Electric energy planning in Namibe, Angola: Inserting renewable energies in search of a sustainable energy mix

The socioeconomic development of any region requires electricity for operating the various sectors of the economy. Sometimes energy is scarce, not only because of the lack of energy resources, but also because energy policy is inadequate or non-existent. This paper examines the situation in the province of Namibe, Angola, characterising the energy sector, and proposing an energy mix for the security of electricity supply, environmental protection and sustainable economic development. Using the Long-range Energy Alternative and Planning System, energy scenarios were simulated and the greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) for the period 2014-2040 calculated and analysed. The most sustainable scenario, in terms of energy mix diversification and GHG reduction, as well as the least costly (considering electricity production and carbon costs), has an increase of hydro capacity and the insertion of wind, solar photovoltaic, thermoelectric sources and natural gas. Given the intermittency of photovoltaic and wind systems, natural gas appears in this scenario as a way to avoid interruptions in the electricity supply. This scenario is the one with the largest production reserve margin of 24.47 %, and emissions are avoided at 386 550 tCO2eq compared to the base scenario in 2040. Energy policymakers can take this scenario as a model to assist in making decisions on how power capacities can be installed over the planned time for the desired energy output.

CARDIOKIN1: Computational Assessment of Myocardial Metabolic Capability in Healthy Controls and Patients With Valve Diseases

Background: Many heart diseases can develop a reduced pumping capacity of the heart muscle. A mismatch between ATP demand and ATP production of cardiomyocytes is one of the possible causes. Assessment of the relation between the myocardial ATP production (MV ATP ) and cardiac workload is important for better understanding disease development and choice of nutritional or pharmacological treatment strategies. As there is currently no method for the measurement of MV ATP in vivo , the use of physiology-based metabolic models in conjunction with protein abundance data is an attractive approach. Methods: We developed a comprehensive kinetic model of the cardiac energy metabolism (CARDIOKIN1), which recapitulates numerous experimental findings on cardiac metabolism obtained with isolated cardiomyocytes, perfused animal hearts and in vivo studies with humans. We used the model to assess the energy status of the left ventricle (LV) of healthy subjects and patients with aortic stenosis (AS) and mitral valve insufficiency (MI). Maximal enzyme activities were individually scaled by means of protein abundances in LV tissue samples. The energy status of the LV was quantified by the ATP consumption at rest (MV ATP (rest)), at maximal workload (MV ATP (max)), and by the myocardial ATP production reserve (MAPR) representing the span between MV ATP (rest) and MV ATP (max). Results: Compared with controls, in both groups of patients, MV ATP (rest) was increased and MV ATP (max) was decreased resulting in a decreased MAPR, although all patients had preserved ejection fraction. Notably, the variance of the energetic status was high ranging from decreased to normal values. In both patient groups, the energetic status was tightly associated with mechanic energy demand. Moreover, a decrease of MV ATP (max) was associated with a decrease of the cardiac output indicating that cardiac functionality and energetic performance of the ventricle are closely coupled. Conclusions: Our analysis suggests that the ATP producing capacity of the LV of patients with valvular dysfunction is generally diminished and correlates positively with mechanic energy demand and cardiac output. However, large differences exist in the energetic state of the myocardium even in patients with similar clinical or image-based markers of hypertrophy and pump function.

Guidelines for the Conservation of Subnival Wet Grassland Plant Formation of the Moor, ‘Rio Blanco’ in the Chimborazo Fauna Production Reserve

The Chimborazo Wildlife Production Reserve is one of the most important protected areas in Ecuador, located in the provinces of Chimborazo, Tungurahua, Bolívar in the Andes, has an area of 52683 ha, consisting of eight plant formations, 41 indigenous communities that inhabit in this conservation site. Rio Blanco, is a representative community of the subnival wet grassland ecosystem of the moorland where the research was carried out, in which the floristic composition, the threats were analyzed, from which the guidelines for its conservation were formulated. The Gloria methodology was applied to determine coverage, biodiversity indexes and the IVI. 10 families and 23 genera were found, the most abundant are asteraceae and geraniaceae. The site reports a diversity that goes from medium to high. The identified ecosystem services are supply, regulation and cultural. From the analysis of contribution and irreversibility; of severity and scope, the formation presents an average of (2.05) and (2.8) respectively, it means that the pressure is wide in scope, with these elements in a participatory way the guidelines were defined to avoid the deterioration of the ecosystem to Through four programs. Keywords: conservation, training, grassland threats, guidelines. Resumen La Reserva de Producción de Fauna Chimborazo es una de las áreas protegidas más importantes de Ecuador, ubicada en las provincias de Chimborazo, Tungurahua, Bolívar en los Andes, tiene una extensión de 52683 ha, formada por ocho formaciones vegetales, 41 comunidades indígenas que habitan en este sitio de conservación. Rio Blanco, es una comunidad representativa del ecosistema herbazal húmedo subnival del páramo donde se desarrolló la investigación, en esta se analizó la composición florística, las amenazas, a partir de lo cual se formularon los lineamientos para su conservación. Se aplicó la metodología Gloria para determinar coberturas, índices de biodiversidad y el IVI. Se encontraron 10 familias y 23 géneros, las de mayor abundancia son asteraceae y geraniaceae. El sitio reporta una diversidad que va de media a alta. Los servicios ecosistemicos identificados son de suministro, regulación y cultural. A partir de los análisis de contribución e irreversibilidad; de severidad y alcance, la formación presenta un promedio de (2,05) y (2,8) respectivamente, significa que la presión es de amplio alcance, con estos elementos en forma participativa se definieron los lineamientos para evitar el deterioro del ecosistema a través de cuatro programas. Palabras clave: conservación, formación, herbazal, amenazas, lineamientos.

