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The concept of adaptive thermal comfort was formulated many decades ago and has been validated in numerous field studies. As a result, wider acceptable indoor temperature ranges based on adaptive models have been included in international and national standards and the adaptive approach to thermal comfort is regarded as a significant contributor in achieving low energy building design and operation. Despite the ever-increasing scientific literature on adaptive comfort around the world, the overall understanding of how to translate the adaptive principles into design practice and concepts for operating buildings is still limited, which suggests a gap between the scientific outcomes and the real-world applications. This discussion paper identifies the challenges and gaps in using the principles of adaptive thermal comfort by design practitioners and discusses them in light of relevant research findings. More than 100 literature sources were reviewed in support of the discussion. The paper then proposes a framework that aims to facilitate the adoption of adaptive comfort principles in design and operation of buildings and describes the outline of an imminent guideline for low energy building design based on the concept of adaptive thermal comfort.

Although a number of experimental and clinical studies have shown that hypoxia typically accompanies acute inflammatory responses, the combinatorial effect of the two insults on basic neural function has not been thoroughly investigated. Previous studies have predominantly suggested that hypoxia reduces network activity; however, several studies suggest the opposite effect. Of note, inflammation is known to increase neural activity. In the current study, we examined the effects of limited oxygen in combination with an inflammatory stimulus, as well as the effects of reoxygenation, on synaptic transmission and excitability. We observed a significant reduction of both synaptic transmission and excitability when hypoxia and inflammation occurred in combination, whereas reoxygenation caused hyperexcitability of neurons. Further, we found that the observed reduction in synaptic transmission was due to compromised presynaptic release efficiency based on an adenosine-receptor-dependent increase in synaptic facilitation. Excitability changes in both directions were attributable to dynamic regulation of the hyperpolarization-activated cation current (Ih) and to changes in the input resistance and the voltage difference between resting membrane potential and action potential threshold. We found that zatebradine, an Ih current inhibitor, reduced the fluctuation in excitability, suggesting that it may have potential as a drug to ameliorate reperfusion brain injury.

The aim of this study is to assess tumor differentiation using parameters from sequential positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with breast cancer. This retrospective study included 78 patients with breast cancer. All patients underwent sequential PET/CT and MRI. For fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-PET image analysis, the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) of FDG was assessed at both 1 and 2 h and metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and total lesion glycolysis (TLG). The kinetic analysis of dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI parameters was performed using dynamic enhancement curves. We assessed diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI)–MRI parameters regarding apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values. Histologic grades 1 and 2 were classified as low-grade, and grade 3 as high-grade tumor. Forty-five lesions of 78 patients were classified as histologic grade 3, while 26 and 7 lesions were grade 2 and grade 1, respectively. Patients with high-grade tumors showed significantly lower ADC-mean values than patients with low-grade tumors (0.99 ± 0.19 vs.1.12 ± 0.32, p = 0.007). With respect to SUVmax1, MTV2.5, and TLG2.5, patients with high-grade tumors showed higher values than patients with low-grade tumors: SUVmax1 (7.92 ± 4.5 vs.6.19 ± 3.05, p = 0.099), MTV2.5 (7.90 ± 9.32 vs.4.38 ± 5.10, p = 0.095), and TLG2.5 (40.83 ± 59.17 vs.19.66 ± 26.08, p = 0.082). However, other parameters did not reveal significant differences between low-grade and high-grade malignancies. In receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, ADC-mean values showed the highest area under the curve of 0.681 (95%CI 0.566–0.782) for assessing high-grade malignancy. Lower ADC-mean values may predict the poor differentiation of breast cancer among diverse PET–MRI functional parameters.

Reducing the energy consumption in existing buildings became one of the critical challenges at the beginning of the 21st century. Several types and levels of retrofits are now being implemented in the building stock. To obtain a better understanding of the actual impact of these actions, evidence-based research has been playing an increasingly important role. This paper describes the collection of data on measured pre- and post-retrofit energy consumption of a group of buildings in the U.S., in order to distinguish the impacts of different levels of retrofits. In particular, the goal has been to distinguish how retrofits including facade improvements compare to those centered exclusively on internal systems. Additionally, energy data was collected for a subset of non-retrofitted buildings and used as the control group. The regression model revealed greater energy savings from retrofits including the facade as compared to those that excluded it. However, those savings are modest considering the energy reductions that are anticipated from deep-energy retrofits. Other relevant factors, such as occupants and their behavior, are vital for determining the value of retrofits and need to be incorporated in the next phases of this study.

Recently, renewable energy resources have been connected to the power system to reduce carbon emissions worldwide [...]

