bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
How to Make the Unpredictable Foreseeable? Effective Forms of Assistance for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Grzejszczak Jagoda , Gabryelska Agata , Gmitrowicz Agnieszka , Strzelecki Dominik
Published: January 2023

Symptomatology in patients with the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is very heterogeneous. The symptoms they present include communication difficulties, behavior problems, upbringing problems from their parents, and comorbidities (e.g., epilepsy, intellectual disability). A predictable and stable environment and the continuity of therapeutic interactions are crucial in this population. The COVID-19 pandemic has created much concern, and the need for home isolation to limit the spread of the virus has disrupted the functioning routine of children/adolescents with ASD. Are there effective diagnostic and therapeutic alternatives to limit the consequences of disturbing the daily routine of young patients during the unpredictable times of the pandemic? Modern technology and telemedicine have come to the rescue. This narrative review aims to present a change in the impact profile in the era of isolation and assess the directions of changes that specialists may choose when dealing with patients with ASD.
Epidemiological Characteristics of Helicobacter pylori Infection in Children in Northeast Romania
Authors: Lupu Ancuta , Miron Ingrith Crenguta , Cernomaz Andrei Tudor , Gavrilovici Cristina , Lupu Vasile Valeriu , Starcea Iuliana Magdalena , Cianga Anca Lavinia , Stana Bogdan , Tarca Elena , Fotea Silvia
Published: January 2023

(1) Background: Although gastritis has been associated with multiple etiologies, in pediatrics the main etiology is idiopathic. Many studies have reported mild-to-severe gastritis Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) as an etiological factor. We evaluated the distribution of the infection with H. pylori by age, gender and place of living; (2) Methods: A retrospective study was conducted over a period of 3 years, over a cohort of 1757 patients of both sexes, aged between 1 and 18 years, admitted to a regional gastroenterology center in Iasi, Romania, with clinical signs of gastritis which underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. The research was based on the analysis of data from patient observation charts and hospital discharge tickets, as well as endoscopy result registers; (3) Results: Out of the 1757 children, in 30.8% of cases the H. pylori infection was present. Out of them, 26.8% were males and 73.2% females. The average age of children with an H. pylori infection was higher (14.1 + 2.8 DS), compared with children without H. pylori (12.8 + 3.7 SD), an average difference of 1.3 years (95% confidence interval 0.96 to 1.66; p < 0.001). By place of living, children with H. pylori infection were from urban areas at 24.7% and from rural areas at 75.3%; (4) Conclusions: H. pylori infection incidence is still high in children, especially in teenagers, so extensive prevention and treatment programs are needed.
Ultrasonographic Assessment of Diaphragmatic Function and Its Clinical Application in the Management of Patients with Acute Respiratory Failure
Authors: Saad Marina , Pini Stefano , Danzo Fiammetta , Mandurino Mirizzi Francesca , Arena Carmine , Tursi Francesco , Radovanovic Dejan , Santus Pierachille
Published: January 2023

Acute respiratory failure (ARF) is a common life-threatening medical condition, with multiple underlying etiologies. In these cases, many factors related to systemic inflammation, prolonged use of steroids, and lung mechanical abnormalities (such as hyperinflation or increased elastic recoil due to pulmonary oedema or fibrosis) may act as synergic mechanisms leading to diaphragm dysfunction. The assessment of diaphragm function with ultrasound has been increasingly investigated in the emergency department and during hospital stay as a valuable tool for providing additional anatomical and functional information in many acute respiratory diseases. The diaphragmatic ultrasound is a noninvasive and repeatable bedside tool, has no contraindications, and allows the physician to rapidly assess the presence of diaphragmatic dysfunction; this evaluation may help in estimating the need for mechanical ventilation (and the risk of weaning failure), as well as the risk of longer hospital stay and higher mortality rate. This study presents an overview of the recent evidence regarding the evaluation of diaphragmatic function with bedside ultrasound and its clinical applications, including a discussion of real-life clinical cases.
Estimating the Economic Viability of Advanced Air Mobility Use Cases: Towards the Slope of Enlightenment
Authors: Pertz Jan , Niklaß Malte , Swaid Majed , Gollnick Volker , Kopera Sven , Schunck Kolin , Baur Stephan
Published: January 2023

While different vehicle configurations enter the AAM market, airlines declare different ticket fares for their operations. This research investigates the operating cost of an airline and the economic viability with the announced fare per km rates. For this purpose, three use cases in the metropolitan area of Hamburg showcase representative applications of an AAM system, whereby a flight trajectory model calculates a flight time in each case. The direct operating cost are investigated for each use case individually and are sub-classified in five categories: fee, crew, maintenance, fuel and capital costs. Here, each use case has its own cost characteristics, in which different cost elements dominate. Additionally, a sensitivity analysis shows the effect of a variation of the flight cycles and load factor, that influences the costs as well as the airline business itself. Based on the occurring cost, a profit margin per available seat kilometer lead to a necessary fare per km, that an airline has to charge.
LECast: A Low-Energy-Consumption Broadcast Protocol for UAV Blockchain Networks
Authors: Luo Haoxiang , Liu Shiyuan , Xu Shizhong , Luo Jian
Published: January 2023

