District heating (DH) is considered to be an efficient, environmentally friendly and cost-effective method for providing heat to buildings, since electricity is usually co-generated in biomass fuelled combined heat and power (CHP) plants. This gives it an important role in the mitigation of climate change. Swedish district heating companies are currently facing multiple challenges, and are in urgent need of new price models to increase transparency and maintain their competitiveness. This thesis describes a survey carried out to understand the structure of the present price models and subsequently proposes and compares two restructured price models with the most commonly used price model. This work also investigates the impact of restructured price models on users who would encounter a significant cost increase if the restructured price models were to be introduced. The district heating costs of different price models are compared with three alternative technical solutions. The results show that price models based on the consumption pattern of users can reflect district heating companies’ cost structure. Meanwhile, adopting a pricing strategy based on users’ consumption patterns increased the incentives to reduce the peak load. Consequently, users with high load factor (flat consecutive load curve) were able to reduce costs whereas users with low load factor (steep consecutive load curve) faced possible cost increases, when the load demand cost was changed to daily or hourly peak demand based methods. Further, the most economically preferable option for the invested district heating user was to combine district heating with direct electrical heating or with a ground source heat pump. / Fjärrvärme anses som ett effektivt, miljövänligt och kostnadseffektivt sätt för att leverera värme eftersom kraftvärme blir vanligare i fjärrvärmesystem, där elektricitet produceras tillsammans med värme. Den spelar en viktig roll i att begränsa klimatförändringen. Svenska fjärrvärme företag står inför flera utmaningar nu för tiden, och är i akut behov av nya prismodeller för att öka öppenheten och behålla konkurrenskraften. I denna avhandling, genomfördes en undersökning för att ta reda på strukturen av de nuvarande prismodellerna. Därefter föreslogs två omstrukturerade prismodeller, vars påverkan på kostnaden av fjärrvärme konsument analyserades jämför med den nuvarande modellen. Detta arbete undersökte också effekten av omstrukturerade prismodeller på konsument som skulle drabbas på signifikant kostnadsökning i samband med införande prismodeller. Kostnaden av fjärrvärme under olika prismodeller har också jämförts med tre olika tekniska lösningar. Resultatet visade att prismodeller som baserar sig på konsuments förbrukningsprofil kunde återspegla fjärrvärme företagens kostnadsstruktur; Samtidigt medförde prissättningsstrategi baserad på användarens förbrukningsprofil högre incitament för att minska spetseffekt. Följaktligen kommer att konsumenter med stabila konsumtionsprofiler att spara kostnader, medan konsumenter med spetsiga konsumtionsprofiler kommer att drabbas av kostnadsökning. Och för den investerade fjärrvärme konsument, den ekonomiska bättre val var att kombinera fjärrvärme med elpanna eller bergvärmepump.

O avanço no uso do cartão de crédito e sua função como instrumento de crédito afetou o padrão de consumo das famílias. O presente trabalho pretende analisar como alterações no limite de crédito e na taxa de juros do cartão de crédito afetam o consumo. A partir dos resultados obtidos com esta primeira análise, podemos verificar a validade das predições das Teorias de Consumo, como a Teoria de Renda Permanente / The advance in the credit card usage and its function as a means of credit affects the consumption of the families. This work intend to analyze how modifications in the limit and interest rate of the credit card affects their consumption. From the results obtained with this first analysis , we may verify the validity of the predictions of the Consumption Theories, as the Permanent Income Theory

