Analytical frameworks to incorporate demand response in long-term resource planning

Many utilities are obligated by state regulatory or legislative requirements to consider demand response (DR) as part of their resource planning process. There are several ways to incorporate DR into resource planning modeling and each has its advantages and disadvantages. We explore the current analytical frameworks for incorporating DR into long-term resource planning. We also consider whether current approaches accurately and realistically model DR resources in capacity expansion and production cost models and whether barriers exist to incorporating DR into resource planning models in a more robust fashion. We identify 10 specific recommendations for enhancing and expanding the current approaches.     

Improvement of customer baselines for the evaluation of demand response through the use of physically-based load models

Demand Response (DR) is an opportunity and a concern for markets as well as power system flexibility. The deployment of DR depends on both knowledge on its performance and how to measure it effectively to provide adequate economic feedback. DR verification requires a baseline reference. This paper introduces a new baseline that provides an evaluation of response based on simple adjustment factors through physically-based models, tools which are also used in DR. The approach includes the detection of licit and gaming responses before and after DR. Results show that errors decrease by 10–15% with respect to conventional approaches.     

POLAND'S QUEST FOR LOCAL DEMOCRACY: The Role of Polish Mayors in an Uncertain Environment

ABSTRACT: Local governments in many of the emerging democracies in Central and Eastern Europe are viewed as important components in the government process and as the building blocks for self-government and democracy. During this institution-building phase of democracy in Poland, the mayor plays a pivotal role in local government. This study examines the role of the mayor in Poland based on a survey of 289 mayors and many personal interviews. It specifically examines the degree of conflict and cooperation between the mayor and the city council, the bureaucracy, and the community. It is clear that Polish communities face enormous obstacles and that if local government is to succeed, it must meet massive challenges.     

Design and implementation of a competitive framework for a day-ahead demand-response program in Iran

To replace traditional demand-side management (DSM) programs with demand-response (DR) programs, market operators have considered market-based DR. In recent years, Iran's power system has faced increasing pressure to meet the total demand, especially in warm seasons. In this regard, DSM activities have become an important tool used by Iran's power system operator for peak reduction purposes. However, there are concerns regarding the implementation of these activities, such as fair remuneration of participants, the efficiency of these programs, and customers' motivation to participate. Therefore, Iran's power system operator has started transitioning from traditional DSM activities to modern DR programs, i.e., market-based DR. Khorasan Regional Electricity Company (KREC) has taken the first step to design and implement such a market-based DR program in Iran. Hence, this paper focuses on designing and implementing a proposed day-ahead DR (DADR) program in KREC. The framework, timeline, and mathematical formulation for the clearance of the proposed DADRP via a pool-based environment are presented. Industrial customers have chosen to participate in the market in the first phase of implementing the DADRP. The real case of KREC is used to show the feasibility and efficiency of the proposed model. The results show that the proposed model can effectively determine the optimal market configuration to meet DR demand, delivering more than KREC's current DR program.     

The property restitution in Warsaw: renaissance or decline of pre-war buildings?

This paper aimed to provide an understanding of the segment of pre-war buildings in Warsaw (Poland) and its position within the housing stock in the light of restitution of private properties. Although the majority of the buildings were destroyed during the Second World War, enclaves of the pre-war buildings still exist in the central districts of the capital city of Poland. The communalization of land in Warsaw in 1945 considerably reduced the proportion of private ownership. In the following years, the scarcity of funds for repairs and rehabilitation of the pre-war buildings contributed to their poor maintenance, resulting in worsening housing conditions. Since 1989, the political and economic transformation in Poland strengthened the privatization and paved the way to restitution of communalized properties to their previous private owners or their heirs. However, lack of law on property restitution and the complexity of groups of interest involved in this process (former private owners, “buyers of claims,” municipality and tenants) entail different tensions. In this way, the private owners struggle for years with restitution procedures, “buyers of claims” attempt to make profit on restitution, and sitting tenants defend their right to stay and to pay lower rents after the building is returned. Finally, the renaissance or decline of restituted pre-war residential buildings in Warsaw is strongly influenced by the type of existing ownership structure of individual dwellings in a building which may facilitate or hamper its refurbishment.     

