Browsing by Author "Tesfaye, Bekalu"

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    Traffic Generated Power
    (Addis Ababa University, 2011-05) Tesfaye, Bekalu; Taye, Shifferaw (PhD)
    The objective of this thesis has been to investigate the possibility of tapping energy from a moving vehicle that would have been released and wasted to the ground otherwise. This has been done by designing a mechanical system to be installed across a road way such that vehicles running over it would not be disrupted. Then analysis model has been developed to study the interaction between the vehicles and the mechanical system. Emphasis has been made on observing the performances of the interacting bodies, estimating the amount of power that can be trapped, illustrating the technical feasibility of power generation, and finally recommending alternative areas that should be considered to increase the efficiency of the system. The thesis starts by taking a vehicle representative (in terms of dynamic properties) of the traffic flow of the roadway under consideration. The vehicle is modeled as a quarter-car having only one mass-spring-damper components with a single tire attached. This quarter-car model is allowed to roll over a flat spring-supported mechanical system that is linked to a rotor below the surface of the original ground, establishing more like a shock-absorber system. Then dynamic analysis is performed to see the response of the vehicle and that of shock-absorber (supporting mechanical system). Analysis is also done for a sine-curved supporting system instead of the flat support. Both analyses results have demonstrated that the rotor (main component of the shock-absorber) will be accelerated to a satisfactory rotational speed causing very little disturbance on the vehicle. This illustrates the possibility trapping energy of magnitude more than 250 joule per single vehicle moving over a specially designed mechanical equipment to be installed across a roadway. Furthermore, qualitative description of this power transmitting mechanical system confirms the technical possibility of the traffic generated power system.