Adrar City Research Articles

Residential building forms and energy efficiency in the Saharan climate: the case of Adrar, Algeria

Algeria is a country that has witnessed rapid development as a result of its abundant oil supplies. The country’s GDP to energy consumption ratio clearly shows the need to adopt energy efficiency policies. Taking into account the regulation of excess solar radiation in the desert environment, this study examines the relationship between the shape of different buildings and their energy use. This research was divided into two stages. In the first stage, the ideal building shape for the city of Adrar, in terms of energy consumption, was determined by studying three basic geometric shapes, including square, rectangular, and triangle shapes. According to simulation research conducted using Design Builder (version 6.1.0), a square building was the best shape to maximize energy performance. To analyze the thermal behavior of different building shapes, all structures with expanded shapes were simulated based on the ideal shape discovered in the first stage. Of the three extended alternative cases, the case of the Mini Arrival offers the best energy efficiency and sufficient natural lighting thanks to its 90 cm depth and no vertical offset from the top of the window. By adding design principles to the design process, this study helps improve the energy efficiency of new buildings and also gives another angle on research methods for solving energy performance issues regarding desert buildings.

A Geant4 Monte Carlo toolkit-based radiative transfer model for studying the impact of aerosols

Radiative transfer models are of prime importance in quantifying the earth-atmosphere energy budget. A radiative transfer model based on the Geant4 Monte Carlo toolkit was developed. This model is able to perform calculations of the spectral atmospheric transmittance, surface solar irradiance, as well as the Top of the Atmosphere (TOA) reflected irradiance over the spectral range from 280 nm to 3000 nm. Through this study, the Geant4 toolkit was used to study the effect of rural aerosols concentration on different radiative characteristics. Geant4 radiative calculations in the presence and absence of aerosols were compared to that of DISORT code. For both surface and Top of the atmosphere simulations, good agreement was observed between the two models. Specifically, under atmospheric visibility conditions of 23 km, the mean relative difference between Geant4 and DISORT code was found to be less than 2.46 % for Global irradiance calculations and less than 7.9 % for TOA reflected irradiance. A comparative analysis between the measured total global irradiance in Adrar city and the irradiance estimated by Geant4 demonstrated the general effectiveness of Geant4, with a coefficient of determination of 0.991 and a Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) of 5.851 %.

Optimization of a hybrid system (PV-fuel cell) of energy production for an isolated site

In recent years, there has been a significant shift in the design and implementation of autonomous micro-grid systems, moving away from the traditional reliance on fossil fuels. Instead, these systems are now integrating existing renewable energy sources available in specific geographic locations to promote sustainability and environmental responsibility in the energy sector. One particularly promising approach for energy storage and transmission is through the utilization of hydrogen and solar energy, especially in remote regions where hybrid techniques can effectively meet the required energy demands. Our research focuses on electrifying an agricultural site located in the SBAA region, specifically in the city of ADRAR, southwest Algeria. We propose the implementation of an independent small electric network that combines various renewable energy sources, including photovoltaic (PV) systems and fuel cells. To ensure cost-effectiveness and optimize the system's performance, we aim to carefully control and size the system's components through a meticulous selection process. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of implementing renewable energy systems in the targeted region. Our goals are to reduce the total net cost, minimize energy expenses and unfulfilled load, while simultaneously mitigating CO2 emissions. To achieve these objectives, we employ the HOMER Pro simulation program, which enables us to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the proposed system's performance and economic viability. The proposed system incorporates a hybrid configuration of PV panels and fuel cells, leveraging the complementary nature of these two renewable energy sources. PV panels harness the abundant solar energy during daytime hours, while fuel cells provide a reliable and consistent energy source during periods of low solar irradiance or at night. By integrating these two technologies, we aim to establish a self-sufficient and sustainable energy system capable of meeting the energy demands of the remote agricultural site. Overall, the proposed renewable energy system demonstrates positive results in electrifying remote areas while maintaining a conservative cost of electrical energy. By implementing this system, we not only contribute to the establishment of sustainable regions but also promote environmental stewardship by reducing carbon emissions and dependence on fossil fuels.

Study of start-up of a continuous digester on a laboratory scale treating the sludge issued from wastewater treatment plant in Adrar city (south west of Algeria)

A continuous digester type was designed at the laboratory scale with an aim to studying and improving anaerobic digestion of organic wastes. The results obtained can be extrapolated at large scale pilot plant. To study the digester start-up we have chosen as a substrate the sludge issued from the wastewater treatment plant located in Adrar city (south west of Algeria). Different parameters have been considered such as pH, VFA, COD, and volume of biogas generated during the digestion process.

