Foreign exchange exposure management in a fuel procurement company operating in the commodity markets

Fluctuating commodity prices, foreign exchange rates and interest rates are causing changes in cash flows, market value and the companies’ profit. Most of the commodities are quoted in US dollar. Companies with non-dollar accounting face a double risk in the form of the commodity price risk and foreign exchange risk. The objective of this Master’s thesis is to find out how companies under commodity should manage foreign exchange exposure. The theoretical literature is based on foreign exchange risk, commodity risk and foreign exchange exposure management. The empirical research is done by using constructive modelling of a case company in the oil industry. The exposure is model with foreign exchange net cash flow and net working capital. First, the factors affecting foreign exchange exposure in case company are analyzed, then a model of foreign exchange exposure is created. Finally, the models are compared and the most suitable method is defined. According to the literature, foreign exchange exposure is the foreign exchange net cash flow. However, the results of the study show that foreign exchange risk can be managed also with net working capital. When the purchases, sales and storage are under foreign exchange risk, the best way to manage foreign exchange exposure is with combined net cash flow and net working capital method. The foreign exchange risk policy of the company defines the appropriate way to manage foreign exchange risk.

The role of nuclear and other conventional power plants in the flexible energy system

This thesis reviews the role of nuclear and conventional power plants in the future energy system. The review is done by utilizing freely accesible publications in addition to generating load duration and ramping curves for Nordic energy system. As the aim of the future energy system is to reduce GHG-emissions and avoid further global warming, the need for flexible power generation increases with the increased share of intermittent renewables. The goal of this thesis is to offer extensive understanding of possibilities and restrictions that nuclear power and conventional power plants have regarding flexible and sustainable generation. As a conclusion, nuclear power is the only technology that is able to provide large scale GHG-free power output variations with good ramping values. Most of the currently operating plants are able to take part in load following as the requirement to do so is already required to be included in the plant design. Load duration and ramping curves produced prove that nuclear power is able to cover most of the annual generation variation and ramping needs in the Nordic energy system. From the conventional power generation methods, only biomass combustion can be considered GHG-free because biomass is considered carbon neutral. CFB combusted biomass has good load follow capabilities in good ramping and turndown ratios. All the other conventional power generation technologies generate GHG-emissions and therefore the use of these technologies should be reduced.

Avaliação da perda da tolerância à dessecação e da quantidade de dna nuclear em sementes de Peltophorum dubium (spreng.) taubert durante e após a germinação

O presente trabalho teve por objetivo a avaliação da perda da tolerância à dessecação (TD) em sementes de Peltophorum dubium durante e após a germinação. As sementes foram colocadas para germinar e, ao atingirem 1, 3 e 5 mm de raiz primária (68% de umidade), foram desidratadas em sílica gel, até atingirem o grau de umidade inicial (8%), sendo em seguida reidratadas e avaliadas quanto à sobrevivência (retomada do crescimento e formação de plântulas normais). Procedimento semelhante foi adotado para os ensaios realizados durante a embebição, onde foram amostradas 100 sementes divididas em quatro repetições de 25 para cada um dos seguintes tempos de embebição: 12, 24, 48, 60 e 72 horas. Em seguida, foram selecionados diferentes pontos de interesse (12, 48 e 60 horas de embebição e raízes primárias com 1 mm de comprimento) para determinação da quantidade de DNA nuclear, afim de analisar possível correlação entre início do ciclo celular e perda da TD. Com relação ao comportamento de sementes germinadas submetidas à secagem e reidratação, para os três comprimentos de raízes primárias amostradas, não houve sobrevivência. Foi observada queda progressiva na sobrevivência de sementes de Peltophorum dubium relacionada ao tempo de embebição, e posterior secagem e reidratação, sugerindo que a perda da TD desta espécie acontece nos estágios iniciais da germinação, antes da protrusão da radícula. Sementes embebidas por 12 h, 24 h, 48 h, 60 h, 72 h e aquelas germinadas, com 1 mm de comprimento radicular, apresentaram índices iguais a 98%, 93%, 83%, 35%, 17% e 0% de sobrevivência respectivamente. Os estudos relacionados ao conteúdo de DNA nuclear não demonstram correlação entre retomada do ciclo celular e perda da TD.

Development of laboratory exercises for basic nuclear thermal hydraulics measurements

The thesis focuses on light water reactors (pressurized water reactors, boiling water reactors) and measurement techniques for basic thermal hydraulics parameters that are used in a nuclear power plant. The goal of this work is a development of laboratory exercises for basic nuclear thermal hydraulics measurements.

