Geographies of energy transition: the case of high-performing commercial office space in the central business districts of Sydney and Melbourne,Australia

As a signatory to the Paris Climate Agreement, Australia committed to reduce emissions significantly by 2030. In a country highly urbanised and dependent on fossil fuels as its primary energy source, one key avenue for meeting these commitments is energy transition in the built environment. Australia has emerged as a leader in the design and construction of high-performance buildings in the premium commercial office sector. In this paper, we address a significant gap in understanding the diverse mechanisms through which building energy transition is being constituted in this sector, focusing on Sydney and Melbourne. In the absence of substantive publicly available data, we draw on mixed methods comprising a database developed around high-performing CBD office buildings and qualitative interviews with a range of sectoral stakeholders. We characterise the building stock in each city, and document five trends constituting energy transitions. We demonstrate that building energy transitions are not only shaped purposefully by dominant governance regimes but also by opportunistic responses to specific material and commercial conditions and legacies in each city. Thus the urban built environment affords significant opportunity for energy transitions, but pathways towards such transitions are necessarily multiple and ultimately shaped by material as well as institutional geographies.     

Mid-late Holocene anthropogenic and natural variations in geochemistry and sedimentation in the Yazoo Basin: Clark Lake,Sharkey County,Mississippi

A 4000-yr history at Clark Lake reveals natural variations in sediment geochemistry and nutrient levels and anthropogenic influence on twentieth century sedimentation rates. Sediment texture and ridge and swale topography indicate that the channel system creating Clark Lake is now occupied by the Yazoo River. Between 1.24 and 0.60 m (2522–865 cal yr BP), total carbon percentages and the C/N ratio average 42% and 17, respectively. The base of the 1650-yr interval and onset of high organic activity in the lake coincides with the abandonment of the Yazoo Meander Belt. The top of the interval is marked by a drop in C/N ratio to 11 and a geochemical transition zone. No change in the rate of sediment accumulation or clay mineralogy was observed despite increased cumulative percentages of Al, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Ca, and Na. The decrease in organic activity at 865 cal yr BP is attributed to unfavorable growth conditions related to the entrenchment of the Yazoo River and changes in the hydroperiod of the area. Significant floodplain alteration was completed in 1978, but the only major effect was increased sedimentation in the late twentieth century due to the completion of the Whittington Auxiliary Channel.     

秦岭—淮河南北供暖格局变化及其影响因素

基于秦岭—淮河南北及其周边196个气象站点观测资料,构建实际和动态供暖指数,对中国南北过渡带供暖格局变化进行分析,并探讨冬季北极涛动（AO）异常与供暖效率的响应关系。结果表明：① 固定供暖策略下,1960-2016年秦岭—淮河南北实际供暖能耗偏高,呈现“南多北少,西低东高”的变化特征,且低纬度地区供暖需求下降信号早于高纬度;② 对比区域变暖前后,秦岭—淮河南北冬季供暖能耗1960-1990年和1990-2016年两阶段空间特征,发现“整体南高北低,北部东高西低”的格局并未发生变化,供暖南北波动界线依然维持在秦岭山脉—淮河平原中部;③ AO强弱波动与区域冬季供暖能耗具有明显的时空响应关系,是影响中国南北过渡带供暖格局变化的重要因素。当AO负相位时,除四川盆地和巫山山区之外,秦岭—淮河南北其他区域实际供暖能耗明显下降,特别是淮河平原和长江下游的过渡地带响应尤为明显,未来应该有针对性制定气候适应对策。     

The evolution of the spatial-temporal patterns of global energy security since the 1990s

Journal of Geographical Sciences - In this study, we developed an energy security evaluation model (ESEM) from three dimensions, energy supply-transport security, safety of energy utilization, and...     

