Industrial End-users Research Articles

Language impact on productivity for industrial end users: A case study from Programmable Logic Controllers

Industrial workplaces increasingly require end-users to create programs for embedded systems, but little expert scrutiny has been devoted to studying this domain. As a result, industrial end-user programmers may rely on programming languages and development environments that do not necessarily follow the state-of-the-art of software engineering. Consider Ladder Logic, the most popular language used to program the most widely deployed type of industrial hardware, programmable logic controllers (PLCs). Ladder Logic’s fundamental design is based on electric relay circuits that have long since disappeared from practice. Does Ladder Logic inhibit the productivity of end-user programmers, slowing progress in industrial settings like manufacturing sites and scientific labs where it is widely used? To better understand the usage of domain-specific languages in industrial practices, we conducted a survey with 175 technical employees from an international engineering conglomerate. This survey introduced participants to Ladder Logic and asked them questions that all programmers, including novices, should answer with ease. Nearly 70% failed, including those with previous Ladder Logic experience. We combined end-user performance with answers in an open-ended question, where many employees complained about the programming language. The breadth and depth of these struggles suggest that outdated languages, which industrial end users must increasingly use, could dramatically impact productivity and that further studies on these industrial end user programmers be necessary to better support them in their increasingly complex workplaces.

Supply Chain Management in Real Estate Practices: The Estate Surveyor and Valuers’ Perspective

Real estate practice is a strategic and multi-faceted vocation that connects the clients/owners of real estate projects or products with end users in the building industry. Different aspects of real estate practices require collaboration of real estate practitioners who are professional estate surveyors and valuers, with the built environment professionals and other stakeholders at different levels in order to achieve the transaction objectives. This study, therefore, examined the practice with a view to uncovering the preparedness of the estate surveyors and valuers with respect to the knowledge and application of supply chain management in real estate practices. Empirical data were collected with the aide of questionnaires administered to respondents from the 373 estate firms in Lagos State, Nigeria of which 291 were duly completed and returned constituting 78% rate of response. The Readiness Assessment Model was adapted to determine the operational preparedness of the estate surveying and valuation firms to implement supply chain management with regards to management readiness, employee readiness, services/processes readiness and logistic/ICT readiness on a 5-point Likert scale and the corresponding mean score and relative importance was determined. The Kolmogorov Smirnov Test of Normality was performed and showed that the data was normally distributed. Hence, the Pearson Product Moment Correlation analysis was used to determine the relationship between knowledge and application of supply chain management in real estate businesses. It was observed, among others, that the knowledge of supply chain management is generally low among estate valuers and does not necessarily translate to application in the property market transactions of real estate firms. The study further observed that management and employees of estate surveying and valuation firms do not have adequate knowledge of the principles and practices of supply chain management for productive engagement in property market transactions. This was further identified alongside others such as confidentiality, stiff rivalry and economic instability as critical factors resisting the adoption of supply chain management in the property market. The study therefore suggested capacity building programmes on supply chain management for the estate surveyors and valuers to improve the knowledge of the strategy and harness the benefits.

Process-oriented approach towards catalyst design and optimisation

Translation of catalysts developed in academia to industrial end-users remains a challenge due to a lack of knowledge about the impact of catalyst attributes on the whole process and vice versa. A systematic methodology is proposed that assesses these in terms of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). As a case study, the dehydration of butanol to butenes and dibutyl ether is considered over H-ZSM5 and H-Beta catalysts. It is demonstrated that catalysts should be designed for complete conversion and high butene selectivity, as removal of unreacted 1-butanol requires a complex separation due to the thermo-physical properties of the product mixture.