In spite of prolific research on the energy performance of buildings in the last decades, and the growing focus on reducing their operational energy, buildings still prevail as the main end users of energy in the U.S. The goal of this research is to investigate the potential use of building facade information to estimate its energy performance, and to find significant facade attributes depending on different climate conditions in the U.S. This study adopted Energy Use Intensity (EUI) for total consumption and described building information, including window-wall ratio, orientation, aspect ratio, and other building components. Concentration was given to achieve a balanced data collection from best practices and green certified non-residential projects located in different climate conditions in the U.S. Data mining techniques, such as classification tree and statistical tools that included Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), a 2-sample t -test, and regression, were adopted for analysis of this group of buildings. It was found that there were common functional and technical features, as well as similar performances of existing buildings linked to these buildings’ energy consumption. These findings could not only inform the new design of facades, but facade retrofits could be strategically established based on lessons learned from real practice.

In the domain of building science and architectural design, the immersive virtual environment is being commonly adopted due to its convenience and cost-effectiveness, especially for research relevant to occupant behaviour in a building indoor environmental control. The goal of this study is to investigate whether such an immersive virtual environment condition could affect an occupant's thermal sensation and physiological response to ambient conditions differently, as compared to a real indoor environment, even though those two thermal conditions are the same or very similar. A series of human subject experiments using 18 participants was conducted in an environmental chamber. While thermal conditions were controlled at 20℃ to 30℃ in each environment, respectively, participants were asked to periodically report their thermal sensations on their body. Their heart rates were also continuously measured. The result of our experiments revealed that overall thermal sensations on the whole and local body areas showed some significant differences between the indoor environment and immersive virtual environment conditions during the same thermal conditions. Also, the heart rate difference between two environmental conditions was statistically significant at every thermal sensation level. These findings support the idea that significant physiological response differences could be affected by the immersive virtual environment condition.

This study investigated the relationship of thermal sensations of local body segments and the whole body for a better understanding of how to estimate the overall thermal perception, as a function of partial body sensations, while considering human factors such as gender and body mass index. Thermal comfort, which can be expressed as a function of thermal dynamics between the human body and ambient thermal conditions, primarily consists of a combination of local thermal perceptions. An individual body area contributes to an overall thermal sensation at different significance levels, so that specific areas have high potential for determining the whole-body sensation. This is especially true in a typical building environment where thermal conditions are uniformly distributed and no extremely cold or hot condition occurs. For this study, a series of human subject experiments was conducted with 18 volunteers in an environmental chamber, while thermal conditions changed and thermal sensations were surveyed in the regular way. Seven local body areas were selected, based on current thermoregulation-related literature, and their local body sensations were recorded together. This study revealed that each local body sensation significantly correlated with the overall sensation, but that whole-body sensations varied for each individual body area. In addition, results of this research also suggested optimal combinations of local body areas that could represent the whole-body sensation with a high degree of accuracy.

Current thermal/sensation models primarily rely on predefined formulas or empirically defined recommendations, but fail to consider each individual's physiological characteristics. Such models frequently ignore occupants' diverse physical conditions and, therefore, have critical limitations in estimating each individual's thermal sensation levels. Since the human body is governed by the thermoregulation principle to balance the heat flux between the ambient thermal condition and the body itself, skin temperature has a significant role in maintaining this physiological principle. Therefore, this study investigated the potential use of skin temperature and its technical parameters in establishing a thermal sensation. By using advanced modern sensing technologies, and existing thermal regulation model research, this study selected and validated seven body areas as significant local body segments for determining overall thermal sensation. A series of environmental chamber tests were conducted for 2 h. While the indoor temperature fluctuated between 20 °C and 30 °C, skin temperatures of the seven selected body areas were measured in conjunction with a thermal sensation and comfort survey. Results of this study revealed that combinations of skin temperatures for the arm, back, and wrist provided the significant information needed to accurately estimate the thermal sensations of each user. Most of all, both sides of the wrist generated accurate data more than 94% of the time. Therefore, considering the modern advanced wearable sensing technologies, results of this study confirmed that optimum combinations of skin temperature information from selected body areas, is reliable and generally applicable for estimating individual thermal sensations.

This paper reports the investigation of the correlation of building energy use intensities, estimated by six building performance simulation programs and, based on findings, establishes formulas for conversion of each program to another in selected simulation tools. The data used for the analyses was collected from 15 residential projects and 180 simulation runs in two construction modes: as-built and code compliance (California's Title 24 Standard), using six different simulation tools. The data set included heating and cooling energy use intensities, multiple building attributes, and climate conditions. The results were compared by various program combination sets to analyze and determine the correlation of estimated energy use intensities (EUIs). The statistical analysis of the collected data revealed that heating EUI conversion formulas were more robust than those of cooling EUIs, and a project case generating moderate or high EUIs generated lower error rates than that with low EUIs. Since building energy performance always generates significant discrepancies, depending on the simulation tools adopted, the outcome of this study will help building performance stakeholders understand the estimated energy performance of one tool as compared to that of another. The result will also be helpful for designing a high performance building without a technical mishap.