Study of the effect of Moringa oleifera leaves powder in Southwestern Algerian diabetic patients: a pilot clinical trial

Moringa oleifera Lam. leaves are commonly used for diabetes worldwide. To date, there has been no research study done to investigate its effect on lipid and carbohydrate profile in Algerian diabetic patients. This pilot clinical study aimed to evaluate its long term-effect on lipid and carbohydrate profile in Algerian diabetic patients in preparation for a larger trial. 44 diabetic patients from Adrar city were administrated with 3600 mg of MO leaves powder twice a day at breakfast and at 7 p.m. for a period of 90 consecutive days, along with their regular hypoglycemic medications, in order to evaluate their serum lipid (TC, C-HDL, C-LDL and TG) and carbohydrate profile (blood sugar and HBA1c), weight, BMI and blood pressure, across five time-points (on days 0, 3, 7, 30, and 90). The results showed that oral administration of Moringa oleifera powder had a statistically significant effect on blood sugar (HBA1c), LDL-C, HDL-C levels in diabetic patients (p<0.05). Moringa oleifera leaf powder seemed reduced LDL-C, and HBA1c and elevated HDL-C, in diabetic patients. No side effect was reported by any participant. However, it did not have a statistically significant effect on weight, BMI and blood pressure. The data from the present clinical trial provide persuasive, although preliminary evidence supporting the therapeutic potential of Moringa oleifera leaf powder for managing chronic hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia in Algerian patients with diabetes. A more extensive trial is necessary to determine the Moringa oleifera leaf powder optimal dose and evaluate if its effect results into long-term advantages. In addition, further investigations are required to clear the underlying mechanisms involved with these effects.

Development of an Ontology-Based Solution to Reduce the Spread of Viruses

With the sudden emergence of many dangerous viruses in recent years and with their rapid transmission and danger to individuals, most countries have adopted several strategies, such as closure and social distancing, to control the spread of the virus in the population. In parallel with all these precautions, scientific laboratories are working on developing the appropriate vaccine, which in many cases takes many years. Until then, it is necessary to resort to many solutions, including solutions that rely on information technologies and artificial intelligence (AI). In this context, this paper proposes a new solution based on the ontology and rules of intelligent reasoning. Initially, the virus environment is analyzed, followed by the extraction and editing of the main elements of the ontology using the “Protégé” software. In the last step, the proposed solution is tested, by choosing the city of Adrar in southwestern Algeria, which was particularly affected by COVID-19. Three scenarios were shown for different cases. The efficiency of the proposed solution was confirmed through the instructions it provides in the event of symptoms appearing in a person. In addition, this solution helps the competent authorities know the location and extent of the epidemic by informing the local communities.

The effect of single and hybrid nanofluids in the performance of Solar Water Heating System

In the present study, the feasibility of using single particle Cu and hybrid Cu/Al2O3 nanofluids as heat transfer fluids in a coupled solar parabolic trough collector-heat water storage tank for domestic absorption cooling systems. A computer program based on one dimensional implicit finite difference method and energy balance approach has been developed to investigate the behavior of the studied system under the real climate conditions of a typical summer day in Adrar city, Algeria. The simulation findings reveal that solar parabolic trough collector with small area of 6m² and storage tank of 0.3m3 can ensure higher storage tank temperature able to drive an absorption cooling machine. Solar system with hybrid nanofluid shows superior performance compared to single nanofluid and pure water. Furthermore, the effect of nanoparticle's volume fraction is evaluated. The heat storage tank temperature can attain starting operating chiller temperature more rapidly with small volume fraction equal to 0.2% in the case of Cu-Al2O3/Water hybrid nanofluid.

Simplified Independent Model for Predicting Global Solar Radiation

In this investigation, five existing independent empirical models were calibrated and evaluated to calculate daily and monthly mean global solar radiation on a horizontal surface in Adrar city located in the south of Algeria, using meteorological data measured from 2013 to 2018. The measured data were divided into two periods; the first period (2015-2018) was used to calculate the empirical coefficients of the models, while the second period (2013-2014) was used to validate the correlations. Additionally, the best model (Al-Salaymeh model) was compared with five dependent empirical extreme air temperature models. In general, the results show that dependent models exhibited privileged performance than independent models. However, Al-Salaymeh regression independent model can contend with regression dependent models. Because of they use only the day number as a key input with smaller relative errors. It is found that daily statistical tests mean absolute bias error, root mean square error and coefficient of determination were equal to 2.0117 MJ/m², 2.4612 MJ/m² and 0.8014 respectively. The best independent empirical model was also compared with the modified Algerian solar atlas model to show their effectiveness. As a conclusion, the simple independent models can satisfactorily describe the horizontal global solar radiation for Adrar.