Effect of Material Recycling on the Feasibility of Solid Recovered Fuel Fired Power Plant

This master’s thesis examines the effects of increased material recycling on different waste-to-energy concepts. With background study and a developed techno-economic computational method the feasibility of chosen scenarios with different combinations of mechanical treatment and waste firing technologies can be evaluated. The background study covers the waste scene of Finland, and potential market areas Poland and France. Calculated cases concentrate on municipal solid waste treatment in the Finnish operational environment. The chosen methodology to approach the objectives is techno-economic feasibility assessment. It combines calculation methods of literature and practical engineering to define the material and energy balances in chosen scenarios. The calculation results together with other operational and financial data can be concluded to net present values compared between the scenarios. For the comparison, four scenarios, most vital and alternative between each other, are established. The baseline scenario is grate firing of source separated mixed municipal solid waste. Second scenario is fluidized bed combustion of solid recovered fuel produced in mechanical treatment process with metal separation. Third scenario combines a biomaterial separation process to the solid recovered fuels preparation and in the last scenario plastics are separated in addition to the previous operations. The results indicated that the mechanical treatment scenarios still need to overcome some problems to become feasible. Problems are related to profitability, residue disposal and technical reliability. Many uncertainties are also related to the data gathered over waste characteristics, technical performance and markets. With legislative support and development of further processing technologies and markets of the recycled materials the scenarios with biomaterial and plastic separation may operate feasibly in the future.

Evaluation of the main energy scenarios for the global energy transition

Energy scenarios are used as a tool to examine credible future states and pathways. The one who constructs a scenario defines the framework in which the possible outcomes exist. The credibility of a scenario depends on its compatibility with real world experiences, and on how well the general information of the study, methodology, and originality and processing of data are disclosed. In the thesis, selected global energy scenarios’ transparency and desirability from the society’s point of view were evaluated based on literature derived criteria. The global energy transition consists of changes to social conventions and economic development in addition to technological development. Energy solutions are economic and ethical choices due to far-reaching impacts of energy decision-making. Currently the global energy system is mostly based on fossil fuels, which is unsustainable over the long-term due to various reasons: negative climate change impacts, negative health impacts, depletion of fossil fuel reserves, resource-use conflicts with water management and food supply, loss of biodiversity, challenge to preserve ecosystems and resources for future generations, and inability of fossil fuels to provide universal access to modern energy services. Nuclear power and carbon capture and storage cannot be regarded as sustainable energy solutions due to their inherent risks and required long-term storage. The energy transition is driven by a growing energy demand, decreasing costs of renewables, modularity and scalability of renewable technologies, macroeconomic benefits of using renewables, investors’ risk awareness, renewable energy related attractive business opportunities, almost even distribution of solar and wind resources on the planet, growing awareness of the planet’s environmental status, environmental movements and tougher environmental legislation. Many of the investigated scenarios identified solar and wind power as a backbone for future energy systems. The scenarios, in which the solar and wind potentials were deployed in largest scale, met best the set out sustainability criteria. In future research, energy scenarios’ transparency can be improved by better disclosure on who has ordered the study, clarifying the funding, clearly referencing to used sources and indicating processed data, and by exploring how variations in cost assumptions and deployment of technologies influence on the outcomes of the study.

Failure modes of passive decay heat removing safety systems of modern nuclear power plants

The purpose of this master’s thesis is to gain an understanding of passive safety systems’ role in modern nuclear reactors projects and to research the failure modes of passive decay heat removal safety systems which use phenomenon of natural circulation. Another purpose is to identify the main physical principles and phenomena which are used to establish passive safety tools in nuclear power plants. The work describes passive decay heat removal systems used in AES-2006 project and focuses on the behavior of SPOT PG system. The descriptions of the main large-scale research facilities of the passive safety systems of the AES-2006 power plant are also included. The work contains the calculations of the SPOT PG system, which was modeled with thermal-hydraulic system code TRACE. The dimensions of the calculation model are set according to the dimensions of the real SPOT PG system. In these calculations three parameters are investigated as a function of decay heat power: the pressure of the system, the natural circulation mass flow rate around the closed loop, and the level of liquid in the downcomer. The purpose of the calculations is to test the ability of the SPOT PG system to remove the decay heat from the primary side of the nuclear reactor in case of failure of one, two, or three loops out of four. The calculations show that three loops of the SPOT PG system have adequate capacity to provide the necessary level of safety. In conclusion, the work supports the view that passive systems could be widely spread in modern nuclear projects.

