Africa Centres of Excellence Scholarly Output

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Characterization of the Lateritic Soil of Kamboinsé (Burkina Faso)
(Proceedings of the RILEM International Symposium on Bituminous Materials (Springer), 2022) Mbengue, Marie Thérèse Marame; Messan, Adamah; Lawane, Abdou
Laterite is a very common material in tropical countries. Good quality lateritic deposits are becoming increasingly rare. This material is used as a base course for most roads built in tropical Africa. These materials are selected on the basis of geotechnical test results in accordance with current standards. However, these materials do not perform well in situ after a short period of time, causing premature pavement degradation. This poor behavior can be ascribed to insufficient geotechnical testing to justify the choice of these materials in road construction. In this work, in addition to traditional geotechnical tests (particle size analysis, Atterberg limits, modified Proctor, CBR Index), compression tests were performed in addition to traditional geotechnical tests to determine compressive strength and elasticity modulus. Geotechnical tests carried out on the laterite of Kamboinsé according to the lithology of the quarry reveal that the characteristics decrease with depth and that the first layer can be used as a base layer. Cement improvement for small percentages (1, 2 and 3%) shows a clear improvement in mechanical characteristics. An addition of 2% cement allows the use of the second base layer, improvement of 3% allows the use of the first layer as a base layer. An addition of granite crushed granites of class 0/31.5 improved the physical properties of materials for additive percentages varying from 20, 25, 30 and 35% by weight of dry materials. This improvement allows the use of layers 1, 2 and 3 as a base layer for low traffic, layer 4 can be used as a base layer.
Durability of Lightweight Concrete Using Oil Palm Shell as Aggregates
(Open Journal of Civil Engineering, 2021-01-29) Traore, Yasmine Binta; Messan, Adamah; Hannawi, Kinda
Oil Palm Shell (OPS) concrete can be used in different fields of construction. To determine more accurately the fields of application, it is important to know and understand the behaviour of OPS concrete over the long term and when it is in aggressive environments. This paper presents the results of studies conducted on the durability of OPS concrete. Water absorption capacity, electrical resistivity and apparent diffusion of chloride ions have been measured on different concrete samples. In addition, the behaviour of OPS concretes to carbonation was studied in an environment rich in carbon dioxide. Results show that OPS concrete has an absorptivity of 0.97 kg/m2 ·h1/2, an electrical resistivity of 64.37 Ω·m and an apparent diffusion coefficient of chloride ions of 3.84 × 10−12 m2 /s after 90 days. All these results of OPS concrete are very close to those of concrete with normal aggregate and other lightweight concrete, which mean OPS concretes have globally good properties with regard to durability.
"Improving the thermal comfort in hot region through the design of walls made of compressed earth blocks: An experimental investigation"
(Journal of Building Engineering, 2021) Hema, Césaire; Messan, Adamah; Lawane, Abdou
There is growing need for new buildings to support the urbanization and demographic boom in developing countries. These buildings should be environmentally friendly, economically accessible and, most importantly, thermally efficient. The latter aspect is particularly important when dealing with naturally ventilated buildings in hot-dry regions. For this purpose, the thermal design of walls based on compressed earth blocks (CEB) need to be studied in order to achieve optimal use of this material. The present study aimed at experimentally analysing the thermal performance of a test building which has three different design (wall layers) of external wall and two scenario of ventilation. Thermal sensors was used on the test building in order to determine the indoor and outdoor air temperature as well as the surface temperature of the walls. The results show that the location of wall layers influences the indoor climate. When CEBs layer is placed inside, it leads to the highest reduction of the indoor temperature fluctuations. When CEBs layer is placed outside, it presents the best opportunity to prevent overheatingin building spaces mainly occupied at night. Regardless of the wall design, nocturnal ventilation is the most suitable strategy which leads to improving the indoor climate compared to continuous ventilation. It is highlighted that the occupancy pattern of the buildings’ spaces as well as the addition of the insulation layer to the CEBs walls are important factor to consider for the design of external walls.
Key Barriers to the Adoption of Biomass Gasification in Burkina Faso
(Sustainability, 2021-06-30) Barry, Fanta; Sawadogo, Marie; (Traoré), Maïmouna Bologo
The industrial sector in Burkina Faso faces two significant energy challenges access to efficient energy sources that are also renewable. Pyrolysis and gasification are emerging as conversion pathways that exploit available agricultural and industrial biomass. Pyrolysis has been adopted successfully, whereas gasification failed without getting beyond the experimental stage. This article assesses potential barriers to the adoption of gasification based on interviews with the stakeholders of the energy sector (users, NGOs, policy makers). We use pyrolysis as a benchmark to point out the barriers to adoption. The hierarchical analysis process (AHP) method was applied to identify the most significant barriers to the adoption of gasification. Twenty-seven barriers were identified and prioritized in two dimensions and five categories “technical”, “economic and financial”, “socio-cultural and organizational”, “political, governmental and institutional”, and “ecological and geographical” barriers. The category of socio-cultural and organizational barriers emerged as the most critical in the adoption of gasification. This category deserves special consideration to go past the pilot installation stage and adopting this technology.
