Suchergebnisse

The strong political market drive towards energy savings in the building sector calls for efficient solutions. Using so called low temperature heating and high temperature cooling systems such as for instance thermally activated building systems (TABS) has a significant impact on the required energy source. With TABS it is possible to utilize otherwise insufficient energy sources such as waste heat or ground coupled heat exchangers. Today simulation of TABS is possible with most building simulation tools. However such simulations are rather time consuming and cost intensive. It would be beneficial to have a tool that can be used to assess the general usability of TABS considering only rough boundary conditions. The Simple Simulation Tool in combination with the Climate Classification for TABS introduced in this thesis offer this solution. The Simple Simulation Tool has proven to be a valid tool for the early assessment for the use of TABS in modern Buildings. Not only is it possible to runs simulations in accordance to ISO 11855-4 but also to determine the minimal required plant sizes for cooling, the duration until overheating, the maximum internal temperatures for insufficient plant sizes (using a simplified heat loss approach) and the maximum allowed cooling power to prevent undercooling. The climate Classification can be used to predict the building behaviour throughout Europe. Based on a very select number of building characteristics it can be seen if heating, cooling or both will be mostly needed to operate the building within acceptable boundaries. It will also allow the user to see if dehumidification will be needed for undisturbed operation of TABS. With the combination of both tools it is possible to provide a holistic evaluation of a building proposal at a very early design stage.

Increased concerns over global warming and air pollution has pushed governments to consider renewable energy as an alternative to meet the required energy demands of countries. Many government policies are deployed in Taiwan to promote solar and wind energy to cope with air pollution and self-dependency for energy generation. However, the residential sector contribution is not significant despite higher feed-in tariff rates set by government. This study analyzes wind and solar power availability of four different locations of southern Taiwan, based on the Kö ; ppen&ndash ; Geiger climate classification system. The solar&ndash ; wind hybrid system (SWHS) considered in this study consists of multi-crystalline photovoltaic (PV) modules, vertical wind turbines, inverters and batteries. Global reanalysis weather data and a climate-based electricity load profile at a 1-h resolution was used for the simulation. A general framework for multi-objective optimization using this simulation technique is proposed for solar&ndash ; wind hybrid system, considering the feed-in tariff regulations, environmental regulations and installation area constraints of Taiwan. The hourly load profile is selected using a climate classification system. A decomposition-based differential evolutionary algorithm is used for finding the optimal Pareto set of two economic objectives and one environmental objective with maximum installation area and maximum PV capacity constraints. Two types of buildings are chosen for analysis at four climate locations. Analysis of Pareto sets revealed that the photovoltaic modules are economic options for a grid-connected mode at all four locations, whereas solar&ndash ; wind hybrid systems are more environmentally friendly. A method of finding the fitness index for the Pareto front sets and a balanced strategy for choosing the optimal configuration is proposed. The proposed balanced strategy provides savings to users&mdash ; up to 49% for urban residential buildings and up to 32% for rural residential buildings with respect to buildings without a hybrid energy system (HES)&mdash ; while keeping carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions lower than 50% for the total project lifecycle time of 20 years. The case study reveals that for all four locations and two building types an HES system comprising a 15 kW photovoltaic system and a small capacity battery bank provides the optimal balance between economic and environmental objectives.

