Search results for: mechanical energy density
4447 The Effect of Dispersed MWCNTs Using SDBS Surfactant on Bacterial Growth
Authors: J.E. Park, G.R. Kim, D.J. Yoon, C.H. Sin, I.S. Park, T.S. Bea, M.H. Lee
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Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are attractive because of their excellent chemical durability mechanical strength and electrical properties. Therefore there is interest in CNTs for not only electrical and mechanical application, but also biological and medical application. In this study, the dispersion power of surfactant-treated multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and their effect on the antibacterial activity were examined. Surfactant was used sodium dodecyl-benzenesulfonate (SDBS). UV-vis absorbance and transmission electron microscopy(TEM) were used to characterize the dispersion of MWCNTs in the aqueous phase, showing that the surfactant molecules had been adsorbed onto the MWCNTs surface. The surfactant-treated MWCNTs exhibited antimicrobial activities to streptococcus mutans. The optical density growth curves and viable cell number determined by the plating method suggested that the antimicrobial activity of surfactant-treated MWCNTs was both concentration and treatment time-dependent.Keywords: MWCNT, SDBS, surfactant, antibacterial.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 30384446 Evaluation of Electro-Flocculation for Biomass Production of Marine Microalgae Phaodactylum tricornutum
Authors: Luciana C. Ramos, Leandro J. Sousa, Antônio Ferreira da Silva, Valéria Gomes Oliveira Falcão, Suzana T. Cunha Lima
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The commercial production of biodiesel using microalgae demands a high-energy input for harvesting biomass, making production economically unfeasible. Methods currently used involve mechanical, chemical, and biological procedures. In this work, a flocculation system is presented as a cost and energy effective process to increase biomass production of Phaeodactylum tricornutum. This diatom is the only species of the genus that present fast growth and lipid accumulation ability that are of great interest for biofuel production. The algae, selected from the Bank of Microalgae, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Bahia (Brazil), have been bred in tubular reactor with photoperiod of 12 h (clear/dark), providing luminance of about 35 μmol photons m-2s-1, and temperature of 22 °C. The medium used for growing cells was the Conway medium, with addition of silica. The seaweed growth curve was accompanied by cell count in Neubauer camera and by optical density in spectrophotometer, at 680 nm. The precipitation occurred at the end of the stationary phase of growth, 21 days after inoculation, using two methods: centrifugation at 5000 rpm for 5 min, and electro-flocculation at 19 EPD and 95 W. After precipitation, cells were frozen at -20 °C and, subsequently, lyophilized. Biomass obtained by electro-flocculation was approximately four times greater than the one achieved by centrifugation. The benefits of this method are that no addition of chemical flocculants is necessary and similar cultivation conditions can be used for the biodiesel production and pharmacological purposes. The results may contribute to improve biodiesel production costs using marine microalgae.
Keywords: Biomass, diatom, flocculation, microalgae.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13654445 A Comparison of Energy Calculations for a Single-Family Detached Home with Two Energy Simulation Methods
Authors: Amir Sattari
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For newly produced houses and energy renovations, an energy calculation needs to be conducted. This is done to verify whether the energy consumption criteria of the house -to reach the energy targets by 2020 and 2050- are in-line with the norms. The main purpose of this study is to confirm whether easy to use energy calculation software or hand calculations used by small companies or individuals give logical results compared to advanced energy simulation program used by researchers or bigger companies. There are different methods for calculating energy consumption. In this paper, two energy calculation programs are used and the relation of energy consumption with solar radiation is compared. A hand calculation is also done to validate whether the hand calculations are still reasonable. The two computer programs which have been used are TMF Energi (the easy energy calculation variant used by small companies or individuals) and IDA ICE - Indoor Climate and Energy (the advanced energy simulation program used by researchers or larger companies). The calculations are done for a standard house from the Swedish house supplier Fiskarhedenvillan. The method is based on having the same conditions and inputs in the different calculation forms so that the results can be compared and verified. The house has been faced differently to see how the orientation affects energy consumption in different methods. The results for the simulations are close to each other and the hand calculation differs from the computer programs by only 5%. Even if solar factors differ due to the orientation of the house, energy calculation results from different computer programs and even hand calculation methods are in line with each other.
