FUOYE Journal of Engineering and Technology (FUOYEJET - Federal University Oye-Ekiti)
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Geotechnical Site Investigation for Proposed Minna City Centre Development in Niger State
Get PDFThis study was carried out to investigate and determine the geotechnical parameters required for adequate design and positioning of structures and facilities of the proposed Minna City Centre, at Minna the capital of Niger state. The soil samples used for the study were obtained from 10 SPT boreholes at 0.6, 2.1 and 3.6 m depths and all laboratory tests were conducted in accordance with BS 1377. Results show that soil particle sizes increases with boring depth up to the basement complex and values of cohesion and angle of internal friction show that the shearing resistance and bearing capacity of soils will be relatively high and favourable for the intended structures. Average allowable bearing capacity values in the range of 100 – 300 kN/m2 are recommended for use in the study area with embedment depth between 1 – 3 m
Evaluation of the Dehydration Characteristics of Ginger (Zingiber Officinale) Root Slices Using Refractance Window Drying Technology
Get PDFThis study investigates the drying characteristics of ginger (zingiber officinale) root slices using the Refractance Window™ drying technology. A laboratory-scale dryer was constructed by modifying a water bath. 3 mm thick ginger root slices were dried on the transparent Mylar PET plastic film that covered the bath, and the variation of the moisture content of the slices with time was determined as the drying progressed. A water temperature of 60 oC was maintained beneath the plastic film. Various drying kinetic data curves are plotted from the drying data and the thin layer model that best fits the drying data was determined. Observations indicated that the ginger root slices dried to a moisture content of 0.1g H2O/g solid on a dry basis in about 210 minutes. The regression analysis results showed that the Haghi and Ghanadzadeh thin layer model best describes the drying data for 3 mm sized slices with the coefficient of determination ( ) value of 0.9985. An effective moisture diffusivity of 8.99 x 10-8 m2/s was observed for the ginger root slices
Inhibitive Action of Water Extract of Spondias Mombin on Corrosion of Low Carbon Steel in 0.5 M Sulphuric Acid
Get PDFCorrosion inhibition of water extract of Spondias mombin on low carbon steel in 0.5 M sulphuric acid was investigated in this paper. Fresh leaves, fruits and bark of this plant, washed properly, ground separately using small amount of distilled water to extract the juice at a ratio of 500 ml (distilled water) to 1 kilogram of plant were used for this experiment. Corrosion inhibitors of 0.4 g/ml, 1 g/ml and 2 g/ml were made from the filterate. Low carbon steel coupons suspended with twine inside 250 ml container of 0.5 M sulphuric acid in the presence of different concentrations of the extracts at room temperature for 35 days. The coupons were retrieved at 7 days interval, and the initial and final weights were recorded. Inhibition efficiency for the leaves extract increased with concentration and got to its peak on the 7th day, that of the fruits extract initially increased with concentration until 1 g/ml after which there was a decline, its highest value was also recorded on the 7th day. The best inhibition efficiencies (in the range of 76.32% to 83.21%) for Spondias mombin water extract were observed in 0.4 g/ml bark extract throughout the days of the experiment, the highest being recorded on the14th day. It can be concluded that Spondias mombin water extract is a good corrosion inhibitor of low carbon steel in 0.5 M sulphuric acid at room temperature, with the best being the bark extract which inhibited for up to 35 days
Environmental Impact of Lumber Production using Life Cycle Assessment: A Case Study of the Production System in South-west Nigeria