An efficient hybrid integral-equation method for point-absorber wave energy converters with a vertical axis of symmetry

To assist in the prototyping and controller design of point-absorber wave energy converters (WECs), an easy-to-implement hybrid integral-equation method is presented for computing the frequency-domain hydrodynamic properties of bodies with a vertical axis of symmetry in waves. The current hybrid method decomposes the flow domain into two parts: an inner domain containing the body and an outer domain extending to infinity. The solution in the inner domain is computed using the boundary-element method, and the outer-domain solution is expressed using eigenfunctions. Proper matching at the domain boundary is achieved by enforcing continuity of velocity potential and its normal derivative. Body symmetry allows efficient computation using ring sources in the inner domain. The current method is successfully applied to three different body geometries including a vertical truncated floating cylinder, the McIver toroid, and the coaxial-cylinder WEC being developed in the authors’ laboratory. In particular, the current results indicate that, by replacing the flat bottom of the coaxial-cylinder WEC with the Berkeley-Wedge (BW) shape, viscous effect can be significantly reduced with only minor negative impact on wave-exciting force, thus increasing WEC efficiency. Finally, by comparing to experimental measurements, the current method is demonstrated to accurately predict the heave added mass and wave-exciting force on the coaxial-cylinder WEC with BW geometry. If a viscous damping correction factor is used, the heave motion amplitude can also be accurately computed.     

Extracting energy while reducing hydroelastic responses of VLFS using a modular raft wec-type attachment

This paper presents the use of a modular raft Wave Energy Converter (WEC)-type attachment at the fore edge of a rectangular Very Large Floating Structure (VLFS) for extracting wave energy while reducing hydroelastic responses of the VLFS under wave action. The proposed modular attachment comprises multiple independent auxiliary pontoons (i.e. modules) that are connected to the fore edge of the VLFS with hinges and linear Power Take-Off (PTO) systems. For the hydroelastic analysis, the auxiliary pontoons and the VLFS are modelled by using the Mindlin plate theory while the linear wave theory is used for modelling the fluid motion. The analysis is performed in the frequency domain using the hybrid Finite Element-Boundary Element (FE-BE) method. Parametric studies are carried out to investigate the effects of pontoon length, PTO damping coefficient, gap between auxiliary pontoons, and incident wave angle on the power capture factor as well as reductions in the hydroelastic responses of the VLFS with the modular attachment. It is found that in oblique waves, the modular attachment comprising multiple narrow pontoons outperforms the corresponding rigid attachment that consists of a single wide pontoon with respect to the power capture factor and the reduction in the deflection of the VLFS. In addition, it is possible to have a considerable gap between pontoons without significantly compromising the effectiveness of the modular attachment.     

Experimental investigation on a cabin-suspended catamaran in terms of motion reduction and wave energy harvesting by means of a semi-active motion control system

A novel concept catamaran equipped with a suspended cabin, named Wave Harmonizer Type 4 (WHzer-4), is proposed and evaluated. The mass-spring-mass system is constructed by mounting four sets of suspensions in-between the cabin and the twin-hull. Two sets of dual motor/generators (M/Gs) are attached on the center beam of the cabin's deck fore and aft. Each shaft-end of the dual M/Gs is connected to the twin-hull through a rack-pinion gear unit. In this way the vertical relative motion between the cabin and the twin-hull can be transferred into the rotational motion of the M/Gs, and vice versa. A semi-active motion control system, which contains a proportional-integral (PI) controller, is designed and applied to each of the dual M/Gs for the aim of absorbing wave energy under the condition of suppressing the local vertical velocity of the cabin as much as possible. A 1/5 scale model ship with a length of 1.6 m is built, and a forced-oscillation bench test is implemented to validate the performance of the control system. Then, a series of towing tank tests is carried out in regular head waves. The heave and pitch responses of the cabin, those of the twin-hull and the corresponding wave energy capture width ratio (CWR) at five control scenarios and two reference scenarios are investigated. Discussion on the results of the tank test shows that the motion reduction of the cabin and the wave energy harvesting can be achieved simultaneously at a few wave conditions. However, at other conditions, although noticeable amount of wave energy is harvested, motion reduction of the heave and pitch of the cabin could not be obtained at the same time. It is suggested that varying the gain settings of the PI controllers according to the location of the controllers may improve the effectiveness of the proposed control system.     