The Paradox around the Social Representations of Compressed Earth Block Building Material in Burkina Faso: The Material for the Poor or the Luxury Material?
(Open Journal of Social Sciences, 2021-01-04) Zoungrana, Ousmane; Bologo/Traoré, Maïmouna; Messan, Adamah
Compressed earth brick (CEB) is a masonry material which has the thermal properties that are better adapted to the hot and dry climate of tropical and Sahelian context like in Burkina Faso. Despite these advantages, CEB are still not largely used in the construction sector in the city of Ouagadougou. In order to better understand the obstacles linked to this low diffusion of CEB, the present empirical study proposes a deep analysis of the social representations of construction using CEB in the urban place. The results show that four main categories of social representations coexist in the construction sector using CEB: 1) the perception of CEB as the “material for the poor”, 2) the perception of CEB as “improved or precarious adobe” inherited from successive public policies to rehabilitate the material, 3) the symbolic perceptions linked to the red color of the brick and the durability of the material, and 4) the contemporary post-materialist perception (luxury materials), according to a minority of wealthy elites who have built their houses using CEB. These social representations are essential to take into consideration for the implementation of new public housing policies in general and promotion for the usage of CEB in particular. This could accompany the studies which aim at improving the technical performances of CEB and lead towards the socio-economic acceptance of the materials
Technico-economic comparison of heat transfer fluids or thermal energy storage materials: a case study using Jatropha curcas oil
(African Journal of Science Technology Innovation and Development 13(5):1-19, 2021-01) N’Tsoukpoe, Kokouvi Edem; Le Pierrès, Nolwenn; Seshie, Yao Manu
Thermal oils are omnipresent in processes using heat at high temperature as heat transfer fluids (HTF) as well as thermal storage materials (TESM), particularly in concentrating solar plants. In this study, a methodology for technico-economic comparison of HTF and TESM is proposed. Jatropha curcas crude oil (JaCCO), a non-edible vegetable oil, which has recently been proposed as an alternative to well-established heat transfer fluids (HTFs), is compared to some of these HTFs from an economic point of view. Two case studies were considered for the assessment, using the features of a pilot μ-CSP plant: i) the oils are used only as a HTF or ii) they are used as a HTF and a TESM. The degradation rate of the oils was considered as a parameter. The results show that from a technical point of view, the oils exhibit similar performance. The economic analysis was mainly impacted by the cost of oil per kWh of stored energy. For the plant using the oils as HTFs only, JaCCO would always be 2 economically more attractive than the other oils if its replacement frequency is less than 8–25 times that of the other oils in the economic conditions assumed in this study
Valuation of CO2 Emissions Reduction from Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Projects in Africa: A Case Study of Burkina Faso
(Int. Journal of Renewable Energy Development, 2021) Seutchea, Rice Verouska Nono; Sawadogo, Marie; Ngassam, Firmin Nkamleu
Burkina Faso like many other African countries hosts many renewable energy (RE) and energy efficiency (EE) projects that are not registered to the clean development mechanism (CDM), but which could represent potential CDM opportunities. This study seeks to determine these projects’ impact on the level of CO2 emissions in the country, and to determine their CDM potential by quantifying their carbon emissions reduction, using approved CDM methodologies adapted to the projects. 21 RE projects and 7 EE projects were considered, and all proven to be additional. Results revealed that, 68,709.424 MWh and 9,430.446MWh were saved and displaced by the EE and RE projects respectively annually, accounting for 48157.668 tCO2e emissions reduced annually. This accounts for a 63.12% emissions reduction from the baseline scenario and represents a huge potential for the CDM, ready to be harnessed. The total amount of emissions reduced could generate about 4,8157.668 Certified Emissions Reduction (CERs) yearly. Considering a carbon price of $10/tCO2e and a 10-year fixed crediting period starting from 2020 would imply a total revenue of $4,815,766.8 in 2030 from the CERs, which will increase the sector’s attractiveness to investors. Policies promoting the registration of these projects to the CDM are essential to boost the development of more of such projects in the country/ region, which will benefit from the sustainable development the CDM offers, while contributing to the achievement of its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions

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Browsing Africa Centres of Excellence Scholarly Output by Subject "2iE College of Engineering"

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