With the continuous development of communication technology, drones are playing an important role in many fields, such as power transmission line inspection and agricultural pesticide spraying. In order to protect the data privacy and communication security of drones, many experts are considering blockchain as its enabling technology. However, due to their small size and limited power storage, drones cannot support energy-intensive blockchain applications. In addition, the future 6G communications need to implement an important key performance indicator, namely extremely low-power communications (ELPCs). As a consequence, research into green blockchain is becoming more and more popular. The broadcast of the blockchain is one of the most energy-intensive parts because it entails flooding and there are a lot of unnecessary communication processes. Therefore, in order to make blockchain more suitable for ELPC requirements in 6G communications and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) networks, we took the blockchain broadcast as an improvement candidate and designed LECast, a low-energy-consumption protocol. LECast first analyzes the energy consumption model of the communication between two drones and constructs the shortest-path broadcast tree (SPB Tree) for the UAV networks to minimize energy consumption. Meanwhile, to make the sending drone address the receiving drone in a more convenient way, we proposed an extended Huffman coding (EHC) scheme to name the drones. Furthermore, the other issues with the broadcast tree are reliability and security. When a channel fails, subsequent drones cannot smoothly receive the transaction or block data. As a result, we introduced multichannel transmission with splitting data (MTSD); that is, the transaction or block data are divided into segments and transmitted in parallel multiple times over multiple channels. Finally, through the analysis and simulation of LECast in terms of energy consumption, latency, throughput, reliability, security, and coverage rate, the advantages of LECast were confirmed, which could meet the requirements of ELPCs and be well applied to UAV networks.
Reversible Data Hiding in Encrypted Image Using Multiple Data-Hiders Sharing Algorithm
Authors: Weng Chi-Yao , Yang Cheng-Hsing
Published: January 2023

Reversible Data Hiding in Encrypted Image (RDHEI) is a technology for embedding secret information in an encrypted image. It allows the extraction of secret information and lossless decryption and the reconstruction of the original image. This paper proposes an RDHEI technique based on Shamir’s Secret Sharing technique and multi-project construction technique. Our approach is to let the image owner hide the pixel values in the coefficients of the polynomial by grouping the pixels and constructing a polynomial. Then, we substitute the secret key into the polynomial through Shamir’s Secret Sharing technology. It enables the Galois Field calculation to generate the shared pixels. Finally, we divide the shared pixels into 8 bits and allocate them to the pixels of the shared image. Thus, the embedded space is vacated, and the generated shared image is hidden in the secret message. The experimental results demonstrate that our approach has a multi-hider mechanism and each shared image has a fixed embedding rate, which does not decrease as more images are shared. Additionally, the embedding rate is improved compared with the previous approach.
Classical Modelling of a Bosonic Sampler with Photon Collisions
Authors: Umanskii Mikhail , Rubtsov Alexey N.
Published: January 2023

The original formulation of the boson sampling problem assumed that little or no photon collisions occur. However, modern experimental realizations rely on setups where collisions are quite common, i.e., the number of photons M injected into the circuit is close to the number of detectors N. Here we present a classical algorithm that simulates a bosonic sampler: it calculates the probability of a given photon distribution at the interferometer outputs for a given distribution at the inputs. This algorithm is most effective in cases with multiple photon collisions, and in those cases, it outperforms known algorithms.
Performance Analysis of IEEE 802.11p MAC with Considering Capture Effect under Nakagami-m Fading Channel in VANETs
Authors: Wang Yang , Shi Jianghong , Chen Lingyu
Published: January 2023

Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) have recently drawn a large amount of attention because of their enormous potential in road safety improvement and traffic management as well as infotainment service support. As the standard of medium access control (MAC) and physical (PHY) layers for VANETs, IEEE 802.11p has been proposed for more than a decade. Though performance analyses of IEEE 802.11p MAC have been performed, the existing analytical methods still need to be improved. In this paper, to assess the saturated throughput and the average packet delay of IEEE 802.11p MAC in VANETs, a two-dimensional (2-D) Markov model is introduced by considering the capture effect under Nakagami-m fading channel. Moreover, the closed-form expressions of successful transmission, collided transmission, saturated throughput, and average packet delay are carefully derived. Finally, the simulation results are demonstrated to verify the accuracy of the proposed analytical model, which also proves that this analytical model is more precise than the existing ones in terms of saturated throughput and average packet delay.
Transformation from Blended to Online Learning: A Four-Year Longitudinal Cross-Sectional Interprofessional Study
Authors: Almendingen Kari , Skotheim Torhild , Magnus Ellen Merethe
Published: January 2023

