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Abstract With promising benefits such as traffic emission reduction, traffic congestion alleviation, and parking problem solving, Electric Vehicle (EV)-sharing systems have attracted large attentions in recent years. Different from other business modes, customers in sharing economy systems are usually price sensitive. Therefore, it is possible to shift the usage of shared EVs through a well-designed Dynamic Pricing Scheme (DPS), with the objective of maximizing the system operator's total profit. In this study, we propose a novel DPS for a large-scale EV-sharing network to address the EV unbalancing issue and satisfy the vehicle-grid-integration (VGI) service based on accurate station-level demand prediction. The proposed DPS is formulated as a complex optimization problem, which includes two Price Adjustment Level (PAL) decision variables for every origin-destination pair of stations. The two PALs are employed to affect the EV-sharing demand and travel time between each station pair, respectively. Physical and operational constraints from both EV demand and VGI service aspects are also included in the proposed model. Two case study are conducted to validate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

AbstractAlloy anodes composed of microsized particles receive increasing attention recently, which outperform the nanostructured counterparts in both the manufacturing cost and volumetric energy density. However, the pulverization of particles and fracture of solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) during cycling brings about fast capacity degradation. Herein, it is shown how normally considered fragile SEI can become highly elastic through electrolyte chemistry regulation. Compared to the SEI constructed in classic carbonate electrolyte, the atomic force microscopy tests reveal that the one built in ether‐based electrolyte doubles the maximum elastic strain to accommodate the repeated swelling‐contracting. Such an SEI effectively encapsulates the microsized Sb anodes to prevent the capacity loss from particle isolation. Coupled with an intercalation‐assisted alloying reaction mechanism, a sustained capacity of ≈573 mAh g−1 after 180 cycles at 0.1 A g−1 with outstanding initial Coulombic efficiency is obtained, which is among the highest values achieved in K‐ion batteries. This study emphasizes the significance of building robust SEI, which offers the opportunity to enable stable microsized alloy anodes.

With fewer emissions, higher efficiency, and quicker response than traditional coal-fired thermal power plants, the combined-cycle units (CCUs), as gas-fired generators, have been increasingly adapted in the U.S. power system to enhance the smart grids operations. Meanwhile, due to the inherent uncertainties in the deregulated electricity market, e.g., intermittent renewable energy output, unexpected outages of generators and transmissions, and fluctuating electricity demands, the electricity price is volatile. As a result, this brings challenges for an independent power producer (served in the self-scheduling mode) owning CCUs to maximize the total profit when facing the significant price uncertainties. In this paper, a data-driven risk-averse stochastic self-scheduling approach is presented for the CCUs that participate in the real-time market. The proposed approach does not require the specific distribution of the uncertain real-time price. Instead, a confidence set for the unknown distribution is constructed based on the historical data. The conservatism of the proposed approach is adjustable based on the amount of available data. Finally, numerical studies show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Considering multiple transmit antennas in each distributed antenna unit (DAU), two power allocation (PA) schemes are proposed for energy efficiency (EE) maximization for downlink distributed multiple-input single-output (DMISO) systems with orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) over frequency-selective fading channels, where the power constraints for individual antenna units are addressed. The optimization problem for the maximization of the EE subject to per-antenna maximum power constraints is formulated. By means of linear programming, the optimization is simplified to as if for a DMISO system whose DAUs use a single antenna corresponding to the largest channel-gain-to-noise ratio (CGNR) for transmission. Using the block coordinate descent (BCD) method, an iterative optimal PA scheme to the simplified optimization problem is derived, where an efficient procedure for determining the number of effective subcarriers and the optimized PA is developed. Since the optimal scheme needs iterative calculations, a closed-form suboptimal PA scheme is also derived by sorting the total CGNR and using the principle of the BCD method. Interestingly, this suboptimal scheme has small performance loss in comparing with the optimal scheme, and its relative EE loss is decreased with the number of subcarriers. Moreover, these two schemes include the ones with single transmit antenna for distributed antenna systems as special cases. Computer simulations verify the effectiveness of the two proposed schemes, and the proposed optimal one can obtain the same performance as the existing optimal scheme for DMISO-OFDM but with lower complexity.

AbstractThe development of Zn metal anodes suffers from several critical issues, including dendrite growth, hydrogen evolution reaction, and corrosion. Extensive efforts have been applied through ameliorating electrode structures, electrode/separator interfaces, and electrolyte formulations. We deviate from the specific approaches and discuss the roots of the existing problems to exploit the fundamental science behind the proposed approaches. We divide the Zn deposition process into four steps, that is, mass transfer in the bulk electrolyte, desolvation on the electrode surface, charge transfer for the Zn2+ reduction, and Zn cluster formation through the electro‐crystallization. It can be seen that all the reported strategies for improving Zn anode stability deal with at least one of these steps, thereby enhancing the understanding of dendrite formation and benefiting the rational design to circumvent the issue. We also scrutinize the previous attempts to suppress the side reactions through water activity reduction and electrode passivation to raise battery reliability. Finally, we propose possible solutions to the remaining but urgent challenges toward low‐cost, high‐safety, and long‐lifespan Zn metal batteries.image

Abstract Liquid desiccant cooling systems are considered a promising technology for accurate humidity control and high energy efficiency. The dehumidifier and the regenerator are the two main components in the system, and their performance directly determines the system performance. This paper is a comprehensive review of the empirical correlations for the determination of mass transfer coefficient and moisture effectiveness in both adiabatic and internal cooling/heating dehumidifier/regenerators, and it further discusses approaches to enhance their mass transfer performance. These methods include structural improvements, such as structural modification, ultrasound atomisation and membrane-based modules, and modification of liquid desiccants, such as the addition of surfactants and nanoparticles. Finally, a brief summary and some suggestions for future work are outlined and addressed.

202407 bcch ; Others ; National Natural Science Foundation of China ; Published ; 24 months ; Green (AAM)

Alkylated PAHs (APAHs) have been shown to be more toxic and persistent than their non-alkylated parent compounds. However, little is known about the extent of soil contamination by these pollutants. To help understand agricultural soil pollution by these compounds at a regional scale, a total of 18 methylated PAHs (MPAHs, a major class of APAHs) in 243 soil samples were analyzed. These soil samples were collected from 11 sites in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region, a representative fast developing area in China. The total concentration of MPAHs (∑18MPAHs) ranged from 5.5 to 696.2 ng/g dry soil, with methylnaphthalenes (M-NAPs) and methylphenanthrenes (M-PHEs) accounting for more than 70% of the compositional profile. Relatively high concentrations of ∑18MPAHs were found in Jiaxing and Huzhou areas of Zhejiang province, as well as on the border between the cities of Wuxi and Suzhou. Different MPAH groups showed dissimilar spatial distribution patterns. The spatial distribution of lower molecular weight MPAHs was related to agricultural straw burning and emissions/depositions from industrial activities, whereas that of higher molecular weight MPAHs was much more a function of the total organic carbon (TOC) content of soil. Although coal, biomass (crop straw and wood), and petroleum combustion were identified to be the major emission sources for most of the sampling sites, the areas with relatively severe pollution with ∑18MPAHs resulted from the localized hotspots of petroleum leakage. Isomeric MPAHs with methyl group substituted at 2- (β) position exhibited significantly higher concentrations than those substituted at 1- (α) position. Results of this work help to understand soil pollution by MPAHs, and are useful for designing effective strategies for pollution control so as to ensure food safety in areas with fast economic growth.