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Firstly cyclic loading tests of scale-down bridge column models using normal and ultra-strength fiber reinforced concrete with polyvinyl alcohol fiber (PVA-UFC), and normal and ultra-high strength rebar are conducted. The experimental results are compared focusing the relation of load and displacement, skeleton, crack distribution and failure modes. Secondly in order to evaluate the reproducibility by Finite Element Analysis for the cyclic loading test, trace analyses were conducted. In the FE analyses, the applicability of conventional analytical model of concrete for PVA-UFC was investigated. As compared with experimental results, overall hysteresis loops and maximum strength responses were reproduced with sufficient accuracy by using adequate analytical model. Lastly the parametric analyses varied the cross section areas of columns are conducted, and it was investigated that how much cross section areas could be reduced by using ultra-strength fiber reinforced concrete.

The conventional HVAC industry control method has relied on the Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) model [1]. However, the PMV model has frequently met a technical drawback in satisfying a building occupant’s thermal comfort requirements since there are several limitations and assumptions inherent in the PMV model. That model cannot be considered because of differences in individual occupant’s non-linear features, such as age, gender, and race, as well as the Body Mass Index (BMI), that adversely impact the thermal comfort in PMV model-based control. Artificial intelligence algorithm was applied to the thermal comfort control, which captured each individual occupant’s thermal preference. Human thermal comfort experiments were conducted to collect thermal comfort preference data on each occupant, and validation experiments tested the performance of the artificial intelligence algorithm. The study results indicated that the artificial intelligent algorithm based model had up to 45% more energy savings and 44.3% better thermal comfort performance than the PMV based model.

The use of plant growth promoting bacteria as bioinoculant to alleviate salt stress is a sustainable and eco-friendly approach in agriculture. However, the maintenance of the bacterial population in the soil for longer period is a major concern. In the present study, chitosan-immobilized aggregated Methylobacterium oryzae CBMB20 was used as a bioinoculant to improve tomato plant (Solanum lycopersicum Mill.) growth under salt stress. The chitosan-immobilized aggregated M. oryzae CBMB20 was able to enhance plant dry weight, nutrient uptake (N, P, K and Mg2+), photosynthetic efficiency and decrease electrolyte leakage under salt stress conditions. The oxidative stress exerted by elevated levels of salt stress was also alleviated by the formulated bioinoculant, as it up-regulated the antioxidant enzyme activities and enhanced the accumulation of proline which acts as an osmolyte. The chitosan-immobilized aggregated M. oryzae CBMB20 was able to decrease the excess Na+ influx into the plant cells and subsequently decreasing the Na+/K+ ratio to improve tomato plant growth under salt stress conditions. Therefore, it is proposed that the chitosan-immobilized aggregated M. oryzae CBMB20 could be used as a bioinoculant to promote the plant growth under salt stress conditions.

The DC-link type quasi-switched boost inverters (DCL-qSBIs) are known as one of impedance-source inverters with low voltage stress on their additional switch, diode, and capacitor. However, the voltage gain of DCL-qSBIs is still low. This paper presents DCL-qSBIs with a modified PWM control strategy. The modified PWM control strategy based DCL-qSBIs improve voltage gain, reduce the conduction loss, and decrease the voltage stress of devices in the switched-boost network. The operating principle of DCL-qSBIs is presented. The 1 kVA-prototype three-phase DCL-qSBI and quasi-Z-source inverter (qZSI) is built to evaluate the performance of the inverters at output voltage ratio of 1.05 to 1.6. The measured efficiency of DCL-qSBI is 0.5 to 1% higher than that of the qZSI at all powers and boost levels tested.

This paper proposes a new single-phase inverter topology with common-ground for photovoltaic (PV) applications. The proposed inverter has the major features as the same ground between dc input and ac output voltage, voltage buck/boost capability and shoot-through immunity. The theoretical analysis and PWM method for the introduced inverter are discussed. A prototype based on a DSP TMS320F280049C was set up to confirm the performance of the introduced inverter. Simulation and experimental results are shown to validate the theoretical analysis and effectiveness of introduced inverter. The experimental results matched the theoretical analysis and simulation results.