As the expanding post-civil rights multiracial population is likely to transform the demographics of American colleges and universities, its perceived growth is also misused to advance neo-conservative agendas and post-racial views about the declining significance of race. Politicized issues around multiraciality frame and impact the campus climate for diversity, but research is scant on the climate for multiracial students. This thesis uses a three-article format to develop an Integrative Model of Multiraciality (IMM) and apply it to examine interpersonal and institutional dimensions of campus climate. The first article constructs the IMM from extant literature and theorizes racialization processes for multiracial students in college contexts. The IMM depicts that racialized experiences of campus climate vary based on racial classification, which is informed by physical appearance, ancestry, socioeconomic status, cultural knowledge, interest convergence with monoracially-constructed groups, and the fluidity of peer culture. The second study uses a quantitative methodology to look at how racially classifying students who mark two-or-more racial categories changes racial groups' representations of experiencing discrimination and bias in college at fourteen institutions across the United States. When aggregated into a single group, students who mark two or more racial categories experience discrimination more frequently than students who only indicate a white background, suggesting mixed race students do not occupy an "honorary white" status as might commonly be assumed. However, double minority multiracial students have higher frequencies of discrimination than minority/white multiracial students, indicating that relative whiteness may result in comparative privilege for the latter group. The final study applies the IMM to interviews with fourteen multiracial undergraduates at a single campus to show how perceptions of multiple racisms in organizational campus structures vary based on socioeconomic status, white cultural knowledge, and whether or not they publicly identify with student organizations reflecting their non-white background(s), which were more important than racial ancestry in climate perceptions. Similarities and differences in the quality of campus climate for multiraciality emerge in each study, allowing these students to be examined both as a group and as members of their respective monoracially-constructed groups. The articles critically connect racial theory, classification, and campus climate. This research gives voice to multiracially-identifying students and their poignant experiences around race and racism in college with implications for further research and institutional practice for developing inclusive campuses.

AbstractThis article examines legal aspects of climate-induced forced displacement in the Sahel region of North Africa. The Sahel region is being adversely affected by climate change, leading to the displacement of thousands of people, both cross-border migrants and internally displaced persons (IDPs). The conventional stance is that refugee status does not extend to individuals displaced as a result of natural or environmental catastrophes and that consequently a normative gap exists in international refugee law. However, the position in international law may not be as clear-cut as this conventional view assumes, in light of recent trends which are moving towards the recognition of the rights of such displaced people. It seems clear that under the terms of the 1951 Refugee Convention, such people are excluded from refugee status, and while the situation is less obvious under the Organisation of African Unity Convention on Refugees in Africa, it appears that the end result is the same, although there seems to be an increasing desire for recognition of refugee status under that treaty. Other regional treaties are also taking tentative steps in this direction; the Kampala Convention on IDPs is especially noteworthy because it makes express references to circumstances such as natural disasters. A human rights approach may offer hope to displaced people, since climate change can impact on a number of rights – particularly significant is the decision of the UN Human Rights Committee in Teitiota v. New Zealand which acknowledged the harmful impact of climate change. The response, legislative and otherwise, of five Sahel States towards forcibly displaced persons is examined in this article.

A growing body of scholarship investigates the role of misinformation in shaping the debate on climate change. Our research builds on and extends this literature by (1) developing and validating a comprehensive taxonomy of climate contrarianism, (2) conducting the largest content analysis to date on contrarian claims, (3) developing a computational model to accurately classify specific claims, and (4) drawing on an extensive corpus from conservative think-tank (CTTs) websites and contrarian blogs to construct a detailed history of claims over the past 20 years. Our study finds that the claims utilized by CTTs and contrarian blogs have focused on attacking the integrity of climate science and scientists and, increasingly, has challenged climate policy and renewable energy. We further demonstrate the utility of our approach by exploring the influence of corporate and foundation funding on the production and dissemination of specific contrarian claims.

