| Records |
| Author |
Finizola e Silva, M.; Cools, J.; Cools, J.; Van Passel, S. |
| Title |
A systematic review identifying the drivers and barriers to the adoption of climate-smart agriculture by smallholder farmers in Africa |
Type |
Administrative Services |
| Year |
2024 |
Publication |
Frontiers in environmental economics |
Abbreviated Journal |
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| Volume |
3 |
Issue |
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Pages |
1356335-14 |
| Keywords |
Administrative Services; A3 Journal article; Economics; Engineering sciences. Technology; Engineering Management (ENM) |
| Abstract |
Climate change impact, food security concerns, and greenhouse gas emissions are pressuring agricultural production systems in developing countries. There is a need for a shift toward sustainable food systems. One of the concepts introduced to drive this shift is climate-smart agriculture (CSA), endorsed by international organizations to address multifaceted challenges. Despite widespread attention and support, the adoption of CSA among African farmers remains low. This systematic literature review aims to shed light on the factors influencing CSA adoption amongst African farmers. Within the articles identified as relevant, over 50 CSA practices and more than 40 factors influencing CSA adoption were distinguished. These influencing factors can be categorized as personal, farm- related, financial, environmental, and informational. The focus of this review is to identify and explain the overall impact (positive, negative, or mixed) of these factors on CSA adoption. Overall, many factors result in mixed effects, only some factors have an unambiguous positive or negative effect on CSA adoption. For instance, educational level emerges as a key personal factor, positively impacting CSA adoption, along with positive influences from farmers’ experience and farm size among farm-related factors. Financial factors reveal distinct patterns, with income from farming and access to credit positively influencing adoption, while off-farm income exhibits a negative effect. Environmental factors, though less researched, indicate positive impacts related to changes in rainfall patterns, temperature, and droughts. Lastly, informational factors consistently exhibit a positive effect on CSA adoption, with training, access to extension, group memberships, climate information, and CSA awareness playing crucial roles. These findings provide valuable insights for policymakers seeking to enhance CSA adoption in Africa, offering a nuanced understanding of the multifaceted dynamics at play. |
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Wos |
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Publication Date |
2024-04-03 |
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UA library record |
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Open Access |
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| Notes |
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Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:205017 |
Serial |
9233 |
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| Author |
Ramirez-Rojas, I. |
| Title |
Underground connections : the interplay between tropical rainforest trees and soil microbial communities |
Type |
Doctoral thesis |
| Year |
2024 |
Publication |
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Abbreviated Journal |
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| Volume |
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Issue |
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Pages |
205 p. |
| Keywords |
Doctoral thesis; Plant and Ecosystems (PLECO) – Ecology in a time of change |
| Abstract |
Tropical rainforests host an exceptional biodiversity and play a fundamental role in the regulation of global climatic cycles. Soil fungi and bacteria are key players in the transformation and processing of nutrients in terrestrial ecosystems while having an essential role as tree mutualists or antagonists. Still, there are gaps in our understanding of the main variables driving soil microbes on these forests and it is unclear how future climate change scenarios may impact soil microbes and further affect the ecosystem. In this thesis, we first explored the drivers of the microbial community composition in two pristine forests in French Guiana by using amplicon DNA sequencing. The neighboring tree species were found to be a crucial factor influencing the fungal and bacterial community composition at our sites regardless of the season. Additionally, within the environmental factors explored, soil moisture, phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) availability were consistently the main soil properties controlling the composition of soil microbial communities. Secondly, as increased nutrient deposition due to anthropogenic activities are expected to affect tropical forests ecosystems N and P availability, a factorial N and P nutrient addition experiment in the same sites was used to assess the effects of changes in the soil nutrient stoichiometry on the soil microbial communities. These results showed that after 3 years of nutrient additions, the bacterial and fungal community composition was affected by both the N and P additions. Besides, the fungal community composition had a stronger response to the nutrient addition, especially when P was added. Moreover, when the nutrient addition effect was assessed in bacteria and fungi with different life strategies, we found different nutrient optima between them. Furthermore, to study the effect of the connection to an existing mycorrhizal mycelium on tree seedlings, I established a mycelium exclusion experiment. Interestingly, we could not detect an effect of the mycorrhizal mycelium exclusion on the seedling N uptake, performance, or fungal community composition in roots after one year. All together this work provides a deeper understanding of the factors influencing the soil microbial communities on these lowland tropical forests, demonstrating that the tree community composition exerts a higher influence on the soil microbial community composition than previously expected. Moreover, our results show that the fungal and bacterial community composition and its relationship with trees in the vicinity is highly dependent on the ecosystem nutrient availability. |