Keywords: Energy calculation, energy consumption, energy simulation, IDA ICE, TMF Energi.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 10544444 Study on Plasma Creation and Propagation in a Pulsed Magnetoplasmadynamic Thruster
Authors: Tony Schönherr, Kimiya Komurasaki, Georg Herdrich
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The performance and the plasma created by a pulsed magnetoplasmadynamic thruster for small satellite application is studied to understand better the ablation and plasma propagation processes occurring during the short-time discharge. The results can be applied to improve the quality of the thruster in terms of efficiency, and to tune the propulsion system to the needs required by the satellite mission. Therefore, plasma measurements with a high-speed camera and induction probes, and performance measurements of mass bit and impulse bit were conducted. Values for current sheet propagation speed, mean exhaust velocity and thrust efficiency were derived from these experimental data. A maximum in current sheet propagation was found by the high-speed camera measurements for a medium energy input and confirmed by the induction probes. A quasilinear tendency between the mass bit and the energy input, the current action integral respectively, was found, as well as a linear tendency between the created impulse and the discharge energy. The highest mean exhaust velocity and thrust efficiency was found for the highest energy input.Keywords: electric propulsion, low-density plasma, pulsed magnetoplasmadynamicthruster, space engineering.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 25254443 A Fuzzy Satisfactory Optimization Method Based on Stress Analysis for a Hybrid Composite Flywheel
Authors: Liping Yang, Curran Crawford, Jr. Ren, Zhengyi Ren
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Considering the cost evaluation and the stress analysis, a fuzzy satisfactory optimization (FSO) method has been developed for a hybrid composite flywheel. To evaluate the cost, the cost coefficients of the flywheel components are obtained through calculating the weighted sum of the scores of the material manufacturability, the structure character, and the material price. To express the satisfactory degree of the energy, the cost, and the mass, the satisfactory functions are proposed by using the decline function and introducing a satisfactory coefficient. To imply the different significance of the objectives, the object weight coefficients are defined. Based on the stress analysis of composite material, the circumferential and radial stresses are considered into the optimization formulation. The simulations of the FSO method with different weight coefficients and storage energy density optimization (SEDO) method of a flywheel are contrasted. The analysis results show that the FSO method can satisfy different requirements of the designer and the FSO method with suitable weight coefficients can replace the SEDO method.
Keywords: Flywheel energy storage, fuzzy, optimization, stress analysis.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 9634442 Fracture Characterization of Plain Woven Fabric Glass-Epoxy Composites
Authors: Sabita Rani Sahoo, A.Mishra
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Delamination between layers in composite materials is a major structural failure. The delamination resistance is quantified by the critical strain energy release rate (SERR). The present investigation deals with the strain energy release rate of two woven fabric composites. Materials used are made of two types of glass fiber (360 gsm and 600 gsm) of plain weave and epoxy as matrix. The fracture behavior is studied using the mode I, double cantilever beam test and the mode II, end notched flexure test, in order to determine the energy required for the initiation and growth of an artificial crack. The delamination energy of these two materials is compared in order to study the effect of weave and reinforcement on mechanical properties. The fracture mechanism is also analyzed by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It is observed that the plain weave fabric composite with lesser strand width has higher inter laminar fracture properties compared to the plain weave fabric composite with more strand width.
Keywords: Glass- epoxy composites, Fracture Tests: mode I (DCB) and mode II (ENF), Delamination, Calculation of strain energy release rate, SEM Analysis
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 32534441 Realization of Sustainable Urban Society by Personal Electric Transporter and Natural Energy
Authors: Yuichi Miyamoto
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In regards to the energy sector in the modern period, two points were raised. First is a vast and growing energy demand, and second is an environmental impact associated with it. The enormous consumption of fossil fuel to the mobile unit is leading to its rapid depletion. Nuclear power is not the only problem. A modal shift that utilizes personal transporters and independent power, in order to realize a sustainable society, is very effective. The author proposes that the world will continue to work on this. Energy of the future society, innovation in battery technology and the use of natural energy is a big key. And it is also necessary in order to save on energy consumption.
Keywords: Natural energy, Modal shift, Personal transporter, Battery.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20464440 Oil Prices Impact on Energy Policy of Kazakhstan
Authors: K. Gabdullin, Y. Bek Ali, N. Aldabek
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This paper explores oil prices changes impact on energy policy of Kazakhstan in 2001-2009. It involves the role of oil income to the economic development, process of diversification of internal and external energy policy of Kazakhstan, and the changes in oil law towards subsoil users.