Comparative study on morphometric traits of local chicken (gallus domesticus L.) in wilaya of Adrar

A study was conducted in the wilaya of Adrar in Algeria (a part of Sahara) to describe the phenotype and morphometric characteristics of local chickens. Six regions namely (part of the wilaya of Adrar) Tamentit, Zawyet Elkenta, Wlad Ahmed, Adrar city, Anezjmir and Founoghil were selected for data collection. A field survey was used to extract information from the farmers concerning production attributes of their local chickens. Measurements on body weight, tarsal length and width, high Length, thigh width, bill length, spout width, total length, breast width and eggs number per year were taken on 89 mature chickens (69 females and 20 males). The results obtained indicate that there exists significant variation between regions with respect to some production attributes as well as body weight and other body measurements. Fonoughil and Adrar city regions had the heaviest chickens (2.54kg-2.40kg respectively) while Zawyet Elkenta had the lightest birds (1.8kg). Overall, male chickens were higher than female birds with respects to all attributes studied. Body weight appeared to be highly positively correlated to some other body measurements considered in this study. The observed variation about the morphometric traits in the present study illustrate by the principal component analysis suggests that there are two groups, the first of which is represented by individuals from the Adar city region, in the other hand the second grouped all the rest of the 5 regions. There is need to pay particular attention to the Adrar city region chicken population for possible consideration for conservation and selection plan.

Exploring the impact of balconies on cooling energy demand in an arid climate zone

Abstract This paper explores the impact of balconies on the energy demand required for cooling in the arid climate zone of the city of Adrar, in Algeria. For the purpose to assess several situations of the balconies, we have chosen a parametric method based on a campaign of thermal simulations. The open and eliminated balcony type were selected and characterized by four parameters: the balcony to room ratio, the orientation, the window type, and the balcony position. A set of 100 simulations was selected randomly based on the Monte-Carlo probability technique. The final sample was corrected based on Cook’s distance which gave 85 simulations as a final sample size. A generalized regression model was performed to identify the impact of each parameter. The accuracy of the model is above 97% and the sensitivity analysis shows that the most important factor is the balcony to room ratio which could reduce the energy demand up to 26% followed by the window type (24%), the orientation (8%) and the balcony position (5%). This conclusion stresses the idea of considering the balcony as a passive solution to reduce the cooling energy demand.

Monitoring and Landscape Quantification of Uncontrolled Urbanisation in Oasis Regions: The Case of Adrar City in Algeria

Nowadays, uncontrolled urbanisation is one of the major problems facing Algerian oasis regions. The monitoring and evaluation of its landscape transformations remain a key step for any oasis sustainability project. This study highlights the evolution of spatial growth in the city of Adrar in southern Algeria during the period 1986-2016 by establishing a Spatio-temporal mapping and landscape quantification. The methodological approach is based on a multi-temporal analysis of Landsat satellite images for 1986, 1996, 2006 and 2016, and the application of landscape metrics. The results show two opposite spatial trends: significant growth of built-up areas against an excessive loss of palm groves. The landscape metrics allowed the identification of a progressive fragmentation process characterising the palm groves. Thus, the findings of this study show the utility of satellite imagery and landscape metrics approach for monitoring urbanisation patterns and assessing their impacts on oasis ecosystems.

Simultaneous allocation of photovoltaic DG and DSTATCOM for techno‐economic and environmental benefits in electrical distribution systems at different loading conditions using novel hybrid optimization algorithms

Enhancing distribution system operation accomplished with the integration of renewable energy resources (RERs) has several technical, economical, and environmental dimensions. In this regard, this paper presents an optimal integration procedure of Distributed Generation (DG) based on Photovoltaic panel (PV) and Distribution Static Compensator (DSTATCOM) in Electrical Distribution System (EDS). The proposed procedure is formulated as a multi-objective function (MOF). The considered objectives that reflect the technical, economic, and environmental issues, are Active Power Loss Level (APLL), Short Circuit Level (SCL), Voltage Deviation Level (VDL), Net Saving Level (NSL), and Environmental Pollution Reduction Level (EPRL). The proposed procedure investigates several hybrid optimization methods that combine the firefly algorithm (FA) with various acceleration coefficients PSO algorithms to improve the overall solution quality of the hybrid algorithms compared with the individual algorithms. To prove the capability of the proposed procedure, four different cases are tested on IEEE 33-bus and 69-bus EDSs. Added to that, the proposed algorithms are extended to practical Algerian EDS in Adrar City 205-bus. Results obtained by the hybrid FA-SCAC-PSO algorithm showed that the simultaneous allocation of multiple DG and DSTATCOM in all standard and practical test systems significantly reduces the loss and enhances the voltage profile. An energy-efficient analysis to proceed for different cases studied based on the best hybrid FA-SCAC-PSO algorithm to reach the best value of MOF compared to other algorithms, moreover the capability to achieve the optimal allocation of DG and DSTATCOM by maintaining the voltages profile within the permissible limit, whatever the variation of load. Significant technical economic and environmental achievements are found for different case studies especially in the existence of DGs and DSTATCOM devices.

