Journal of Energy Research and Reviews

Biogas production from cow dung for powering a tyre tube was investigated, using a 20litre capacity prototype biogas digester, fabricated in the Lagos state university (LASU) research laboratory. The experiment was batch operated and daily gas yield from the digester was monitored for 21 days. The ambient and slurry temperatures, PH were also monitored. Two important aspects of the biogas itself is digester and starter. This Research aim to fabricate a digester that can be used to convert a cow dung into methane for powering a tyre tube and the objective to determine whether cow dung from ranch can produce methane. In this study a mini biogas digester fabricated and tested for organic waste, thirty-five (35) kg of the cow dung, water and starter was used. (The starter that used in this study is silica gel). The cow dung inserted into the digester through the inlet pipe, and kept for three weeks. The ratio of cow dung water is 1:2. The result obtained from the biogas production showed that methane has 67.9%. This result show that these waste could be a source of a renewable gas if managed properly since the waste sluggishly continued gas production after 21 days retention time.

Wind energy is among the fastest growing energy generation technology which is highly preferred alternative to conventional sources of energy. The major Scottish Government target is to deliver 30% of her energy demand by 2020 from renewable sources of energy as well as meeting the emission targets as set under the Scotland Climate Change Act 2009. In this paper, wind energy potential assessment of Great Cumbrae Island was investigated. For this, a ten year mean monthly wind speed at height 50 m obtained from the National Aeronautic Space Administration (NASA) were analysed using the Weibull probability distributions to assess the wind energy potential of Great Cumbrae Island as a clean, sustainable energy resource. Results from the wind-speed model showed that Great Cumbrae Island as high wind-speed site with a mean wind speed of 7.598 m/s and having power density . The annual energy captured by four selected horizontal wind turbine models was determined. The result shows that GE 2.0 platform can capture 4.5 GWh energy in a year which is an acceptable quantity for wind energy.

Electricity is very important for the growth and economy of a country. Biomass wastes such as waste from oil palm plantation companies can be harnessed for this purpose since they are usually abundant in nature. The aim of this study is to evaluate the utilization of empty palm fruit bunch for the generation of electricity. The empty fruit bunch (EFB) was used in firing a steam turbine plant (boiler) for the generation of electricity. The power plant that was used in this research is owned by PRESCO Nigeria Limited located in Ikpoba-Okha local government area of Edo state. 1.7 MW of electricity was generated by burning empty fruit bunch (EFB) at a rate of 896 kg/h when the steam boiler was used. This value was compared with the traditional power plant fired using methane gas which produces 4.5MW. This value (1.7 MW) shows that EFB is a very good alternative for firing a boiler plant, power generation and elimination of wastes.

Nigeria has great renewable energy resource potential comprising solar, wind, biomass and hydro and much work has been done on estimation of this potential. Variability of a single resource type, high cost of energy from renewable sources and impracticability of grid extension to distant rural areas from the national grid has led to the development of hybrid renewable energy systems (HRES). Although Nigeria is rich in these renewable resources, a hybrid application approach seems more feasible to ensure a reliable and cost-effective power supply from these sources. This study was conducted to assess Nigeria’s technological readiness for adopting HRES, its environmental impact and its viability over a 20-year period. A review of past literature was carried out to ascertain the country’s readiness for HRES and its environmental impact, while the discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis, along with other economic indicators of net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR) and payout period (PO) were adopted to estimate the economic viability of the system. The outcome of this paper shows that HRES for power generation in Nigeria is economically viable.

This study aims to present a comprehensive review of bioethanol, its prospects, and also to estimate a potential source for commercial bioethanol production in Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, the primary source of fuel comes from natural gas and petroleum oil. But the total output of fossil fuel is incapable of meeting the annual fuel demand. And also, the natural reserves are insufficient to meet the energy demand for long-term economic development. To meet the demand every year Bangladesh needs to import a huge amount of petroleum oil from overseas markets. In this situation, to manage the future demand, production of renewable energy may be an alternative solution. Bioethanol production from potato and potato peel waste maybe a prospective source of renewable energy. It can use as an alternative clean-burning fuel by replacing with regular vehicle fuel. It can not only save huge foreign currency but also lessen greenhouse effect in the environment. In this scenario, there is a huge prospect to introduce bioethanol as an alternative fuel in Bangladesh.