Keywords: diversification, internal energy policy, external energy policy, high oil prices, modernization
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 25434439 Density Functional Calculations of 27Al, 11B,and 14N and NQR Parameters in the (6, 0) BN_AlN Nanotube Junction
Authors: Morteza Farahani, Ahmad Seif, Asadallah Boshra, Hossein Aghaie
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Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to calculate aluminum-27, boron-11, and nitrogen-14 quadrupole coupling constant (CQ) in the representative considered model of (6, 0) boron nitride-aluminum nitride nanotube junction (BN-AlNNT) for the first time. To this aim, 1.3 nm length of BNAlN consisting of 18 Al, 18 B, and 36 N atoms was selected where the end atoms capped by hydrogen atoms. The calculated CQ values for optimized BN-AlNNT system reveal different electrostatic environment in the mentioned system. The calculations were performed using the Gaussian 98 package of program.
Keywords: Nanotube Junction, Density functional, Nuclear Quadrupole Resonance.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17214438 Evaluation of Research in the Field of Energy Efficiency and MCA Methods Using Publications Databases
Authors: Juan Sepúlveda
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Energy is a fundamental component in sustainability, the access and use of this resource is related with economic growth, social improvements, and environmental impacts. In this sense, energy efficiency has been studied as a factor that enhances the positive impacts of energy in communities; however, the implementation of efficiency requires strong policy and strategies that usually rely on individual measures focused in independent dimensions. In this paper, the problem of energy efficiency as a multi-objective problem is studied, using scientometric analysis to discover trends and patterns that allow to identify the main variables and study approximations related with a further development of models to integrate energy efficiency and MCA into policy making for small communities.Keywords: Energy efficiency, MCA, Scientometrics, trends.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17494437 Cluster Based Energy Efficient and Fault Tolerant n-Coverage in Wireless Sensor Network
Authors: D. Satish Kumar, N. Nagarajan
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Coverage conservation and extend the network lifetime are the primary issues in wireless sensor networks. Due to the large variety of applications, coverage is focus to a wide range of interpretations. The applications necessitate that each point in the area is observed by only one sensor while other applications may require that each point is enclosed by at least sensors (n>1) to achieve fault tolerance. Sensor scheduling activities in existing Transparent and non- Transparent relay modes (T-NT) Mobile Multi-Hop relay networks fails to guarantee area coverage with minimal energy consumption and fault tolerance. To overcome these issues, Cluster based Energy Competent n- coverage scheme called (CEC n-coverage scheme) to ensure the full coverage of a monitored area while saving energy. CEC n-coverage scheme uses a novel sensor scheduling scheme based on the n-density and the remaining energy of each sensor to determine the state of all the deployed sensors to be either active or sleep as well as the state durations. Hence, it is attractive to trigger a minimum number of sensors that are able to ensure coverage area and turn off some redundant sensors to save energy and therefore extend network lifetime. In addition, decisive a smallest amount of active sensors based on the degree coverage required and its level. A variety of numerical parameters are computed using ns2 simulator on existing (T-NT) Mobile Multi-Hop relay networks and CEC n-coverage scheme. Simulation results showed that CEC n-coverage scheme in wireless sensor network provides better performance in terms of the energy efficiency, 6.61% reduced fault tolerant in terms of seconds and the percentage of active sensors to guarantee the area coverage compared to exiting algorithm.
