Journal of Energy Research and Reviews

Pumps are critical infrastructure in the Oil and Gas industry, and have been widely used in pipeline transportations of petroleum products. The electrical energy needed by a pump to meet the minimum pipeline operational requirement plays an important role in the overall cost and evaluation of pumping systems performance, which has become an important issue in pump energy management and pump station designs. This paper provides a quantitative and analytical method using Bernoulli’s equation for studying energy dependence between two pumps (Booster and Mainline pumps) in series within a pump station as a function of pump’s head, flow-rate, and density. Using actual parameters from a pump station, the derived equations are validated on four different products. The densities of products are 1000 kg/cm³, 835 kg/cm³, 800 kg/cm³ and 660 kg/cm³ for Water, Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK), and Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) respectively. The results show that the energy requirement of the Booster pump is determined by the energy demand of the Mainline pump as a function of flowrate, density and pump’s head. The study is essential for developing energy saving strategy in pipeline operations and in electrical consideration when selecting the right electric motors for pumps in pump station design.

Wild sunflower with moisture contents of 16%, 12% and 8% was densified without the addition of binding agent. The physical properties of the formed briquettes such as mass, dimensions, volume, density and shattering resistance were evaluated. Thermal properties like ignition time, burning time, ash content, and thermal fuel efficiency by means of boiling test were also evaluated.

Wild Sunflower stems were gathered and shredded using locally fabricated biomass shredder available at the Research Office of Benguet State University, and were processed into the desired size and moisture contents. Right after the briquetting operation, the physical properties of the briquette were measured and then stored in a zip bag for 24 hours. After the storage, same measurement was conducted.

Results show that the influence of moisture contents on the average mass, dimension, shattering resistance, volume and density was statistically insignificant. The wild sunflower with moisture content of 16% had the highest shattering resistance of 88.85%. Furthermore, the influence of moisture content on the thermal properties like ignition time, burning time and ash content are statistically insignificant. Among the moisture contents, the fastest ignition time of 43.75 sec with longest burning time was recorded under 12%. Ash content was also lowest at 12%.

The energy from renewable sources had always been perceived as free or at least lower-cost energy, with its sourcing from natural sources such as solar radiation and wind energy. In actual the cost breakdown of renewable energy would exceed that of traditional energy sources in almost all cases. This study attempts to produce a cost model for renewable energy systems. The model takes into account different requirements and site variations into account. In this paper, elements of the cost model Renewable Energy System (RES) especially, photo-voltaic solar systems, have been investigated. Cost items are presented alongside a to-do checklist for the new Photo-Voltaic (PV) solar energy system. The goal of this study is to construct a model that would cover the cost sources as well as bring to attention the unexpected sources of cost variations that include all possible cost items of a new solar renewable energy system. The feasibility of the new system is expressed in terms of Total Cost (T.C) and Cost of Energy (COE). The model can evaluate the feasibility of off-grid as well as on-grid systems. The model investigated properly as well as an empirical analysis and verified through results comparison with reviewed case studies. The results revealed that the cost of off-grid systems is higher than the cost of on-grid systems due to the cost of batteries as well as the cost of standby generators. So, it would be more feasible to use an off-grid system only in remote or isolated areas. Risk Cost lists, ranking and success factors of new renewable projects are exhibited.

The aim of this work is to make a contribution to the drying of tomatoes. The purpose of this contribution is the experimental determination of the desorption isotherms of a variety of tomato (one of the most widespread on the Burkinabe market place) using the static gravimetric method at temperatures of 25°C, 40°C and 50°C. It is more specifically a question of validating a theoretical model based on these experimental studies.

Sorption isotherms allow us to have information to establish the stability of food products and their storage conditions.

These isotherms are curves which give valuable information on the hygroscopic balance of a product because they allow to know its range of stability after drying by determining the final water content.

Attempts at improving energy performance of any nation borders on increasing energy supply to meet up energy demand; and also reducing energy consumption through efficiency practices to attain sustainable energy utilization. Nigeria as a nation is bedeviled with the problems of inadequate energy supply as well as inefficient utilization of the low-supplied energy. In spite of the enormous and abundant energy resources across the country (renewable and non-renewable alike), the question of sustainable energy development in Nigeria remains a farce. All spheres of energy development (generation, transmission and distribution) together with consumption is occasioned by irregularities that have plunged the nation into a protracted energy crisis for decades due to its inability to harness adequately the abundant energy resources, and sustainably utilize the low-supplied energy. This study therefore attempts to review the state of energy development in Nigeria with its attendant limitations in terms of energy supply and its utilization in a bid to attaining a sustainable national energy development. Thus, a framework of strategies towards attaining sustainable energy development through the deployment of renewable energy resources and energy efficiency practices is therefore proffered.