Computational Tools

In this report, we examine current and proposed IT initiatives being undertaken by HESCOM, and suggest changes in the technology design as well as a roadmap for IT initiatives. The focus is not on technology details but high-level design and integration of these into the business processes and institutional frameworks of the utility. This effort is mindful of and compatible with R-APDRP initiatives, including those by the Empanelled IT Consultants.

Ensuring the long-term usability of engineering informatics (EI) artifacts is a challenge, particularly for products with longer lifecycles than the computing hardware and software used for their design and manufacture.Addressing this challenge requires characterizing the nature of EI, defining metrics for EI sustainability, and developing methods for long-term EI curation.In this paper we highlight various issues related to long-term archival of EI and describe the work towards methods and metrics for sustaining EI We propose an approach to enhance the Open Archival Information System (OAI

This paper introduces a framework to examine the relative effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of different information and communications technologies to deliver a range of social services, using a case example of rural Bangladesh. It focuses particularly on major sectors such as agriculture, education, disaster response and healthcare. A Community based radio broadcasting (CR) appears as the dominant option among the considered ICTs. Human intervention has been found to be crucial in both low (20%) and medium-high (60%) literacy populations.

This paper is concerned with the economic trade-offs associated with open-sourcing, the business strategy of releasing the source code of a commercial software product. We model open-sourcing as a strategic option for firms that compete in the market for software products. At the core of our model is the effect of open-sourcing on customer values, as well as the relative ease of customizing the open-source products.We show that open-sourcing can arise as an equilibrium outcome in our two-stage game.

Closed Loop Brayton cycle power plants using supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO2) have drawn the attention of many researchers in recent times. In this power plant (using heat source from either solar or nuclear),one of the main challenges is the design of the prime mover, namely the turbine. Radial Inflow Turbine (RIT) is found to be a suitable candidate as it has many advantages over Axial Flow TurbinesTechnologies used for the design of RIT for air Brayton cycle are well established.

Access to electricity can bring about a transformative change in the economic conditions and growth of any country. Decentralised solar energy solutions like solar lanterns, solar home lighting systems, rooftop Photovoltaic (PV) systems, and solar micro-grids and mini-grids have been in use for quite some time. In this study, for select sites considered in Karnataka, we analysed the feasibility of Solar PV Micro Grids (SPVMGs), considering its potential as a promising solution for electrifying rural homes and villages.

For the last couple of years, photovoltaics (PV) has been the preferred choice of technology for harnessing solar energy against Concentrated Solar Power (CSP). The major issue bogging down CSP is that it is not economical as compared to PV. Emerging technologies such as s-CO2 and Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) could be the saviour for CSP going forward. To understand the techno-economics of a solar-ORC system, CSTEP and Indian Institute of Science (IISc), under SERIIUS project, worked together in assessing a low-temperature solar ORC system for off-grid applications.

The study of networks has grown recently, but most existing models fail to capture the costs or loss of value of exclusion from the network. Intuitively, as a network grows in size and value, those outside the network face growing disparities. We present a new framework for modeling network exclusion, showing that costs of exclusion can be absolute, and might, at the extreme, eventually grow exponentially, regardless of underlying network structure.