Coordinated, sensitivity-based DSM for enhanced cross-border power transfers

This paper discusses the use of coordinated wide area demand side management (DSM) for facilitating cross-border power transfers between the interconnected transmission networks. It proposes a methodology for ranking transmission network loads eligible for DSM programs based on the network topology and the size of DSM assets. The influence of network topology is accounted for by considering distribution factors (DFs), and the size of DSM assets by considering the available demand flexibility (upward or downward variation) of load buses. The industrial end-users connected directly to transmission network and the bulk supply points of distribution networks are considered the two main types of DSM providers at the transmission level. The proposed approach facilitates analytical evaluation of the effects of DSM on power transfers and such makes a valuable decision-support tool for any transmission system operator, whether it is used for network operation or planning. The methodology is illustrated on a simplified model of four interconnected European transmission networks and thus provides a realistic assessment of the extent to which cross-border DSM can be used to regulate power transfers between countries.

Part selection for Freeform Injection Moulding: comparison of alternate approaches using a novel comprehensive methodology

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to provide an overview of a methodology, which will enable the industrial end-users to identify the potential parts to be manufactured by freeform injection moulding (FIM). Our proposed approach can be used ‘with’ or ‘without’ FIM reference parts. In the reference part-based screening method, the process of part selection starts by identifying the most similar parts (from the end-user part libraries) to some reference parts, which can be produced by FIM, followed by part size classification and cluster analysis based on the importance factors. A multi-criteria decision-making approach is then used to rank the clusters and the parts within each cluster using a user-defined criteria. The identification process without using FIM reference part does not include comparison with the reference parts. In both methods, once the first set of potential parts have been identified, the cost of using FIM is calculated using the developed FIM cost model and compared with the production cost using a conventional manufacturing. The novelty of this research lies in using a comprehensive methodology to compare the suitability of a reference part-based approach with the non-reference part-based approach. The results show that using a reference part-based approach is more suitable for the parts with bigger size.

Demand Response Alert Service Based on Appliance Modeling

Demand response has been widely developed during recent years to increase efficiency and decrease the cost in the electric power sector by shifting energy use, smoothening the load curve, and thus ensuring benefits for all participating parties. This paper introduces a Demand Response Alert Service (DRAS) that can optimize the interaction between the energy industry parties and end users by sending the minimum number of relatable alerts to satisfy the transformation of the load curve. The service creates appliance models for certain deferrable appliances based on past-usage measurements and prioritizes households according to the probability of the use of their appliances. Several variations of the appliance model are examined with respect to the probabilistic association of appliance usage on different days. The service is evaluated for a peak-shaving scenario when either one or more appliances per household are involved. The results demonstrate a significant improvement compared to a random selection of end users, thus promising increased participation and engagement. Indicatively, in terms of the Area Under the Curve (AUC) index, the proposed method achieves, in all the studied scenarios, an improvement ranging between 41.33% and 64.64% compared to the baseline scenario. In terms of the F1 score index, the respective improvement reaches up to 221.05%.

The challenge and opportunities of quantum literacy for future education and transdisciplinary problem-solving

ABSTRACT Background Knowledge of quantum computing is arguably inaccessible to many, with knowledge of the complex mathematics involving a particular barrier to entry, creating difficulty in terms of teaching and inclusive learning for those without a high level of mathematics. Meanwhile, it is increasingly important that the knowledge of quantum technologies is accessible to those who work with real-world applications and is taught to the younger generation. Purpose Resulting from collaborative dialogue between physicists, computer scientists, educationalists, and industrial end users, we propose the concept of quantum literacy as one means of addressing the need for transdisciplinary research in response to the complex problems that we see at the heart of issues around global sustainability. In this way, quantum literacy can contribute to UN Sustainable Development Goal 4, Quality Education. Methods We introduce a specific puzzle visualization learning tool through which to achieve the pedagogic ends we set out with respect to quantum literacy. Visualization through puzzles can enable non-specialists to develop an intuitive, but still rigorous, understanding of universal quantum computation and provide a facility for non-specialists to discover increasingly complex and new quantum algorithms. Using the Hong–Ou–Mandel optical effect from quantum mechanics, we demonstrate how visual methods such as those made possible through the puzzle visualization tool can be very useful for understanding underlying complex processes in quantum physics and beyond and therefore support the aims of quantum literacy. Conclusion We argue that quantum literacy, as defined here, addresses the challenges of learning within a highly bounded discipline and of access to the kind of powerful knowledge that should be more accessible to a wide group of learners. We therefore argue for the importance of addressing pedagogic issues when powerful knowledge consists of dense concepts, as well as complex and hierarchical relations between concepts, in addition to presenting a strong barrier to entry in the form of mathematics.