MATERIAL SCHEDULING TO PROVIDE MANUFACTURING IN MACHINE INDUSTRY

The article describes an approach to the material scheduling to provide manufacturing by machinery designers. The approach is based on the statistics of material consumption over the last periods and on manufacturing sequence. The article considers information technology alternatives of production reserve planning. The authors propose the model of material support based on a time series analysis. They describe a study scheme and a database structure for calculating by the model developed. The algorithm steps of data analysis, modeling of time series and resulted VS test values comparison are described in details. The article defines an experimental calculation to test the model validity and diagrams to compare the time series of the main and auxiliary material sample pieces. The programmed calculations are given as an additional module for interactive web resource and are implemented through T-SQL.

Influence of life cycle stages of high-tech engineering enterprises on personnel management strategies

In scientific research provides a rationale for the influence of the life cycle stages of high-tech engineering enterprises on personnel management strategies. It was proved that most of these enterprises are at the stages of stable operation, growth or crisis conditions. Their main intellectual and production reserve was formed in the years of the planned economy. Based on the analysis of management approaches at these stages of the life cycle of organizations, tools have been proposed for improving the personnel management system. The main ones should be the strengthening of social partnership, change in corporate culture and orientation towards optimization of personnel and expenses for them.

Caracterización Ecológica De Bofedales, Hábitat De Vicuñas Aplicando Metodologías De Teledeteccion Y Sig Estudio De Caso: Reserva De Producción De Fauna Chimborazo

This article presents a methodology based on classification of images from Landsat 7 ETM + to classify Andean wetlands known as ¨Bofedal¨ (wetland) located in the Fauna Production Reserve Chimborazo. Five of the seven in-situ geo-referenced bofedales belong to this category and two belong to the altiplano. These georeferenced reservoirs are the principal habitat of the vicuñas that are located within the RPFCH in the jurisdictions of the province of Tungurahua: Río Blanco, ¨Mocha¨ Valley area, 472.26 ha, 4400 m.; Chimborazo Province: Bofedal Quebrada Toni, Urbina area, 16.74 ha, 4301 m, bofedal El Refugio (Hermanos Carrel) at the Nevado Chimborazo, 1.44 ha, 4800msnm, and Curi bofedal Pogyo, Chorrera Mirador, 0.34 ha., 4523 m. and in the Bolivar Province: the wetlands Chag Pogyo, Pulinguí San Pablo, 19.36 ha, 4064 meters above sea level. Bofedal Sinche1, the sector ¨antennas¨, 8.53 ha. 4167 m., And Sinche2, ¨Puente Ayora¨ area, 9.39 ha., 3981 meters, the latter being Chag Pogyo highland bofedales. The seven bofedales represent 0.93% (527.87 ha) of the total area of the RPFCH (56653, 27 ha.). Two images of the satellite Landsat 7 ETM +, from the years 2001 - EarthSat, 2004 - USGS and an orthophoto 2013-2014 - GIS land were used. Georeferenced and rectified to capture the spatial and temporal variability of these ecosystems and define the characterization of bofedales in the reserve. For each image two classification methods were used, the supervised classification being the most efficient when representing the four representative classes in the RPFCH: snow, rock, pajonal and bofedal. Since this classification is oriented to objects that takes into account aspects such as shape and texture and not just the spectral information of each pixel. Allowing to obtain information on the characteristics and spatial distribution of the bofedales which was verified and validated later in the field. This process allows the generation of digital cartography with the identification, delimited and distributed bofedales along the RPFCH, representing a total of approximately 1483.94 ha in the RPFCH. In addition, the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was applied, which made it possible to differentiate water bodies from other coverages, as well as specifically to know the extent of the reservoirs present in the Reserve, in order to better infer Distribution of vicuñas.

Monitoring administrative activity the formation of modern production reserve professionals.

This article proposes an approach, based on which the production is considered as a distributed team of socio-management systems with their specific behavior. This statement encourages the development of new research methods and design of socio-management systems aimed at keeping their description and a behavioral aspect.

Maximum oxidative phosphorylation capacity of the mammalian heart

It is difficult to estimate the maximum in vivo aerobic ATP production rate of the intact heart independent of limitations imposed by blood flow, oxygen delivery, and maximum mechanical power. This value is critical for establishing the kinetic parameters that control oxidative phosphorylation, as well as for providing insights into the limits of myocardial performance. In this study, the maximum ADP-P(i)-driven heart mitochondrial respiratory rate (MV(O2 mito)) was determined with saturating levels of oxygen, substrates, and cofactors at 37 degrees C. These rates were normalized to cytochrome alpha1 alpha3 (cytochrome oxidase; Cyt a) content. To extrapolate this rate to the intact heart, the Cyt a content of the myocardium (nmol Cyt a/g wet wt myocardium) was determined in the same hearts. The maximum ADP-P(i)-driven mitochondrial respiratory rates were 676 +/- 31 and 665 +/- 65 nmol O2 x min(-1) x nmol Cyt a(-1) in the dog and pig, respectively. The Cyt a content in the two species was 43.6 +/- 2.4 and 36.6 +/- 3.1 nmol Cyt a/g wet wt, respectively. With these values, the MV(O2 mito) was calculated to be 29.5 (dog) and 24.3 (pig) micromol O2 x min(-1) x g wet wt myocardium(-1). Comparison with in vivo studies shows that the exercising heart can utilize 80-90% of its maximum oxidative capacity, implying there is little aerobic ATP production reserve in the mammalian heart.