With the increasing requirement of the renewable energy integration and power system reliability improvement, the microgrid technology has achieved rapid development. Effective energy management is the solution to ensure the economic operation of microgrid. As the core equipment, the energy storage system can contribute to realizing the goal due to its capability of the energy shit over time and the power flow magnitude change. Therefore, the optimal energy storage system (ESS) scheduling is the essential application program. Moreover, the renewable energy generation and the electric load forecast are the other two necessary aforehand application programs. They can give out the forecasted system information to enable the ESS scheduling program to work out an optimal scheduling. In order to ensure the accurate running, the real time control is implemented to mitigate the effect of forecast uncertainty that is inevitable, benefitting from the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system. This paper aims to demonstrate the validity of proposed microgrid energy management system from the view of application programs based on a constructed campus microgrid.

Background and purpose: Routine use of cranial angulation with 15-20 degrees, craniocaudal angled (CC) view, for cerebral digital subtraction angiography (DSA) helps minimize bone subtraction artifacts with less overlapping of the vessels, however, it may increase the radiation dose. We designed the phantom and patient studies to determine the effect of the angulation to the radiation dose and the feasibility of true posteroanterior angled (PA) view, in cerebral DSA. Materials and Methods: In the phantom study, frontal DSA was simulated with variable angulations. In the patient study with thirty-one subjects, one internal carotid arteriogram was obtained with the CC view and the other, PA view in every patient. The dose-area product (DAP) and reference air-kerma (AK) were measured and compared between the angles. A qualitative analysis was performed to assess the diagnostic performance of the DSA over the angles. Results: The phantom study confirmed that the greater craniocaudal angles caused higher radiation exposure. Especially, the radiation dose (AK) of the CC view was 5.4% higher than that of the PA view. In the patient study, the radiation dose of the PA view was significantly lower compared to the CC view (1.44 vs. 1.63 mGy, AK). In 4 patients, the dose particularly jumped when applying the CC view as the copper filter was automatically removed. The diagnostic ability of the DSA with the PA view tended to be higher without significance. Conclusions: In a daily routine cerebral angiography, a simple modification of the angle may help to minimize the radiation dose.

This paper presents some comparative results between the three-phase quasi-Z source inverter (qZSI)and active quasi-Z source inverter (AqZSI). An improved PWM method is proposed for AqZSI. The voltage gain can be increased by using the shoot-through duty cycle and the switching ratio of the additional switch. Compared to qZSI, AqZSI with improved PWM strategy has a higher efficiency at the boost mode. Furthermore, AqZSI can be operated up to a higher modulation index and it boasts a lower inductor current ripple and reduced shoot-through current. The analysis of inverter and the improved PWM strategy are discussed. An experimental prototype with output power of 600 W is built to show the agreement of theory and measurement.

The three phase quasi-switched boost inverter (qSBI) topology has one less LC pair than three phase Z-source/quasi-Z-source inverters. So, the qSBI is suitable for low-power applications. This paper presents a novel space-vector modulation (SVM) strategy for the three-phase qSBI topology to generate high-quality output waveforms with low THD of the output current and voltage. With introduced SVM strategy, according to sector number, the shoot-through phase is selected. Furthermore, the shoot-through state into the inverter's switches and the switching-on state of an extra switch are controlled individually to boost the low input voltage up to a desired voltage level. Besides that, by using high modulation index, voltage stress across semiconductors and capacitor are significantly reduced. As a result, the inductor current ripple is reduced significantly. Simulation and experimental results of the qSBI with introduced SVM strategy are shown to verify the theoretical analysis.

This study proposed a modified power strategy based on model predictive control for a grid-connected three-level T-type inverter. The controller utilizes the mathematical model to forecast the performance of the grid current, the balance of DC-bus capacitor voltages and switching frequency. The proposed method outlines a new technique to formulate a control objective. The control objective includes the absolute error of the inverter voltage reference and its possible values instead of the grid current error. By using the modified equivalent transformations in the cost function, the execution time was reduced 22% compared to the traditional model predictive control while maintaining the high dynamic performances of the power and low total harmonic distortion of the current. A comparative investigation showed that the proposed method obtains a high-performance control compared with the classical power control scheme with linear PI controllers and space vector modulation. The feasibility of the proposed method was verified by the simulation and experimental results.

