alcanzar no únicamente unas cuotas máximas de rendimiento sino también la supervivencia de los recursos, base de la familia Videa Vanegas, propietarios.

Estalvi energètic a la Vila Universitària 1 de la UAB: solucions tècniques i solucions socials

Catalunya és un país energèticament dependent d'altres països. A part d'això, la seva producció i el seu consum d'energia provenen de fonts no renovables. Catalunya queda molt lluny de la majoria de països europeus els quals tenen un desenvolupament molt avançat en quan l'explotació de les energies renovables. Segons estudis de l'IDAE i l'ICAEN a les llars espanyoles i catalanes, al voltant d'un 25% del consum d'energia és per part d'electrodomèstics i d'il·luminació. El present treball estima el consum energètic dels pisos a la Vila Universitària 1 i fer una proposta de reducció de consum per mitjà d'un canvi d'electrodomèstics. Aquesta proposta ha estat efectiva ja que el consum estimat es redueix un 50% aproximadament canviant alguns dels electrodomèstics que hi ha actualment per altres de més eficients. Alhora, s'ha dut a terme un concurs d'estalvi energètic juntament amb una campanya de sensibilització de la mateixa temàtica que també busca la disminució del consum energètic en els pisos i, resulta ser quelcom efectiu donat que hi ha hagut una reducció d'un 32% aproximadament en mitjana del consum energètic als pisos. Sembla ser molt important la conscienciació de la gent ja que permet reduir el consum energètic amb un cost econòmic zero.

Autosuficiència energètica. Estudi pilot a Alinyà (Alt Urgell)

A aquest estudi s'ha analitzat si és viable l'autosuficiència energètica en base a un estudi pilot al nucli rural d'Alinyà aprofitant els recursos naturals de la zona. S'ha realitzat un estudi del consum energètic de la població i s'ha comparat amb el potencial de producció energètica dels recursos renovables locals incloent energia provinent de la biomassa i aprofitada en calderes individuals per a cada habitatge, energia solar en teulades i energia hidroelèctrica a partir de centrals minihidràuliques restaurades ja existents. També s’ha realitzat un anàlisi per detectar possibles factors d’ineficiència energètica i a partir d’aquí, proposar una sèrie de mesures per corregir aquesta. S'han comptabilitzat les emissions de CO2 derivades del consum energètic i les proporcions que representa cada tipus de font energètica sobre el total del nucli. També s'ha establert una comparativa del consum mitjà per habitant i any entre la població i Catalunya; el consum a Alinyà és d'1,46 Tep's, mentre que el de Catalunya és d'1,7 Tep's, el nostre estudi no contempla la mobilitat, si se li resta aquest vector a la mitjana de Catalunya veiem que és de 0,9 Tep's, per tant, hi observem un major consum energètic. El 76% del consum d'Alinyà prové dels combustibles fòssils, concretament del gasoil, el nucli té una forta dependència respecte a aquesta energia, que a més a més representa el 86% (56T CO2 eq.) de les emissions totals de CO2. Per finalitzar, s'ha demostrat que és possible assolir l'autosuficiència energètica mitjançant l'implantació d'una combinació d'estratègies, viables en tots els aspectes; tant tècnics com socioeconòmics. Abastint el poble d'energia a un menor cost econòmic i amb un estil de vida més respectuós amb el medi ambient.

Phosphate and zinc transport and signalling in plants: toward a better understanding of their homeostasis interaction.

Inorganic phosphate (Pi) and zinc (Zn) are two essential nutrients for plant growth. In soils, these two minerals are either present in low amounts or are poorly available to plants. Consequently, worldwide agriculture has become dependent on external sources of Pi and Zn fertilizers to increase crop yields. However, this strategy is neither economically nor ecologically sustainable in the long term, particularly for Pi, which is a non-renewable resource. To date, research has emphasized the analysis of mineral nutrition considering each nutrient individually, and showed that Pi and Zn homeostasis is highly regulated in a complex process. Interestingly, numerous observations point to an unexpected interconnection between the homeostasis of the two nutrients. Nevertheless, despite their fundamental importance, the molecular bases and biological significance of these interactions remain largely unknown. Such interconnections can account for shortcomings of current agronomic models that typically focus on improving the assimilation of individual elements. Here, current knowledge on the regulation of the transport and signalling of Pi and Zn individually is reviewed, and then insights are provided on the recent progress made towards a better understanding of the Zn-Pi homeostasis interaction in plants.

