DESIGN AND FABRICATION

Poultry farming is a crucial agricultural sector that provides protein and economic opportunities, particularly in rural communities. However, small-scale poultry farmers often face challenges in egg incubation due to unreliable electricity and the high costs of conventional incubators. This study explores the design, fabrication, and evaluation of a solar-powered egg incubator tailored for small-scale poultry farmers. The proposed incubator harnesses renewable solar energy to maintain optimal incubation conditions, ensuring stable temperature, humidity, and automated egg turning. The research employs a systematic approach, including component selection, design calculations, computer-aided design (CAD) simulations, and prototype fabrication. The incubator is designed to be cost-effective, energy-efficient, and scalable, making it accessible to farmers in off-grid areas. Performance tests demonstrated that the incubator maintained an internal temperature range of 37–38°C, achieving a hatchability rate of 91% and a fertility rate of 95%. Computational
Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis validated its thermal efficiency and air circulation patterns. The results indicate that solar-powered incubation is a viable alternative to conventional methods, reducing dependency on fossil fuels while enhancing productivity. This study contributes to sustainable poultry farming by offering a practical, environmentally friendly, and economically viable solution for small-scale farmers. Further research is recommended to explore large-scale applications and the integration of automated control systems

The pipelines that transport petroleum products across Nigeria are vital for the country’s economy and energy security. However, they are also exposed to various hazards and risks, suchas theft, sabotage, corrosion, impact damage, fire, explosion, and environmental pollution. Theserisks can cause significant losses of life, property, and revenue, as well as damage the reputationand credibility of the pipeline operators. Therefore, it is essential to conduct a hazard andoperability (HAZOP) study and a risk assessment of the pipelines to identify the potential causesand consequences of failure, and to propose appropriate mitigation measures. A Hazard and Operability (HAZOP) analysis of pipelines is a systematic and structured processused to identify potential hazards, operability issues, and risks associated with the design, operation, and maintenance of pipeline systems. This report presents the methodology and results of a HAZOP study and a risk assessment of thepipelines across Nigeria. The report also reviews the existing literature on the topic and
compares the findings with the data collected around the pipelines observed in around EdoState. The report also went ahead to calculate the third party damage index for some selected pipelinesand examines the pipeline right of way conditions in such locations. The report aims to provide useful information and recommendations for the pipeline, regulators, stakeholders, and researchers who are involved or interested in the safety and reliability of thepipelines across the State.

This project centers on devising a cost-efficient and highly productive solution for the palm oil industry, with a specific focus on alleviating the labor-intensive palm kernel cracking process. The proposed machine incorporates cutting-edge design principles and advanced materials to elevate its performance and reliability. By subjecting the project to rigorous engineering analysis and prototyping, the primary objective is to attain the utmost efficiency in kernel cracking while
concurrently minimizing waste and energy consumption. Furthermore, the design prioritizes safety, environmental consciousness, and scalability. The successful execution of this project holds the potential to transform the palm oil industry by simplifying the kernel extraction procedure, ultimately ushering in heightened productivity and sustainability within the sector.

The cleaning of living and work spaces are a fundamental human activity. Cleaning must be done for safety and human health. The process of cleaning can be cumbersome, tasking on the human muscle and time consuming when done in the traditional way of using brooms, brushes and similar tools. Modern living and work requirements demands that cleaning must be done fast and more efficiently. This need therefore demands that the cleaning of living and work spaces has to be mechanized to take away the burden from human muscles, improve efficiency, save time and cost. One way of achieving this is through the use of Vacuum Cleaners. A literature review during the course of this project work revealed that virtually all available Vacuum Cleaners listed and reviewed online as well as those found in shops here in Nigeria are highly technologically sophisticated and unaffordable for homes and small scale firms. The need therefore arises for the production of a locally affordable Vacuum Cleaner made from readily available local materials. The literature review and search identified a simple handheld Vacuum Cleaner that can be modified and adapted through a redesign to use locally available materials for its production. Several concept designs were proposed and the most acceptable in terms of simplicity, availability of local materials and affordability was chosen. The components for the chosen design were redesigned one by one with the idea of local production in mind. These includes the intake Wand and its dust agitator, the housing, the motor and its mounting within the housing, the air stream expansion section of the housing, the dust bag and its attachment to the housing and finally air flow exhaust area. After the design of these components the material needed for their fabrication were procured and the components fabricated. These fabricated components were then assembled to produce the portable Vacuum Cleaner complete with a shoulder hanging belt. The assembled unit was then tested in the 500 level classroom. The performance of the Vacuum Cleaner was found to be really effective in dust pickup through the dust agitator at the end of the end of the wand that is always pressed against the floor as it is pushed back and forth during the cleaning process. No dust particle size in the classroom was left on the floor during the testing. It is worthy of note that there was a small amount of very very fine particles of dust noticed in the effluent exhaust air. The posibble reasons suggested for this unwanted occurrence by our project group were listed as 1. A larger than required dust bag particle size retention holes that allowed these very fine dust particles to escape with the exhaust air. and or 2. Insufficient expansion of the exhaust air to reduce its speed to allow these very fine particles to deposit in the air stream expansion zone of the Vacuum Cleaner housing. For the fact that the fabricated Vacuum Cleaner was able to pick up virtually all particles on the floor, this project is therefore considered a great success. It is hoped that improvements to this design would continue to be carried out in future project work until it reaches the perfection in both aesthetics and performance for commercialization.