Adaptive kinetic architecture has emerged from a need for innovative designs that adapt to the environment and changing needs of the occupants. Architectural design and modes of egress are critical in an emergency. Flocking describes a certain collective behavior where agents are brought together in groups and move as a cohesive unit from place to place. Collective behavior may be observed in microscopic as well as macroscopic environments. Crowd modeling incorporates the study of human behavior, mathematical modeling, and molecular or fluid dynamics. The simulation of agents and their movement in the built environment is beneficial for design professionals, scientists, and engineers. Human behavior in panic situations is notably similar to fluids and molecules. The objective of this research was to evaluate the movement of agents in buildings using discrete dynamic simulation. We used a novel discrete molecular dynamics technique to simulate the evacuation of agents in panic situations. Various adaptive geometric configurations were analyzed for improved crowd flow. Kinetic walls were modeled in order to evaluate design optimization as it relates to rates of egression. This research proposes the use of kinetic walls to improve safety and efficiency during an emergency evacuation. Adaptive geometric configurations show improvements over the conventional design framework.

In this paper, a model predictive control scheme for the T-type inverter with an output LC filter is presented. A simplified dynamics model is proposed to reduce the number of the measurement and control variables, resulting in a decrease in the cost and complexity of the system. Furthermore, the main contribution of the paper is the approach to evaluate the cost function. By employing the selection of sector information distribution in the reference inverter voltage and capacitor voltage balancing, the execution time of the proposed algorithm is significantly reduced by 36% compared with conventional model predictive control without too much impact on control performance. Simulation and experimental results are studied and compared with conventional finite control set model predictive control to validate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

This study explores the combination of photovoltaic (PV) panels with a reflector mounted on a building to improve electricity generation. Globally, PV panels have been widely used as a renewable energy technology. In order to obtain more solar irradiance and improve electricity output, this study presents an advanced strategy of a reflector combining PV panels mounted on a building in Calgary, Canada. Based on an experimental database of solar irradiances, the simulation presents an optimal shape designed and tilt angles of the reflector and consequently improves solar radiation gain and electricity outputs. Polished aluminum is selected as the reflector material, and the shape and angle are designed to minimize the interruption of direct solar radiation. The numerical approach demonstrates the improvement in performance using a PV panel tilted at 30°, 45°, 60°, and 75° and a reflector, tilted at 15.5° or allowed to be tilted flexibly. A reflector tilted at 15.5° can improve solar radiation gains, of the panel, by nearly 5.5–9.2% at lower tilt angles and 14.1–21.1% at higher tilt angles. Furthermore, the flexibly adjusted reflector can improve solar radiation gains on the PV panel, by nearly 12–15.6% at lower tilt angles and 20–26.5% at higher tilt angles. A reflector tilted at 15.5° improves the panel’s output electricity on average by 4–8% with the PV panel tilted at 30° and 45° respectively and 12–19% with the PV panel tilted at 60° and 75°, annually. Moreover, a reflector that can be flexibly tilted improves electricity output on average by 9–12% with the PV panel tilted at 30° and 45° and 17–23% with the PV panel tilted at 60° and 75°. Therefore, the utilization of a reflector improves the performance of the PV panel while incurring a relatively low cost.

The authors are founding team members of a new effort to develop an Open Energy Outlook for the United States. The effort aims to apply best practices of policy-focused energy system modeling, ensure transparency, build a networked community, and work toward a common purpose: examining possible US energy system futures to inform energy and climate policy efforts. Individual author biographies can be found on the project website: https://openenergyoutlook.org/. DeCarolis et al. articulate the benefits of forming collaborative teams with a wide array of disciplinary and domain expertise to conduct analysis with macro-energy system models. Open-source models, tools, and datasets underpin such efforts by enabling transparency, accessibility, and replicability among team members and with the broader modeling community.

The scientific information on the microbial differentiation according to the changes in chemical properties of paddy soil in reclaimed tidal lands is not enough to understand the reclamation processes. The changes in microflora based on the chemical properties of paddy soils at the same sites of reclaimed tidal lands (21 samples from Nampo, Ewon, Sukmoon and Shihwa sites) were investigated in 2013 and 2015. In general, organic matter in paddy soils increased whereas pH decreased with the reclamation time. The electrical conductivities (EC) of soil samples were closely related to the exchangeable Na+. With an increases in EC of paddy soils from 0.39 to 48.9 dS m -1 , the ratios (%) of halotolerant and halophilic bacteria to mesophilic bacteria proportionally increased from 0.2% to 102,000%. The population of halotolerant and halophilic bacteria in total microflora was also differentiated with the changes in EC of the same sites from reclaimed tidal soils within 2 years. The population of mesophilic bacteria decreased with an increase in EC above 5 dS m -1 . The microflora including halotolerant and halophilic bacteria could be a candidate as a biological parameter in evaluating the reclamation processes in addition to the chemical index of EC.

