DESIGN

Over the years there’ve been need to transition from fossil fuel into cleaner forms of energy as a result of the detrimental effect the burning of fossil fuel has on the environment. The storage related issues of hydrogen are some of the challenges limiting its exploration as a cleaner energy source. Specifically, compressed form of hydrogen storage which is the most adopted method of storing hydrogen faces various challenges such as the hydrogen embrittlement of steel and loses of structural integrity over the course of usage.This study is aimed at addressing this issue by exploring two configurations and comparing them to the conventional all alloy steel configuration. The two configurations (HDPE, Carbon fiber configuration(H-C) and carbon fiber, HDPE, carbon fiber configuration(C-H-C)). were investigated for performances characteristics at various pressure levels and compared to the all-alloy steel configuration. At a pressure of 15Mpa, the H-c configuration had a stress value of 7.89E+07N/mm while the C-H-C configurations had a stress value of 1.05E+08N/mm. various parameters including stress, displacement, strain, and factor of safety for the two configurations were investigated and compared to the all-alloy steel configuration. The two configurations should good performance for various pressure values. However, the carbon fiber, HDPE, carbon fiber configurations should the closest performance to the all-alloy steel configurations, with the factor of safety almost equal for pressure values above 35Mpa.Suggesting that the Carbon fiber, HDPE, Carbon fiber to be a good alternative to the all-alloy steel as it address the hydrogen embrittlement issue without compromising structural integrity.

The purpose of this project is to design a small-scale biogas digester that uses household food waste as feedstock to address the financial and environmental issues that arise from food waste. The aim is to reduce dependency on fossil fuels by producingbiogas from biodegradable waste, which can be used for power generation and cooking. A review of the literature, conceptual design, meticulous manufacturing, and performance testing are among the goals. The study emphasizes how important it is to address rising food waste to improve the environment and provide financial relief. The project's goal is to make it easier for homes to adopt biogas plants by offering ideas that are simple enough for installation. The scope includes designing and building a biogas canister digester as well as producing biogas from home food waste.

Libraries are an essential part of academic and records region of any school. The fulfillment of any library in large part relies upon on right management. This project work aims at the creation of web based library management system that will encourage e-learning by providing access to a wide variety of digitalized materials, articles, past questions and more to various researchers and students. This was created to solve the ever increasing demand of information by students and researchers in the University of Benin. With the E-library system we now have the capacity to process, organize and provide information faster and more detailed to users. Thereby saving cost and increasing the accessibility level of information not just in the institution but on a global stage

Post-harvest losses in developing Countries have contributed to the unavailability of foodstuffs. Estimation of these losses is generally cited to be of the order of 4% but under very adverse conditions, it is estimated as high as 100%. A significantpercentage of these losses are related to improper and or untimely preservation of foodstuffs such as fish, meat. Fish being an important component of the diet for people throughout the World, has high protein and nutritional value. It supplies 6% of global protein and may be classed as either white, oily, or shell fish. In most developing countries where there is high rate of malnutrition, fish provides nutritious food which is often cheaper than meat and therefore available to a larger number of people. Fish being an extremely perishable food which in most cases becomes inedible within twelve hours at tropical temperature, spoilage therefore begins as soon as the fish dies and processing should therefore be done quickly to prevent the growth of spoilage bacteria. Fish is a low acidfood and is therefore very susceptible to the growth of food poisoning bacteria hence another reason why it should be processed quickly. Basically the moisture content of fish stands around 80%; if this is reduced to around 25% bacteria cannot survive and autolytic activity will be greatly reduced. Further moisture content of 15% or less mould and bacteria will cease to grow; well dried fish if stored under the right conditions can be kept for several months. The use of appropriate methods of preservation creates the possibility of having greater increase in the amount of fish available for human consumption. The purpose of preservation is to reduce the moisture content of the fishy because micro-organisms that are responsible for spoilage and wastage cannot survive without moisture. Some of the preservation methods/ techniques include the following; cooking (boiling or frying), salting, smoking and drying collectively known as curing (lowering the moisture content) and fermentation (lowering the pH). However, it should be noted that the scope of this research project paper is basically aimed on drying as a means of fish preservation via a multipurpose solar powered fish drying mechanism devise. Drying is a dual process of heat and mass transfer of moisture from the interior of the product to the surrounding air. Drying involves the abstraction of moisture from the product by heating and the passage of air mass around it to carry away the released vapour. The basic essence of drying is to reduce the moisture content of the product to a level that preventsdeterioration within a certain period of time normally regarded as the “safe period” There are basically two common methods of drying fish namely; open air/sun drying and smoking. Open air/sun drying is probably the oldest method used for preserving fish and other foodstuffs primarily used in developing countries because it is the simplest and cheapest method of conserving fishes. This traditional method involves spreading of products on the ground or on rack in the open air/sun drying or on local three stone stove for smoking. Some disadvantages ofopen air/sun drying and smoking are; exposure of the fish to rain and dust, uncontrolled drying;exposure to direct sunlight which is undesirable for some foods; infestation by insect; attacks by animals etc. The use of solar powered drying mechanisms has not gained popularity in developing countries and reasons can be attributed to; poor problem definition which makes the developed dryers technically inadequate and economically unviable; inappropriate understanding of dryers designs due to the choice of construction materials; inadequate understanding of the operations of solar powered dryers and lack of design procedures. Herein, a forced convection solar powered fish dryer is designed, constructed andcharacterized to yield a better means of drying fish. The designed solar powered dryer would incorporate a heat storage unit which would variably compliment the drying rate of the product during off sunshine hours. As envisaged the device would be characterized during rainy and dry seasons, however results, calculations and analysis clearly indicate the influence of seasonal variation on the performance of the device. Average hourly variation of the dryer and ambient temperatures measured on selected days of different months of measurement during the two seasons, clearly indicated that temperatures were significantly enhanced by the device. This was due to the high ability of the designed solar collector to trap large amount of long waves. Average daily moisture loss from the drying fish was notably high, especially during dry season which was due to the high dryer temperatures and decrease in atmospheric humidity.

