Search results for "Operations Research"
showing 10 items of 1297 documents
A note on cooperative versus non-cooperative strategies in international pollution control
2002
Abstract In this note, we evaluate the scope of Dockner and Long’s [Journal of Environment Economics and Management 24 (1993) 13] conclusion on the efficiency of the non-cooperative outcome in a differential game of international pollution control. We also complete the study of the different equilibria the differential game can present. Our results show that their conclusion requires that the initial value of the stock of pollution be higher than the Pareto-efficient pollution stock so that the equilibrium path of emissions involves a decreasing stock of pollution. Our results also show that the application of the procedure proposed by Tsutsui and Mino [Journal of Economic Theory 52 (1990) …
Three Hours Ahead Prevision of SO2 Pollutant Concentration Using an Elman Neural based Forecaster
2008
Abstract Indoor air quality near the industrial site is tightly joined to pollutant concentration level, since outdoor pollution heavily influences air quality and, consequently, inhabitants health. A pollution management system is essential for health protection. Automatic air quality management systems have became an important research issue with strong implications for inhabitants’ health. In this paper an automatic forecaster based on neural networks for SO 2 concentration prevision is proposed. The analyzed area covers different small towns near the industrial site of Priolo, in the south of the world. Among these towns, Melilli was the first town in Italy that was evacuated for high l…
Green Data Centres integration in smart grids: New frontiers for ancillary service provision
2017
Abstract The paper presents a study, conceived within the GEYSER FP7 co-funded European research project, on the ancillary services that Green Data Centres (GDCs) can provide, focusing, in particular, on spinning reserve. More in detail, the main contribution of the paper is to show how GDCs can be involved in the secondary frequency regulation process of a smart distribution grid, for contrasting the disturbing effects of unexpected variation of the energy production. With this aim, a real data centre, owned by Engineering S.p.A., is simulated as connected to the Medium Voltage IEEE 14-bus test grid where some RES-based generators are supposed to exist. Simulations are carried out in order…
Pragmatism in Decision Support System Research
2018
Decision making on relief distribution is a complex multidisciplinary task in humanitarian logistics. It incorporates decision makers from different but related problem areas. The failure to perform assigned decision-making tasks in any area makes the entire system unstable and delays the relief distribution process. An organized, well-planned, and practical decision support system (DSS) can assist practitioners in making rapid decisions on delivering relief items. Hence, DSS researchers in humanitarian logistics require rigorous thinking, close and critical analysis, and the identification of challenges to conduct research or validate the generated knowledge properly. To perform such compl…
Group Buying of Competing Retailers
2010
Under group buying, quantity discounts are offered based on the buyers' aggregated purchasing quantity, instead of individual quantities. As the price decreases with the total quantity, buyers receive lower prices than they otherwise would be able to obtain individually. Previous studies on group buying focus on the benefit buyers receive in reduced acquisition costs or enhanced bargaining power. In this paper, we show that buyers can instead get hurt from such cooperation. Specifically, we consider a two-level distribution channel with a single manufacturer and two retailers who compete for end customers. We show that, under linear demand curves, group buying is always preferable for symme…
Energy efficiency in the European Union: What can be learned from the joint application of directional distance functions and slacks-based measures?
2014
Abstract Over the last few years concerns have increased about the energy mix in many countries. These concerns have been of greater magnitude for countries with a common energy regulation such as European Union (EU) member states. An important aspect to take into account when choosing a given energy mix is the efficiency involved in its generation. In this context, the present study analyzes the efficiency with which electricity and derived heat was produced in 25 EU member states over the last decade. This analysis considers not only the inputs and outputs involved but, more importantly, which undesirable by-products were generated during the production process, a relevant issue for EU cl…
Multicriteria Prioritization for Multistage Implementation of Complex Urban Renewal Projects
2015
Renewal projects on neighborhood scale often include several sub projects aiming at fulfill the different functions of urban areas, while public funds or activated public-private partnership can be insufficient to face the implementation of subprojects simultaneously. Therefore single parts of wider projects are frequently realized at different period of time, according to the availability of public funds or the interest of private partners in the most profitable projects. Although a major organizational effort of funding could be necessary, a more rational approach is required, which will be able to identify the most suitable sequence of realization ensuring the greatest advantage if non c…
Principles for Solving Sequential Multiple Criteria Decision Problems
1983
In this paper a sequential multiple criteria decision problem is studied. The problem arises, when a decision maker is unable to consider all possible decision alternatives simultaneously. If the decision maker evaluates only a subset of all decisions from among which he chooses the most preferred alternative, it is not necessarily 'globally' best. In this context an interesting question is, how good the most preferred alternative is and what the chances are of finding a better solution by considering additional alternatives. The principles of a an approach based on probability theory to solving this problem are described and illustrated with numerical examples.
Modeling and 'smart' prototyping human-in-the-loop interactions for AmI environments
2021
[EN] Autonomous capabilities are required in AmI environments in order to adapt systems to new environmental conditions and situations. However, keeping the human in the loop and in control of such systems is still necessary because of the diversity of systems, domains, environments, context situations, and social and legal constraints, which makes full autonomy a utopia within the short or medium term. Human-system integration introduces an important number of challenges and problems that have to be solved. On the one hand, humans should interact with systems even in those situations where their attentional, cognitive, and physical resources are limited in order to perform the interaction.…
The impact on port competition of the integration of port and inland transport services
2015
The performance of the transport chain is important for the efficiency and competitiveness of an economy. In the context of port competition, there has been an increasing cooperation between firms involved in the intermodal transport chain including seaport services. This paper examines the economic incentives and welfare implications to the integration of port activities with inland transport services under inter-ports competition. Although ports find it advantageous to engage in such integration process it may be detrimental to welfare, since shippers’ aggregate surplus decreases – noting that farther away users benefit at the expense of those closer to the ports. Several scenarios not le…