d -Ribulose, a potentially valuable rare sugar and an excellent building block in asymmetric synthesis, is usually produced by chemical synthesis, which unfortunately does not meet the increasing demand. In addition, ribitol oxidization for the production of d -ribulose has not yet become an industrial reality because of the lack of efficient biocatalysts, resulting in higher production costs as well as a poor yield. In this study, we have employed the Enterobacter aerogenes ribitol: NAD + 2-oxidoreductase (EaRDH), which could efficiently and selectively convert ribitol to d -ribulose. The purified EaRDH enzyme and the recombinant Escherichia coli strain (as a whole-cell catalyst) were used to produce d -ribulose. Ribitol was efficiently converted to d -ribulose by EaRDH with a yield of ∼85%, suggesting the usefulness of this enzyme for the in vivo and in vitro production of d -ribulose from ribitol. The oxidation of ribitol to d -ribulose by EaRDH was accomplished in the presence of stoichiometric amounts of NAD + ; therefore, d -ribulose production was further enhanced by the incorporation of diaphorase for continuous NAD + regeneration. The biocatalytic process presented should be a promising route for the biotechnological production of d -ribulose (and related branched pentoses) at an efficient and industrially relevant scale.

This study investigates the correlation of retention index (RI) using the dual phase FDG PET/CT scan with the breast cancer biomarkers.A total of 55 patients with breast cancer underwent dual phase FDG PET/CT scans (60 and 120 min after FDG injection) before treatment. SUVmax and SUVmean of the primary breast tumors were measured, then the percent change of SUVmax and SUVmean between the two scans were calculated, and denoted as RImax and RImean, respectively. After the surgical resection of the breast tumor, the status of biomarkers (ER, PR, and HER-2) was evaluated in the postsurgical specimen.RImean was significantly higher in ER (-) (median, 16.2; IQR, 10.8-21.0) or HER-2 (+) (median, 16.1; IQR, 10.7-21.6) tumors than in ER (+) tumors (median, 9.9; IQR, 5.5-15.3) or HER-2 (-) tumors (median, 10.5; IQR, 5.5-16.1). However, there were no significant differences of SUVmax or RImax according to the ER or HER-2 status. There were no significant differences of any PET parameters between PR (+) and PR (-) tumors. Based off ROC curve analyses, RImean predicted the ER (+) tumors (AUC, 0.699; p = 0.006), and HER-2 (+) tumors (AUC, 0.674; p = 0.022), but not the PR (+) tumors. However, neither SUVmax nor RImax predicted ER (+), PR (+), or HER-2 (+) tumors.Retention index of SUVmean can reflect the ER and HER-2 status of breast cancers. Higher retention index of SUVmean might associate with lower ER expression and higher HER-2 expression.

Conventional switched boost inverters (SBIs) employ a single LC-pair in the impedance network to boost the input voltage by setting a shoot-through interval in the inverter bridge switches. This study extends the concept of SBIs to the transformer-based switched boost inverters (trans-SBIs). By changing the turn ratio of the transformer, the proposed trans-SBIs can produce a strong voltage gain. Compared with a tapped-inductor Z-source inverter with the same voltage gain at the same transformer turn ratio, the proposed trans-SBIs have only one extra active switch but significantly fewer passive components. Compared with trans-ZSI, the proposed trans-SBIs use a transformer with a lower turn ratio to achieve a higher boost factor. The required current rating of the switches in the proposed trans-SBI is lower than for the alternative ZSIs. The operating principles and the analyses and comparisons with the conventional transformer-based ZSIs are presented. To verify the high boost capability of the proposed inverters, a laboratory prototype was built for both the single-phase and three-phase trans-SBIs.

Among indoor environmental quality components, such as lighting, thermal, acoustic and spatial conditions, lighting quality is one of the significant factors that affect human environmental health and work productivity, especially as they pertain to human visual comfort and satisfaction. With the help of advanced sensing technologies, this study utilized a human body’s physiological principle to instantly react to its ambient environmental lighting condition to estimate a user’s visual sensation. Thus, this research investigated the possibility of using human eye pupil sizes as a measure of visual sensation in a workplace setting, especially in the high lighting colour temperature (5000 K) that is very common in modern office environments with the adoption of natural colour-fluorescent light bulbs. A series of experiments involving human subjects in an environmental chamber were conducted. Various ambient lighting conditions were generated to initiate and test pupil size changes and visual sensations. Statistical analyses of the collected data were conducted to help elucidate research findings. This research directed its focus toward pupil size change patterns as a means of assessing the human subject’s visual sensations, and to determine a potential use for this physiological principle in the control loop of a lighting system in a conventional workplace environment.

