Optimizing Railway Energy Reliability from Wind Energy Harvesting: A case study of Addis Ababa Light Rail Transit
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Date
2025-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Within the City of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Addis Ababa Light Rail Transit (AALRT) contributes to crucial transportation benefits, which is a strategic connectivity of areas in Addis Ababa, however, the railway line faces a problem of frequent power outages, which undermines its energy reliability and sustainability. To address this challenge, this thesis investigates the feasibility of harnessing wind energy from moving trains along the AALRT corridor, taking into consideration the natural wind resources. Unlike large-scale grid-connected wind farms, this research explores the integration of small-scale wind turbines to supply power to railway auxiliary subsystems and employs advanced control strategies, this research aims to improve the reliability and sustainability of the railway’s energy supply.
The research focuses on designing and implementing Fuzzy Logic Control (FLC) based Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) to extract maximum energy from the Wind Energy Harvesting Systems(WEHS). Considering that the AALRT’s average speed is 30 km/h, the opportunity lies in capturing the wind produced by the moving train, as well as natural wind in the area, for power production particularly with an emphasis on optimized energy conversion using FLC-MPPT to maximize power capture from the Wind Energy Conversion Systems(WECS) through optimizing the MPPT process i.e., the control of the Tip Speed ratio and the Pitch angle to achieve higher power output in comparison to the traditional methods.
The research concludes with practical recommendations for the deployment of integrated small-scale WECS, focusing on optimization by FLC-MPPT, along railway corridors, and power conversion to manage wind power. It also outlines future research directions to further advance wind energy harvesting technologies. The results of this thesis offer valuable insights for engineers, researchers, and industry stakeholders seeking to enhance railway energy resilience and promote sustainable transportation infrastructure, with a particular emphasis on distributed power generation through small-scale WEHS and advanced MPPT control."
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Keywords
Railway Transportation, Wind Energy Harvesting, MPPT, Power Electronics, Energy Reliability, AALRT.