Design and Multidimensional Screening of Flash-PEO Coatings for Mg in Comparison to Commercial Chromium(VI) Conversion Coating

REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) regulations demand for an expedient discovery of a Cr(VI)-free alternative corrosion protection for light alloys even though the green alternatives might never be as cheap as current harmful technologies. In the present work, flash- plasma electrolytic oxidation coatings (FPEO) with the process duration < 90 s are developed on AZ31B alloy in varied mixtures of silicate-, phosphate-, aluminate-, and fluoride-based alkaline electrolytes implementing current density and voltage limits. The overall evaluation of the coatings’ anticorrosion performance (electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), neutral salt spray test (NSST), paintability) shows that from nine optimized FPEO recipes, two (based on phosphate, fluoride, and aluminate or silicate mixtures) are found to be an adequate substitute for commercially used Cr(VI)-based conversion coating (CCC). The FPEO coatings with the best corrosion resistance consume a very low amount of energy (~1 kW h m−2 µm−1). It is also found that the lower the energy consumption of the FPEO process, the better the corrosion resistance of the resultant coating. The superb corrosion protection and a solid environmentally friendly outlook of PEO-based corrosion protection technology may facilitate the economic justification for industrial end-users of the current-consuming process as a replacement of the electroless CCC process.

Severe Corrosion of Carbon Steel in Oil Field Produced Water Can Be Linked to Methanogenic Archaea Containing a Special Type of [NiFe] Hydrogenase.

Methanogenic archaea have long been implicated in microbially influenced corrosion (MIC) of oil and gas infrastructure, yet a first understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms has only recently emerged. We surveyed pipeline-associated microbiomes from geographically distinct oil field facilities and found methanogens to account for 0.2 to 9.3% of the 16S rRNA gene sequencing reads. Neither the type nor the abundance of the detected methanogens was correlated with the perceived severity of MIC in these pipelines. Using fluids from one pipeline, MIC was reproduced in the laboratory, both under stagnant conditions and in customized corrosion reactors simulating pipeline flow. High corrosion rates (up to 2.43 mm Fe0 · yr-1) with macroscopic, localized corrosion features were attributed to lithotrophic, mesophilic microbial activity. Other laboratory tests with the same waters yielded negligible corrosion rates (<0.08 mm Fe0 · yr-1). Recently, a novel [NiFe] hydrogenase from Methanococcus maripaludis strain OS7 was demonstrated to accelerate corrosion. We developed a specific quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay and detected the gene encoding the large subunit of this hydrogenase (labeled micH) in corrosive (>0.15 mm Fe0 · yr-1) biofilms. The micH gene, on the other hand, was absent in noncorrosive biofilms, despite an abundance of methanogens. Reconstruction of a nearly complete Methanococcus maripaludis genome from a highly corrosive mixed biofilm revealed micH and associated genes in nearly identical genetic configuration to that in strain OS7, thereby supporting our hypothesis that the encoded molecular mechanism contributed to corrosion. Lastly, the proposed MIC biomarker was detected in multiple oil fields, indicating a geographically widespread involvement of this [NiFe] hydrogenase in MIC.IMPORTANCE Microorganisms can deteriorate built environments, which is particularly problematic in the case of pipelines transporting hydrocarbons to industrial end users. MIC is notoriously difficult to detect and monitor and, as a consequence, is a particularly difficult corrosion mechanism to manage. Despite the advent of molecular tools and improved microbial monitoring strategies for oil and gas operations, specific underlying MIC mechanisms in pipelines remain largely enigmatic. Emerging mechanistic understanding of methanogenic MIC derived from pure culture work allowed us to develop a qPCR assay that distinguishes technically problematic from benign methanogens in a West African oil field. Detection of the same gene in geographically diverse samples from North America hints at the widespread applicability of this assay. The research presented here offers a step toward a mechanistic understanding of biocorrosion in oil fields and introduces a binary marker for (methanogenic) MIC that can find application in corrosion management programs in industrial settings.