Keywords: Wireless Sensor network, Mobile Multi-Hop relay networks, n-coverage, Cluster based Energy Competent, Transparent and non- Transparent relay modes, Fault Tolerant, sensor scheduling.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21474436 An Investigation to Effective Parameters on the Damage of Dual Phase Steels by Acoustic Emission Using Energy Ratio
Authors: A. Fallahi, R. Khamedi
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Dual phase steels (DPS)s have a microstructure consisting of a hard second phase called Martensite in the soft Ferrite matrix. In recent years, there has been interest in dual-phase steels, because the application of these materials has made significant usage; particularly in the automotive sector Composite microstructure of (DPS)s exhibit interesting characteristic mechanical properties such as continuous yielding, low yield stress to tensile strength ratios(YS/UTS), and relatively high formability; which offer advantages compared with conventional high strength low alloy steels(HSLAS). The research dealt with the characterization of damage in (DPS)s. In this study by review the mechanisms of failure due to volume fraction of martensite second phase; a new method is introduced to identifying the mechanisms of failure in the various phases of these types of steels. In this method the acoustic emission (AE) technique was used to detect damage progression. These failure mechanisms consist of Ferrite-Martensite interface decohesion and/or martensite phase fracture. For this aim, dual phase steels with different volume fraction of martensite second phase has provided by various heat treatment methods on a low carbon steel (0.1% C), and then AE monitoring is used during tensile test of these DPSs. From AE measurements and an energy ratio curve elaborated from the value of AE energy (it was obtained as the ratio between the strain energy to the acoustic energy), that allows detecting important events, corresponding to the sudden drops. These AE signals events associated with various failure mechanisms are classified for ferrite and (DPS)s with various amount of Vm and different martensite morphology. It is found that AE energy increase with increasing Vm. This increasing of AE energy is because of more contribution of martensite fracture in the failure of samples with higher Vm. Final results show a good relationship between the AE signals and the mechanisms of failure.Keywords: Dual phase steel (DPS)s, Failure mechanisms, Acoustic Emission, Fracture strain energy to the acoustic energy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18894435 Prediction of Location of High Energy Shower Cores using Artificial Neural Networks
Authors: Gitanjali Devi, Kandarpa Kumar Sarma, Pranayee Datta, Anjana Kakoti Mahanta
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Artificial Neural Network (ANN)s can be modeled for High Energy Particle analysis with special emphasis on shower core location. The work describes the use of an ANN based system which has been configured to predict locations of cores of showers in the range 1010.5 to 1020.5 eV. The system receives density values as inputs and generates coordinates of shower events recorded for values captured by 20 core positions and 80 detectors in an area of 100 meters. Twenty ANNs are trained for the purpose and the positions of shower events optimized by using cooperative ANN learning. The results derived with variations of input upto 50% show success rates in the range of 90s.Keywords: EAS, Shower, Core, ANN, Location.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13064434 Energy Requirement for Cutting Corn Stalks (Single Cross 704 Var.)
Authors: M. Azadbakht, A. Rezaei Asl, K. Tamaskani Zahedi
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Corn is cultivated in most countries because of high consumption, quality, and food value. This study evaluated needed energy for cutting corn stems in different levels of cutting height and moisture content. For this reason, test device was fabricated and then calibrated. The device works on the principle of conservation of energy. The results were analyzed using split plot design and SAS software. The results showed that effect of height and moisture content and their interaction effect on cutting energy are significant (P<1%). The maximum cutting energy was 3.22 kJ in 63 (w.b.%) moisture content and the minimum cutting energy was 1.63 kJ in 83.25 (w.b.%) moisture content.
Keywords: Cutting energy, Corn stalk, Cutting height, Moisture content, Impact cutting.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 31434433 Experimental Determination of Shear Strength Properties of Lightweight Expanded Clay Aggregates Using Direct Shear and Triaxial Tests
Authors: Mahsa Shafaei Bajestani, Mahmoud Yazdani, Aliakbar Golshani
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Artificial lightweight aggregates have a wide range of applications in industry and engineering. Nowadays, the usage of this material in geotechnical activities, especially as backfill in retaining walls has been growing due to the specific characteristics which make it a competent alternative to the conventional geotechnical materials. In practice, a material with lower weight but higher shear strength parameters would be ideal as backfill behind retaining walls because of the important roles that these parameters play in decreasing the overall active lateral earth pressure. In this study, two types of Light Expanded Clay Aggregates (LECA) produced in the Leca factory are investigated. LECA is made in a rotary kiln by heating natural clay at different temperatures up to 1200 °C making quasi-spherical aggregates with different sizes ranged from 0 to 25 mm. The loose bulk density of these aggregates is between 300 and 700 kN/m3. The purpose of this research is to determine the stress-strain behavior, shear strength parameters, and the energy absorption of LECA materials. Direct shear tests were conducted at five normal stresses of 25, 50, 75, 100, and 200 kPa. In addition, conventional triaxial compression tests were operated at confining pressures of 50, 100, and 200 kPa to examine stress-strain behavior. The experimental results show a high internal angle of friction and even a considerable amount of nominal cohesion despite the granular structure of LECA. These desirable properties along with the intrinsic low density of these aggregates make LECA as a very proper material in geotechnical applications. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that lightweight aggregates may have high energy absorption that is excellent alternative material in seismic isolations.