ABSTRACTThe aim of this paper is to present a multi‐criteria classification approach for identifying world climates that are favourable to light tourism. We use a multi‐criteria aggregation method, Electre Tri‐nC, to assign over 60 000 world locations to one of four climate categories ranging from unfavourable to ideal. The motivations behind this work are to remedy to some of the methodological problems in composite indices such as the Tourism Climatic Index, where a weighted sum is computed using ordinal data. We present our results for the summer month of August on the basis of the years 1961–1990 derived from the CRU CL 1.0 climate database of New et al. (1999). In addition to being theoretically sound, our approach uses the original, virtually untransformed, continuous data thereby avoiding loss of information. It also minimizes the compensation effects and makes it possible to take into account additional criteria to cater to various tourism contexts with various decision maker profiles. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Abstract. Wave climates are fundamental drivers of coastal vulnerability; changing trends in wave heights, periods and directions can severely impact a coastline. In a diverse storm environment, the changes in these parameters are difficult to detect and quantify. Since wave climates are linked to atmospheric circulation patterns, an automated and objective classification scheme was developed to explore links between synoptic-scale circulation patterns and wave climate variables, specifically wave heights. The algorithm uses a set of objective functions based on wave heights to guide the classification and find atmospheric classes with strong links to wave behaviour. Spatially distributed fuzzy numbers define the classes and are used to detect locally high- and low-pressure anomalies. Classes are derived through a process of simulated annealing. The optimized classification focuses on extreme wave events. The east coast of South Africa was used as a case study. The results show that three dominant patterns drive extreme wave events. The circulation patterns exhibit some seasonality with one pattern present throughout the year. Some 50–80% of the extreme wave events are explained by these three patterns. It is evident that strong low-pressure anomalies east of the country drive a wind towards the KwaZulu-Natal coastline which results in extreme wave conditions. We conclude that the methodology can be used to link circulation patterns to wave heights within a diverse storm environment. The circulation patterns agree with qualitative observations of wave climate drivers. There are applications to the assessment of coastal vulnerability and the management of coastlines worldwide.

Abstract. Manual snowpack observations are an important component of avalanche hazard assessment for the Swiss avalanche forecasting service. Approximately 900 snow profiles are observed each winter, in flat study plots or on representative slopes. So far, these profiles have been manually classified combining both information on snow stability (e.g. Rutschblock test) and snowpack structure (e.g. layering, hardness). To separate the classification of snowpack stability and structure, and also to reduce inconsistencies in ratings between forecasters, we developed and tested an automatic approach to classify profiles by snowpack structure during two winters. The automatic classification is based on a calculated index, which consists of three components: properties of (1) the slab (thickness), (2) weakest layer interface and (3) the percentage of the snowpack which is soft, coarse-grained and consists of persistent grain types. The latter two indices are strongly based on criteria described in the threshold sum approach. The new snowpack structure index allows a consistent comparison of snowpack structure to detect regional patterns, seasonal or inter-annual differences but may also supplement snow-climate classifications.

International audience ; This chapter explores the challenging terrain of images and scientific visualisations as a way of investigating and understanding climate and climate change within the context of society and culture. I retain the notions of images and visualisations here, as opposed to representation, in order to avoid the numerous metaphysical connotations the action of 're-presenting'may imply (Rheinberger 2001). Visualisation in the context of climate change is thus understood as a means of knowledge construction, and it necessarily implies imagination, political sensibilities, as well as material actions. My focus here will be on spatial visualisations of climate in the form of maps and in particular the history of climate classifications. The study draws mainly on a systematic investigation of several important scientific map collections, complemented by careful readings of several influential scientific treaties on meteorology and climate, as well as a critical survey of the available historical literature on climate and its cultural understandings. 1 Some of the questions I would like to address here are: What would a longue durée history of climate visualisations look like? What can graphs and maps tell us about a changing climate and its history? And more importantly, what can we learn from such a longue durée visual perspective, in particular within the contemporary context of anthropogenic climate change?

The climate parameters of rainfall, and average of maximum and minimum temperature were investigated for the period of 2000-2019 in three stations in central and eastern Iraq (Baghdad, Diyala, and Kut provinces). Evidence of climate change was noticed from the results, reflected by decreased mean values of annual rainfall with increased mean of maximum and minimum temperature. In addition, the water balance and the climatic conditions were determined for Khanaqin station for the years 1981-2019. The analysis of Khanaqin climate parameters demonstrated total annual mean values of rainfall of 260.86mm and evaporation of 3119.59mm. The mean monthly relative humidity was 46.65%, sunshine was 8.39h/day, temperature was 23.36Co and wind speed was 1.86m/sec. Water surplus was recorded in Khanaqin area, with values of (24.00mm) (34.18mm) (40.31mm) (28.83mm) and (19.92mm) in November, December, January, February and March respectively. The climate classification of Khanaqin area indicated semi dry and dry climates. Moreover, the region has water deficit that reached up to 43.56 % of the total rainfall values.