平均收益期在工程投资互斥方案评价中的应用

在工程投资项目的经济评价中,常需要对若干互斥方案进行方案比选,净现值(NPV)最大准则是可靠的方法,而单纯依靠内部收益率(IRR)最大可能会得到错误的结论。但NPV最大仅反映了财富最大化,并未反映资金利用效率。本文借鉴金融学中麦考利存续期(Macaulay duration,即加权平均任期),引入能够更好地反映资金利用效率的现金流平均收益期(DR)指标,探讨它与NPV和IRR之间的相互关系,发现当方案的平均收益期和内部收益率趋势相同,必然导致折现值会有相同趋势。本文还揭示了DR值的直观几何含义,这能够简化经济效果的评价方法。同时,本文针对互斥投资方案中的特殊形式修正了平均收益期的概念,使得修正值和原值在项目IRR附近具有明显的相关关系。最后,本文还在非常规投资项目中应用DR指标对项目NPV图进行区域分化,并赋予不同的经济含义。这些定量的研究结果对于应用平均收益期进行互斥方案辅助决策分析有重要的意义。     

基于离散平稳小波变换的EKF数据融合算法

针对车辆GPS／DR组合导航系统中广泛采用的扩展卡尔曼滤波器进行数据融合难以建立精确的数学模型的问题,提出了基于离散平稳小波变换的扩展卡尔曼滤波器数据融合算法。仿真表明,该算法优于扩展卡尔曼滤波器,对车辆组合导航系统的数据融合是有效的。     

Renovation of brick interceptor sewers

Brick interceptor sewers began to be built in Europe (London, Paris, Hamburg) in the 18th century. The sewers were built from solid ceramic brick (so called sewer brick) or clinker brick. This paper presents a study of damage to brick interceptor sewers built in the 19th century and at beginning of the 20th century in Poland. Damage to the sewer structure and to the surrounding ground and its causes are identified. On the basis of results of in situ investigations, laboratory tests and structural and strength analyses, the condition of sewer structures in Poland was assessed as a pre-failure one. Underground infrastructure pipes of urban areas can be repaired in trenches or using trenchless techniques. Although trenchless technologies have been known in Poland for more than 25 years, there is still the lack of knowledge and imagination on the part of designers – so different problems in renovating process of brick interceptor sewers are described.     

Potential of rainwater utilization in residential housing in Poland

Systems for rainwater collection, storage and utilization are commonly used in many countries as sources of reduced quality water to be used in a sanitary network system of buildings and for watering, among others. In Poland, despite its potable water resources being almost the lowest in Europe, rainwater is utilized in a very limited manner. This paper presents a simulation model, as well as the results of analysis, evaluating the potential for utilizing rainwater under Polish climatic conditions, for utilizing various parameters of rainwater‐usage systems based on the precipitation data for the last decade. The economies of applying such systems in Poland are analysed, and the factors that restrict development of water catchment methods are defined.     

Evaluation of the ecological efficiency of landscape protection in areas of different protection status. A case study from Poland

Poland ratified the ELC in 2004 and by 2015 the existing forms of landscape protection constituted a major tool for its implementation. The ecological efficiency of landscape protection in Poland in terms of the different kinds of protection status was evaluated. The main goal was to get general information about the dynamics of the changes in the landscape fragmentation process and the relationships between the landscape changes and the level of landscape protection on a national scale. A set of metrics using a CLC data-set at four points in time: 1990, 2000, 2006 and 2012 were examined. The metrics calculations were completed using FRAGSTATS 4.2.1 and Statistica software. Results confirmed that landscape protection depends on the level of protection assigned to it (the regime). In addition, it was demonstrated that the forms of the protected landscape areas are characterised by lower efficiency and higher landscape fragmentation dynamics when compared to those in unprotected areas. It also turns out that the newly established protection types such as Natura 2000 areas are characterised as insufficient tools to efficiently counteract growing human pressure. Although over 40% of the area of Poland falls under protection, merely 3% of this is characterised by a high efficiency of landscape protection.     