Keywords: Expanded clay, direct shear test, triaxial test, shear properties, energy absorption.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12804432 Impact of Solar Energy Based Power Grid for Future Prospective of Pakistan
Authors: Muhammd Usman Sardar, Mazhar Hussain Baloch, Muhammad Shahbaz Ahmad, Zahir Javed Paracha
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Shortfall of electrical energy in Pakistan is a challenge adversely affecting its industrial output and social growth. As elsewhere, Pakistan derives its electrical energy from a number of conventional sources. The exhaustion of petroleum and conventional resources, the rising costs coupled with extremely adverse climatic effects are taking its toll especially on the under-developed countries like Pakistan. As alternate, renewable energy sources like hydropower, solar, wind, even bio-energy and a mix of some or all of them could provide a credible alternative to the conventional energy resources that would not only be cleaner but sustainable as well. As a model, solar energy-based power grid for the near future has been attempted to offset the energy shortfalls as a mix with our existing sustainable natural energy resources. An assessment of solar energy potential for electricity generation is being presented for fulfilling the energy demands with higher level of reliability and sustainability. This model is based on the premise that solar energy potential of Pakistan is not only reliable but also sustainable. This research estimates the present & future approaching renewable energy resource specially the impact of solar energy based power grid for mitigating energy shortage in Pakistan.
Keywords: Powergrid network, solar photovoltaic (SPV) setups, solar power generation, solar energy technology (SET).
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 34504431 Influence of Ball Milling Time on Mechanical Properties of Porous Ti-20Nb-5Ag Alloy
Authors: M. J. Shivaram, Shashi Bhushan Arya, Jagannath Nayak, Bharat Bhooshan Panigrahi
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Titanium and its alloys have become more significant implant materials due to their mechanical properties, excellent biocompatibility and high corrosion resistance. Biomaterials can be produce by using the powder metallurgy (PM) methods and required properties can tailored by varying the processing parameters, such as ball milling time, space holder particles, and sintering temperature. The desired properties such as, structural and mechanical properties can be obtained by powder metallurgy method. In the present study, deals with fabrication of solid and porous Ti-20Nb-5Ag alloy using high energy ball milling for different times (5 and 20 h). The resultant powder particles were used to fabricate solid and porous Ti-20Nb-5Ag alloy by adding space holder particles (NH4HCO3). The resultant powder particles, fabricated solid and porous samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The compressive strength, elastic modulus and microhardness properties were investigated. Solid and porous Ti-20Nb-5Ag alloy samples showed good mechanical properties for 20 h ball milling time as compare to 5 h ball milling.Keywords: Ball Milling, compressive strengths, microstructure, porous Titanium alloy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 8804430 Effect of Fly Ash Fineness on Sorption Properties of Geopolymers Based On Liquid Glass
Authors: M. Zelinkova, M. Ondova
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Fly ash (FA) thanks to the significant presence of SiO2 and Al2O3 as the main components is a potential raw material for geopolymers production. Mechanical activation is a method for improving FA reactivity and also the porosity of final mixture; those parameters can be analysed through sorption properties. They have direct impact on the durability of fly ash based geopolymer mortars. In the paper, effect of FA fineness on sorption properties of geopolymers based on sodium silicate, as well as relationship between fly ash fineness and apparent density, compressive and flexural strength of geopolymers are presented. The best results in the evaluated area reached the sample H1, which contents the highest portion of particle under 20μm (100% of GFA). The interdependence of individual tested properties was confirmed for geopolymer mixtures corresponding to those in the cement based mixtures: higher is portion of fine particles < 20μm, higher is strength, density and lower are sorption properties. The compressive strength as well as sorption parameters of the geopolymer can be reasonably controlled by grinding process and also ensured by the higher share of fine particle (to 20μm) in total mass of the material.Keywords: Alkali activation, geopolymers, fly ash, particle fineness.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20604429 Stability of Electrical Drives Supplied by a Three Level Inverter
Authors: M. S. Kelaiaia, H. Labar, S. Kelaiaia, T. Mesbah
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The development of the power electronics has allowed increasing the precision and reliability of the electrical devices, thanks to the adjustable inverters, as the Pulse Wide Modulation (PWM) applied to the three level inverters, which is the object of this study. The authors treat the relation between the law order adopted for a given system and the oscillations of the electrical and mechanical parameters of which the tolerance depends on the process with which they are integrated (paper factory, lifting of the heavy loads, etc.).Thus, the best choice of the regulation indexes allows us to achieve stability and safety training without investment (management of existing equipment). The optimal behavior of any electric device can be achieved by the minimization of the stored electrical and mechanical energy.Keywords: Multi level inverter, PWM, Harmonics, oscillation, control.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13734428 Use of Benin Laterites for the Mix Design of Structural Concrete
Authors: Yémalin D. Agossou, André Lecomte, Rémi Boissiere, Edmond C. Adjovi, Abdelouahab Khelil
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This paper presents a mixed design trial of structural concretes with laterites from Benin. These materials are often the only granular resources readily available in many tropical regions. In the first step concretes were designed with raw laterites, but the performances obtained were rather disappointing in spite of high cement dosages. A detailed physical characterization of these materials then showed that they contained a significant proportion of fine clays, and that the coarsest fraction (gravel) contained a variety of facies, some of which were not very dense or indurated. Washing these laterites, and even the elimination of the most friable grains of the gravel fraction, made it possible to obtain concretes with satisfactory properties in terms of workability, density and mechanical strength. However, they were found to be slightly less stiff than concretes made with more traditional aggregates. It is therefore possible to obtain structural concretes with only laterites and cement but at the cost of eliminating some of their granular constituents.