Get PDFLife Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a decision support tool that can be used to evaluate the potential environmental impact of a product system. Environmental impact associated with the production of (0.0508×0.1524×3.6576) m lumber referred to as “2by6” in the primary wood industry was evaluated. This assessment is a cradle to gate system with boundaries spanning from the point of raw material extraction in Osun state, to transportation of the lumber product to wood market in Ibadan, Oyo state. The study compared four production scenarios by varying haulage distance and energy source during production at two sawmill facilities located in Ife and Ikire in Osun state. Data obtained from the production system were analysed using GaBi6 software to estimate and classify the emissions into five impact categories. Life Cycle Impact Assessment result (LCIA) showed that Acidification Potential (AP), Global Warming Potential (GWP) and Smog Potential (SP) were the most significant impact indicators observed in the four production scenarios. AP (2.883, 3.352, 3.483, 3.951) kg H+ mole-Equiv, GWP (13.25, 14.44, 15.45, 16.65) kg CO2-Equiv and SP (1.86, 2.15, 2.24, 2.53) kg O3-Equiv. Scenario 4 which involved a longer transportation distance and employed a diesel generator for the milling process showed the least environmental performance. Processes that contributed significant impact were wood waste disposal method employed and the secondary transportation processes during logging activities. In order to achieve a better production system, practices that encourage less waste generation and the use of renewable energy were recommended.Keywords— LCA, lumber production, environmental impact, wood wast
Empirical Validation of Regression Models for forecasting Global Solar Irradiance: A Case Study of Abeokuta, Nigeria
Get PDFThe performance of solar radiation distribution models is highly dependent on the location of use. This makes the need for location dependent validation necessary. An empirical validation of three solar radiation distribution models was carried out in this work using empirical data obtained from the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET). The models include the Angstrom-Prescott, Hargreaves and Garcia model. Four standard statistical tools of correlation ratio (R), mean bias error (MBE), mean percentage error (MPE), root mean square error (RMSE) were used for the validation. Results from the work reveal that the Angstrom-Prescott model had the least MBE with an average value of 0.1 making it the most reliable among the three models. In terms of MPE values, the Angstrom-Prescott model also performed best with an average MPE value of 0.1 while the Hargreaves and Garcia model had an average MPE performance of 0.2 and 0.15 respectively. In terms of the RMSE and correlation ratio, the Angstrom-Prescott model also performed better than the other two models with an average RMSE and correlation ratio of 0.3 and 0.65. This work thus reveals that, for a medium term solar radiation forecasting goal, the best regression based model that accurately predict the solar radiation distribution in Abeokuta is the Angstrom-Prescott model
Modelling of an Electric Power Grid for New Power Plant Evacuation
Get PDFInjection of a new power system component into an existing power grid often cause change in the behaviour of the power grid to which it is injected. Therefore, forecasting possible unsafe condition(s) of the power grid using an efficient power study tool is essential; and, provision of necessary mitigation actions to ensure a reliable grid is important. This paper, therefore, presents evacuation study of a 400 MW power plant connecting to the 15 GW planned transmission network of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN). The NEPLAN power system analytical software was used in the modelling and simulation of the electric power grid. In the research, load flow, short circuit, transient stability, and contingency analyses were performed on the case study. From the short circuit study, it is observed that if TCN network expansion program is fully implemented, the short circuit level will go beyond the existing switchgear ratings in major substations of the network. However, with the introduction of substation splitting at Omotoso and ongoing Ogijo substations, the short circuit level will be reduced by 15%; leading to improvement in the overall system stability. Keywords—Load flow, short circuit study, transient stability study, and contingency analysi
Design and Implementation of a Cost Effective Real Time Vehicle Tracking System Using Telit GM862
Get PDFThis paper gives the description of the design and implementation of a Real Time Cost Effective Vehicle Tracking System making use of Telit GM862 Module. The Module was installed in a vehicle as the Vehicle Unit while a mobile hand set was used as the Remote Tracking Device. The Module was configured using hyper-terminal on a computer system where the necessary properties and parameters were set. SMSATRUN service was also activated on the module. The SMS information to query the location was sent from the Remote Tracking Device using GSM/GPRS modem on any chosen GSM network to the Vehicle Unit (Module). The Vehicle Unit responds with an SMS message of the location information to the Tracking Device with an authorized mobile number on the GSM Network. The coordinates of the location received are then displayed on Google Map