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UA library record |
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Open Access |
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Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:204907 |
Serial |
9237 |
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| Author |
Li, L. |
| Title |
Untangling microbial community assembly in rainforest and grassland soils under increasing precipitation persistence |
Type |
Doctoral thesis |
| Year |
2023 |
Publication |
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Abbreviated Journal |
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| Volume |
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Issue |
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Pages |
179 p. |
| Keywords |
Doctoral thesis; Integrated Molecular Plant Physiology Research (IMPRES); Plant and Ecosystems (PLECO) – Ecology in a time of change |
| Abstract |
Climate change is causing alterations in precipitation patterns, leading to adverse ecological consequences in many ecosystems. Recently, an increasingly persistent weather pattern has emerged, characterized by lengthening the duration of alternating dry and wet periods, which is more complex than exclusively drought or increasing precipitation. It is currently unclear how soil microbial communities respond to these new regimes in relation to their interactions with plants, especially in precipitation-sensitive ecosystems, such as tropical rainforests and grasslands. In this thesis, we explored responses of soil bacterial and fungal communities to increasing weather persistence in rainforests and grasslands, using high throughput sequencing technology. We firstly investigated the resistance and resilience of microbial communities to prolonged drought in a mature seasonal tropical rainforest which experiences unusually intensive dry seasons in the current century. Through excluding rainfall during and after the dry season, a simulated prolongation of the dry season by five months was compared to the control. Our results indicate that as rain exclusion progressed, the microbial communities increasingly diverged from the control, indicating a moderate resistance to prolonged drought. However, when the drought ceased, the composition and co-occurrence patterns of soil microbial communities immediately recovered to that in the control, implying a high resilience. To further investigate the ecological roles of soil microbial communities in response to increasing weather persistence, we set up grassland mesocosm experiments. In these experiments, precipitation frequency was adjusted along a series, ranging from 1 to 60 consecutive days alternating of dry and wet periods, while keeping the total precipitation constant. Our results show that microbial community assembly tended to be more stochastic processes at intermediate persistence of dry and wet alternations while more deterministic processes dominated at low and high persistence within 120 days regime exposure. Moreover, more persistent precipitation reduced the fungal diversity and network connectivity but barely impacted that of bacterial communities. The prior experiences of persistent weather events for one year caused legacy effects. The soil microbial legacy induced by soil microbial communities subjected to prior persistent weather events was more enduring in subsequent fungal communities than bacterial communities, likely due to slower growth of fungi compared to bacteria. However, a minor effect of soil microbial legacy was observed on plant performance. In addition, we kept the grassland mesocosm experiment for two growing seasons. The effects of precipitation persistence on soil microbial communities increased in the second year. The dissimilarities of microbial communities between the first and second year were less with more persistent precipitation, potentially resulting in more vulnerable microbial communities, due to some taxa disappearing and a reduction in functional redundancy under more persistent weather. To conclude, our findings provide a comprehensive theoretical understanding of soil microbial communities in response to the current and future climate change, drawing from both natural and experimental systems. It helps in predicting and managing the impacts of future climate change on ecosystems mediated by microbial communities. Additionally, the findings of microbe-mediated legacy effects on grassland ecosystems can provide practical guidance for their application in agriculture, specifically for using an inoculum to mitigate the impacts of climate change. |
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UA library record |
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Open Access |
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Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:198498 |
Serial |
9240 |
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| Author |
Montiel, F.N. |
| Title |
Voltage against illicit drug trafficking : capabilities of electrochemical fingerprinting to detect illicit drugs |
Type |
Doctoral thesis |
| Year |
2024 |
Publication |
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Abbreviated Journal |
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| Volume |
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Issue |
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Pages |
256 p. |
| Keywords |
Doctoral thesis; Pharmacology. Therapy; Engineering sciences. Technology; Antwerp Electrochemical and Analytical Sciences Lab (A-Sense Lab) |
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Additional Links |
UA library record |
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Times cited |
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Open Access |
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| Notes |
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Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:204707 |
Serial |
9243 |
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| Author |
Vanden Abeele, M.M.P.; Vandebosch, H.; Koster, E.H.W.; De Leyn, T.; Van Gaeveren, K.; de Segovia Vicente, D.; Van Bruyssel, S.; van Timmeren, T.; De Marez, L.; Poels, K.; DeSmet, A.; De Wever, B.; Verbruggen, M.; Baillien, E. |
| Title |