Professional students need to train in online interprofessional collaboration (IPC). During a longitudinal evaluation for 2018–2022 of an interprofessional learning (IPL) curriculum, nearly 7000 students from health, social care, and teacher education programs completed indicator questions concerning learning about child-related topics and skills required for IPC during their first, second, and third curriculum years of study. The students worked in student-led IPL groups according to a case-based learning approach. Online IPL yielded lower mean scores than in-person IPL. The decreased learning outcomes from year 2 to year 3 for the IPL initiative are not due to the online delivery mode. The lack of reported progress in the IPL courses is more likely due to students not experiencing a gain in IPL learning outcomes. Significant differences were found between teacher education and child welfare students and health and social care students, reflecting IPC challenges in working life. We conclude that online IPL is forward-looking because candidates must be prepared for online IPC and for helping users, such as children, online. Although our data support that IPL is complex, the learning experience has tremendous transfer value to welfare services because we assume that the same issues will appear in IPC.
Dynamical Analysis and Synchronization of a New Memristive Chialvo Neuron Model
Authors: Vivekanandhan Gayathri , Natiq Hayder , Merrikhi Yaser , Rajagopal Karthikeyan , Jafari Sajad
Published: January 2023

Chialvo is one of the two-dimensional map-based neural models. In this paper, a memristor is added to this model to consider the electromagnetic induction’s effects. The memristor is defined based on a hyperbolic tangent function. The dynamical variations are analyzed by obtaining the bifurcation diagrams and Lyapunov spectra. It is shown that the most effective parameters on the dynamics are the magnetic strength and the injected current. The memristive Chialvo can exhibit different neural behaviors. It is also proven that, like the primary Chialvo model, the memristive version has coexisting attractors; an oscillating state coexists with a fixed point. In addition, to understand how memristive neurons behave in a network, two memristive Chialvo models are coupled with electrochemical synapses. By connecting two neurons and calculating the synchronization error, we can determine the system’s synchronizability. It is indicated that the electrical coupling is essential for the occurrence of complete synchronization in the network of memristive Chialvo, and the sole chemical coupling does not lead to synchronization.
Blockchain Technology: Security Issues, Healthcare Applications, Challenges and Future Trends
Authors: Wenhua Zhang , Qamar Faizan , Abdali Taj-Aldeen Naser , Hassan Rosilah , Jafri Syed Talib Abbas , Nguyen Quang Ngoc
Published: January 2023

Blockchain technology provides a data structure with inherent security properties that include cryptography, decentralization, and consensus, which ensure trust in transactions. It covers widely applicable usages, such as in intelligent manufacturing, finance, the Internet of things (IoT), medicine and health, and many different areas, especially in medical health data security and privacy protection areas. Its natural attributes, such as contracts and consensus mechanisms, have leading-edge advantages in protecting data confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The security issues are gradually revealed with in-depth research and vigorous development. Unlike traditional paper storage methods, modern medical records are stored electronically. Blockchain technology provided a decentralized solution to the trust-less issues between distrusting parties without third-party guarantees, but the “trust-less” security through technology was easily misunderstood and hindered the security differences between public and private blockchains appropriately. The mentioned advantages and disadvantages motivated us to provide an advancement and comprehensive study regarding the applicability of blockchain technology. This paper focuses on the healthcare security issues in blockchain and sorts out the security risks in six layers of blockchain technology by comparing and analyzing existing security measures. It also explores and defines the different security attacks and challenges when applying blockchain technology, which promotes theoretical research and robust security protocol development in the current and future distributed work environment.
Enhancement and Performance Analysis for Modified 12 Sector-Based Direct Torque Control of AC Motors: Experimental Validation
Authors: Alshbib Mussaab M. , Alsofyani Ibrahim Mohd , Elgbaily Mohamed Mussa
Published: January 2023

Direct torque control (DTC) is a promising control algorithm that is characterized by simplicity and effective performance for the AC motors drive systems. The design of the switching table is an important issue that directly affects the performance of the motor drive. The majority of the prior literature relies on the researcher’s knowledge when establishing the voltage vectors of the switching table to be applied to the inverter. Consequently, torque and flux ripples can still be large. In this paper, a modified twelve sector-based DTC is proposed to improve the AC motor drive. The proposed drive system offers several contributions, such as very low torque ripple reduction, faster dynamics, and reduced stator flux ripples compared to the classical DTC. Additionally, the proposed controller can provide high robustness at very low speed under parameter variation. The analytically developed switching table also contributes to reducing the switching frequency ratio between 40% to 50%. The aim of the aforementioned improvements is to obtain a quiet operation of the induction motor without vibration or audible noise. Simulation results of the proposed method were performed in MATLAB/Simulink environment. Furthermore, for the sake of validation and effectiveness of the method, experimental tests were conducted using dSPACE based platform. Finally, a fair comparison of both the proposed and classical methods was performed that revealed the superiority of the proposed strategy.
Study of Single Event Latch-Up Hardness for CMOS Devices with a Resistor in Front of DC-DC Converter
Authors: Xin Jindou , Zhu Xiang , Ma Yingqi , Han Jianwei
Published: January 2023