The zero-energy building (ZEB) concept has a high potential for securing energy savings in the building sector. To achieve ZEB, various active systems, including renewable systems such as photovoltaic, solar heating, and geothermal systems, have been developed. However, the existing systems are costly or not optimized. To overcome these issues, the authors previously developed an integrated tri-generation system. In this research, the previously developed system was comprehensively analyzed considering the indoor thermal comfort and energy efficiency to develop a design and operation method for the integrated system. Two different heating systems (convective heating and radiant floor heating) were employed in the tri-generation system, and their system performance, predicted mean vote (PMV), and predicted percentage of dissatisfied (PPD) were compared using simulations. The results showed that the heating coefficient of power of the radiant floor heating system was 18.8% higher than that of the convective heating system. Moreover, the radiant floor heating system (Case 4) met the PMV and PPD standards during all the heating periods. Overall, radiant floor heating was found to be more efficient than convective heating. The results confirm that radiant floor heating is more suitable than convective heating considering the indoor thermal comfort of occupants.

This paper proposes a fault location method for power distribution networks using phasor measurement units (PMU) and short circuit analysis. In order to improve the problems of the existing studies, we focused on several approaches as follows. First, in order to minimize the number of PMU installations, a fault location estimation of lateral feeders through short circuit analysis was presented. Second, unbalanced faults and impacts of photovoltaic (PV) were considered. The proposed method consists of two stages. In Stage 1, the fault location was estimated for the main feeder using PMU installed at the start and end points of the main feeder. Symmetrical components of voltage and current variation were calculated by considering the impact of PVs interconnected to the lateral feeders. If the result of Stage 1 indicated a connection section of lateral feeder on the main feeder, Stage 2 would be performed. In Stage 2, the fault location was estimated for the lateral feeder by comparing the results of the short circuit analysis and measurements of PMUs. The short circuit analysis was based on an unbalanced power flow that considered dynamic characteristics of the PV inverter. The proposed method was verified through various fault situations in a test system. For the applicability of the proposed algorithm to the actual system, a noise test was also performed.

In practice, the input filter is an important component in matrix converter (MC) systems for removing high harmonic components from input currents. Due to the input filter, the input power factor (IPF) at the main power supply does not always achieve unity. To investigate the behavior of the IPF, this paper analyzes the IPF compensation capacity of MCs with an LC input filter based on space vector theory and the conservation of energy law. The study shows that the range of voltage transfer ratio (VTR) to achieve unity IPF depends strongly on the quality factor, which is determined by the system parameters. If the quality factor is greater than 0.375, the MC can never achieve unity IPF for the whole range of VTR. If the quality factor is lower than 0.375, the MC can only achieve unity IPF for a certain range of VTR, except at a very low or very high VTR. Experimental results are provided to confirm the correctness of the study.

Recognizing the value of open-source research databases in advancing the art and science of HVAC, in 2014 the ASHRAE Global Thermal Comfort Database II project was launched under the leadership of University of California at Berkeley's Center for the Built Environment and The University of Sydney's Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) Laboratory. The exercise began with a systematic collection and harmonization of raw data from the last two decades of thermal comfort field studies around the world. The ASHRAE Global Thermal Comfort Database II (Comfort Database), now an online, open-source database, includes approximately 81,846 complete sets of objective indoor climatic observations with accompanying ?right-here-right-now? subjective evaluations by the building occupants who were exposed to them. The database is intended to support diverse inquiries about thermal comfort in field settings. A simple web-based interface to the database enables filtering on multiple criteria, including building typology, occupancy type, subjects' demographic variables, subjective thermal comfort states, indoor thermal environmental criteria, calculated comfort indices, environmental control criteria and outdoor meteorological information. Furthermore, a web-based interactive thermal comfort visualization tool has been developed that allows end-users to quickly and interactively explore the data. The study was supported by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers grant ( URP 1656 ), 2016-2017 ASHRAE Graduate Grant-In-Aid for Veronika Fldvry Liina, British Council and UK Government under the Global Innovation Initiative project scheme, Korea National Science Foundation and the Center for the Built Environment, University of California Berkeley . Additional support was provided by the Republic of Singapore's National Research Foundation through a grant to the Berkeley Education Alliance for Research in Singapore (BEARS) for the Singapore-Berkeley Building Efficiency and Sustainability in the Tropics (SinBerBEST) Program. Scopus