Decision-making theory applied to India's explosion of a nuclear device in May, 1974

This essay reviews the decision-making process that led to India exploding a nuclear device in May, 1974. An examination of the Analytic, Cybernetic and Cognitive Theories of decision, will enable a greater understanding of the events that led up to the 1974 test. While each theory is seen to be only partially useful, it is only by synthesising the three theories that a comprehensive account of the 1974 test can be given. To achieve this analysis, literature on decision-making in national security issues is reviewed, as well as the domestic and international environment in which involved decisionmakers operated. Finally, the rationale for the test in 1974 is examined. The conclusion revealed is that the explosion of a nuclear device by India in 1974 was primarily related to improving Indian international prestige among Third World countries and uniting a rapidly disintegrating Indian societal consensus. In themselves, individual decision-making theories were found to be of little use, but a combination of the various elements allowed a greater comprehension of the events leading up to the test than might otherwise have been the case.

Gypsy moths (Lymantria dispar) in the Niagara Region : population density variation, introduction of an entomopathogenic fungus (Entomophaga maimaiga) and occurrence of nuclear polyhedrosis virus

The gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar, a major defoliator of broad leaf trees, was accidentally introduced into North America in 1869. Much interest has been generated regarding the potential of using natural pathogens for biological control of this insect. One of these pathogens, a highly specific fungus, Entomophaga maimaiga, was accredited with causing major epizootics in populations of gypsy moth across the north-eastern United States in 1989 and 1990 and is thought to be spreading northwards into Canada. This study examined gypsy moth population densities in the Niagara Region. The fungus, .E.. maimaiga, was artificially introduced into one site and the resulting mortality in host populations was noted over two years. The relationship between fungal mortality, host population density and occurrence of another pathogen, the nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NPV), was assessed. Gypsy moth population density was assessed by counting egg masses in 0.01 hectare (ha) study plots in six areas, namely Louth, Queenston, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Shorthills Provincial Park, Chippawa Creek and Willoughby Marsh. High variability in density was seen among sites. Willoughby Marsh and Chippawa Creek, the sites with the greatest variability, were selected for more intensive study. The pathogenicity of E. maimaiga was established in laboratory trials. Fungal-infected gypsy moth larvae were then released into experimental plots of varying host density in Willoughby Marsh in 1992. These larvae served as the inoculum to infect field larvae. Other larvae were injected with culture medium only and released into control plots also of varying host density. Later, field larvae were collected and assessed for the presence of .E.. maimaiga and NPV. A greater proportion of larvae were infected from experimental plots than from control plots indicating that the experimental augmentation had been successful. There was no relationship between host density and the proportion of infected larvae in either experimental or control plots. In 1992, 86% of larvae were positive for NPV. Presence and intensity of NPV infection was independent of fungal presence, plot type or interaction of these two factors. Sampling was carried out in the summer of 1993, the year after the introduction, to evaluate the persistence of the pathogen in the environment. Almost 50% of all larvae were infected with the fungus. There was no difference between control and experimental plots. Data collected from Willoughby Marsh indicated that there was no correlation between the proportion of larvae infected with the fungus and host population density in either experimental or control plots. About 10% of larvae collected from a nearby site, Chippawa Creek, were also positive for .E.. maimaiga suggesting that low levels of .E.. maimaiga probably occurred naturally in the area. In 1993, 9.6% of larvae were positive for NPV. Again, presence or absence of NPV infection was independent of fungal presence plot type or interaction of these two factors. In conclusion, gypsy moth population densities were highly variable between and within sites in the Niagara Region. The introduction of the pathogenic fungus, .E.. maimaiga, into Willoughby Marsh in 1992 was successful and the fungus was again evident in 1993. There was no evidence for existence of a relationship between fungal mortality and gypsy moth density or occurrence of NPV. The results from this study are discussed with respect to the use of .E.. maimaiga in gypsy moth management programs.

Miniature Wulff-type generator for improving feed to fuel cells /|nT.-S. Tan. -- 260 St. Catharines, Ont. : [s. n.],

The original objective of this work was to provide a simple generator w.hich would produce hydrogen torLfuel-cell feed and which could be operated under remote or northern conditions. A secondary objective was to maximize the yield of hydrogen and carbon monoxide from available feed-stocks. A search of the patent literature has indicated that the concept of a small Wulff-type generator is essentially sound and that hydrogen may be recovered from a wide variety of hydrocarbon feed-stocks. A simple experimental set-up has been devised, patterned after ~~t originally used by R. G. Wulff for producing acetylene. This provides a supply of feed-stock, with or Without a carrier gas, which may be passed directly through a heated tube, which may contain a catalyst. A suitable procedure has been devised for analysi~ effluent gases for hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, methane and carbon monoxide by gas chromatography with the column packed with .Molecular .:>ieve .5 4. Athanol with air a.s carrier gas and at the same time as oxidant o was thermolyzed at temperatures in the ra~e 700-1100 C, with or Wi~lout catalyst. Methanol with or without nitrogen as a carrier gas was also cracked with • the same type of reactor refractory tube, but the temperature range was lower t down to ,300 " C when a catalyst was used. The problems of converting methane to hydrogen and carbon monoxide effiCiently, using air and/or water as oxidants were also studied.