Bulk silicon Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) devices have distinct single event latch-up (SEL) problems in aerospace. Therefore, it is essential that CMOS devices are designed with appropriate circuit-level methods. Traditional resistor hardness satisfies the current aerospace trend of low cost, high performance, and miniaturization. Therefore conventional resistor hardness is often applied in circuit-level designs due to the reduction of latch-up current. In circuits containing a DC-DC buck converter, the resistor is connected to the back of the converter in the traditional method. However, the traditional method is unable to take devices out of the latch-up owing to the small resistance range. To solve this problem, the paper proposes an improved design for the resistor in front of the DC-DC buck converter. The proposed method enables the devices to exit the latch-up by increasing the resistance range according to the input characteristic of the DC-DC buck converter. The paper quantifies the range of the resistor through the parametric model containing the resistor and the DC-DC buck converter. Two CMOS devices are chosen for pulsed laser experiments, verifying that the proposed method increases the resistance ranges by 300% to 400% compared to the conventional method. It is also demonstrated that the proposed method exits the devices from latch-up within the resistor ranges. That is, the resistance ranges of 34 Ω~41 Ω and 51 Ω~56 Ω reduce the latch-up currents of the devices to below holding currents of 72.1 mA and 24.2 mA, respectively.
Experimental Study of RF–Plasma Interaction Using a Low-Pressure DC Glow Discharge Tube for MPC
Authors: Khan Asif Mehmood , Ahmed Muhammad Mansoor , Rafique Umair
Published: January 2023

This paper aims to perform experimental validation of RF–plasma interaction behaviors for the purposes of wave transmission and reflection. Wave reflection from plasma is of interest as it finds applications in pulse compression and RF polarizer-based systems. Simulations are performed using a combination of Magic3D and COMSOL multiphysics to characterize the plasma–wave interaction and discharge tube properties. The goal is to generate plasma with characteristics that wholly reflect the incident electromagnetic wave. A glass tube of inner diameter 22 mm and length 100 mm, with 12 mm brass electrodes, is fabricated for plasma generation. Argon-based DC glow discharge is sustained at 500 volts at a pressure of 3.8 Torr. Plasma density is calculated to be 2.529×1019 m−3, with a corresponding plasma frequency of 7.18 GHz. Due to this higher frequency, a 3 GHz incident RF wave is reflected, as measured through S-parameter measurements using a network analyzer. Off and on states of the tube correspond to S11=−40 dB and S11=−13 dB, which show wave transmission and reflection, respectively. When the plasma column is ignited, the reflected wave has a phase difference of 180∘.
A Federated Learning Framework against Data Poisoning Attacks on the Basis of the Genetic Algorithm
Authors: Zhai Ran , Chen Xuebin , Pei Langtao , Ma Zheng
Published: January 2023

Obtaining the balance between information loss and training accuracy is crucial in federated learning. Nevertheless, inadequate data quality will affect training accuracy. Here, to improve the training accuracy without affecting information loss, we propose a malicious data detection model using the genetic algorithm to resist model poisoning attack. Specifically, the model consists of three modules: (1) Participants conduct single point training on data and upload accuracy to the third-party server; (2) Formulate data scoring formula based on data quantity and quality; (3) Use the genetic algorithm to obtain the threshold which makes the score highest. Data with accuracy which exceeds this threshold can participate in cooperative training of federated learning. Before participating in training, participants’ data is optimized to oppose data poisoning attacks. Experiments on two datasets validated the effectiveness of the proposed model. It was also verified in the fashion-MNIST data set and cifar10 data set that the training accuracy of GAFL is 7.45% higher than that of the federated learning model in the fashion-MNIST data set and 8.18% in the cifar10 data set.
GBH-YOLOv5: Ghost Convolution with BottleneckCSP and Tiny Target Prediction Head Incorporating YOLOv5 for PV Panel Defect Detection
Authors: Li Longlong , Wang Zhifeng , Zhang Tingting
Published: January 2023