A comparative study of energy performance of hydrostatic seafloor sediment samplers and a new high-efficiency sampler

The hydrostatic energy of high-pressure seawater is a renewable and green energy source for ocean exploration and have been used to replace underwater electrical energy transmission through the cable and underwater battery pack to power seafloor equipment. The advantage of the energy supply method is the cost-effective and the robustness. In the paper, the energy performance of the existing hydrostatic seafloor sediment samplers powered by seawater hydrostatic energy are modelled and analyzed and compared. In view of the common shortcoming of existing technology, a novel hydrostatic seafloor sediment sampler is proposed. The model of energy conversion of the new sampler is built, and its energy performance is obtained. The analysis results indicate that the energy conversion efficiency of the novel sediment sampler is much higher than the existing ones, which means that the new sampler can collect much longer sample with the limited amount of hydrostatic energy. The seawater hydrostatic energy conversion system of the new sampler can also be used to power other seafloor equipment.     

Wave tank and bench-top control testing of a wave energy converter

An increasing number of experiments are being conducted to study the design and performance of wave energy converters. Often in these tests, a real-time realization of prospective control algorithms is applied in order to assess and optimize energy absorption as well as other factors. This paper details the design and execution of an experiment for evaluating the capability of a model-scale WEC to execute basic control algorithms. Model-scale hardware, system, and experimental design are considered, with a focus on providing an experimental setup capable of meeting the dynamic requirements of a control system. To more efficiently execute such tests, a dry bench testing method is proposed and utilized to allow for controller tuning and to give an initial assessment of controller performance; this is followed by wave tank testing. The trends from the dry bench test and wave tank test results show good agreement with theory and confirm the ability of a relatively simple feedback controller to substantially improve energy absorption. Additionally, the dry bench testing approach is shown to be an effective and efficient means of designing and testing both controllers and actuator systems for wave energy converters.     

氨氮急性攻毒对水产经济动物棘胸蛙(Paa spinosa)蝌蚪死亡率、排氨率、耗氧率及窒息点的影响

以体长(1.932±0.204)cm、体质量(1.386±0.055)g的棘胸蛙蝌蚪为实验动物,在水温(24±0.2)℃、DO(7.30±0.01)mg/L、pH 7.30±0.01条件下,采用静水停食法开展了氨氮对蝌蚪的急性攻毒实验,并以此为基础,测定了不同氨氮质量浓度胁迫下棘胸蛙蝌蚪的排氨率、耗氧率、氧氮比及窒息点。结果表明:(1)蝌蚪对氨氮急性攻毒具明显的运动避毒行为,濒死个体的背部皮肤和肝脏均具明显的色变症状;(2)氨氮对蝌蚪的急性致死率具明显的剂量—时间效应,24h、48h、72h、96h LC50依次为177.5、151.7、148.6和146.8mg/L,毒性时段蓄积程度系数呈持续下降趋势,24—48h、48—72h、72—96h的时段MAC值分别为84.04%、10.1%和5.86%;(3)蝌蚪夜均、昼均、日均及时段排氨率随氨氮质量浓度增加均呈阶梯式下降趋势,其中时段排氨率与对照组均无显著差异的为9.80mg/L实验组,夜均、昼均、日均及时段排氨率与对照组均无显著差异的仅为2.45mg/L实验组(P0.05);(4)氨氮对蝌蚪呼吸耗氧具低毒兴奋效应,其夜均、昼均和日均耗氧率随氨氮质量浓度增加均呈先升后降趋势,峰值氨氮质量浓度范围均为4.90—7.35mg/L(P0.05),与对照组均无显著差异的仅为14.70mg/L实验组(P0.05),窒息点含氧量随氨氮质量浓度增加呈先降后升趋势,谷底出现于4.90mg/L实验组(P0.05),与对照组无显著差异的仅为9.80mg/L实验组(P0.05);(5)实验期间,蝌蚪氧氮比(O:N)波动于18.87—25.34之间,昼均和日均氧氮比(O:N)随氨氮质量浓度增加均依次呈"上升—稳定—下降—再稳定"之趋势,两者的峰值氨氮质量浓度范围分别为4.90—14.70mg/L和4.90—9.80mg/L,夜均氧氮比(O:N)呈先升后降趋势,峰值出现于7.35mg/L实验组(P0.05)。