Cracking the Achilles’ heel of energy performance contracting projects: the credit risk identification method for clients

ABSTRACT

A credit risk identification model is established to examine the credit status of Energy performance contracting (EPC) project clients (i.e., energy-using companies) in China based on rough set theory. The model is verified with data from 120 listed companies at different times. Study shows that lack of credit is one of the main obstacles to the implementation of EPC projects, and information asymmetry is the main reason for this lack of credit among potential clients in China. The credit risk identification method based on rough set theory can make up for the shortcomings of existing EPC projects in terms of credit risk identification, including redundant information and indicators, and unclear decision rules. Credit risk identification indicators of clients are dynamic. The research results can help energy service companies (ESCOs) determine the credit status of clients, facilitate cooperation between ESCOs and clients, and help explain the various dynamics of clients’ credit risk identification indicators over time.     

松花江水系有机污染的现状

本文介绍了GC、GC/MS、HPLC方法在分析松花江水系有机污染物中的应用。GC/MS、HPLC所用水样在现场处理,而TLC、GC样品在实验室处理。冬夏两次取样,共检出152种有机化合物,其中主要有机污染物55种,PAH_3占19％,氯化物占14％,芳烃占13％,其它占54％。     

花键轴冷挤压成形工艺及模具设计

花键轴是机械中广泛使用的重要零件之一。制造工艺复杂,外观质量、尺寸精度、综合机械性能等要求高。采用冷挤压成形,可使成本降低、提高质量、使用可靠。此文对花键轴成形工艺,模具设计作了详细探讨。     

Influence of filtration velocity on DON variation in BAF for micropolluted surface water treatment

Biological aerated filters (BAFs) are widely used for the treatment of micropolluted surface water. However, the biological process produces dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), which, as precursors of nitrogenous disinfection by-products, pose potential threats to drinking water safety. Therefore, to control DON in BAF effluent, it is necessary to study the influence of BAF operation parameters on DON production. In this study, the influence of filtration velocity in a BAF on DON production was investigated. Under different filtration velocity (0.5, 2, and 4 m/h) conditions, profiles of DON concentrations along the media layer were measured. The profile at a filtration velocity of 0.5 m/h showed a decreasing trend, and the ones under filtration velocities of 2 and 4 m/h fluctuated in a small range (from 0.1 to 0.4 mg/L). Moreover, the relatively high filtration velocities of 2 and 4 m/h resulted in a lower level of DON concentration. Additionally, 3D excitation-emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy was used to characterize DON. It is found that the patterns of DON at a relatively high filtration velocity condition (4 m/h) were obviously different from the ones under low filtration velocity conditions (0.5 and 2 m/h).     

Assessment of the uncertainty of using an inverse-dispersion technique to measure methane emissions from animals in a barn and in a small pen

Dispersion techniques are useful for assessing the effectiveness of management practices in mitigating methane (CH₄) emissions from animal operations. In this paper, the accuracy of an inverse-dispersion technique was examined for two common situations: 1) emissions from animals in a barn and 2) emissions from animals in a pen. For both situations, the accuracy of emission estimates generally increased with increasing fetch (scaled to barn height, h, or to pen width, X_s) between the source and the concentration measurement. The gas recovery ratio increased from 0.66 at 5 h to 0.93–1.03 at 10 h–25 h for the barn, and decreased from 1.59 at 0 X_s to 0.99 at 5 X_s and from 1.54 at 0 X_s to 1.09 at 5 X_s for the two small pen scenarios, due to the declining sensitivity of the dispersion model to errors in wind complexity and errors in the assumed source configuration. However, the relative uncertainty of the measured concentration increased with fetch due to the decreasing gas concentrations. Hence, improving the accuracy of emission estimates is a compromise between the source configuration sensitivity and the concentration measurement sensitivity. Fetches of about twice the size of the pen and about 10 times the height of the barn are suggested.     