Photovoltaic (PV) panel surface-defect detection technology is crucial for the PV industry to perform smart maintenance. Using computer vision technology to detect PV panel surface defects can ensure better accuracy while reducing the workload of traditional worker field inspections. However, multiple tiny defects on the PV panel surface and the high similarity between different defects make it challenging to accurately identify and detect such defects. This paper proposes an approach named Ghost convolution with BottleneckCSP and a tiny target prediction head incorporating YOLOv5 (GBH-YOLOv5) for PV panel defect detection. To ensure better accuracy on multiscale targets, the BottleneckCSP module is introduced to add a prediction head for tiny target detection to alleviate tiny defect misses, using Ghost convolution to improve the model inference speed and reduce the number of parameters. First, the original image is compressed and cropped to enlarge the defect size physically. Then, the processed images are input into GBH-YOLOv5, and the depth features are extracted through network processing based on Ghost convolution, the application of the BottleneckCSP module, and the prediction head of tiny targets. Finally, the extracted features are classified by a Feature Pyramid Network (FPN) and a Path Aggregation Network (PAN) structure. Meanwhile, we compare our method with state-of-the-art methods to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method. The proposed PV panel surface-defect detection network improves the mAP performance by at least 27.8%.
Multi-Layer Material Characterization at Ka-Band Using Bayesian Inversion Method
Authors: Shahid Saleem , Gentili Gian Guido , Bernasconi Giancarlo , Nawaz Hamza , Rana Ahsan S.
Published: January 2023

This paper presents the implementation of the Bayesian inversion method for the characterization and estimation of different dielectric material properties. The scattering parameters of single and multi-layer materials are measured using a free-space experimental setup using a standard gain horn antenna and a Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) at Ka-band (26–40 GHz). The relative permittivity, material thickness, and material positioning error are defined as model parameters and estimated using the observed (measured) data. The FR4 Epoxy, Rogers RT/Duriod 5880, and Rogers AD600 with different relative permittivities and thicknesses are used in the measurement setup. The results displayed good agreement between model parameters and estimated properties of the presented materials, while the corresponding eigenvectors provided a level of confidence in model parameter values. The results were compared with different reported techniques to showcase the possible use of the presented method in microwave imaging, non-destructive testing, and similar applications.
Research on the Control of Multi-Agent Microgrid with Dual Neural Network Based on Priority Experience Storage Policy
Authors: Xu Fengxia , Tong Shulin , Li Chengye , Du Xinyang
Published: January 2023

In this paper, an improved dual neural network control method based on multi-agent system is proposed to solve the problem of rating the frequency deviation and voltage deviation of the microgrid system due to the uneven impedance distribution of the circuit. The microgrid multi-agent system control model is constructed; the microgrid operation problem is transformed into Markov decision-making process, and the frequency error model of distributed secondary control adjusting system is established. In the course of training, the priority experience replay mechanism is introduced to accelerate the training reward return by using the experience of high feedback reward, and the frequency and voltage bias of the microgrid system are reduced. The model of isolated island microgrid of distributed power supply communication topology is established, and the control strategy of double neural network is simulated. Compared with the traditional sagging control method, the double neural network algorithm proposed in this paper stabilizes the frequency of the grid at rated frequency and improves the convergence speed. Simulation results show that the proposed method is helpful to provide stable and high-quality power resources for enterprises.
Analysis of Teachers’ Cognitive Ability and Teaching Motivation on the Academic Achievement of Students in Higher Education via Employment Data Guidance
Authors: Zhu Huirong , Zheng Xuxu , Zhao Leina
Published: January 2023

Teachers and students are the two basic elements in educational activities. Students are educated but are not exactly passive recipients of education. With subjective initiative, all educational impacts must be through the initiative of students to achieve the desired effect. Therefore, all activities of education must start from mobilizing students’ initiative and motivation so that they have sufficient motivation to learn actively and well. The effective analysis of employment data, at the statistical level of data analysis, is a favorable basis to support the influence of teachers on students. However, most of the previous methods are C4.5 algorithms, decision tree generation algorithms based on rough sets, etc., which are commonly used for employment data analysis. None of them can sufficiently deal with the problem of different decision accuracy requirements and noise adaptability. In this paper, we analyze the employment data of a university in 2012 as an example and compare the analysis results with those of the C4.5 algorithm and decision tree generation algorithm based on a rough set. The results show that the decision tree algorithm based on the multiscale rough set model generates a simple decision tree structure. In addition, our methods do not have indistinguishable datasets and are fast in terms of computing. This study provides an effective guide to the relevance of teachers’ cognitive abilities and teaching motivations for students’ employment.
New Fixed-Frequency Digital Control to Improve the Light-Load Efficiency of an Isolated Regulated Converter
Authors: Ma Cong , Wang Junfeng , Wang Kai , Long Baiguang
Published: January 2023

With the development of environmental and economic requirements, the light-load efficiency of DC/DC converters is increasingly important. However, many isolated regulated converters still use fixed-frequency control, which has low light-load efficiency. This paper proposes a new digital control method to improve the light-load efficiency under fixed-frequency control. On the one hand, new gate-drive timing control is proposed to achieve the soft-switching of the primary switch. On the other, the software voltage–second balance method realizes the synchronous rectification in the discontinuous conduction mode, which reduces the conduction loss. The diagram and workflow of the proposed control scheme are demonstrated at length. A 100-Watt prototype was designed, and the test results show that synchronous rectification and quasi-zero-voltage-switching are realized in the whole operating range at the light load. The light-load efficiency is 81% to 87%, which improves by 5% to 10% in comparison to the traditional forward converter. The prototype also functions well under the load transient. The proposed control scheme is implemented in one digital controller without additional components, and the circuit is low loss and low cost.
A Comprehensive Review of the Role of CO2 Foam EOR in the Reduction of Carbon Footprint in the Petroleum Industry
Authors: Bello Ayomikun , Ivanova Anastasia , Cheremisin Alexey
Published: January 2023

