1,039 research outputs found
Increase Government Support for Build-to-Rent: Should We Expect Affordable Housing?
No full textBuild-to-rent (BTR) is an important pathway for rental housing supply across the cities of Australia. The discourse has become more prevalent as stakeholders seek government support to expand the sector to provide, amongst other reform measures, affordable rental accommodation. This paper examines the effectiveness of BTR as a pathway to affordable housing supply in Australia and identifies the additional reforms needed to increase that supply further. Interviews with key stakeholders were used to assess the success of the asset class to date and how it is likely to perform in increasing affordable rental housing supply, as well as what additional reforms may be required to expedite supply. The paper found that while BTR aims to scale up rental housing supply, its limitations in its present form demonstrate the need for additional reforms. At present, unfavorable taxes, inner-city locational attributes, and ultramodern services make the asset class a high-end housing model. Experts posit that BTR rental prices are justified given the quality amenities and the 24/7 onsite professional management. While it is a premium product, several BTR projects in Australia have included portions of those projects for affordable housing. The study concluded that BTR can generate affordable housing outcomes in Australia. As more developments take place across the private sector, several regulatory reforms in land release and taxes are needed to produce a sizable portfolio of affordable BTR. Without government support and regulation through additional supply-side incentives, development and recurrent holding costs will remain high, making BTR unaffordable to many urban residents
Photoautotrophic outdoor two-stage cultivation for oleaginous microalgae Scenedesmus obtusus XJ-15
No full textIn this study, Scenedesmus obtusus XJ-15 was firstly selected from seven strains microalgae (Chlorophyta, Scenedesmaceae) and then cultivated using a two-stage strategy, which composed of fast cell growth in stage I and followed by lipid induction in stage II in 5-L flasks outdoors. In stage I, the biomass productivity was increased from 139.4 to 212.1 mg L-1 d(-1). In stage II, lipid content was increased from 26.1% to 47.7% by adding NaCl into the culture. This two-stage process was also realized in an 140-L photobioreactor outdoors, with a biomass productivity of 86.5 mg L-1 d(-1) and CO2 fixation rate of 170.0 mg L-1 d(-1) in the first stage, and high lipid content of 42.1% in the second stage. With such a culture strategy, the overall lipid productivity was improved and better biodiesel quality was obtained. These results suggested the photoautotrophic two-stage system was not only feasible but also effective. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.In this study, Scenedesmus obtusus XJ-15 was firstly selected from seven strains microalgae (Chlorophyta, Scenedesmaceae) and then cultivated using a two-stage strategy, which composed of fast cell growth in stage I and followed by lipid induction in stage II in 5-L flasks outdoors. In stage I, the biomass productivity was increased from 139.4 to 212.1 mg L-1 d(-1). In stage II, lipid content was increased from 26.1% to 47.7% by adding NaCl into the culture. This two-stage process was also realized in an 140-L photobioreactor outdoors, with a biomass productivity of 86.5 mg L-1 d(-1) and CO2 fixation rate of 170.0 mg L-1 d(-1) in the first stage, and high lipid content of 42.1% in the second stage. With such a culture strategy, the overall lipid productivity was improved and better biodiesel quality was obtained. These results suggested the photoautotrophic two-stage system was not only feasible but also effective. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
Perceptions of Young Adults on the Critical Success Factors of the Build-to-Rent Housing Model in Sydney, Australia
No full textAmid Australia’s surging house prices, rental housing has become the safety net for young adults experiencing housing stress. The attention of policymakers is drawn towards the build-to-rent (BTR) housing model, a growing housing option for many young Australian adults. Although BTR’s integration into Australia’s housing and planning landscape is unfolding, the perception of young adults is lacking in policy reforms for this growing industry. This study examines the perspectives of young adults aged 18 to 34 years on the critical success factors (CSFs) of the BTR housing provision in Australia. The responses are analysed using an explanatory factor analysis, relative importance index, and ANOVA. Our findings show a critically low awareness of BTR among young adults in Australia. Respondents, between 18 and 24 years, are most concerned with public awareness, an indication of their desire for transparency and engagement in decision making at the policy level. Young adults rank regulation and government policy interventions as the most important CSF of BTR housing. This shows that they are more concerned about the affordability of BTR houses. This study concludes that young adults’ viewpoints on BTR are important in ongoing policy reforms. There is a need to ensure that this asset class is accessible and affordable to this target group
Kinetics and transport model for the chemical vapor epitaxy of GexSi1-x
No full textA numerical model that combines mass transport and surface kinetics was applied, for the first time, to the chemical vapor epitaxy of GexSi1-x. The temperature, velocity and concentration fields were calculated from the conservation equations for energy, momentum and species coupled with the boundary conditions on the growth surface which were determined by surface kinetics. The deposition rates of Si and Ge were assumed to be limited, respectively, by surface kinetics and mass transport. A theoretical relation between the initial conditions and the Ge composition in the solid was established. The calculated growth rate as well as the Ge composition in the solid and its dependence on growth temperature agree well with experimental data
Performance of a dipstick dye immunoassay for rapid screening of Schistosoma japonicum infection in areas of low endemicity.