The main purpose of the project was to design and construct a 3.5KVA inverter which makes use of both Solar and mains or grid supply for charging the batteries. This is to reduce the frequency of power outages experienced in our homes and businesses. The project was carried out with the use of two 12V batteries connected in series to give
a total of 24V DC which would serve as input for the inverter when on inverting mode and give an output of 220V AC for household appliances. Incorporated within the inverter was load control features, such that when the inverter stops charging and starts inverting, at a particular battery level set by the user, the heavy loads would be cut off
while supply of power to the light loads continues. But when critical battery level is reached the light loads are also cut off and the inverter shuts down. This was done using Microcontroller in controlling relays which either powers on the load or cuts off the load when the battery is low. The proposed inverter design has two outputs through
which load management was achieved. One of the outputs is designated to light loads and the other to heavy loads. The Microcontroller controls the load stage which can be programmed through the keypad to monitor the output power to the loads in output one and two, to ensure they do not draw power beyond the limits programmed by the user. To achieve this, the Microcontroller cuts off either of the outputs which exceed the set limit. With the help of a timer controller and by means of the keypad a particular load power duration can be programmed so that the output can be shut down at the end of the set time. This timer control and load power control are ways the user can control power consumption and help in power management. The project was successful and the test results obtained was satisfactory and efficient. The inverter's operation was consistent with the design and the desired control of power consumption and power management was achieved.

Perennial crops (Plantain, cucumber and banana) and tuber crops (yam) are one of the alternative sources for low cost carbohydrates and is considered as one of the major crop in the Nigeria. They are perishable perennial and tuber crops that tends to easily deteriorates which in turn pose a problem in the society. Thus, the processing of plantain, cucumber, banana and yam after harvest is necessary to extend the shelf life of products in their raw form. Therefore, the aim of the project is to design and fabricate an automated slicing machine capable of slicing plantain, cucumber, banana and yam into chips that can also be readily made available in other processed forms whilst taking into consideration, fast and less labor processing, ease of use and hygienic design. The major components of the machine that were incorporated in the machine to achieve the set out aim and objectives included the spring, pulley, bearing, electric motor, mainframe, belt drive, cutting disc, and slicing shaft. The machine was powered by a single-phase, 1440rpm, and 0.75KW electric motor. These machine specifications were induced to achieve the results. The performance of the machine was evaluated in slicing four selected agro-based crops (yam, plantain, cucumber, and banana) grouped into small sizes at machine speeds of 40 rpm, 80.12rpm, and 630rpm respectively. The parameters that were investigated were performance efficiency and capacity. In performing the machine test, each fingers of plantain, cucumber, banana and yam were first peeled manually with a knife to remove its pericarp (outer covering), and then, these peeled sets of cucumber, plantain, banana and yam were loaded into the feeding inlet after the spring compression. During this process, the slicing process took place and the machine’s capacity, efficiency, and thickness were determined in order to evaluate the machine’s performance to slice plantain, cucumber, plantain and banana. A capacity of 59Kg/hr, performance efficiency of 92.1% and at speed of 40 rpm was obtained for yam, while a capacity of 62.4Kg/hr., performance efficiency of 89.99% at a speed of 630 rpm was obtained for banana, a capacity of 48.5Kg/hr., efficiency of 90.5% at a speed of 80.1rpm was obtained for cucumber and capacity of 72.7Kg/hr. and efficiency of 89.95%, at a speed of 630 rpm was obtained for plantain. The result of the study shows that the machine can slice root and tuber crops satisfactorily with slices ranging from 2mm to 2.5mm mean thickness. This machine was made with the intention of assisting cucumber, yam, plantain and banana chips producing industries