Keywords: Laterites, aggregates, concretes, mix design, mechanical properties.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 4234427 Does the Polysemic Nature of Energy Security Make it a 'Wicked' Problem?
Authors: Lynne Chester
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Governments around the world are expending considerable time and resources framing strategies and policies to deliver energy security. The term 'energy security' has quietly slipped into the energy lexicon without any meaningful discourse about its meaning or assumptions. An examination of explicit and inferred definitions finds that the concept is inherently slippery because it is polysemic in nature having multiple dimensions and taking on different specificities depending on the country (or continent), timeframe or energy source to which it is applied. But what does this mean for policymakers? Can traditional policy approaches be used to address the problem of energy security or does its- polysemic qualities mean that it should be treated as a 'wicked' problem? To answer this question, the paper assesses energy security against nine commonly cited characteristics of wicked policy problems and finds strong evidence of 'wickedness'.Keywords: Energy security, policy making, wicked problems.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15174426 Modeling of Compaction Curves for Corn Cob Ash-Cement Stabilized Lateritic Soils
Authors: O. A. Apampa, Y. A. Jimoh, K. A. Olonade
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The need to save time and cost of soil testing at the planning stage of road work has necessitated developing predictive models. This study proposes a model for predicting the dry density of lateritic soils stabilized with corn cob ash (CCA) and blended cement - CCA. Lateritic soil was first stabilized with CCA at 1.5, 3.0, 4.5 and 6% of the weight of soil and then stabilized with the same proportions as replacement for cement. Dry density, specific gravity, maximum degree of saturation and moisture content were determined for each stabilized soil specimen, following standard procedure. Polynomial equations containing alpha and beta parameters for CCA and blended CCA-cement were developed. Experimental values were correlated with the values predicted from the Matlab curve fitting tool, and the Solver function of Microsoft Excel 2010. The correlation coefficient (R2) of 0.86 was obtained indicating that the model could be accepted in predicting the maximum dry density of CCA stabilized soils to facilitate quick decision making in roadworks.Keywords: Corn cob ash, lateritic soil, stabilization, maximum dry density, moisture content.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17004425 Nanomechanical Characterization of Titanium Alloy Modified by Nitrogen Ion Implantation
Authors: Josef Sepitka, Petr Vlcak, Tomas Horazdovsky, Vratislav Perina
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An ion implantation technique was used for designing the surface area of a titanium alloy and for irradiation-enhanced hardening of the surface. The Ti6Al4V alloy was treated by nitrogen ion implantation at fluences of 2·1017 and 4·1017 cm-2 and at ion energy 90 keV. The depth distribution of the nitrogen was investigated by Rutherford Backscattering Spectroscopy. The gradient of mechanical properties was investigated by nanoindentation. The continuous measurement mode was used to obtain depth profiles of the indentation hardness and the reduced storage modulus of the modified surface area. The reduced storage modulus and the hardness increase with increasing fluence. Increased fluence shifts the peak of the mechanical properties as well as the peak of nitrogen concentration towards to the surface. This effect suggests a direct relationship between mechanical properties and nitrogen distribution.
Keywords: Nitrogen ion implantation, titanium-based nanolayer, storage modulus, hardness, microstructure.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12854424 Energy Consumptions of Different Building Heating Systems for Various Meteorological Regions of Iran: A Comparison Study
Authors: S. Kazemzadeh Hannani, A. Azimi, S. Nikoofard
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To simulate heating systems in buildings, a research oriented computer code has been developed in Sharif University of Technology in Iran where the climate, existing heating equipment in buildings, consumer behavior and their interactions are considered for simulating energy consumption in conventional systems such as heaters, radiators and fan-coils. In order to validate the computer code, the available data of five buildings was used and the computed consumed energy was compared with the estimated energy extracted from monthly bills. The initial heating system was replaced by the alternative system and the effect of this change was observed on the energy consumption. As a result, the effect of changing heating equipment on energy consumption was investigated in different climates. Changing heater to radiator renders energy conservation up to 50% in all climates and changing radiator to fan-coil decreases energy consumption in climates with cold and dry winter.
