ALBERT

Description: The work presented in this paper was carried out to statistically evaluate and quantify the material-source effect on the asphalt-binder’s rheological properties using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Tukey’s Honestly Significant Difference (Tukey´s HSD) test. The study focused on the Asphalt-Binders’ high-temperature rheological properties, namely, the G*, δ, G*/Sin(δ) and G*/(1 − (1/Tan(δ)Sin(δ))) parameters, measured using the Dynamic Shear Rheometer (DSR) device. The DSR data analyzed in the study were extracted from the Texas flexible pavements and overlays database, namely, the Texas Data Storage System (DSS), covering two Asphalt-Binders (ABs), performance grade (PG) 64-22 and PG 76-22 plant-mix extracted ABs that were treated as rolling thin film oven (RTFO) residue, and sourced from 14 different suppliers. The study findings substantiate that material-source has an effect on the high-temperature rheological properties of ABs. Additionally, it was also concluded that in as much as performance superiority and costs are crucial issues in deciding the AB source/provider, consistency and quality aspects cannot be disregarded. Therefore, material-source effects should be inclusively evaluated from both performance (rheological properties) and quality (consistence) standpoints as well as cost considerations when choosing a supplier. In general, the study contributes to the state-of-the-art enrichment on aspects of material-source effects on RTFO residue ABs’ high-temperature rheological properties, consistency, variability, and data quality.

Description: Mathematical models and algorithms for maximizing power extraction have become an essential topic in renewable energies in the last years, especially in wind energy conversion systems. This study proposes maximum power point tracking using gain scheduling approximations for an emulated wind system in a direct-drive connection. Power extraction is obtained by controlling the duty cycle of a Multilevel Boost Converter, which directly varies the rotational speed of a permanent magnet synchronous generator directly coupled to a three-phase induction motor that emulates the wind turbine. The system’s complexity is linked to the inherent non-linearities associated with the diverse electrical, mechanical, and power electronic elements. In order to present a synthesized model without losing the system dynamic richness, several physical tests were made to obtain parameters for building several mathematical approaches, resulting in non-linear dynamic equations for the controller gains, which are dependant on wind speed. Thirty real operational wind speeds considering typical variations were used in several tests to demonstrate the mathematical models’ performance. Results among these gain scheduling approaches and a typical controller constant gains mathematical model were compared based on standard deviations, absolute error, and the time for reaching the optimum generator angular speed related to every wind speed.