Transgenic plant factories for the production of biopolymers and plateform chemicals

In the mid-to long-term, resource constraints will force society to cover a significant share of the future demand for fuels, materials and chemicals by renewable resources. This trend is already visible in the increasing conversion of carbohydrates and plant oils to fuels, chemicals, and polymers. In this perspective, we discuss current efforts and ideas to produce platform chemicals and polymers directly in transgenic plants.

The emergence of biofuels and the co-movement between crude oil and agricultural prices

Biofuels are becoming an alternative to non-renewable energy sources but we know little about the economic mechanisms influencing their prices. This paper studies the interrelationships between the spot prices of oil and those of agricultural commodities used as biofuel feedstocks. Using daily data since 1988, we identify a co-movement after 2005 that does not appear for other food-related commodities and is not due to general economic variables. We also find traces of the co-movement in the prices of a large biofuel stock. The results amount to the first systematic piece of empirical evidence linking spot oil and agricultural markets via the emergence of biofuels.

Kernel-based Mapping of Meteorological Fields in Complex Orography

Due to the advances in sensor networks and remote sensing technologies, the acquisition and storage rates of meteorological and climatological data increases every day and ask for novel and efficient processing algorithms. A fundamental problem of data analysis and modeling is the spatial prediction of meteorological variables in complex orography, which serves among others to extended climatological analyses, for the assimilation of data into numerical weather prediction models, for preparing inputs to hydrological models and for real time monitoring and short-term forecasting of weather.In this thesis, a new framework for spatial estimation is proposed by taking advantage of a class of algorithms emerging from the statistical learning theory. Nonparametric kernel-based methods for nonlinear data classification, regression and target detection, known as support vector machines (SVM), are adapted for mapping of meteorological variables in complex orography.With the advent of high resolution digital elevation models, the field of spatial prediction met new horizons. In fact, by exploiting image processing tools along with physical heuristics, an incredible number of terrain features which account for the topographic conditions at multiple spatial scales can be extracted. Such features are highly relevant for the mapping of meteorological variables because they control a considerable part of the spatial variability of meteorological fields in the complex Alpine orography. For instance, patterns of orographic rainfall, wind speed and cold air pools are known to be correlated with particular terrain forms, e.g. convex/concave surfaces and upwind sides of mountain slopes.Kernel-based methods are employed to learn the nonlinear statistical dependence which links the multidimensional space of geographical and topographic explanatory variables to the variable of interest, that is the wind speed as measured at the weather stations or the occurrence of orographic rainfall patterns as extracted from sequences of radar images. Compared to low dimensional models integrating only the geographical coordinates, the proposed framework opens a way to regionalize meteorological variables which are multidimensional in nature and rarely show spatial auto-correlation in the original space making the use of classical geostatistics tangled.The challenges which are explored during the thesis are manifolds. First, the complexity of models is optimized to impose appropriate smoothness properties and reduce the impact of noisy measurements. Secondly, a multiple kernel extension of SVM is considered to select the multiscale features which explain most of the spatial variability of wind speed. Then, SVM target detection methods are implemented to describe the orographic conditions which cause persistent and stationary rainfall patterns. Finally, the optimal splitting of the data is studied to estimate realistic performances and confidence intervals characterizing the uncertainty of predictions.The resulting maps of average wind speeds find applications within renewable resources assessment and opens a route to decrease the temporal scale of analysis to meet hydrological requirements. Furthermore, the maps depicting the susceptibility to orographic rainfall enhancement can be used to improve current radar-based quantitative precipitation estimation and forecasting systems and to generate stochastic ensembles of precipitation fields conditioned upon the orography.