Keywords: Energy consumption, heating system, energy simulation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12954423 Energy Consumptions of Different Building Heating Systems for Various Meteorological Regions of Iran: A Comparison Study
Authors: S. Kazemzadeh Hannani, A. Azimi, S. Nikoofard
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To simulate heating systems in buildings, a research oriented computer code has been developed in Sharif University of Technology in Iran where the climate, existing heating equipment in buildings, consumer behavior and their interactions are considered for simulating energy consumption in conventional systems such as heaters, radiators and fan-coils. In order to validate the computer code, the available data of five buildings was used and the computed consumed energy was compared with the estimated energy extracted from monthly bills. The initial heating system was replaced by the alternative system and the effect of this change was observed on the energy consumption. As a result, the effect of changing heating equipment on energy consumption was investigated in different climates. Changing heater to radiator renders energy conservation up to 50% in all climates and changing radiator to fan-coil decreases energy consumption in climates with cold and dry winter.
Keywords: Energy consumption, heating system, energy simulation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21344422 Waste to Biofuel by Torrefaction Technology
Authors: Jyh-Cherng Chen, Yu-Zen Lin, Wei-Zhi Chen
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Torrefaction is one of waste to energy (WTE) technologies developing in Taiwan recently, which can reduce the moisture and impuritiesand increase the energy density of biowaste effectively.To understand the torrefaction characteristics of different biowaste and the influences of different torrefaction conditions, four typical biowaste were selected to carry out the torrefaction experiments. The physical and chemical properties of different biowaste prior to and after torrefaction were analyzed and compared. Experimental results show that the contents of elemental carbon and caloric value of the four biowaste were significantly increased after torrefaction. The increase of combustible and caloric value in bamboo was the greatest among the four biowaste. The caloric value of bamboo can be increased from 1526 kcal/kg to 6104 kcal/kg after 300oC and 1 hour torrefaction. The caloric valueof torrefied bamboo was almost four times as the original. The increase of elemental carbon content in wood was the greatest (from 41.03% to 75.24%), and the next was bamboo (from 47.07% to 74.63%). The major parameters which affected the caloric value of torrefied biowaste followed the sequence of biowaste kinds, torrefaction time, and torrefaction temperature. The optimal torrefaction conditions of the experiments were bamboo torrefied at 300oC for 3 hours, and the corresponding caloric value of torrefied bamboo was 5953 kcal/kg. This caloric value is similar to that of brown coal or bituminous coal.
Keywords: Torrefaction, waste to energy, calorie, biofuel.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20384421 Lighting Consumption Analysis in Retail Industry: Comparative Study
Authors: Elena C. Tamaş, Grațiela M. Țârlea, Gianni Flamaropol, Dragoș Hera
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This article is referring to a comparative study regarding the electrical energy consumption for lighting on diverse types of big sizes commercial buildings built in Romania after 2007, having 3, 4, 5 versus 8, 9, 10 operational years. Some buildings have installed building management systems (BMS) to monitor also the lighting performances starting with the opening days till the present days but some have chosen only local meters to implement. Firstly, for each analyzed building, the total required energy power and the energy power consumption for lighting were calculated depending on the lamps number, the unit power and the average daily running hours. All objects and installations were chosen depending on the destination/location of the lighting (exterior parking or access, interior or covering parking, building interior and building perimeter). Secondly, to all lighting objects and installations, mechanical counters were installed, and to the ones linked to BMS there were installed the digital meters as well for a better monitoring. Some efficient solutions are proposed to improve the power consumption, for example the 1/3 lighting functioning for the covered and exterior parking lighting to those buildings if can be done. This type of lighting share can be performed on each level, especially on the night shifts. Another example is to use the dimmers to reduce the light level, depending on the executed work in the respective area, and a 30% power energy saving can be achieved. Using the right BMS to monitor, the energy consumption depending on the average operational daily hours and changing the non-performant unit lights with the ones having LED technology or economical ones might increase significantly the energy performances and reduce the energy consumption of the buildings.
