Abstract
Integration of renewable generation in distribution systems aims to reduce consumption of energy from conventional sources such as coal and oil in order to minimize the negative impacts of the human ecological footprint. Massive incorporation of renewables can produce reverse power flow at distribution substations, which is against the operating philosophy and design of energy systems. To deal with this problem, the installation of a battery energy storage system (BESS) is proposed in this work. Incorporation of BESS at distribution substations can manage the excess of renewable power generation flowing in reverse, adding flexibility to the power system and allowing increased distributed generation capacity to be installed. Optimal sizing of vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) is carried out by using golden section search algorithm considering capital costs as well as operating and maintenance costs over the project lifetime. The effectiveness of the proposed technique is evaluated through the analysis of a case study. A significant reduction of both reverse flow and the power to be supplied by the substation has been observed.

Abstract
This study presents an assessment of the main research problems addressed in the literature on New Product Development (NPD) and its methodologies, for the pharmaceutical industry. The work is particularly focused on the establishment of an evolutionary perspective of the relevant modelling approaches, and on identifying the main current research challenges, considering the fast-changing business context of the industry. Main findings suggest a generalized misalignment of recent studies with today's technological and market trends, highlighting the need for new modelling strategies.

Abstract
This paper explores and compares three different plasmonic optical fibre sensor configurations, based on D-type and suspended core fibres combined with metallic nanowires, and investigates how their different geometrical parameters can affect the coupling between the guided optical mode supported by fibres and the localized plasmonic modes, and how that ultimately results in improved sensor performance. Fibre optical sensors based on plasmonic resonances with metallic nanostructures have revolutionized the field of optical sensing because they have permitted to obtain sharper and fine-tuned resonances with higher sensitivity. The essence for exploring the properties of localized plasmonic modes and their coupling with the optical guided mode depends not only on the choice of the materials employed in the device, but also on the geometry of the different components and their relative position, which ultimately determines the spatial distributions of optical power of the different modes and consequently their overlap and coupling. In this work, we use numerical simulations based on finite element methods to demonstrate the importance of shaping the features of the guided optical mode to promote the coupling with the localized modes, in the two types of fibres considered. The results clarify some of the fundamental aspects behind the operation of these devices and provide novel proposals for enhanced refractive index sensors.

Abstract
Virtual reality (VR) games have the potential to produce immersive experiences. To better explore the potential of VR games, it becomes necessary to understand what affects the player's presence in VR games. This work measures and compares the levels of presence and cybersickness in VR environments. Two games with different levels of interaction and narrative were compared. Presence and cybersickness were measured in a sample of 32 subjects using the IPQp questionnaire and a Portuguese version of the SSQ respectively. The results indicate that there were no differences in presence and cybersickness between the interaction and the narrative dimensions. To extend the study, the gender of participants was also considered an independent variable where we found significant differences in the metrics of presence and experienced realism, nausea and disorientation with female participants getting higher scores. © 2018 IEEE.

Abstract
To counter the intermittent nature of variable Renewable Energy Sources (vRESs), it is necessary to deploy new technologies that increase the flexibility dimension in distribution systems. In this framework, the current work presents an extensive analysis on the level of energy storage systems (ESSs) in order to add flexibility, and handle the intermittent nature of vRES. Moreover, this work provides an operational model to optimally manage a distribution system that encompasses large quantities of vRESs by means of ESSs. The model is of a stochastic mixed integer linear programming (WILY) nature, which uses a linearized AC optimal power flow network model. The standard IEEE 119-bus test system is used as a case study. Generally, numerical results show that ESSs enable a much bigger portion of the final energy consumption to be met by vRES power, generated locally.

Abstract
Mobile robot applications are increasing its usability in industries and services (examples: vacuum cleaning, painting and farming robots, among others). Some of the applications require that the robot moves in an environment between two positions while others require that the robot scans all the positions (Coverage Path Planning). Optimizing the traveled distance or the time to scan the path, should be done in order to reduce the costs. This paper addresses an optimization approach of the coverage path planning using Q-Learning algorithm. Comparison with other methods allows to validate the methodology.