Submitted by Odilio Hilario Moreira Júnior (odilio@espm.br) on 2016-11-25T16:36:01Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Diana G Macedo.pdf: 2647071 bytes, checksum: 129185202232aa8e6fa8fc940f0bec10 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Odilio Hilario Moreira Júnior (odilio@espm.br) on 2016-11-25T16:36:13Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Diana G Macedo.pdf: 2647071 bytes, checksum: 129185202232aa8e6fa8fc940f0bec10 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Odilio Hilario Moreira Júnior (odilio@espm.br) on 2016-11-25T17:24:06Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Diana G Macedo.pdf: 2647071 bytes, checksum: 129185202232aa8e6fa8fc940f0bec10 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-11-25T17:25:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Diana G Macedo.pdf: 2647071 bytes, checksum: 129185202232aa8e6fa8fc940f0bec10 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-03-30 / Since we live in a consumer society, we consider very important to get to know it, which means, to understand better the process of consumption. We try to get to know the receptors/consumers in their daily cultural practices, considering the consumption of the media and the consumption of material/symbolical goods, through the inter-relations communication, reception and consumption. The object of this research are the relations between communication/reception/consumption in three categories of television time slot: news, soap opera and advertising, inserted in the brazilian and portuguese prime time, especially advertising, due to its close relationship with both sides: production and consumption. This research attempts to identify the profile of receptors/consumers “draw” in each of these categories, which means, to understand with whom they dialogue in particular and, secondly, to investigate with the receptors/consumers the appropriations and attribution of meanings to the media categories already established, through the application of questionnaires with open and closed questions and focus group. / Já que vivemos numa sociedade de consumo, consideramos indispensável conhecê-la, ou seja, entender melhor o processo através do qual o consumo se dá. Busca-se, através das inter-relações comunicação, recepção e consumo, conhecer os receptores/consumidores em suas práticas culturais presentes no seu cotidiano, em relação ao consumo de mídia e ao consumo dos variados bens materiais em interface com o simbólico. O objeto dessa pesquisa são as relações comunicação/recepção/consumo em três categorias da programação televisiva: telejornal, telenovela e publicidade, inseridas na grade de programação do prime time brasileiro e português, com destaque para a publicidade, devido a sua estreita relação com o lado da produção e do consumo. Essa pesquisa tenta identificar o perfil dos receptores/consumidores “desenhado” em cada uma dessas categorias, ou seja, procura entender com quem elas dialogam mais especificamente, e, num segundo momento, investigar junto aos receptores/consumidores as apropriações e as atribuições de sentido às categorias da programação midiática pré-estabelecidas, através da aplicação de questionários com perguntas abertas e fechadas e de discussão em grupo.

L’analyse des cheveux est à présent reconnue comme un outil pertinent dans le domaine de la toxicologie car elle permet de fournir un historique des habitudes de consommation d’un individu, qu’il s’agisse d’une consommation ponctuelle ou répétée.L’analyse d’un seul cheveu par désorption/ionisation laser assistée par matrice (MALDI) offre de nombreux avantages par rapport aux techniques conventionnelles : la quantité de cheveux est réduite, la préparation des échantillons est simplifiée et les images sont acquises avec une résolution spatiale très élevée (~100 µm). L’imagerie MALDI (MALDI-MSn) nous a permis de caractériser et de cartographier l’évolution des quantités de xénobiotiques le long du cheveu avec une très haute résolution spatiale sans une préparation trop longue ou trop complexe des échantillons au préalable.La spectrométrie de masse MALDI couplée à des plaques micro-réseaux (Microarrays for Mass Spetrometry, MAMS) nous a permis de développer une méthode pour effectuer une semi-quantification de la cocaïne, de la benzoylecgonine, de l’ecgonine méthyl ester et du cocaéthylène à partir d’une quantité de 1 mg de cheveux et 2 heures d’extraction ; les résultats sont bien corrélés avec une méthode de quantification validée. Cette méthode est pertinente lorsque des résultats urgents sont requis. Au total, le développement de ces deux applications nous a permis de démontrer la pertinence de la spectrométrie de masse MALDI dans l’analyse toxicologique du cheveu. Les perspectives consistent à améliorer ces protocoles afin de les transposer en routine et de développer des méthodes de screening large par spectrométrie de masse MALDI. / Hair analysis is now recognized as a relevant tool in the field of toxicology. It provides a precise history of an individual’s exposure to drugs, whether it is a punctual or repeated consumption.Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization (MALDI) has many advantages over conventional techniques: the amount of hair needed is reduced, the sample preparation is simplified and the images are acquired with high spatial resolution (~ 100 μm).MALDI (MALDI-MSn) imaging allowed us to characterize and map the evolution of drugs amounts along the hair with very spatial resolution avoiding long and complex pre-sample preparation.MALDI coupled to Microaarays for Mass Spectrometry (MAMS) allowed us to develop a method for semi-quantitation of cocaine, benzoylecgonine, ecgonine methyl ester and cocaethylene using 1 mg of hair and 2 hours of extraction; the results are well correlated with a validated quantification method. This method is relevant when urgent results are required.In total, the development of these two applications demonstrates the relevance of MALDI mass spectrometry in the toxicological analysis of hair. The prospects are to improve these protocols in order to transpose them routinely and to develop large screening methods by MALDI mass spectrometry.

O avanço no uso do cartão de crédito e sua função como instrumento de crédito afetou o padrão de consumo das famílias. O presente trabalho pretende analisar como alterações no limite de crédito e na taxa de juros do cartão de crédito afetam o consumo. A partir dos resultados obtidos com esta primeira análise, podemos verificar a validade das predições das Teorias de Consumo, como a Teoria de Renda Permanente / The advance in the credit card usage and its function as a means of credit affects the consumption of the families. This work intend to analyze how modifications in the limit and interest rate of the credit card affects their consumption. From the results obtained with this first analysis , we may verify the validity of the predictions of the Consumption Theories, as the Permanent Income Theory