Keywords: Lighting consumption, commercial buildings, maintenance, energy performances.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 9774420 Natural Ventilation for the Sustainable Tall Office Buildings of the Future
Authors: Ayşin Sev, Görkem Aslan
Abstract:
Sustainable tall buildings that provide comfortable, healthy and efficient indoor environments are clearly desirable as the densification of living and working space for the world’s increasing population proceeds. For environmental concerns, these buildings must also be energy efficient. One component of these tasks is the provision of indoor air quality and thermal comfort, which can be enhanced with natural ventilation by the supply of fresh air. Working spaces can only be naturally ventilated with connections to the outdoors utilizing operable windows, double facades, ventilation stacks, balconies, patios, terraces and skygardens. Large amounts of fresh air can be provided to the indoor spaces without mechanical air-conditioning systems, which are widely employed in contemporary tall buildings. This paper tends to present the concept of natural ventilation for sustainable tall office buildings in order to achieve healthy and comfortable working spaces, as well as energy efficient environments. Initially the historical evolution of ventilation strategies for tall buildings is presented, beginning with natural ventilation and continuing with the introduction of mechanical airconditioning systems. Then the emergence of natural ventilation due to the health and environmental concerns in tall buildings is handled, and the strategies for implementing this strategy are revealed. In the next section, a number of case studies that utilize this strategy are investigated. Finally, how tall office buildings can benefit from this strategy is discussed.
Keywords: Tall office building, natural ventilation, energy efficiency, double-skin façade, stack ventilation, air conditioning.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 78834419 Concentrated Solar Power Utilization in Space Vehicles Propulsion and Power Generation
Authors: Maged A. Mossallam
Abstract:
The objective from this paper is to design a solar thermal engine for space vehicles orbital control and electricity generation. A computational model is developed for the prediction of the solar thermal engine performance for different design parameters and conditions in order to enhance the engine efficiency. The engine is divided into two main subsystems. First, the concentrator dish which receives solar energy from the sun and reflects them to the cavity receiver. The second one is the cavity receiver which receives the heat flux reflected from the concentrator and transfers heat to the fluid passing over. Other subsystems depend on the application required from the engine. For thrust application, a nozzle is introduced to the system for the fluid to expand and produce thrust. Hydrogen is preferred as a working fluid in the thruster application. Results model developed is used to determine the thrust for a concentrator dish 4 meters in diameter (provides 10 kW of energy), focusing solar energy to a 10 cm aperture diameter cavity receiver. The cavity receiver outer length is 50 cm and the internal cavity is 47 cm in length. The suggested design material of the internal cavity is tungsten to withstand high temperature. The thermal model and analysis shows that the hydrogen temperature at the plenum reaches 2000oK after about 250 seconds for hot start operation for a flow rate of 0.1 g/sec.Using solar thermal engine as an electricity generation device on earth is also discussed. In this case a compressor and turbine are used to convert the heat gained by the working fluid (air) into mechanical power. This mechanical power can be converted into electrical power by using a generator.Keywords: Concentrated Solar Energy, Orbital Control, Power Generation, Solar Thermal Engine, Space Vehicles Propulsion
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20744418 Effect of Damping on Performance of Magnetostrictive Vibration Energy Harvester
Authors: Mojtaba Ghodsi, Hamidreza Ziaifar, Morteza Mohammadzaheri, Payam Soltani
Abstract:
This article presents an analytical model to estimate the harvested power from a Magnetostrictive cantilevered beam with tip excitation. Furthermore, the effects of internal and external damping on harvested power are investigated. The magnetostrictive material in this harvester is Galfenol. In comparison to other popular smart materials like Terfenol-D, Galfenol has higher strength and machinability. In this article, first, a mechanical model of the Euler-Bernoulli beam is employed to calculate the deflection of the harvester. Then, the magneto-mechanical equation of Galfenol is combined with Faraday's law to calculate the generated voltage of the Magnetostrictive cantilevered beam harvester. Finally, the beam model is incorporated in the aforementioned combination. The results show that a 30×8.5×1 mm Galfenol cantilever beam harvester with 80 turn pickup coil can generate up to 3.7 mV and 9 mW. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis made by Response Surface Method (RSM) shows that the harvested power is only sensitive to the internal damping coefficient.
Keywords: Internal damping coefficient, external damping coefficient, Euler-Bernoulli, energy harvester, Galfenol, magnetostrictive, response surface method.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 763