Experimental Analysis of a Photovoltaic Power Plant in a Desert Environment– Adrar area –

Algeria has one of the highest solar deposits in the world, the average duration of sunshine in the Algerian Sahara is 3500 hours, and this potential can be an important factor for sustainable development in this region, if it is exploited economical way. In this context, it should be noted that the city of Adrar is located in the region of the "solar belt", which enjoys abundant sunshine of more than 3000 hours of sunshine per year, based on data from Overall hourly irradiation on a horizontal surface, the Adrar region is distinguished by a higher average daily irradiation of up to 5.7 kWh/m2/day. In the present work, an operational performance analysis of a polycrystalline silicon photovoltaic system for one year is performed. The installed capacity of this system is 20 MW, and it is exposed in an arid climate in Adrar of southern Algeria.

An experimental study on the influence of arid climate on early-age cracking of concrete—A case study of the city of Adrar in Algeria

<abstract> It is well recognized that the arid climate is an essential parameter that causes various problems, such as shrinkage cracking, on concrete in hot weather, especially at an early age. Adrar's region is characterized by its severe aridity and is considered one of the world's warmest areas. The present experimental study aims to study the influence of this arid climate on concrete cracking. In this context, the influence on hardened concretes, made with local materials exposed to local climatic conditions and using the same concrete formulation used in this region, was investigated. The study of concrete cracking was conducted in this work carried out by Standard ASTM C1579. The concrete types investigated here are concrete without adjuvant, concrete with adjuvant, and concrete treated with a curing product. Each concrete underwent two modes of preservation; the first inside the lab and the second outside, in the open air. Also, this work provides results of measurements of the consistency, temperature of fresh concrete, the onset and development of cracks; the findings then compared. It found that those cracks were always present in concrete, and their appearance and evolution were faster for concretes exposed directly to the arid climate. However, it noted that cracks decreased by about 50% in length and 66% in width with the adjuvant's introduction. A further decrease of approximately 40% and 50% in length and width, also reported after treatment with the curing product. It should be noted that all the samples stored inside the laboratory showed more minor cracks whose appearance and evolution slower in comparison with those of samples kept outside, in the open air. </abstract>

Modelling and Numerical Investigation of the thermal properties effect on the soil temperature in Adrar region.

Geothermal energy is part in various clean sources in the world. The geothermal energy resources originate from the ground and its temperature varies according to depth and its thermal properties. This paper presents a numerical simulation of the soil temperature variation in different thermal properties depending on the nature of the soil. three different Specific heat capacity and thermal conductivity are used in this this simulation and have applied in Adrar city. Three soils A, B and C, each soil has characteristics that are different from the others are presented. The results showed that the soil C is considered the best soil in terms of results in the southern desert region that can be applied to help in ventilation, cooling homes in summer (22°C) and natural heating in winter (31°C). A is considered to be a soil with high thermal insulation and its results can be used for agricultural irrigation applications in desert areas in the summer season because its temperature stabilizes at 26 °C. As an economic vision, it can use the soil B in depth of 3 m to reduce costs, based on the convergence of the results of soil C in this depth, but it's remain less effective

Potentiality of municipal sludge for biological gas production at Soba Station South of Khartoum (Sudan)

Potentiality of municipal sludge for biological gas production at Soba Station South of Khartoum (Sudan)

Improvement of glass solar still performance using locally available materials in the southern region of Algeria

