ABSTRACT
Extreme disruptive scenarios such as pandemic lockdown force people to alter regular daily routines, impacting their energy consumption pattern. The implication of such a disruptive scenario for a more extended period on energy consumption is uncertain. This study aimed to investigate the impact of COVID-19 lockdown on residential electricity consumption in 100 houses from the southwestern UK. For the study, we analysed highly granular (1-minutely) electricity consumption data for April-September 2020 compared to the same months in 2019 for the same houses. Our study showed statistically significant differences during the lockdown period (the analysed six months) in energy demand. The minutely average electricity demand was 1.4-10% lower during April-September 2020 than in 2019. Our analysis showed that not all houses had similar type of changes during the lockdown. Some houses demonstrated a 38% increase in electricity demand, whereas some houses showed a 54% reduction during the lockdown period compared to 2019. Some houses showed significantly higher electricity use during the morning and afternoon than in 2019, which might be due to working and schooling from homes during the lockdown. © International Building Performance Simulation Association, 2022
ABSTRACT
In the midst of a huge demand for high-precision miniaturized medical implants made up of potential biomaterials, the biomedical Ti-6Al-4V alloy meets the uncompromising standards for longevity, biocompatibility, and sterilizability required to interact with living cells in medical settings. This research tailored the existing capabilities of a traditional micro-electric discharge machining (μ-EDM) setup by adding 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 g/l bioactive zinc powder particle concentrations (PPCs) to the dielectric. A copper and brass micro-tool electrode (C-μ-TE and B-μ-TE) was employed in association with each PPC. Experiments were executed using the one-variable-at-a-time (OVAT) approach. Machining time and dimensional deviation were chosen as the response variables of Zn powder mixed-micro-EDM (Zn-PM-μ-EDM). According to the analytical findings, the combination of C-μ-TE and 6 g/l Zn PPC achieved 23.52%, 3.29%, and 17.96% lesser machining time, dimensional deviation, and recast layer thickness, respectively, compared to the B-μ-TE. The detailed study of this surface endorsed a significant modification in terms of improved recast layer thickness (26.44 μm), topography (Ra = 743.65 nm), and wettability (contact angle < 90 deg), suggesting its dental application. In addition, the observation of ZnO and TiO in X-ray diffraction and appealing in vitro cytocompatibility encourage the subsequent biological and therapeutic studies to validate the anticipated antiviral activity of the modified Ti-6Al-4V alloy surface against coronavirus (COVID-19). © 2021 International Union of Crystallography. All rights reserved.