永安火电厂人为继电保护不正确动作事故分析及预防对策

通过历年来永安火电厂继电保护人为不正确动作事故情况,进行原因分析,并采取一系列措施,取得了较好效果。     

Adsorptive removal of phosphate by the bimetallic hydroxide nanocomposites embedded in pomegranate peel

This study aimed to fabricate new and effective material for the efficiency of phosphate adsorption.Two types of adsorbent materials,the zirconium hydroxides embedded in pomegranate peel(Zr/Peel) and zirconium-lanthanum hydroxides embedded in pomegranate peel(Zr-La/Peel) were developed.Scanning electronic microscopy(SEM),x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) and x-ray diffraction(XRD) were evaluated to give insight into the physicochemical properties of these adsorbents.Zr-La/Peel exceeded the a...     

Characterization of an efficient catalytic and organic solvent-tolerant azoreductase toward methyl red from Shewanella oneidensis MR-1

The acyl carrier protein (ACP) phosphodiesterase gene (SO 4396) of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 which was analyzed to have azoreductase activity was heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli. The ACP phosphodiesterase was found to reach maximum enzyme velocity 220.59 U/mg, named azoreductase in this study. The azoreductase had highest specific activity (153.16 U/mg) at pH 6.5, which showed a preference for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) as electron donor. The phylogenetic tree analysis indicated that the azoreductase had preference for NADH and dependence for flavin mononucleotide (FMN). However, the azoreductase from S. oneidensis MR-1 still had high enzyme activity in the absence of FMN. The Mg²⁺ had a positive influence on the enzyme activity with 25 mM concentration, whereas Cr³⁺, Cd²⁺ usually had significantly negative effect on enzyme activity. The purified azoreductase retained nearly 100 % activity after incubating in 30 % dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), 30 % acetone, 30 % methanol, 20 % ethanol, 20 % isopropanol, and 10 % propanol.     

Effect of multiple washing operations on the removal of potentially toxic metals from an alkaline farmland soil and the strategy for agricultural reuse

Few studies have carried out soil washing experiments using pot experiments to simulate in situ soil washing operations, particularly for alkaline soils. This study explored the effects of multiple washing operations using pot experiments on the removal efficiencies of potentially toxic metals (PTM) from alkaline farmland soil and the reuse strategy of washed soil for safe agricultural production. The results showed that the removal efficiencies of Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn after seven washings with a mixed chelator (EDTA, GLDA, and citric acid) were 41.1%, 47.1%, 14.7%, and 26.5%, respectively, which was close to the results of the EDTA treatment. For the alkaline soil studied, the second washing with the mixed chelators most effectively removed PTM owing to the activation of them after the first washing operation. The mixed chelator more effectively increased the proportion of stable fraction of PTM and maintained soil nutrients (e.g., nitrogen content) than EDTA, indicating little disturbance of alkaline soil quality after washing with the mixed chelator. After the amendment of the washed soil, there was no visible difference in the biomass weight of crops from the soils washed with different agents, indicating that the inhibitory effect of both washing agents on plant growth was effectively alleviated. The Cd and Pb contents in Z. mays were below the threshold of Hygienical Standard for Feeds of China (GB 13078–2017) (1 and 30 mg·kg^?1). Moreover, after three cropping operations, the available concentrations of PTM in the soil washed with the mixed chelator were lower than those in the soil washed with EDTA, indicating the value and potential of agricultural reuse of alkaline farmland soil washed with the mixed chelator.

Graphical abstract

     

静电火花引爆可燃液体储罐事故原因分析

2007年7月17日9时左右,位于美国堪萨斯州山谷中心的巴顿溶剂公司的威奇托工厂发生了爆炸和火灾事故。11名当地居民和1名消防队员接受了医学治疗。这次事故导致大约6000名山谷中心居民的撤离,摧毁了1个储罐区域并且极大地影响了巴顿溶剂公司的经营业务。