Review of Method Study Approach to Productivity Gain: A Multi-case Study of Portable Water Producing Factory
Get PDFThis study evaluated level of work-study approach (wsa) to productivity advancement in Southwest-Nigeria Portable Water Producing Factories (PWPF). Objectives were to, measure productivity trend (PT) and, evaluate managers’ recognition and contribution(s) of wsa to productivity growth. PT was measured from 4 years records provided by 50 employers in 50 PWPF. Questionnaires were used on the employers and 120 employees to measure adopted wsa and impacts with responses reported on the scale of 1 to 5. Data was analyzed using t-test statistical analysis. The best performed PWPF was rated 43.75%. Disloyalty, low remuneration, lack of trainings and unsafe workplace were the major factors reported to have influenced the PT. Machinery Utilization (MeU) maximization was the commonly adopted approach. The employers’ ratings of MeU statistically significantly lower (mean=3.6364, SEM= 0.06913) to that of employees (mean=3.7333 SEM=0.6645) t(169) =0.641, p=0.522. Human resources management (p=0.235) and workers’ performance evaluation (p=0.906) were also significant and rated above average. However, work-method, safe work-practices and work-demands reviews, which were key attributes of ergonomic techniques and workers-related factors (wrf), were not significant, rated below average. The author concluded that neglects of wrf in wsa, must have greatly contributed to the weak PT of the industry and should be properly addressed to enhance productivity growth. Keywords— ergonomic, industry, productivity, water, work-stud
Processing a Locally Sourced Gypsum Material for Medical and Industrial Applications
Get PDFGypsum is a favourite when it comes to mimicking certain features of human body and enhancing some properties of industrial products made from it. Gypsum is widely used for medical purposes such as design of dental prosthetics and limbs support in orthopaedics; but the gypsum powder used for these products are usually well processed. Gypsum ore samples were obtained from a mine at Ibese in Ogun State, Nigeria and processed in a multistage de-gritting operation to obtain a grit-free powder which was converted to gypsum plaster (Plaster of Paris, POP) at about 220oC. The plaster powder so produced was used with property enhancing additives like calcium carbonate, sodium chloride, warm water and others to produce some medical and industrial products. Some of the medical products were tested at the State Specialist Hospital Ado-Ekiti and were found to conform with the required standard for such applications in medicine (especially dentistry and orthopedic). Other products such as chalk and wallboards were also produced from the processed gypsum and these also performed satisfactorily. Results of property tests showed that the products will have long service life.Keywords— multistage processing, de-gritting, property enhancer, dewatering, durability, dental, orthopaedics.
Development and Performance Evaluation of A Low-Cost Hydraulic-Operated Biomass Briquetting Machine
Get PDFLarge quantities of agricultural residues produced in Nigeria can provide an alternative way in meeting her energy demand through briquetting. Biomass briquetting is the process of compacting raw biomass materials (wood, charcoal, crop residues, and animal waste) into standard mini-brick units as solid fuel for improved handling and efficiency. A small scale, 40 bar hydraulic operated piston briquetting machine with a capacity of 120 briquettes per hour was developed. The machine comprised of hydraulic, control, press, power, ejection and frame sections, and adopted the binder-less technology. Sawdust and rice husk were used as sample biomass materials. The compressed biomass obtained from the developed machine in form of briquettes had mean diameter and height of 30 mm ±0.02 and 16 mm ±0.01 respectively. The force, deflection, and Young Modulus at peak were 16.30 N, 3.29 mm and 548.11 N/mm2 for Sawdust Briquettes (SB) respectively, while 12.50 N, 1.49 mm; and 481 N/mm2 were obtained for Rice Husk Briquettes (RHB). The yield stress for SB and RHB were 12 and 9 N/mm2. The heating values obtained for SB and RHB were 51.0 Kcal/g and 39.4 Kcal/g respectively. The output efficiency of the machine was 88% indicating a satisfactory performance of the machine