By trapping CO2 and storing it in matured and depleted geological formations, atmospheric CO2 release can be reduced. Carbon capture and storage on a large scale can help to stabilize atmospheric greenhouse gas emissions. This can be achieved by using anthropogenic CO2 for enhanced oil recovery (EOR), which encourages advances in secure CO2 storage while enhancing the oil production process. This interaction is expected to hasten the development of CO2 storage technology and lower emissions from oil producing operations. Reducing CO2 mobility in the reservoir is crucial to achieving this goal as effectively as possible, and in situ foam generation offers a viable solution. It has been shown that implementing a blend of CO2 and foaming solution considerably reduces CO2 mobility and front propagation. Although there have been a few reviews of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), none of these have concentrated on the role of foam EOR in achieving carbon neutrality. Therefore, in this brief review, methods for achieving carbon neutrality with foam EOR are comprehensively reviewed. In order to store CO2, the utilisation of atmospheric CO2 to generate foam is the main topic of this review. This approach can boost financial incentives for the energy sector, help to lower carbon emissions, and make it possible to produce oil from depleted reservoirs in a more sustainable way. Thus, identifying and examining the governing mechanisms that affect CO2 storage during foam flooding as well as reviewing the various techniques for estimating CO2 storage under actual reservoir circumstances are among the goals of this work.
Experimental Investigations on the Chemo-Mechanical Coupling in Solid-State Batteries and Electrode Materials
Authors: Wang Jiaxuan , Hao Feng
Published: January 2023

Increasing attention has been paid to the safety and efficiency of batteries due to the rapid development and widespread use of electric vehicles. Solid-state batteries have the advantages of good safety, high energy density, and strong cycle performance, and are recognized as the next generation of power batteries. However, solid-state batteries generate large stress changes due to the volume change of electrode materials during cycling, resulting in pulverization and exfoliation of active materials, fracture of solid-electrolyte interface films, and development of internal cracks in solid electrolytes. As a consequence, the cycle performance of the battery is degraded, or even a short circuit can occur. Therefore, it is important to study the stress changes of solid-state batteries or electrode materials during cycling. This review presents a current overview of chemo-mechanical characterization techniques applied to solid-state batteries and experimental setups. Moreover, some methods to improve the mechanical properties by changing the composition or structure of the electrode materials are also summarized. This review aims to highlight the impact of the stress generated inside solid-state batteries and summarizes a part of the research methods used to study the stress of solid-state batteries, which help improve the design level of solid-state batteries, thereby improving battery performance and safety.
Heuristic Retailer’s Day-Ahead Pricing Based on Online-Learning of Prosumer’s Optimal Energy Management Model
Authors: Nejati Amiri Mohammad Hossein , Mehdinejad Mehdi , Mohammadpour Shotorbani Amin , Shayanfar Heidarali
Published: January 2023

Smart grids have introduced several key concepts, including demand response, prosumers—active consumers capable of producing, consuming, and storing both electrical and thermal energies—retail market, and local energy markets. Preserving data privacy in this emerging environment has raised concerns and challenges. The use of novel methods such as online learning is recommended to address these challenges through prediction of the behavior of market stakeholders. In particular, the challenge of predicting prosumers’ behavior in an interaction with retailers requires creating a dynamic environment for retailers to set their optimal pricing. An innovative model of retailer–prosumer interactions in a day-ahead market is presented in this paper. By forecasting the behavior of prosumers by using an online learning method, the retailer implements an optimal pricing scheme to maximize profits. Prosumers, however, seek to reduce energy costs to the greatest extent possible. It is possible for prosumers to participate in a price-based demand response program voluntarily and without the retailer’s interference, ensuring their privacy. A heuristic distributed approach is applied to solve the proposed problem in a fully distributed framework with minimum information exchange between retailers and prosumers. The case studies demonstrate that the proposed model effectively fulfills its objectives for both retailer and prosumer sides by adopting the distributed approach.
Investigations on Three-Section Plate-Type Electrostatic Precipitators Used in Thermoelectric Power Plants
Authors: Popa Gabriel Nicolae , Diniș Corina Maria , Iagăr Angela
Published: January 2023