Maca - a configurable tool to integrate Polish morphological data

There are a number of morphological analysers for Polish. Most of these, however, are non-free resources. What is more, different analysers employ different tagsets and tokenisation strategies. This situation calls for a simpleand universal framework to join different sources of morphological information, including the existing resources as well as user-provided dictionaries. We present such a configurable framework that allows to write simple configuration files that define tokenisation strategies and the behaviour of morphologicalanalysers, including simple tagset conversion.

Esiselvitys puupolttoaineen jalostamisesta torrefiointitekniikalla

Fossiilisten polttoaineiden käytöstä aiheutuvia kasvihuonekaasupäästöjä pyritään vähentämään EU:ssa mm. päästökaupan avulla. Uusiutumattomien polttoaineiden tilalle kehitetään biopolttoaineita, joita voidaan hyödyntää olemassa olevien voimalaitosten polttolaitteistoilla. Biopolttoaineiden etuna on, ettäniiden ei katsota lisäävän hiilidioksidipäästöjä, koska biomassa sitoo itseensä kasvaessaan poltossa vapautuvan määrän hiiltä. Eräs kiinnostavimmista jalostetuista biopolttoaineista on torrefioitu puu, joka vastaa useimmilta ominaisuuksiltaan kivihiiltä ja jota voidaan käyttää hiilivoimalaitoksissa ilman laitteistomuutoksia. Torrefiointi on puun eräänlaista paistamista hapettomissa olosuhteissa 250-270ºC:ssa, jolloin siitä saadaanpoistettua vesi ja osa haihtuvista aineista. Puun väri muuttuu suklaanruskeaksi, se kevenee, ei savuta poltettaessa, hylkii vettä, jauhautuu hyvin sekä sillä on pienet hiukkaspäästöt. Käsitellyn puun ominaisuudet muuttuvat säilyvyydeltään ja käyttöominaisuuksiltaan merkittävästi raaka-aineeseen verrattuna. Torrefioinnilla saavutetaan puulle polttoainekäytön kannalta myös paremmat ja kestävämmät ominaisuudet kuin hiiltämällä. Torrefiointiprosessia on tutkittu jonkin verran ja torrefioidun biomassan polttoa voimalaitosmittakaavassa on kokeiltu pienessä mittakaavassa. Torrefioitu materiaali on alhaisen tiheytensä vuoksi hankalaa ja kallista kuljettaa,joten sen tiheyttä tulee nostaa kuljetuksia varten tiivistämällä esim.pelletöimällä. Torrefionti yhdistettynä pelletöintiin on parhaimmillaan kilpailukykyinen vaihtoehto, kun kivihiiltä korvaavaa biomassaa jalostetaan kaukana käyttöpaikasta ja kuljetetaan irtotavarana aluskuljetuksina. Torrefioitua puuta on tiettävästi poltettu vain hollantilaisessa voimalaitoksessa. Tässä esiselvityksessä kootun tiedon perusteella torrefioidun puupolttoaineen tuottamiseen Suomen olosuhteissa arvioidaan olevan teknis-taloudellisia mahdollisuuksia. Kuitenkin torrefiointiprosessin soveltaminen suomen olosuhteisiin ja kotimaisiin raakaaineisiin vaatii panostusta jatkotutkimukseen ennen varsinaiseen toteutusvaiheeseen siirtymistä.

