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The paper reports an investigation on the requirement of fare increment for achieving the operational viability of private buses in the context of an emerging country. Taking an existing route in Kolkata city which is served by private buses, several scenarios were investigated to achieve the viability of service through interventions in fare, design of service, and supply of buses. A simulation framework was used for the evaluation of various scenarios. The study brings out new evidences to question the conventional approach of increasing the bus fare to satisfy the operational viability. It is shown that the fare and the revenue requirements are distorted due to the oversupply of buses and non-optimal service. The analysis shows that even with the present fare, it is possible to resolve the viability issue by optimizing the service and supply. The results presented in the paper are case specific but are likely to encourage policy makers to carry out similar investigations in other cities in India as well as in other developing countries to improve urban bus service without putting an additional burden on the users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A lecture theatre with dimension 16m×8.4m×3.6m located at Roorkee (28.58°N, 77.20°E) in the northern region of India, is selected to calculate the monthly and annual cooling load (kWh) and cooling capacity of air conditioning system by a computer simulation. The paper also presents the results of a study investigating the effect of different glazing systems on windows and the reduction in building cooling load. DesignBuilder software has been used for the computer simulation for calculating the cooling load. The paper aims to investigate the reduction in thermal gains and cooling load requirements by varying the U-values of different glazing types, insulating the ceiling, providing cool roofs, interior and exterior insulation on walls, and replacing the conventional fluorescent tube lamp (FTL) by energy efficient compact fluorescent lamp (CFL). Installation of false ceiling, wall insulation, different glazing types and lighting systems are cost effective with normalized annual saving ranging from 17% to 19.8% from this retrofitting project. Furthermore, the study also highlights the potential of reducing the emission of CO2 and equivalent carbon credit. Retrofitting techniques strongly influence the level of energy saving, although the payback period is generally quite long of order 8years. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In tropical countries such as India, increasing the roof albedo helps to reduce the heat ingress through the roof. This further reduces air-conditioning energy consumption in conditioned buildings and increases comfort in unconditioned buildings. In order to help users determine the benefits of high albedo roofs under varying conditions, a simple calculator has been developed. Parameters such as location, building type, roof area, and surface properties of the roof are taken as inputs. Annual EnergyPlus simulations are performed for the given parameters and the results are displayed in both graphical and tabular formats. It also calculates the simple payback by comparing a given base case roof albedo with the proposed roof albedo. The calculator can perform comfort simulations for unconditioned buildings and simulates measures including a radiant barrier system and under deck roof insulation. The calculator also runs a parametric simulation between insulation thickness and roof albedo to find an optimum roof insulation thickness based on incremental internal rate of return. This paper presents the features of the cool roof calculator and the type of analysis that can be performed using the cached results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Overall Index of Pollution (OIP) is a single number that expresses the overall water quality by integrating measurements of 14 different physicochemical, toxicological, and bacteriological water quality parameters. It provides a simple and concise method for water quality classification as, ‘Excellent’, ‘Acceptable’, ‘Slightly Polluted’, ‘Polluted’, and ‘Heavily Polluted’. OIP values range from 0 to 16. A high OIP value signals poor water quality, while a low value signals good water quality based on the classification scheme developed for India. In this paper, we present a computer-automated, user-friendly, and standalone Surface Water Quality Assessment Tool (SWQAT), which calculates OIP values and displays it on Google map. The software is developed in VB.Net and SQL database. The software application is demonstrated through water quality assessment of two rivers of India, namely Cauvery and Tungabhadra. OIP values are estimated at 10 sampling stations on the river Cauvery and at eight sampling stations on the river Tungabhadra. The Cauvery river OIP scores in the range 0.85–7.91 while for Tungabhadra river, it is in range 2.08 to 8.97. The results are useful to analyze the variations in the water quality of different sites at different times. SWQAT improves understanding of general water quality issues, communicates water quality status, and draws the need for and effectiveness of protection measures. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents the results of the application of model (developed in part I) and simulation algorithm (developed in part II) for determining the techno-economics of battery storage type hybrid energy system intended to supply the load of a rural remote area having a cluster of nine villages (grid isolated). The hour-by-hour simulation model is intended to simulate a typical one month period of system operation. For simulation purpose, hourly solar insolation data and load data have been generated and used as an input data. Demand side management (DSM) is used in this study to smooth out the daily peaks and fill valleys in the load curve to make the most efficient use of energy sources. The economic analysis has resulted in the calculation of optimized hourly, daily, and monthly system unit cost of proposed hybrid energy system. The obtained results represent also a helpful reference for energy planners in Uttarakhand state and justify the consideration of hybrid energy systems more seriously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]