Shifting the spotlight: suggesting a pragmatic approach to studying the Polish LGBT community

This research, based on a pilot survey distributed among representatives of the LGBT community in Poland, is aimed at initiating an academic debate on the future of the Polish LGBT population in the urban setting; gaining insight into perceptions of LGBT survey respondents about potential clustering preferences of the Polish LGBT population; and thus suggesting a framework for LGBT inclusion in the Polish urban economic and developmental plans, using Poznan, Poland, as an example. The pilot survey, distributed among a small sample group of LGBT individuals mostly from the city of Poznan, provides insight into attitudes that Polish LGBT individuals may have towards forming a dedicated LGBT district in a major city in Poland, and potential consumer preferences in housing arrangements and services that such a district should provide. More importantly, this research aims to spark further research into the relationship between urban environments and the LGBT community in Poland.     

The Road to School. The Barcelona case

Mobility of the young population between 6 and 10-year-old has been continuously decreasing the last decades causing problems of health (obesity) and decreasing the development of spatial skills along with the sense of community. The paper focuses on the road between school and home and deals with a specific project called “Camino Escolar” (School Road) which supports parents in the decision to authorize their children to go and walk alone. The empirical case is developed in Barcelona where 136 School Road projects exist but more precisely analyses two specific districts. The methodology is divided into two phases. In the first phase, we conduct an exploratory study based on interviews with the different stakeholders of the education system and conclude on a list of barriers against the development of the School Road project. In the second one, we ask for the parents to prioritize these barriers according to their grade of importance. The results show the different barriers can be classified into four clusters which are physical insecurities, emotional insecurities, the city infrastructure quality and the project management quality. These findings help public managers to better manage such kind of project in order to prepare future cities.     

Housing performance evaluation: challenges for international knowledge exchange

ABSTRACT

Developing effective building performance evaluation and feedback processes is a vital part of global efforts to reduce building energy use and gain insight into the actual performance of buildings and technologies. Although attempts have been made to introduce internationally agreed models for these processes, it is clear that various countries are producing different approaches according to their cultural, institutional and policy differences. Knowledge exchange is potentially a key means of developing a shared understanding of values, meanings and practices in relation to building performance evaluation. This paper identifies cultural and institutional barriers in the European Union for international building performance communities of practice utilizing knowledge exchange, from an experiential ‘real-world’ perspective. The preparation of a 30-month research project to help develop building performance evaluation in Poland and an associated bilateral symposium is closely evaluated through an action research case study in terms of the stakeholders, the national contexts in which they operated and the key challenges they faced. Recommendations are then made in terms of the support needed to develop more responsive research programmes in relation to developing international knowledge exchange, and the capacity-building elements required for these international communities of practice.     

Barriers to extending piped water distribution networks: The case of Ekiti State,Nigeria

Access to piped water in Nigeria is declining due to a lack of extension, deteriorating distribution network infrastructures, and rapid population growth. The key question addressed in this paper is: what are the barriers to extending piped water distribution networks in Nigeria? Drawing on the case of Ekiti State, the major barriers were political interference, limited technical manpower, corruption, lack of government policy, lack of budgetary funding, and inadequate tariff recovery. Possible interventions to help improve the situation from the perspective of the operator are discussed.     

Integration of Demand Response in Electricity Market Capacity Mechanisms

Ensuring that the power system meets demand peaks is a key challenge of liberalized markets. On the supply side, capacity can be supported through a Capacity Remuneration Mechanism (CRM). On the demand side, Demand Response (DR) technologies can be deployed. We find that while all traditional generation should receive the same payment, capacity payments for DR technologies should gradually decrease based on operators’ position in the load-shedding order. We observe that all CRM schemes currently implemented provide inadequate incentives to non-price responsive DR and propose to adjust payments to DR units as a function of their expected activation periods.     

Barriers to sustainable economic development: The Dallas-Fort Worth experience

This article examines the scope of existing economic development activity and the motivations and perceptions of practitioners to shed light on the barriers to sustainable practice. In contrast to related fields like urban planning, the economic development literature has minimally examined how practitioners think about sustainable development and the extent to which sustainable development principles are adopted in practice. This omission is significant because economic development policies can have a notable impact on the sustainable development goals of environmental protection and social equity alongside economic growth. To capture the extent to which economic developers engage in sustainable development and the barriers that practitioners face, we study fifteen cities in the Dallas-Fort Worth region. We find that six key barriers - a conventional economic development mindset, incentive-based practice, a lack of resources, ad hoc planning, inter-regional competition, and a lack of coordinated regional planning - impede sustainable economic development in the region.     

