RELIABILITY CENTERED MAINTENANCE (RCM) FOR ASSET MANAGEMENT IN ELECTRIC POWER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

The purpose of Maintenance is to extend equipment life time or at least the mean time to the next failure. Asset Maintenance, which is part of asset management, incurs expenditure but could result in very costly consequences if not performed or performed too little. It may not even be economical to perform it too frequently. The decision therefore, to eliminate or minimize the risk of equipment failure must not be based on trial and error as it was done in the past. In this thesis, an enhanced Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM) methodology that is based on a quantitative relationship between preventive maintenance (PM) performed at system component level and the overall system reliability was applied to identify the distribution components that are critical to system reliability. Maintenance model relating probability of failure to maintenance activity was developed for maintainable distribution components. The Markov maintenance Model developed was then used to predict the remaining life of transformer insulation for a selected distribution system. This Model incorporates various levels of insulation deterioration and minor maintenance state. If current state of insulation ageing is assumed from diagnostic testing and inspection, the Model is capable of computing the average time before insulation failure occurs. The results obtained from both Model simulation and the computer program of the mathematical formulation of the expected remaining life verified the mathematical analysis of the developed model in this thesis. The conclusion from this study shows that it is beneficial to base asset management decisions on a model that is verified with processed, analysed and tested outage data such as the model developed in this thesis

Back-Propagation Artificial Neural Network Techniques for~ Optical Character Recognition- A Survey

Character recognition, a digitization concept, is an important research area in the field of image processing, and pattern recognition. Optical character recognition is a method of digitizing printed texts so that they can be searched electronically, stored compactly and used in machine processes such as text-to-speech, and machine translation. This paper describes the techniques for converting a type or handwritten document into machine readable form using BackPropagation Artificial Neural Networks

Automatic Transfer and Controller System for Standby Power Generator

An automatic transfer system (ATS) was developed to monitor the a.c. voltage coming from Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) line for power failure conditions. Upon detection of an outage for a predetermined period of time, the standby generator is started, once is up to speed, the load is transferred from the PHCN line to the local Generator. This ATS is capable of electrically monitoring fuel level, oil level, Battery strength, next maintenance schedule and then start or stop the unmanned Generator from the computer system located in the comfort of homes or offices outside the Generator site. In this paper therefore, an Automatic Transfer System (ATS) for Power Generator is designed to improve the operation and maintenance of power generators. The ATS which includes both hardware and software module, provides a functionality that allows a power generator to be controlled and monitored from a remote locatio

Remote Monitor and Controller System for Power Generators

Stand-alone power generating sets have become a source of alternative power supply in Nigeria for decades now, especially for business owners, corporate bodies, industries, as well as individuals, due to the epileptic condition of the electric power utility. The proper management, as embodied in the control and maintenance of such systems, has remained a source of concern as power failures are critical to the productivity of such users, especially industries and businesses. In this paper, a Remote Monitor and Controller System (RMCS) for power generators is designed to improve the operation and maintenance of power generators. The RMCS, which includes both a hardware module and software, provides a functionality that allows a power generator to be controlled and monitored from a remote location

Critical Review of Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM) for Asset Management in Electric Power Distribution System

The purpose of maintenance is to extend equipment lifetime or at least the mean time to the next failure. Maintenance too incurs expenditures that result in very costly consequences when not performed or performed too little, and it may not even be economical to perform it too frequently. Therefore the two costs must be balanced. In the past, this balance had been estimated by extrapolating the experience obtained from existing systems and using the rule - of – thumb methods. Nowadays, the tempo of advanced and softiscated research in that direction has rendered such rule – of – thumb methods obsolete. The literature works describing the reliability centred maintenance methods for managing distribution assets have grown until the papers can now be numbered in thousands. This paper presents critical review of the various existing methods that have been developed by different reseachers and proposes a probabilistic model that will provide a quantitative connection between reliability and maintenance, a link missing in all the heuristic approaches

Auxiliary Winding Switching Circuit for Single-Phase Induction Motors

The most common practice for starting a single-phase induction motor is to connect a starting capacitor, in series, with the auxiliary winding. Here, the possibility of using an electronic switch in parallel with the starting capacitor, is discussed. This work relates particularly to a switching device for electrically connecting and removing the auxiliary winding and starting capacitor from the single-phase induction motor's circuitry. The starting capacitor with the auxiliary winding are disconnected by electronic means as the motor gains speed hence leaving only the main winding in the motor circuit for normal operation

Analysis Of Telecom Base Stations Powered By Solar Energy

Improved Quality of Service and cost reduction are important issues affecting the telecommunication industry. Companies such as Airtel, Glo etc believe that the solar powered cellular base stations are capable of transforming the Nigerian communication industry due to their low cost, reliability, and environmental friendliness. Currently, there are several research efforts directed on the use of solar power in the Nigerian telecommunication industry. In this paper, the importance of solar energy as a renewable energy source for cellular base stations is analyzed. Also, simulation software PVSYST6.0.7 is used to obtain an estimate of the cost of generation of solar power for cellular base stations. The simulations were carried out for the Grid-Connected and the Stand-Alone solar power systems by using Benin City, Nigeria as a case study. The PVSYST6.0.7 simulation results shows that the power generation costs for the grid connected solar powered system is less when compared to standalone solar powered system in Benin City, Nigeri

IMPACT OF ICT IN OIL AND GAS EXPLORATION: A CASE STUDY

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is of great importance to almost all aspects of oil and gas operations, from upstream to downstream operations. ICTs help to optimize oil and gas processes and thus improves the efficiency and viability of oil and gas operations. This paper presents the core areas of application of ICTs in the oil and gas industry using Nigeria’s oil and gas industry as a case stud

Power Sector Reforms-Effects on Electric Power Supply Reliability and Stability in Nigeria

This study seeks to examine the power sector reforms, effects on electric power supply reliability and stability in Nigeria. The methodology adopted was to review the power sector before and after the reform, effects of the reform on electricity supply, reliability and the expected impact of the proposed models on the Nation’s economy. The major problems affecting the model been pursued especially in a developing country like Nigeria were also examined. The Electric Power Sector has over the past 25 years witnessed a slow and steady decline leading to near complete failure of the system in 1999 at the beginning of the immediate past civilian government. The federal government of Nigeria using National Council on Privatisation (NCP) in 1998 had therefore, embarked on an electric power sector reform program, which gave birth to 18 companies under the auspices of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN). These companies unbundled from the defunct vertically integrated Nigeria Power Authority (NEPA) monopolistic utility are characterised with horizontal structure. In February 2007 government of Nigeria awarded contracts of about $875 million across the country in actualising some of the goals in the power sector reforms. The study opined that if all identified problems militating against NEPA meeting the energy demand of the country is met by the reformed energy sector, in no distant time Nigeria can boost of an Electric Power Industry (EPI) that can meet the needs of its citizen in the 21st century and place the nation as one of the industrialised country in the worl

Fingerprint Verification System Using Support Vector Machine

Efficient fingerprint verification system is needed in many places for personal identification to access physical facilities, information etc. This paper proposes robust verification system based on features extracted from human fingerprints and a pattern classifier called Support Vector Machine (SVM). Three set of features are fused together and passed to the classifier. The fused feature is used to train the system for effective verification of users fingerprint images. The result obtained after testing 100 fingerprints is very encouraging