Search results for "CONST"

CONSUMPTION DECISIONS WITH INCOME UNCERTAINTY AND A KINKED BUDGET CONSTRAINT

1986

Effects of the Italian financial crisis on the photovoltaic dissemination in a southern city

2013

Abstract The aim of this paper is to estimate how the profitability of grid-connected PV (photovoltaic) systems may vary month by month due to the changes in all parameters involved in the economic evaluation (discount rate, PV electricity selling price, inflation rate, price of PV devices etc.). The effects of these variations were investigated for a district of a city in the South Italy (Palermo). The results of the analysis provided the trend of the actual coverage of the district power demand from June 2010 to August 2012. In particular the load match index, which considers the daily energy demand covered by PV systems, ranged from almost 30% to less than 12%, which is less than the val…

Climate change and the building sector: Modelling and energy implications to an office building in southern Europe

2018

Abstract The building sector is one of the most relevant sectors in terms of generation of wealth and occupation, but it is also one of the main contributor to energy use and greenhouse gas emissions (e.g. at the European level it is currently responsible for 36% of CO2 emissions). For these reason this sector must play a key role in achieving a low-carbon economy consistent with the objective of holding the increase of the average temperature of the globe below 2 °C if compared to pre-industrial levels. In this context, the paper analyses the potential impact of climate change on the energy uses for heating and cooling in southern Europe, based on the assumptions of the latest Intergovernm…

Electricity Consumption Analysis of Tertiary Buildings: An Empirical Approach for Two University Campuses

2020

An empirical approach for the analysis of energy consumption of existing buildings of the tertiary sector is presented in this study. It allowed the organization and management of large amounts of data according to different timeframes and helped to focus on leading issues about energy uses, and dealt with compatibility with tariff structure. The analysis method, which implied a powerful graphical representation of the results, allowed us to detect critical issues in electricity energy management for public buildings and improve their energy performance. Furthermore, the authors proposed a set of electricity consumption indexes (ECIs) that gave useful insight into the main hotspots. The bas…

Self-esteem discrepancies and identity-expressive consumption: Evidence from Norwegian adolescents

2016

Prior research established that simultaneously holding discrepant explicit (deliberate, controlled) and implicit (automatic, uncontrolled) self-esteem gives rise to self-enhancing behaviours. Given that individuals tend to enhance their self-concepts with brands that are associated with positive identities, this study examined whether self-esteem discrepancy was related to the extent to which individuals developed connections with brands that are associated with their in-groups. Findings from an adolescent sample (ages 16-18) indicated that adolescents with larger discrepancies between explicit and implicit self-esteem were more likely to construct their self-concepts using in-group-linked …

Structural highs formation and their relationship to sedimentary basins in the north Sicily continental margin (southern Tyrrhenian Sea): implication…

2005

Two high-penetration seismic profiles across the continental margin of north Sicily (southern Tyrrhenian Sea) have been interpreted to construct a crustal section across the margin and to provide a three-dimensional perspective on the upper crustal setting of the Solunto High and its structural relationships with the adjacent Cefalù Basin. Crystalline rocks of the Kabilian-Calabrian Units (KCU) are recognized in the Solunto High region and farther to the north. The KCU body is tectonically superimposed onto sedimentary rocks pertaining to the Sicilian-Maghrebian Units (SMU) and the Solunto High corresponds to the thrust sheet culmination. Its occurrence in the Solunto High demonstrates that…

Thermodynamically consistent residual-based gradient plasticity theory and comparison

2006

A gradient plasticity theory for small deformations is presented within the framework of nonlocal continuum thermodynamics. The second principle (Clausius–Duhem inequality), enriched by an additional term named energy residual, is employed in conjunction with the concepts of insulation condition and locality recovery condition, in order to derive all the pertinent restrictions upon the constitutive equations. These include the expressions of the energy residual and of the plastic dissipation density, as well as the PDEs governing the gradient kinematic and isotropic hardening of the material, together with the related higher-order boundary conditions for both the fixed and the moving bounda…

SU-FF-T-365: Practical Reconstruction Method for 3D CT-Based Brachytherapy with Shielded Colpostats

2006

Introduction and purpose.‐ The most extended worldwide HDR and PDR afterloading machines are from Nucletron, using the Plato Treatment Planning System (TPS) to perform the clinical dosimetry. The Fletcher‐Williamson (FW) vaginal colpostat applicators are widely used with these machines, they are made of a very dense material (densimet‐17) which allows shielding up to 50% of the dose. Almost all the TPS have incorporated the CT‐Based Brachytherapy (BT), in which the CT catheters and applicators reconstruction is based on contiguous CT transverse slices where the user points the catheter position. The problem with these applicators is the production of artefacts that makes the reconstruction …

Comparative Analysis of the Vascular Actions of Diterpenes Isolated from Euphorbia canariensis

1998

Abstract We have analysed the effects of 2,3-diepiingol 7,12-diacetate-8-isobutyrate (compound 1), ingenol-3-angelate-17-benzoate (compound 2), ingenol-3-angelate-17-benzoate-20-acetate (compound 3) and 3,5,7,8,9,15-hexahydroxyjatropha-6(17),11-dien-14-one-5,8-bis(2-methylbutyrate)-7-(2-methylpropionate) (compound 4), four diterpenes isolated from E. canariensis, on the isometric tension developed by isolated rabbit basilar and carotid arteries. Concentration-response curves to these compounds were obtained cumulatively in both arteries at resting tension and active tone (KCl, 50 mM). At resting tension a concentration-dependent contraction was induced by the four compounds. In the basilar …

Investigation on a Bio-Composite Material as Acoustic Absorber and Thermal Insulation

2020

In order to limit the anthropic emissions of CO2, research is currently investigating new materials for the building sector. The main purpose is the reduction in the embodied energy consumption, especially in the residential sector, and consequently the limitation of the direct and indirect utilization of fossil fuels, for the indoor heating, cooling, and ventilation services. Indeed, the residential sector is affected by a high energy demand, thus the choice of improved materials is fundamental to improve the sustainability. All phases: construction, building life, and dismantling are impacting in terms of resource and energy consumption, both associated with the emissions of pollutants in…