Abstract
The quality and composition of biomass as used in Portugal's thermal power plants is highly variable. The biomass consists mainly of residual forest biomass derived from forestry operations and wood waste from industrial processes, in particular paper and pulp industry. Its quality and composition is influenced by the presence of moisture and inert fragments, the latter being incorporated during collection or as a consequence of adherence to the biomass prior to collection. This variability presents difficulties for the thermal power plants; besides being an additional operational cost, the presence of large amounts of water and inerts in biomass used as a fuel, can result in problems related to the instability of the combustion and the accumulation of ash or rock that have to be removed and discarded. The objective of this paper is to review the main parameters that influence the quality of biomass, while analysing the current state-of-the-art power generation from the biomass sector in Portugal, as a new contribution to earlier studies.

Abstract
A compact sensing structure using two distinct optical devices, a microfiber knot resonator and an abrupt taper-based Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI), is presented. The device was fabricated using only CO2 laser processing. The transmission spectrum presents two different components with different sensitivities to different physical and chemical parameters. The sensor was characterized in temperature and refractive index. For temperature sensing in water, the MZI component presents a sensitivity of -196 +/- 2 pm/degrees C while the microfiber knot resonator (MKR) component shows a sensitivity of 25.1 +/- 0.9 pm/degrees C, for water temperature variations of 12 degrees C. Sensitivities of 1354 +/- 14 nm/RIU and -43 +/- 4 nm/RIU were achieved for refractive index sensing for the MZI and the MKR components, respectively, in a refractive index range from 1.32823 to 1.33001. The matrix method was used for the simultaneous measurement of temperature and refractive index.

Abstract
A cantilever structure in 3D printed based on a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor embedded in polymer material is proposed. The FBG sensor was embedded in 3D printed coating and was tested under three physical parameters: displacement, temperature and vibration. The sensor was tested in displacement in two different regions of the cantilever, namely, on its midpoint and end point. The maximum displacement sensitivity achieved was (3 +/- 0.1) pm/mm for end point displacement, and a temperature sensitivity of (30 +/- 1) pm/degrees C was also attained. In the case of vibration measurements it was possible to obtain a 10.23Hz-low frequency oscillation.

Abstract

Abstract
Building automation systems contribute to reduce electricity costs by managing distributed energy resources in an efficient way. However, a large share of consumption cannot be optimized through automation alone, since it mainly depends on human interactions. Gamification can be used as one form of changing users’ behaviours [1], but its implementation does require assumptions on the behaviour patterns that need to be identified, encouraged, or discouraged. To tackle this problem, we propose a framework that joins building automation solutions with gamification techniques to enable behavioural demand response.

Abstract
In the beginning of the Iberian Electricity Market (MIBEL), in 2006, the Portuguese regulator created a new tariff scheme, aiming at responding to the new market competition environment. At the same time, the regulator intended to improve consumers' awareness and incentivize renewables generation. After one decade, this policy may be considered successful, as it led to a good level of transparency (all tariff costs are clear and public) and renewables production had increased considerably. However, this strategy has brought other less positive aspects. One of them is the attractiveness of the tariff system in terms of energy savings. In fact, the test cases present in this article demonstrate that the current tariff scheme does not stimulate energy efficiency. Other complementary studies are performed to illustrate the impact of the tariff structure design on the potential energy savings.