In Nigeria today and in the world at large, PET bottle waste has grown to become hazardous as it constitutes part of the non-biodegradable waste. Hence, recycling becomes necessary to curb its menace. This project work is centered on designing and fabricating a PET bottle crushing machine from locally sourced materials for both home and industrial use in an attempt to proffer solution to the PET waste problem in Nigeria. Preliminary tests and mechanical factors were extensively evaluated on the conceptual designs to ensure that the design that most suits the purpose was selected and detail design was carried out. Experiment to determine the power required to overcome the shear resistance of the PET bottles was carried out and it was discovered that 10hp at 450N was the power required. Finite element analysis was also performed on the cutting blade to inspect
the materials response to stresses and the corresponding deformation. Furthermore, a design study was carried out in order to ascertain the minimum and maximum loads that can be handled. Tests carried out on the machine showed its efficiency to be 82.2% which is only 6% less than the efficiency of foreign counterparts

The previous system which had a 3.5KVA, 48V inverter, eight(8) 12V, 220AH wet cell batteries and eight(8) 150W, 24V solar panels was disconnected. A new inverter which is a hybrid inverter of rating 7.5KVA, 48V was purchased alongside with four(4) 12V, 220AH wet cell batteries. The panels which were placed on the roof 500m from the stationary unit was cleaned up with wet rags and mild detergent, and the eight(8) old batteries were cleaned up and revamped by addition of distilled water and the batteries were arranged in three(3) frameworks (four to each). A framework containing the four(4) new 12V batteries connected in series to give a steady voltage of 48V were connected to the 7.5KVAinverter of which also had the solar panels connected to it. These connections made up Unit A while the other two framework which had the four(4) old 12V batteries connected in series each (making up 8 batteries) were connected together in parallel to make up for the steady 48V and then connected to the 3.5KVA inverter which was connected to a 48V, 50A charge controller on which the solar panels were connected to. These connections made up Unit B. Unit A was made to supply the departmental offices and the lecturer offices which carries more load while Unit B was made to supply the 400level, 500level class and other few minor devices which had less load. The integration of both Units and the separation of loads led to a more efficient and reliable PV system for the department of Mechanical engineering as the alternate source of power can now be used for longer hours without powering down.