EU Electricity Market Integration and Cross-Country Convergence in Residential and Industrial End-User Prices

EU Electricity Market Integration and Cross-Country Convergence in Residential and Industrial End-User Prices

Experimental and Numerical Assessment of a Novel All-In-One Adsorption Thermal Storage with Zeolite for Thermal Solar Applications

The paper discusses the performances of a novel all-in-one adsorption thermal storage based on steam vapour and zeolite 13X for industrial end-users. Steam production/condensation for the adsorption/desorption processes are executed within the same vacuum reactor, where the zeolite is heated and cooled by the thermal fluid which flows within a heat exchanger. Both experimental approach and numerical method are used to assess the behaviour and energy performances of the novel system. So, a medium-scale prototype was constructed and some experimental tests for the charging and discharging phases were carried out, producing useful data for the validation of a time-dependent model of the adsorption/desorption processes, which resulted very reliable in the simulation of the thermal storage system. The charging and discharging efficiency of thermal energy can reach values higher than 80% and 50%, respectively. The experimental campaign and the simulative activities highlighted some operative criticalities of the all-in-one thermal storage system and suggested some possible technical improvements to face and solve them.

Modular micro-trigeneration system for a novel rotatory solar Fresnel collector: A design space analysis

The aim of this paper is to study a new modular micro-scale trigeneration system based on a rotary Fresnel collector, named “SunDial”, under a restricted design space. This system is based on the integration of an organic Rankine cycle with a vapor compression heat pump using miniaturized turbomachinery. Four layouts areoed to maximize the energy supply according to different heat management strategies, as requested by potential end-users. In addition, a working fluid screening is carried out which has lead to the selection of two candidates: isobutane and propane. A consistent system performance metric has been defined in order to coherently asses the configurations conceived. Different degrees of integration between the power cycle and the heat pump are analyzed. The influence of power, heating and cooling supply on the global metrics are studied for each design. Finally, an energy flow sizing is presented for a 15 kWth solar thermal input SunDial module applied to different industrial end-users. Results show that isobutane is preferable when high shares of heating and cooling are required, whereas propane leads to higher power outputs.

Electricity Cost Optimization in Energy Storage Systems by Combining a Genetic Algorithm with Dynamic Programming

Recently, energy storage systems (ESSs) are becoming more important as renewable and microgrid technologies advance. ESSs can act as a buffer between generation and load and enable commercial and industrial end users to reduce their electricity expenses by controlling the charge/discharge amount. In this paper, to derive efficient charge/discharge schedules of ESSs based on time-of-use pricing with renewable energy, a combination of genetic algorithm and dynamic programming is proposed. The performance of the combined method is improved by adjusting the size of the base units of dynamic programming. We show the effectiveness of the proposed method by simulating experiments with load and generation profiles of various commercial electricity consumers.

Quantifying water-energy nexus for urban water systems: A case study of Addis Ababa city