Polytypism and Silicon carbide : a solid state nuclear magnetic resonance study

A survey of predominantly industrial silicon carbide has been carried out using Magic Angle Spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS nmr); a solid state technique. Three silicon carbide polytypes were studied; 3C, 6H, and 15R. The 13C and 29 Si MAS nmr spectra of the bulk SiC sample was identified on the basis of silicon (carbon) site type in the d iff ere n t pol Y t Y pes • Out to 5.00 A fro mac en t r a lsi 1 i con (0 r carbon) atom four types of sites were characterized using symmetry based calculations. This method of polytype analysis was also considered, in the prelminary stages, for applications with other polytypic material; CdBr 2 , CdI 2 , and PbI 2 " In an attempt to understand the minor components of silicon carbide, such as its surface, some samples were hydrofluoric acid washed and heated to extreme temperatures. Basically, an HF removable species which absorbs at -110 ppm (Si0 2 ) in the 29 Si MAS nmr spectrum is found in silicon carbide after heating. Other unidentified peaks observed at short recycle delays in some 29 Si MAS nmr spectra are considered to be impurities that may be within the lattice. These components comprise less than 5% of the observable silicon. A Tl study was carried out for 29 Si nuclei in a 3C ii polytype sample, using the Driven Equilibrium Single-Pulse Observation of T1 (DESPOT) technique. It appears as though there are a number of nuclei that have the same chemical shift but different T1 relaxation times. The T1 values range from 30 seconds to 11 minutes. Caution has to be kept when interpreting these results because this is the first time that DESPOT has been used for solid samples and it is not likely in full working order. MAS nmr indicates that the 13C and 29 Si ~sotropic chemical shifts of silicon carbide appear to have a reciprocal type of relationship_ Single crystal nmr analysis of a 6H sample is accordance with this finding when only the resultant isotropic shift is considered. However, single crystal nmr also shows that the actual response of the silicon and carbon nuclear environment to the applied magnetic field at various angles is not at all reciprocal. Such results show that much more single crystal nmr work is required to determine the actual behavior of the local magnetic environment of the SiC nuclei.

Nuclear magnetic resonance studies of boron trihalide complexes of 1,1-BIS (dimethylamino) ethylene and related bases

Boron tribalide complexes of 1,1-bis(dimethylamino)ethylene (DME) , t etramethylurea (TMU), tetramethylguanidine (TMG) , and pentamethylguanidine (PMG) and also mixed boron t r ihalide adducts of DME have been investigated by 1H and 19F NMR spectroscopy. Both nitrogen and the C-Q-H carbon of DME are possible donor a toms to boron trihal ides but complexation has been found to occur only at carbon of DME. The initial adduct acts as a Bronsted acid and gives up a proton to free DME in solut ion. A side reaction in the DME-BF, system gives rise to trace amounts of a complex aSSigned as (DME)2BF2+. (DME)2BF2+ is produced in much larger quantities in t he DME-BF3-BC13 and DME-BF,-BBr, systems by reaction of free DME with DME:BF2X (X = Cl, Br). Restricted r otation about the C-N bonds of TMUlBC13 and n1U:BBr3 has been observed at low temperatures. This complements previous work in this system and confirms oxygen donation of TMU to boron trihalides . Restricted rotation at low temperatures also has been observed in DMEboron trihalide systems

Province of Ontario Patent issued to Cyrus Dean of St. Catharines for a machine for effecting more perfect combustion of fuel in the furnaces of locomotives

Province of Ontario Patent issued to Cyrus Dean of St. Catharines for a machine for effecting more perfect combustion of fuel in the furnaces of locomotives. This patent was listed in the Records Office of the Registrar General of Canada in Lib. JE, folio 361. This patent is accompanied by a 36 cm. x 57 cm. detailed sketch and explanation of the machine. [Samuel D. Woodruff was the assignee of Cyrus Dean in a in a patent for a rotary washing machine in November of 1869 according to The Commissioners of Patents' Journal by the Great Britain Patent Office], March 23, 1870.