The use of induction motor in various facet of engineering manufacturing and production sector to power various equipment have gained stability and thereby creating huge starting current which in turn contribute to the unbalance loading of network giving rise to high energy and economic loss. This research work therefore seeks to reduce the starting current of the connected single phase induction motor. A smooth and soft start is employed in a single phase induction motor to eliminate the surge incurrent and electromagnetic torque during starting. The surge in current an torque are eliminated using soft starter at the time of starting. The soft starter also eliminates the unwanted effect in electric cables and distribution network. This project work provides an in depth description of sentimental and smooth start to an induction motor. The smooth start of the motor is predicted by the firing angle of the TRIAC circuit. The firing angle is delayed during starting and the delay angle reduces as the motor picks up to speed. This proposed technique provided reduced voltage at the starting and the rated voltage when the motor is up to speed. By using soft starter, the performance and efficiency of the induction motor is improved and it also improves the load torque characteristics. This project consists of 6 anti- parallel SCR connected in each series with an induction motor to the main supply, wherein two to each phase. During starting the firing angle is heavily delayed by receiving a delayed triggering pulses. The supplied voltage is gradually increased and the torque also in same manner. By this process the inrush current is drastically reduced making the motor start smoothly. The induction motor of 0.56KW, frequency of 50Hz, maximum voltage 230V, receives little or no surge using the soft 6 starter device. The startup ramp is about 4s to 7s depending on the power of the induction motor. The firing angle is gradually decreased from 80˚ by interval of 20˚ until 0˚ max of the full half A.C voltage.

This project report presents the design and fabrication of a domestic heat extractor using locally sourced materials. The aim is to develop a cost – effective and energy – efficient device capable of removing excess heat from domestic cooking areas, thereby improving thermal comfort and safety in homes, particularly in developing regions where ventilation and cooling systems are often inadequate. The project involves a detailed study of heat transfer principles, material selection and fabrication processes tailored to locally available resources. Components such as the extraction fan, heat duct, aluminum casing and power source were designed and assembled using affordable and easily obtainable materials. Performance evaluation showed that the fabricated heat extractor effectively reduced heat concentration in enclosed kitchen spaces, improving air circulation and thermal comfort. The outcome demonstrates that domestic engineering innovations can be achieved sustainably using local resources, contributing to environmental protection, cost reduction and industrial development.

This project focuses on the design and construction of a smart electricity meter using Internet of Things (IoT) technology to enable efficient energy monitoring and management. The system is built around the ESP32 micro\controller, which controls data acquisition, processing, and wireless transmission to the ThingSpeak cloud platform. The PZEM-004T measurement module is employed to accurately measure voltage, current, power, and energy consumption in real time. A DC-DC buck converter provides a regulated power supply, ensuring stable operation of the ESP32 and peripheral components. Data collected by the meter are uploaded to ThingSpeak, where users can visualize live readings, generate graphical trends, and analyze consumption patterns through an interactive dashboard. This allows for remote monitoring, fault detection, and informed decision-making regarding energy usage. The prototype demonstrates reliable performance, high accuracy, and cost-effectiveness compared
to conventional meters. By integrating embedded systems with IoT-based cloud services, the developed smart meter promotes efficient power utilization, user awareness, and modern smartgrid compatibility. Overall, the project highlights a practical approach to advancing energy management through low-cost IoT solutions.

This research presents the design and implementation of a low-cost Artificial Intelligence-Based Battery Management System (AI-BMS) for lithium-ion batteries used in portable devices, solar power systems, and small electric vehicles. The study addresses thelimitations of existing systems-traditional thres hold based BMS that offer only reactive protection, and commercial smart BMS that are prohibitivelyexpensive and powerhungry.Using real degradation data from the NASA Prognostics Data Repository,an XGBoost machine learning model was developed to predict the State of Health (SoH) anddetect early thermal runaway precursors through voltage, current, and temperature trends. The trained model was deployed on an ESP32 microcontroller, integrated with low-cost sensors (INA3221 and ADS1115) and a 128×64 LCD for live system feedback.The AI-BMS achieved ±1.87% SoH accuracy, 100% safety response in fault simulations, and an average response time of 0.82 seconds, all at a total cost of approximately ₦22,450 ($18). Compared to conventional threshold-only protection and mid-range commercial BMS units, the proposed system offers proactive fault detection, predictive analytics, and real-time monitoring at a fraction of the cost and power consumption (35–48 mA). This study demonstrates that affordable, intelligent, and locally assembled BMS solutions can significantly enhance battery safety, extend lifespan, and democratize access to advanced energy storage technologies in developing regions.