Dust emissions must be managed and reduced as much as possible to safeguard the environment and human health. Plate-type electrostatic precipitators have been used to decrease pollution in a number of sectors, particularly for applications needing massive volumes of gas to be dedusted at high dust concentrations and temperatures. This paper examines large-capacity plate-type electrostatic precipitators with three sections used in a coal-fired thermal power plant. Using simulations and experiments, the collection efficiency (in different ways of supplying sections, without and with sections rapping), the influence of dust resistivity and a dust layer on the surfaces of collection electrodes, the electrical parameters (voltage, current density, and space charge density) for the sections of the electrostatic precipitators, and the electrical parameters of the power sources (voltage, current, power, and power factor) are studied. A higher dust resistivity will cause a change in the shape of the voltage delivered to the sections, an increase in the average voltage from sections, and a decrease in collecting efficiency (by a few percent). A greater degree of intermittence alters the current-voltage characteristics of the sections, decreases the current across the sections, and improves collection efficiency. The density of space charges increases with the degree of intermittency and is highest at the input section. With increasing thickness of the dust layer on the collection electrodes, the collection efficiency increases. PM10 dust particles (which have a lower migration speed) are the hardest to collect with ESPs. When the sections are rapping, PM 20–30 dust particles are more difficult to collect because their migration speeds decrease significantly (compared to the situation when the sections are not rapping). The operation of the power sources of the ESP sections is dynamic, being controlled by the regulators, and the current (or current density), depending on the voltage characteristics, changes permanently (at intervals of a few seconds). The power sources of the sections are deforming consumers (the current is much different from the sinusoidal form).
Experimental and Theoretical Investigation of Single-Slope Passive Solar Still with Phase-Change Materials
Authors: Radomska Ewelina , Mika Łukasz , Sztekler Karol , Kalawa Wojciech , Lis Łukasz , Pielichowska Kinga , Szumera Magdalena , Rutkowski Paweł
Published: January 2023

Many attempts are made worldwide to create cheap, efficient, and eco-friendly water desalination systems. Passive solar stills (SS) are considered to be such. This paper presents the results of the experimental and theoretical investigation of the effects of using phase-change materials (PCM) on the performance of SS. The experiments were conducted for two paraffin waxes, as PCM and 1.0, 2.5, and 5.0 kg of PCM were used. The results of the experimental studies were used to validate a mathematical model, which was based on the energy balance ordinary differential equations. The equations were solved numerically since the approximate solutions obtained numerically are sufficient and relatively simple as compared to the exact analytical solutions. A theoretical analysis was then carried out and a novel and detailed dependence on the water evaporation rate as a function of water temperature and the difference between water and cover temperature was determined. It was also found that the productivity of the SS with PCM strongly depends on the operating conditions. For uniform initial temperatures of the SS, its productivity decreases with an increasing PCM-to-water mass ratio, and the maximum decrease is 10.8%. If the SS is not thermally insulated, the PCM can take the role of a thermal insulator and increase productivity by 1.1%, but there is an optimal PCM-to-water mass ratio. The greatest increase in productivity, by up to 47.1%, can be obtained when the PCM is heated outside the SS and inserted into the SS when the water temperature starts to decrease. In this case, the productivity increases with the increasing PCM-to-water mass ratio. These outcomes fill a knowledge gap caused by a lack of justification for why in some cases, the application of PCM fails to improve the productivity of SS.
Improved Digital Twin of Li-Ion Battery Based on Generic MATLAB Model
Authors: Bilansky Juraj , Lacko Milan , Pastor Marek , Marcinek Adrian , Durovsky Frantisek
Published: January 2023

The paper describes the digital twin of a Li-ion battery cell based on the MATLAB/Simulink generic model. The digital twin is based on measured data for constant current/constant voltage charging and discharging cycles with State of Health (SoH) up to 79%, also including fast charging. Mathematical equations used for the digital twin are obtained by 3D data fitting of measured SoH, battery capacity, and battery cell current. The input to the proposed digital twin is only the measured battery cell current, and its output includes State of Charge (SoC), SoH, and battery cell voltage. The designed digital twin is tested and compared with MATLAB/Simulink generic model and battery cell measurements for constant discharging current and dynamically generated discharging current profile. The results show significant improvement in the generic MATLAB/Simulink model.
Efficiency Assessment of Five Types of Photovoltaic Modules Installed on a Fixed and on a Dual-Axis Solar-Tracked Platform
Authors: Moldovan Macedon , Burduhos Bogdan Gabriel , Visa Ion
Published: January 2023

A solution to increase the electrical output of the photovoltaic systems relies on solar tracking mechanisms that increase the amount of received solar energy. The experimental results obtained during a monitoring period of one year are comparatively presented in the paper for five types of photovoltaic modules installed on a fixed platform (as reference) and on a dual-axis solar tracking platform in the Renewable Energy Systems and Recycling R&D Centre of the Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania. The influence of the solar-tracking mechanism and the meteorological conditions specific to the four seasons during the monitoring period on the output of the analysed photovoltaic technologies are discussed in the paper. The solar tracking increases by 28% the amount of the yearly received solar energy and by 29.6% the electrical energy output of the entire PV platform. The solar conversion efficiency of the tracked PV platform is slightly increased (14.34%) when compared with the fixed one (14.17%). When assessing the influence of solar tracking on each type of PV, the results show that the CIGS PV module has the highest relative energy gain (34%) followed by CIS (30.8%), m-Si (30.6%), p-Si (27.3%) and CdTe (23.4%) PV modules.
Energy Taxation Reform with an Environmental Focus in Portugal
Authors: Pereira Alfredo Marvão , Pereira Rui Marvão
Published: January 2023