Why, how, when, and for whom does digital disconnection work? A process-based framework of digital disconnection |
Type |
A1 Journal article |
| Year |
2024 |
Publication |
Communication theory |
Abbreviated Journal |
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| Volume |
34 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
3-17 |
| Keywords |
A1 Journal article; Mass communications; Media, ICT and interpersonal relations in Organisations and Society (MIOS) |
| Abstract |
Digital disconnection has emerged as a concept describing the actions people take to limit their digital connectivity to enhance their well-being. To date, evidence on its effectiveness is mixed, leading to calls for greater consideration of why, how, when, and for whom digital disconnection works. This article responds to these calls, presenting a framework that differentiates four key harms that contribute to experiences of digital ill-being (time displacement, interference, role blurring, and exposure effects). Using these four harms as a starting point, the framework explains: (1) why people are motivated to digitally disconnect; (2) how specific disconnection strategies (i.e., placing limits on time, access, channels, and contents, interactions and features) may help them; and for whom (3) and under which conditions (when) these strategies can be effective. |
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Wos |
001154547700001 |
Publication Date |
2024-02-01 |
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Abbreviated Series Title |
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Series Issue |
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Edition |
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| ISSN |
1050-3293; 1468-2885 |
ISBN |
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Additional Links |
UA library record; WoS full record |
| Impact Factor |
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Times cited |
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Open Access |
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| Notes |
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Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:203874 |
Serial |
9245 |
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| Author |
Kuppens, T.; Van Dael, M.; Maggen, J.; Vanreppelen, K.; Yperman, J.; Carleer, R.; Elen, H.; Van Passel, S. |
| Title |
Techno-economic assessment of different conversion pathways for pyrolysis char from pig manure |
Type |
P1 Proceeding |
| Year |
2014 |
Publication |
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Abbreviated Journal |
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| Volume |
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Issue |
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Pages |
901-911 |
| Keywords |
P1 Proceeding; Engineering sciences. Technology |
| Abstract |
The amount of animal manure that can be brought back to agricultural land is limited by legislation. Because pig manure is available in too large quantities in some areas, we investigate the techno-economic feasibility of converting it into valuable products. First, slurry is separated in water, a thick fraction and a fertilizer concentrate poor in phosphate. Then, the thick fraction is dried and pyrolyzed. Our goal is to identify the optimal pyrolysis and activation conditions for the production of biochar or activated carbon. The latter has interesting adsorption characteristics due to the presence of nitrogen. It can also be used as a soil amendment as it improves biomass quantity and quality. On top, it immobilizes toxic elements and stores carbon in the soil. Char thus has many interesting characteristics and can be valued in different ways. The economic feasibility has been explored by a first techno-economic modelling iteration. The critical factors influencing the feasibility are identified by Monte Carlo simulations for further improvement of the process design. |
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Abbreviated Series Title |
22nd European Biomass Conference and Exhibition : Setting the Course for a Biobased Economy, 23-26 June 2014, Hamburg, Germany : conference proceedings |
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Additional Links |
UA library record; WoS full record |
| Impact Factor |
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Times cited |
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Open Access |
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| Notes |
; ; |
Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:127546 |
Serial |
6263 |
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| Author |
Kuppens, T.; Van Dael, M.; Vanreppelen, K.; Carleer, R.; Yperman, J.; Schreurs, S.; Van Passel, S. |
| Title |
Techno-economic assessment of pyrolysis char production and application : a review |
Type |
P1 Proceeding |
| Year |
2014 |
Publication |
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Abbreviated Journal |
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Issue |
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Pages |
67-72 |
| Keywords |
P1 Proceeding; Engineering sciences. Technology |
| Abstract |
Many organic residue streams such as pig manure are not or inefficiently used, although they can be converted into valuable materials, as well as energy, using pyrolysis. The yield of the pyrolysis products (i.e. oil, gas and char) is dependent on the process conditions and the feedstock used. Char as a soil amendment or activated carbon are interesting options for valorization of biomass residues. Here, a review is presented of the techno-economic potential of both valorization options based on literature and own experiments with wood from phytoremediation, particle board and waste from beer production. The term “biochar” is specifically used to designate pyrolysis char that is intentionally applied to soil in order to enhance its structure and fertility. Biochar applications are often also motivated by the objective of climate change mitigation. Two main disadvantages for the economic feasibility of biochar applications have been discerned. Firstly, carbon sequestration in agricultural crops and soils is not yet eligible under the Clean Development Mechanism. Secondly, the impact of biochar on crop productivity is unclear. Activated carbon (AC) seems to have interesting adsorption characteristics resulting in potentially high sales prices. A preliminary techno-economic assessment showed that AC production is preferred above oil production for wood from phytoremediation as long as the market price of 2 kEUR.t(-1) for commercially available ACs can be attained. Whenever a feedstock with high nitrogen content is available (e.g. particle board with melamine urea formaldehyde resin), even higher market prices might be attained. This study shows that valorization of the pyrolysis char might be an answer to the slow adoption of pyrolysis in commercial applications. Focus in research and development, for instance in future research with regard to pig manure valorization, should therefore be on sustainable products with high economic value and direct utilization potential. |
