Feasibility and Econometrics Assessment of Standalone and Hybrid RE Facilities for Rural Community Utilization and Embedded Generation in North-West, Nigeria

This study assessed the feasibility and economic viability of renewable energy resources for power generation at rural communities of six sites in North-West Nigeria. A specific electric load profile was developed to suite the rural communities made up of 200 homes, a school and health centre. The required load was analysed as 358 kWh per day, with 46 kW primary peak load and 20 kW deferrable peak load. The employed data obtained from the Nigeria Meteorological Department, were those of daily mean wind speeds, daily global solar radiation, sunshine hours, minimum and maximum air temperature, and minimum and maximum relative humidity for 24 years spanning 1987-2010. The assessment of the design that will optimally meet the daily load demand with LOLP of 0.01 was carried out by considering 3 standalone applications of PV, Wind and Diesel, and a hybrid design of Wind-PV. The outcome showed that the most economically viable alternative for power generation at the different locations in Gusau, Kaduna and Yelwa was the hybrid system while wind standalone suffices for the other sites. The values of LCOE for the both the hybrid and standalone wind system are competitive with grid electricit

Feasibility and Econometrics Assessment of Standalone and Hybrid RE Facilities for Rural Community Utilization and Embedded Generation in North-West, Nigeria

This study assessed the feasibility and economic viability of renewable energy resources for power generation at rural communities of six sites in North-West Nigeria. A specific electric load profile was developed to suite the rural communities made up of 200 homes, a school and health centre. The required load was analysed as 358 kWh per day, with 46 kW primary peak load and 20 kW deferrable peak load. The employed data obtained from the Nigeria Meteorological Department, were those of daily mean wind speeds, daily global solar radiation, sunshine hours, minimum and maximum air temperature, and minimum and maximum relative humidity for 24 years spanning 1987-2010. The assessment of the design that will optimally meet the daily load demand with LOLP of 0.01 was carried out by considering 3 standalone applications of PV, Wind and Diesel, and a hybrid design of Wind-PV. The outcome showed that the most economically viable alternative for power generation at the different locations in Gusau, Kaduna and Yelwa was the hybrid system while wind standalone suffices for the other sites. The values of LCOE for the both the hybrid and standalone wind system are competitive with grid electricit

Feasibility and Econometrics Assessment of Standalone and Hybrid RE Facilities for Rural Community Utilization and Embedded Generation in North-West, Nigeria

This study assessed the feasibility and economic viability of renewable energy resources for power generation at rural communities of six sites in North-West Nigeria. A specific electric load profile was developed to suite the rural communities made up of 200 homes, a school and health centre. The required load was analysed as 358 kWh per day, with 46 kW primary peak load and 20 kW deferrable peak load. The employed data obtained from the Nigeria Meteorological Department, were those of daily mean wind speeds, daily global solar radiation, sunshine hours, minimum and maximum air temperature, and minimum and maximum relative humidity for 24 years spanning 1987-2010. The assessment of the design that will optimally meet the daily load demand with LOLP of 0.01 was carried out by considering 3 standalone applications of PV, Wind and Diesel, and a hybrid design of Wind-PV. The outcome showed that the most economically viable alternative for power generation at the different locations in Gusau, Kaduna and Yelwa was the hybrid system while wind standalone suffices for the other sites. The values of LCOE for the both the hybrid and standalone wind system are competitive with grid electricit

Modeling and Analysis of Fouling Behaviour in Plate and Frame Heat Exchanger

The fouling of heat exchangers in the oil and gas industry is not only a recurring challenge in refineries but it is also becoming a challenge in crude oil production and treatment facilities where heat exchangers are deployed to cool the crude oil temperature downstream of stabilization system prior to storage. A predictive mitigation approach to addressing fouling in heat exchangers remains the most viable option to avoid production train capacity limitations, unplanned shutdown and attendant loss of revenue. Considerable researches have been carried out which lead to the development of models used for predicting fouling resistances in shell and tube heat exchangers. However, this study focused on evaluation of the performance of a plate and frame heat exchanger utilized in cooling of crude oil prior to storage in a cargo tank for export. It also developed a fouling resistance suitable for forecasting the exchanger performance and predicting the maintenance management scheme. The data employed were continuously measured for three years and employed for the analysis.  It found that the lower the hot stream approach temperature, the more the fouling resistance. In addition, the work validates that as the fouling resistance increases with time, the efficiency of the plate and frame heat exchanger diminishes

Modeling and Analysis of Fouling Behaviour in Plate and Frame Heat Exchanger

The fouling of heat exchangers in the oil and gas industry is not only a recurring challenge in refineries but it is also becoming a challenge in crude oil production and treatment facilities where heat exchangers are deployed to cool the crude oil temperature downstream of stabilization system prior to storage. A predictive mitigation approach to addressing fouling in heat exchangers remains the most viable option to avoid production train capacity limitations, unplanned shutdown and attendant loss of revenue. Considerable researches have been carried out which lead to the development of models used for predicting fouling resistances in shell and tube heat exchangers. However, this study focused on evaluation of the performance of a plate and frame heat exchanger utilized in cooling of crude oil prior to storage in a cargo tank for export. It also developed a fouling resistance suitable for forecasting the exchanger performance and predicting the maintenance management scheme. The data employed were continuously measured for three years and employed for the analysis.  It found that the lower the hot stream approach temperature, the more the fouling resistance. In addition, the work validates that as the fouling resistance increases with time, the efficiency of the plate and frame heat exchanger diminishes