Climate change has made the decarbonization of the different domestic economies a widely accepted and urgent priority. Yet, this is a very challenging task in a largely uncharted territory. In this context, in this paper, we address the issue of energy taxation reform with an environmental focus in Portugal. We do so using a multi-sector and multi-household dynamic computable general equilibrium model of the Portuguese economy. We analyze the environmental, macroeconomic, and distributional effects of different policies replacing current energy taxation with carbon taxation and, then, extend the carbon taxation to the levels necessary to achieve the IPCC 2018 emissions reduction targets. Our analysis indicates a clear path in the quest for decarbonization. First, replace energy taxes with a carbon tax; second, adopt the levels of carbon taxation necessary to achieve the emissions goals; third, use extra tax revenues from the carbon tax to reverse any potential adverse macroeconomic and distributional effects of carbon taxation. In the process, this would be a way around the pervasive problem of perverse fossil fuel subsidies, which would effectively disappear and, as such, would improve the efficiency of the tax system.
Effects of Polyploidy on Physiological Performance of Acclimatized Solanum betaceum Cav. Plants under Water Deficit
Authors: Correia Sandra , Braga Ana , Martins João , Correia Barbara , Pinto Glória , Canhoto Jorge
Published: January 2023

The urgent need to identify stress-tolerant genotypes and understand their inherent genetic plasticity is one of the major targets of research and breeding programs. Species that are cultivated in areas that are prone to drought need to be able to tolerate water stress (WS) while still displaying features that are economically valuable. Tamarillo (Solanum betaceum) is a solanaceous fruit crop with increasing agronomic interest due to the nutritional properties of its edible fruits and its biotechnological potential. Several protocols have been established for the in vitro culture of this species and controlled hybridization, as well as for the induction of tetraploidy. Nevertheless, the impact of WS on S. betaceum performance has been poorly studied, and nothing is known about the role of ploidy status on this response. Since no morphological differences were noticed between diploids and tetraploids at the end of the acclimatization period, we hypothesized that ploidy level may have a role in plant drought responses. Thus, micropropagated and acclimatized tamarillo diploid (2n = 2x = 24) and tetraploid (4n = 4x = 48) plants were exposed to WS, and several physiological parameters were evaluated, such as plant growth, water potential, photosynthetic performance, sugars, proline, and MDA levels. Water stress did not affect plant growth in both diploids and tetraploids, but it induced stomatal closure and reduced the net CO2 assimilation rate. Water stress also reduced the photosynthetic efficiency of PSII, but no differences were found in the total chlorophyll content. From all the parameters analyzed, tetraploid plants showed a better response under water shortage conditions when considering water potential (WP). Metabolite analysis indicated no significant differences in the accumulation of soluble sugars and MDA in WS plants but a significant increase in proline accumulation in diploids exposed to WS. These observed differences in parameters such as WP and proline accumulation point to mechanisms of osmoregulation and stress signaling that differ between diploid and tetraploid plants, particularly in WS conditions, demonstrating that tetraploids can adapt better to water shortage conditions than their diploid counterparts.
The Differences in Water Repellency in Root Mat (Biomat) and Soil Horizons of Thinned and Non-thinned Chamaecyparis obtusa (Siebold et Zucc.) Endl. Plantations
Authors: Farahnak Moein , Sato Takanori , Otani Yuya , Kuraji Koichiro , Suzaki Toko
Published: January 2023

Water repellency (WR) is one cause of root mat (biomat) flow and soil surface runoff in dense Chamaecyparis obutsa (Siebold et Zucc.) Endl. plantations. However, the changes in WR of biomat and soil horizons are unclear in the thinned C. obtusa plantations. This study compares the WR of biomat and soil horizons in the thinned and non-thinned C. obtusa plantations by considering the water content and surface temperature of biomat and soil from July 2021 to June 2022. We selected one plot in each thinned and non-thinned area in a catchment at Obora Experimental Forest in Japan. Our results showed that the 40% thinned plot lacked a biomat horizon, whereas the non-thinned plot had a ca. 3 cm depth of biomat. The biomat WR of the non-thinned plot (none to very strong) was higher than the soil WR of the thinned plot (none to strong). There was no relationship between WR and both water content and surface temperature of biomat and/or soil in either thinned or non-thinned plots. Our findings show that the biomat horizon had an essential role in the severity of WR in C. obtusa plantations. The lack of biomat after thinning could substantially impact soil surface hydrology.