Limited resources and increased water demand associated with fast socio-economic development and expansion in the irrigated land in southern Algeria have led to overexploitation of groundwater and caused a significant water table drawdown as well as groundwater quality degradation due to saline water intrusion. Solar distillation is an interesting alternative source for producing drinking water from brackish water for the purpose of supplying isolated communities in remote areas. The present seeks to improve the performance of a glass solar still through increasing the productivity of freshwater by the use of different new absorbers, such as gravel, polyethylene, and sand, as heat storage systems. The solar distiller under study was fabricated with cheap glass and healthy materials, and was tested under the climatic conditions of the City of Adrar, in the Southern part of Algeria, where solar energy and underground saline water are abundant. The experimental results show that, gravel produces the highest quantity of fresh water, i.e. 5 L per m2 per day, followed by black polyethylene with 4.48 l/m2/d and then sand with 3.84 l/m2/d. It is interesting to note that the daily freshwater productivities of gravel and black polyethylene are, respectively, 32.20% and 16.67% higher than that of sand. In addition, it was found that gravel is the best absorber and has the highest productivity as compared to the other absorbers. The solar radiation intensity is quite high; the maximum value was found equal to 1131.013 W/m2. Moreover, the quality of water is reflected in its Total Dissolved Salts (TDS) level which is of the order of 21.247 mg/l from feed water with a TDS content of about 3062.60 mg/l. Hence, the efficiency of the solar still is approximately 99.30%.

A new concept in direct-driven vertical axis wind energy conversion system under real wind speed with robust stator power control

Currently, both the permanent magnet synchronous generators and the electrically excited synchronous generator are used in the direct-drive wind turbine technology to produce electrical energy. Aiming at the high cost of permanent magnets, the commercial availability, mainly in African, and the difficulty of the magnetic field weakening operation of the PMSG machine, the work studied a novel design of a direct-drive H-Darrieus wind turbine (H-DWT) based on doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) using MATLAB/Simulink software. The stator topology is connected directly to the grid while the rotor is connected to grid with back to back converters. The study includes the sizing, modeling, and control of the proposed system. A sliding mode control (SMC) approach is selected in order to achieve robust control of active/reactive power injected into the grid. The real wind speed spanning a period of one year of the province of Adrar city located in the south of Algeria is used to test the complete system. The simulation results illustrate the operating efficiency of a DFIG and the performance of the SMC method in stator powers tracking in direct-drive wind energy conversion systems.

Improvement of glass solar still performance using locally available materials in the southern region of Algeria

Limited resources and increased water demand associated with fast socio-economic development and expansion in the irrigated land in southern Algeria have led to overexploitation of groundwater and caused a significant water table drawdown as well as groundwater quality degradation due to saline water intrusion. Solar distillation is an interesting alternative source for producing drinking water from brackish water for the purpose of supplying isolated communities in remote areas. The present seeks to improve the performance of a glass solar still through increasing the productivity of freshwater by the use of different new absorbers, such as gravel, polyethylene, and sand, as heat storage systems. The solar distiller under study was fabricated with cheap glass and healthy materials, and was tested under the climatic conditions of the City of Adrar, in the Southern part of Algeria, where solar energy and underground saline water are abundant. The experimental results show that, gravel produces the highest quantity of fresh water, i.e. 5 L per m2 per day, followed by black polyethylene with 4.48 l/m2/d and then sand with 3.84 l/m2/d. It is interesting to note that the daily freshwater productivities of gravel and black polyethylene are, respectively, 32.20% and 16.67% higher than that of sand. In addition, it was found that gravel is the best absorber and has the highest productivity as compared to the other absorbers. The solar radiation intensity is quite high; the maximum value was found equal to 1131.013 W/m2. Moreover, the quality of water is reflected in its Total Dissolved Salts (TDS) level which is of the order of 21.247 mg/l from feed water with a TDS content of about 3062.60 mg/l. Hence, the efficiency of the solar still is approximately 99.30%.

Development of new ontological solution for an energy intelligent management in Adrar city

Currently, the growth in building energy consumption presents raises concerns with greenhouse gases and environmental pollution. The building occupants face significant difficulties to control the consumed power due to several instabilities such as climate change and human behavior. Therefore, it is necessary to have a decision tool that optimizes the consumed energy and ensures an acceptable comfort for the occupants. This article presents an intelligent solution based on an ontology that presents knowledge about the internal and external environment of a residence, as well as the occupants’ behavior and activities. The system openness with the external environment, the knowledge presentation flexibility built on Web Ontology Language (OWL) and the possibility of intelligent reasoning using Semantic Web Rule Language (SWRL) are the main reasons for choosing the ontological approach. The proposed ontology is applied to a real home located in the Adrar city, in the Algerian Sahara. A comparison between two scenarios (with and without the proposed system, Ontological Solution for Energy Intelligent Management (OSEIM) revealed the effectiveness of the proposed solution. The obtained results present a significant energy saving of 4.58%.