Applying precision feeding techniques in growing-finishing pig operations

The high cost of feed ingredients, the use of non-renewable sources of phosphate and the dramatic increase in the environmental load resulting from the excessive land application of manure are major challenges for the livestock industry. Precision feeding is proposed as an essential approach to improve the utilization of dietary nitrogen, phosphorus and other nutrients and thus reduce feeding costs and nutrient excretion. Precision feeding requires accurate knowledge of the nutritional value of feedstuffs and animal nutrient requirements, the formulation of diets in accordance with environmental constraints, and the gradual adjustment of the dietary nutrient supply to match the requirements of the animals. After the nutritional potential of feed ingredients has been precisely determined and has been improved by the addition of enzymes (e.g. phytases) or feed treatments, the addition of environmental objectives to the traditional feed formulation algorithms can promote the sustainability of the swine industry by reducing nutrient excretion in swine operations with small increases in feeding costs. Increasing the number of feeding phases can also contribute to significant reductions in nutrient excretion and feeding costs. However, the use of precision feeding techniques in which pigs are fed individually with daily tailored diets can further improve the efficiency with which pigs utilize dietary nutrients. Precision feeding involves the use of feeding techniques that allow the provision of the right amount of feed with the right composition at the right time to each pig in the herd. Using this approach, it has been estimated that feeding costs can be reduced by more than 4.6%, and nitrogen and phosphorus excretion can both be reduced by more than 38%. Moreover, the integration of precision feeding techniques into large-group production systems can provide real-time off-farm monitoring of feed and animals for optimal slaughter and production strategies, thus improving the environmental sustainability of pork production, animal well-being and meat-product quality.

Design and production of protein nanostructures for biomolecular detection

Particulate nanostructures are increasingly used for analytical purposes. Such particles are often generated by chemical synthesis from non-renewable raw materials. Generation of uniform nanoscale particles is challenging and particle surfaces must be modified to make the particles biocompatible and water-soluble. Usually nanoparticles are functionalized with binding molecules (e.g., antibodies or their fragments) and a label substance (if needed). Overall, producing nanoparticles for use in bioaffinity assays is a multistep process requiring several manufacturing and purification steps. This study describes a biological method of generating functionalized protein-based nanoparticles with specific binding activity on the particle surface and label activity inside the particles. Traditional chemical bioconjugation of the particle and specific binding molecules is replaced with genetic fusion of the binding molecule gene and particle backbone gene. The entity of the particle shell and binding moieties are synthesized from generic raw materials by bacteria, and fermentation is combined with a simple purification method based on inclusion bodies. The label activity is introduced during the purification. The process results in particles that are ready-to-use as reagents in bioaffinity. Apoferritin was used as particle body and the system was demonstrated using three different binding moieties: a small protein, a peptide and a single chain Fv antibody fragment that represents a complex protein including disulfide bridge.If needed, Eu3+ was used as label substance. The results showed that production system resulted in pure protein preparations, and the particles were of homogeneous size when visualized with transmission electron microscopy. Passively introduced label was stably associated with the particles, and binding molecules genetically fused to the particle specifically bound target molecules. Functionality of the particles in bioaffinity assays were successfully demonstrated with two types of assays; as labels and in particle-enhanced agglutination assay. This biological production procedure features many advantages that make the process especially suited for applications that have frequent and recurring requirements for homogeneous functional particles. The production process of ready, functional and watersoluble particles follows principles of “green chemistry”, is upscalable, fast and cost-effective.

Produção biotecnológica de poli-hidroxialcanoatos para a geração de polímeros biodegradáveis no Brasil

In recent years, several studies have been developed in Brazil to produce biodegradable materials. A particular family of bacterial polymers, the polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), has received special attention. PHAs are thermoplastic, biodegradable, biocompatible, are synthesised from renewable resources and can substitute petrochemical plastics in some applications. Different aspects have been focused to increase productivity and to reduce the cost of PHA production: bacterial improvement, use of industrial by-products as raw material, bioreactor design, process operation strategies, downstream process, mathematical modelling, polymer characterisation, application and biodegradability of blends. A production process was transferred to industry and studies to produce new PHA by controlling monomer composition are in progress. All these aspects are presented in this review.

Potencialidades e oportunidades na química da sacarose e outros açúcares

Non-renewable biomass, such as coal, oil and natural gas are not only energy sources but also important starting materials for the production of a variety of chemicals ranging from gasoline, diesel oil and fine chemicals. In this regard, carbohydrates, the most abundant class of enantiopure organic compounds, are very suitable for generation of chemicals of great practical value. Their bulk-scale availability associated with low cost make them unique starting materials for organic preparative purpose. They are a most attractive alternative for construction of enantiopure target molecules by asymmetric synthesis. This review addresses, in addition to the use of low molecular weight carbohydrates, issues related to renewable biomass from photosynthesis and alternatives for the production of bulk and fine chemicals.