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Mid-deep geothermal heat pump systems (MD-GHPs) use mid-deep borehole heat exchangers (MDBHEs) to extract heat from the geothermal energy at a depth of 2–3 km, and have been used for space heating in China over the last decade. This paper proposes a comprehensive and multilevel evaluation-index system to analyze and evaluate the energy performance of MD-GHPs. The multilevel evaluation index system consists of a target layer, a criterion layer, and an index layer, where the criterion layer is subdivided into six aspects and the index layer includes 26 specific indices, reflecting the geothermal resources, heat transfer performance of the MDBHEs, energy efficiency of the heat pump systems, building space heating demand, grid dynamic response capability, and energy-saving and economic benefits. Then, based on both expert survey results and case study data, the entropy weight method and the analytic hierarchy process are integrated to determine indicator weight coefficients among the multilevel evaluation indices, comprehensively considering both subjective and objective analyses. Furthermore, a fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model is conducted to integrate these weighted indices into a multi-criteria evaluation of MD-GHP performance. Finally, the proposed method was applied to evaluate the practical performance of four projects, returning scores of 61.56, 58.33, 72.73, and 78.41. These evaluations enable an overall assessment of the energy performance of MD-GHPs, reflecting the technical weaknesses and offering optimization guidance for system design and operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Airport terminal is a typical large space building with large high interspaces and multitudinous functional zones. The task of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system is to ensure the thermal environment of these zones with different functions. A typical terminal in cold region of China is investigated in present paper, where indoor environment and performance of air conditioning system in summer are emphasized. The results indicate that the indoor temperature and humidity parameters at a height of 1.5 m in each zone of the terminal can be effectively controlled. The indoor temperature at a height of 1.5 varies in the range of 24~27°C, and the temperature difference is 0.5~4.9°C in the vertical direction. The temperature at the top of the terminal is greatly affected by the outdoor temperature where is higher and fluctuates obviously, while the temperature at the height of the occupant area is lower and more stable under the control of the air-conditioning system. The indoor carbon dioxide concentration is also at a reasonable level, all below 900 ppm, indicating that the equivalent outdoor air volume per capita is greater than 35 m3/h. Even in the case of high load caused by flight delays, the thermal environment in the terminal can be basically controlled at a comfortable level. As for the air handling unit, air handling process is tested to investigate the cooling capacity. The results show that the actual water supply of the AHU is relatively higher than the set value, but the air volume is almost equal to the set value which leads to an unsatisfactory energy efficiency. The tested energy efficiency ratio (EER) of AHU is only 5~7, almost approaching to that of the cooling plant. Reducing air flow rate could greatly improve the EER of the current air-conditioning system.

Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in human blood and muscle, and is integral to a wide variety of functions in cancer cells. However, the inability to monitor the subcellular distribution of glutamine in real‐time has obscured understanding of glutamine metabolism under physiological and pathological conditions. Here, we report the development of a genetically encoded fluorescent sensor and demonstrate how this GlnBP‐cpYFP fusion “GlutaR sensor” undergoes glutamine‐induced conformational changes reflected in detectable fluorescence responses. Obtained after iterative screening of approximately 1,600 variants, GlutaR exhibits a ratiometric readout, fast response kinetics, and high responsivity (R488/405 of ~1000 %), and we demonstrate its selectivity for monitoring glutamine fluctuations in multiple cell types. Additionally, using digitonin permeabilization of GlutaR HeLa cells, we generated a calibration curve and performed in situ titration to quantify free glutamine concentrations in subcellular compartments (cytosol, nucleus, mitochondria). Subsequently, we applied GlutaR to investigate how chemical and genetic inhibition of glutamine synthetase (GS) and glutaminase (GLS) differentially alter glutamine levels in subcellular compartments. Finally, we demonstrate GlutaR's ability to monitor dynamic glutamine levels in muscle and liver tissues of diabetic mice in vivo. These findings collectively demonstrate GlutaR as a versatile tool for the spatiotemporal characterization of glutamine metabolism in living cells and tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In long-term operations, seasonal imbalance in the thermal load may adversely affect the heat transfer performance of the energy piles, potentially resulting in thermal accumulation within the ground and eventual system failure. The heat transfer performance of energy pile systems during long-term operation under unbalanced thermal loads must be investigated. Moreover, the design parameters of energy piles are usually constrained by the requirements of foundation structural design, resulting in energy piles being densely arranged. Hence, the influence of pile spacing on the heat exchange performence of energy piles must be comprehensively understood. In this study, two- and three-dimensional energy-pile heat transfer models were established and innovatively coupled based on an engineering project currently under design. Numerical simulations were performed to investigate the heat transfer behavior of energy-pile groups subjected to unbalanced thermal loads and the effect of pile spacing on their heat exchange performance. Furthermore, design recommendations regarding the determination of the proportion of thermal loads to be borne by the energy piles in a hybrid GSHP system were provided. The results indicate that the proposed 2D-3D coupled modeling approach is able to simulate the heat exchange performance of large-scale energy pile groups. Pile spacing considerably affects the long-term thermal performance of energy-pile groups, especially in cases with small pile spacings. The influence of pile spacing on the heat exchange capacity of energy piles can be considered in the design phase by incorporating a group effect coefficient η , which are calculated to be 0.165, 0.470, 0.732, and 1 for pile spacings of 2 m, 4 m, 6 m, and 10 m, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]