The aim of this study was to investigate if increased serum thyroglobulin (Tg) levels after radioactive iodine (RAI) showed more therapeutic effects in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). Data of 65 patients with DTC who underwent RAI from June 2014 to September 2016 were reviewed. Serum thyroglobulin was measured immediately before (Tg1) and 48 h (Tg2) after RAI under TSH stimulation. Differences and ratios between serum Tg measurements (DeltaTg = Tg2 − Tg1 and RatioTg = Tg2/Tg1) were calculated. The treatment response of distant metastasis was assessed using the RECIST criteria. There was no difference in the median values of Tg1 and Tg2 (2.6 [range, 0.7–1957.5] ng/mL vs. 7.4 [range, 0.7–5276.0] ng/mL, p = 0.240) in all patients (73 scans, 65 patients). In subgroup analysis, Tg levels increased slightly in patients with distant metastasis (8 scans, 7 patients) (Tg1 vs. Tg2; 48.9 [range, 2.4–1957.5] ng/mL vs. 63.2 [range, 4.4–5276.0] ng/mL, p = 0.408). Among patients with distant metastasis, one patient with a partial response to treatment had a more than 4000fold increase in Tg levels and one patient with stable disease showed a 20fold increase in Tg levels. In contrast, five patients with disease progression showed only two to eightfold increase or more than 100fold decrease in Tg levels at 48 h after RAI. However, there was a significant increase in serum Tg levels in patients without distant metastasis (65 scans, 58 patients) after RAI (Tg1 vs. Tg2; 2.0 [range, 0.7–141.9] ng/mL vs. 6.8 [range, 0.7–577.7] ng/mL, p = 0.026). A higher elevation of Tg levels after RAI may be associated with a better treatment outcome in DTC patients with distant metastasis. An increase in Tg levels after RAI may reflect the destruction of cancer and thyroid cells.

AP736 itself is a novel skin whitening agent reported to exhibit anti-melanogenic and tyrosinase inhibitory activity. However, formulating a topical product has been difficult because AP736 is insoluble in water as well as in many oils. In this study, we aimed to develop a new topical delivery system in which AP736 is not only physically stable, but also suitably delivered to the skin. By calculating each HSP (Hansen Solubility Parameters), ethylenedioxy moiety-containing compounds could be easily selected for the formulation ingredients of AP736. Although diethylene glycol monoethyl ether with the highest solubility of AP736 enalbes to make AP736-incorporated water-in-oil emulsions well, the recrystallization of AP736 was observed in oil-in-water emulsions. Therefore, we fabricated polymeric nanoparticles (PNPs) in order to encapsulate AP736 to prevent its recrystallization. We used three different PEG-PCL polymers with various chain lengths and ethylenedioxy moiety-containing surfactants (i.e. Choleth) for fabricating PNPs. The prepared PNPs had a mean particle size from 50 nm to 200 nm. Most of PNPs showed the good encapsulation efficiency up to 90%. In particular, Choleth-24 had a significant role in encapsulating AP736 in PNPs. After encapsulation of AP736, no significant changes were observed in the sizes of tested PNPs within 4 weeks. Further, the recrystallization of AP736 was not observed in oil-in-water emulsions after 24 weeks of storage at 40 °C. In vitro permeation study using Strat-M showed that PNPs containing Choleth-24 has the faster release pattern compared to PNPs using Tween 80 and saturated in D.I. water. These results are demonstrating that PNPs might be an effective vehicle for stabilization in oil-in-water emulsions and topical application of AP736.

The paper introduces a new single-phase boost inverter for photovoltaic applications. The introduced inverter merges a boost converter and a single-phase inverter in a single-phase single-stage inverter. The proposed inverter has a simpler topology and uses the minimum number of power electronic components. A high ac output voltage of the introduced topology is generated from a low dc voltage source by implementing one cycle control. Furthermore, the introduced topology shares a common ground between input voltage source and load. The operating principles, simulation results and circuit analysis of the single-phase boost inverter with common ground are illustrated. Also, a simple pulse width modulation technique is shown. The experimental results are also shown to validate the precise performance of the introduced inverter.

Optimal operation of the battery energy storage system (BESS) is very important to reduce the running cost of a microgrid. Rolling horizon-based scheduling, which updates the optimal decision based on the latest information, is widely applied to microgrid operation. In this paper, the optimal scheduling of a microgrid, considering the energy cost, demand charge, and the battery wear-cost, is formulated as a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) problem. This paper also deals with two practical and important issues when applying the rolling-horizon strategy to BESS scheduling. First, to mitigate the high dependency of the load forecast on the latest information, a confidence weight parameter method is proposed. Second, a new target state of charge (SOC) assignment method is proposed to avoid the depletion of BESS and to reduce the wear-cost of the battery. In addition to the optimal scheduling, a novel real-time control scheme is proposed to mitigate the effect of the forecast uncertainty. The performance of the proposed methods is tested with data measured from a campus microgrid.