The complex interdependency between water and energy poses new challenges for policymakers to achieve a safe, secure, and sustainable supply of water and energy in the future. The water-energy nexus can be typically characterized by efficient use of energy and water resources. Hence, this paper aims to explore quantitative results of the nexus in terms of energy intensity on existing water systems within urban water cycles. The energy requirement for water treatment and water conveying to the city (from Legadadi water treatment, Gefersa water treatment and wastewater treatment area) as well as the energy requirement for water distribution within the city were quantified. The energy intensity for groundwater extraction, water transmission and water distribution were computed using Energy Intensity method. This led to identify the best technologies to insure the security of water-energy nexus. The annual energy demand and energy intensity values for groundwater extraction were estimated to be 0.6 PJ and 1.2 kWh/m3 respectively. These values for operating all pumps in the water transmission were 0.13 PJ and 0.32 kWh/m3 respectively. Similarly, the energy intensity value for water distribution was 0.27 kWh/m3 and distributes water to residential, commercial and industrial end-users. Determining the energy intensity predicts the future energy demand in urban water system. In 2030 and 2050, the predicted energy demand will be 0.50 and 0.83 PJ respectively for water transmission whereas it will be 0.41 and 0.67 PJ for water distribution.

Repurposing Electricity Access Research for the Global South: A Tale of Many Disconnects

Download : Download high-res image (68KB) Download : Download full-size image Dr. Monyei is currently a research fellow on energy policy and sustainable decarbonization at the University of the West of England, where he works as a researcher and consultant on issues pertaining to sustainable energy systems modeling. Specifically, his research spans core electrical engineering, the social sciences, and computer science and focuses on sustainable development, integration of renewable energy systems, smart grid, applied artificial intelligence, energy efficiency, and the design of public policy to help facilitate easy access to electricity and improvement in the resilience of energization systems. Download : Download high-res image (117KB) Download : Download full-size image Kingsley O. Akpeji received his BSc(Eng) degree in Electrical & Electronic Engineering from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria in 2014 and the MSc(Eng) degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Cape Town (UCT) in 2019. He is currently a teaching and research assistant at the Department of Electrical Engineering, UCT. His passion for a just energy transition and the alleviation of energy poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa reflects in his research on decentralized electricity supply systems, cost of interruptions of electricity supply to commercial and industrial end-users, and sustainable electrification frameworks and policies.

Skill-based anytime agent architecture for European Robotics Challenges in realistic environments: EuRoC Challenge 2, Stage II — realistic labs

As demands on pragmatic solutions of robotics technology increase in the manufacturing industry, deep affinities between research experts and industry users are required. The European Robotics Challenges (EuRoC) research project has proposed a scientific competition and matched up research labs with industrial end users to establish challenger teams to develop and test solutions that will be applied in the real context of the industrial end-users. The paper reports the result of TIMAIRIS who is one of 6 challenger teams to advance to the final stage out of 103 teams and technical details used in the Challenge 2 - Shop Floor Logistics and Manipulation. To address the requirements and achieve the objectives of the challenge, a skill-based anytime agent architecture has been developed and extended to make the team focus on the challenging research that addresses real issues in the user environments. Finally, shop floor logistics and manipulation scenarios have been developed and demonstrated in a realistic environment for autonomous packaging.

Prognosis of product take-back for enhanced remanufacturing

Remanufacturing reduces final wastes to sinks, extraction of virgin materials and pollution from production processes by reinstating products taken back by end-users to satisfy part of overall demand. Product returns are delayed and possibly limited in periods of fast growth and excessive in the aftermath. Varying growth/demand and volatile take back by consumers and industrial end-users introduce uncertainty, regarding quantity and quality of returns. As remanufacturing expands, escalating competition for acquisition of high quality returns exacerbates uncertainty. Production planning and control for efficient remanufacturing depends on reliable prediction of quantity and quality of returns. A method is developed for prognosis of product return quantity and quality grades, as reflected by vintage flows. It is anchored on a law relating stock and end-of-life level, under random losses and arbitrary end-of-life distribution. Efficacy is tested via a model that describes stock and flows in reuse/remanufacturing, allowing for varying demand, random stock losses, random product returns with time-varying distributions and time-varying utilisation of product returns. Realisations are obtained by Marko-chain Monte-Carlo simulation. Inherently integral in nature, using scaled data and founded on rigorous balances, the method enables prognosis of returns and age-vintage flows, under realistic conditions, including unknown nonlinearities and non-stationarities. It features improved performance (mean absolute error less than one half) compared to leading methods in-use that employ black-box models with error-driven parameter adaptation (e.g. regression). Efficacy is particularly high at crucial peaks and lows (shortage or surplus periods) enabling resourceful planning of acquisition and inventory control of product returns towards sustainability.