No full textBACKGROUND: The dipstick dye immunoassay (DDIA), recently commercially available in the People's Republic of China (P.R. China), is a rapid and simple test to detect human antibodies against Schistosoma Japonicum. Its performance and utility for screening schistosome infection in low endemic areas is little known. We therefore carried out a cross-sectional survey in seven villages with low endemicity of schistosomiasis in P.R. China and assessed the performance and utility of DDIA for diagnosis of schistosomiasis. Stool samples were collected and examined by the Kato-Katz method and the miracidium hatching technique. Serum samples, separated from whole blood of participants, were tested by DDIA. RESULTS: 6285 individuals aged 6-65 years old participated in this study, with a prevalence of schistosomiasis of 4.20%. Using stool examination as a gold reference standard, DDIA performed with a high overall sensitivity of 91.29% (95% CI: 87.89-94.69%) and also a high negative predictive value, with a mean value of 99.29% (95% CI: 98.99-99.58%). The specificity of DDIA was only moderate (53.08%, 95% CI: 51.82-54.34%). Multivariate analysis indicated that age, occupation and history of schistosome infection were significantly associated with the false positive results of DDIA. CONCLUSIONS: DDIA is a sensitive, rapid, simple and portable diagnostic assay and can be used as a primary approach for screening schistosome infection in areas of low endemicity. However, more sensitive and specific confirmatory assays need to be developed and combined with DDIA for targeting chemotherapy accurately
The dependence of GexSi1-x epitaxial growth on GeH4 flow using chemical vapour deposition
No full textGexSi1-x epilayers were grown at 700-900 degrees C by atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition. GexSi1-x, Si and Ge growth rates as functions of GeH4 flow are considered separately to investigate how the growth of the epilayers is enhanced. Arrhenius plots of Si and Ge incorporation in the GexSi1-x growth show the activation energies associated with the growth rates are about 1.2 eV for silicon and 0.4 eV for germanium, indicating that Si growth is limited by surface kinetics and Ge growth is limited by mass transport. A model based on this idea is proposed and used to simulate the growth of GexSi1-x. The calculation and experiment are in good agreement. Growth rate and film composition increase monotonically with growth pressure; both observations are explained by the model
Genetic diversity and geographic differentiation in endangered Ammopiptanthus (Leguminosae) populations in desert regions of northwest China as revealed by ISSR analysis
No full textcenter dot Background and Aims The desert legume genus Ammopiptanthus comprises two currently endangered species, A. mongolicus and A. nanus. Genetic variability and genetic differentiation between the two species and within each species were examined. center dot Methods Inter-simple sequence repeal. (ISSR) marker data were obtained and analysed with respect to genetic diversity, structure and gene flow. center dot Key Results Despite the morphological similarity between A. mongolicus and A. nanus, the two species are genetically distinct from each other, indicated by 63 % species-specific bands. Low genetic variability was detected for both population level (Shannon indices of diversity H-pop = 0. 106, percentage of polymorphic loci P = 18-55 % for A. mongolicus; H-pop = 0.070, P = 12-24 % for A. nanus) and species level (H-sp= 0. 1832, P= 39-39 % for A. mongolicus; H-sp = 0. 1026, P = 25-89 % for A. nanus). Moderate genetic differentiation was found based on different measures (AMOVA phi(ST) and Hickory theta(B)) in both A. mongolicus (0-3743-0-3744) and A. nanus (0-2162-0-2369). center dot Conclusions The significant genetic difference between the two species might be due to a possible vicariant evolutionary event from a single common ancestor through the fragmentation of their common ancestor's range. Conservation strategies for these two endangered species are proposed
Tailored diffraction asymmetries from spatially odd-symmetric phase gratings
No full textPhase gratings, each period of which consists of even numbers of equal-width and equal-thickness elements, can be devised to attain asymmetric diffraction patterns. We show that engineering of offset refractive indices in different elements exhibiting a spatially odd symmetry leads to the elimination of a single diffraction order (directional elimination), while further manipulations on offset refractive indices may lead to the elimination of all odd or even orders (grouped elimination) or all orders but one or two selected (directional selection). These intriguing effects arise from destructive interference between diffracted amplitudes contributed by paired or successive elements, and violation of Friedel's law in such transparent gratings is an effect of higher order multiple scattering
The global L-2 stability of solutions to three dimensional MHD equations
No full textIn this paper, we mainly study the global L-2 stability for large solutions to the MHD equations in three-dimensional bounded or unbounded domains. Under suitable conditions of the large solutions, it is shown that the large solutions are stable. And we obtain the equivalent condition of this stability condition. Moreover, the global existence and the stability of two-dimensional MHD equations under three-dimensional perturbations are also established
A critical review of the proposals for reform of the education system in Hong Kong with particular reference to curriculum integration and lifelong learning
No full textEThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo
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