Analyzing barriers of Smart Energy City in Accra with two-step fuzzy DEMATEL

The prevalence of Smart Energy City (SEC) has over the years been seen as a preemptive measure in dealing with many energy problems faced by cities. Like other cities, Accra faces several barriers on its way to achieve SEC. This research seeks to identify possible barriers hindering Accra as a city from becoming a SEC and prioritizing these barriers based on both importance with consideration of interactions between barriers using a two-step Decision Making, Trial and Evaluation Laboratory under fuzzy set environment i.e. two-step fuzzy DEMATEL. For Accra, the results indicate that market barriers are the most important barriers while limited access to capital has the highest global importance score in the whole SEC barriers system. Besides, technology barriers, policy barriers and market barriers are found as cause barriers and high cost of technology dispatches more impact on other barriers in technology barriers category. High interest rate and unstable currency, inadequate infrastructure requiring huge investments, insufficient legal and regulatory framework, high cost of technology and lack of information about cost and benefits of renewable energy technology are deserved to be paid more attention since they have both high important and cause indexes. The result is to enhance strategic decision making since this combination of methods deals with the possible human sentiments in decision making and also organizes barriers into cause and effect groups based on their interactions, with the cause groups been critical since their presence can give rise to effect group barriers.     

Ang-1治疗大鼠糖尿病视网膜病变的实验研究

目的观察玻璃体腔注射血管生成素-1（Ang-1）对糖尿病大鼠视网膜新生血管形成及血管内皮细胞生长因子（VEGF）的影响,并初步探讨其作用机制。方法选取健康SD大鼠60只,随机抽取其中15只作为正常对照组,不予处理。另外45只行左下腹腔注射链尿佐菌素（STZ）建立糖尿病模型,喂养3个月后分别行眼底血管荧光造影检查确立大鼠出现糖尿病视网膜病变（DR）即为成模。将成模大鼠再次随机分为DR对照组和Ang-1治疗组（每组15只）。DR对照组行双眼玻璃体腔注射PBS缓冲液5μL,Ang-1治疗组双眼玻璃体腔注射5μL浓度为160 mg.L-1的Ang-1。3 d后重复上述处理1次,继续观察3 d后处死各组大鼠,摘除眼球,取出视网膜行免疫组化检测比较VEGF的表达;常规病理切片HE染色比较突破内界膜且与内界膜有联系的内皮细胞核数。结果 DR对照组、Ang-1治疗组VEGF的表达与正常对照组比较明显增加（P〈0.05）,Ang-1治疗组VEGF表达比DR对照组明显减少（P〈0.05）。DR对照组、Ang-1治疗组突破内界膜细胞数比正常对照组明显增加,而Ang-1治疗组新生血管细胞核数较DR对照组明显减少（P〈0.05）。结论玻璃体腔注射Ang-1能明显减低VEGF的表达,减少视网膜新生血管芽的生成;其抑制糖尿病大鼠眼底新生血管的生成及渗漏可能是通过抑制VEGF的表达而发挥作用。     

Iconosphere of the contemporary city and its relations with urban planning in Poland after 1989

We have been observing dynamic metamorphosis of the world cities, including Polish ones, in qualitative and quantitative dimensions. Systemic transformation started in Poland after 1989, resigning of socialistic model of urban planning. Neoliberal economy and its paradigms, but also Polish access to EU structures and civil society creating had a significant impact on shape, functioning and skyline of Polish cities. Iconic buildings intensive development, accompanied by their surroundings improvement have been observed in Poland for several years. We witness shaping contemporary Polish cities iconosphere, what has an elementary impact on evolution and reconstitution of urban structures identity. The article purpose is to reflect on contemporary iconosphere of Polish cities (analyses and evaluation). The discussed problem refers to spatial policy implemented in Poland and related on an example of Culture-Congress Center Jordanki in Torun.     

Water affordability across and within European countries: a microdata analysis

We analyze water affordability in 23 European countries using the latest microdata from the European Household Budget Survey.Average affordability ratios vary considerably across countries, from 0.85% (Ireland) to 4.7% (Poland).The prevalence of affordability problems is highest in Poland (60%), while intensity is greatest in Finland (families with problems spend, on average, 9% of their income). The analysis by income deciles shows a gradient, with affordability problems generally concentrated in bottom deciles, though they are not exclusive to the poorest. This variation in affordability problems occurs within countries regardless of their high or low average affordability ratio.