Provision of Frequency Containment Reserve Through Large Industrial End-Users Pooling

This paper reports the recent work carried out to engage a pool of large industrial end-users in frequency control complying with the performance criteria of conventional generation. The pooling approach unites the benefits of continuous loads and staggered loads (discrete active power response). Based on a local measurement of the frequency, the primary control signal is dynamically reconstructed through a centrally managed automation infrastructure integrating the industrial constraints and the requirements of the transmission system operators (TSO). The regulation algorithm, minimizing the total number of up and down activations of the loads, as well as the regulation infrastructure, are presented and detailed. After a discussion of the practical implementation at three distant industrial sites, the response of the experimental installation of the pool is discussed through its performance measurements and assessment. From the industrial point of view, the overall regulation system is in operation, adding value to the power system and the end-users and is reported to be economically viable. The implemented entity has been certified by the French TSO RTE.

Scrap happens: A case of industrial end-users, maintenance and component remanufacturing outcome

Extended product life and reuse are cornerstones of the circular economy vision. Remanufacturing is one strategy that could be used to facilitate more reuse. Research on remanufacturing often addresses the use phase of a product from the perspective of the remanufacturer, not of the end-user of the product. Results are often described in terms of barriers and drivers, with end-user awareness of and trust in remanufactured products being common themes. It can be argued that such explanations are not sufficient for understanding why remanufacturing doesn't happen because they marginalize events during the use phase and the effects of end-user action.The study described here focuses on the use phase and the end-users’ role in product remanufacturing outcome. The study is based on the case of one type of mechanical component, prolific in industry and society at large, and ten of its end-users in heavy industry. The component is already remanufacturable and a functioning remanufacturing system for it is already in place, yet the bulk of used components are scrapped by end-users instead of being sent for remanufacturing. Interviews were conducted with maintenance personnel at ten paper, steel and cement factories. These personnel were asked how they determine when a component is obsolete and how they make decisions about whether to send them for remanufacturing. Responses were analyzed with the help of theories from maintenance management and decision-making.The analysis is presented as a conceptual model of the ‘End-user system’ of the component, in which complicating factors such as machine irregularities and tough work environments are mitigated by maintenance personnel with component replacement and remanufacturing protocols and where rigidities related to system-level risks and costs make it difficult for personnel to change. This study reveals the systemic nature of component remanufacturing outcomes, and specifically, how maintenance activities of both components and the machines around them influence such outcomes. Moreover, it highlights that while certain replacement protocols lend themselves to remanufacturing, convincing end-users to choose remanufactured products may be more difficult than just making them aware and confident in the remanufacturing offering.

Sustainable Potentials and Risks Assess in Automation and Robotization Using the Life Cycle Management Index Tool—LY-MIT

In product generation management, the assessment for sustainability, together with risks potential, requires a holistic life cycle management approach, especially when it comes to the question of obsolete management of components. But, so far, the economic impact or benefit of such life cycle related activities is not always obvious. This paper presents a complex approach to identify company unexploited resources by offering the performance exploration of a novel capability and innovative tool named the LifecYcle-Managerial Index Tool (LY-MIT), in order to allow detailed visualization for a company, using seven clustered capabilities in respect to key areas. The assisted analysis of the strength and weakness enables manufacturers, as well as industrial end-users, to sustainably assess and evaluate the productivity potentials and risks of possible life cycle related improvements to their installed base. The research team used the tool on almost 300 sample companies group to identify the robustness of the tool in implementing sustainable change required measurements, mostly based on a self-assessment questionnaire about their capabilities. Only the approach and the results of this instrument usage are presented in this paper.