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Wos |
000346540000012 |
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Abbreviated Series Title |
International Conference on BioMass (iconBM 2014), 4-7 May 2014, Florence, Italy / Ranzi, Eliseo [edit.]; et al. |
| Series Volume |
37 |
Series Issue |
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Edition |
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| ISSN |
978-88-95608-28-0 |
ISBN |
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Additional Links |
UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles |
| Impact Factor |
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Times cited |
8 |
Open Access |
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| Notes |
; ; |
Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:127547 |
Serial |
6265 |
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| Author |
Einhäupl, P.; Krook, J.; Svensson, N.; Van Acker, K.; Van Passel, S. |
| Title |
Enhanced landfill mining at the REMO site : assessing stakeholders' perspectives for implementation |
Type |
P3 Proceeding |
| Year |
2018 |
Publication |
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Abbreviated Journal |
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Issue |
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Pages |
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P3 Proceeding; Engineering sciences. Technology; Engineering Management (ENM) |
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Abbreviated Series Title |
Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium on Enhanced Landfill Mining, February 5-6, 2018, Mechelen, Belgium / Jones, Peter Tom [edit.]; Machiels, Lieven [edit.] |
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Series Issue |
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Edition |
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ISBN |
978-90-828259-0-9 |
Additional Links |
UA library record |
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Times cited |
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Open Access |
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| Notes |
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Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:161512 |
Serial |
6194 |
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| Author |
Saviuc, I.; Van Passel, S.; Peremans, H. |
| Title |
Integrating PV+battery residential microgrids in distribution networks : how is the point of common coupling agreed upon? |
Type |
H1 Book chapter |
| Year |
2020 |
Publication |
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Abbreviated Journal |
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Issue |
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Pages |
150-164 |
| Keywords |
H1 Book chapter; Economics; Engineering sciences. Technology; Engineering Management (ENM) |
| Abstract |
The anticipated development of decentralized electricity generation is expected to strengthen the opportunities of prosumers in the residential areas of cities, in line with the predicted establishment of renewable energy generation and storage. Based on academic research and on successful case studies, the opportunity for residential prosumers to organize in microgrids emerges as a viable and promising solution. This paper focuses on microgrids that are planned to generate electricity with a PV unit and use a shared storage system, and that opt to have a connection with the main grid. However, the point of common coupling needs to be agreed first between the microgrid operator and the network operator, and this agreement is determined by several factors and conditions beyond the basic technical and regulatory requirements. A survey of academic literature on the determinant factors for such an agreement exposes the fact that current research either focuses on the integration of individual prosumers in the main grid, or regards the point of common coupling as a given component of microgrids. We argue that neither of the two approaches is helpful in the case of microgrids vs. main grid, seeing as the agreement is not self-evident under just any circumstances, nor can the microgrid be equated to a single, large prosumer. Therefore this short paper compiles a set of determinant factors for the microgrid integration, as they emerge from academic literature, with the aim to document further research needs and support the discussion on microgrid integration. |
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Publication Date |
2020-04-08 |
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Series Title |
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Abbreviated Series Title |
Sustainable Energy for Smart Cities : First EAI International Conference, SESC 2019, Braga, Portugal, December 4–6, 2019: proceedings |
| Series Volume |
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Series Issue |
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Edition |
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ISBN |
978-3-030-45693-1 |
Additional Links |
UA library record |
| Impact Factor |
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Times cited |
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Open Access |
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| Notes |
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Approved |
Most recent IF: NA |
| Call Number |
UA @ admin @ c:irua:168515 |
Serial |
6932 |
| Permanent link to this record |
