Mott MacDonald

About: Mott MacDonald is a company organization based out in London, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Electric power system & Wind power. The organization has 586 authors who have published 529 publications receiving 9801 citations. The organization is also known as: Mott MacDonald Group & MMD.

The Application of X-Band Radar for Characterization of Nearshore Dynamics on a Mixed Sand and Gravel Beach

Abstract: Atkinson, J.; Esteves, L.S.; Williams, J.W.; McCann D.L., and Bell, P.S., 2018. The Application of X-Band Radar for Characterisation of Nearshore Dynamics on a Mixed Sand and Gravel Beach. In: Shim, J.-S.; Chun, I., and Lim, H.S. (eds.), Proceedings from the International Coastal Symposium (ICS) 2018 (Busan, Republic of Korea). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 85, pp. 281–285. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208.Remote sensing using X-band radar allows the estimation of wave parameters, near surface currents and the underlying bathymetry. This paper explores the use of radar to derive nearshore bathymetry at a complex site, at Thorpeness in Suffolk, UK. The site has a history of sporadic and focused erosion events along the beach frontage and as part of the X-Com project (X-band Radar and Evidence-Based Coastal Management Decisions) a radar system was deployed with the aim of further understanding the complex nearshore sediment processes influencing erosion. Initially, the bathymetric variation at the site is quantified through analysis of current and historic multibeam surveys. These indicate depth changes approaching 3 m. Subsequently, validation of the radar data against concurrent multibeam survey data has been undertaken. Results show that the radar derived bathymetry has a precision of ±1m at the site, with the largest errors being associated with areas of more complex bathymetry and where wave data quality was less suitable for analysis by the X-band radar bathymetry algorithms. It is concluded that although the accuracy of radar-derived bathymetry is lower than traditional multibeam survey, the low cost for high temporal coverage can be utilised for long-term monitoring of coastal sites where a cost-effective means of quantifying large-scale bathymetric changes is required.

Load reallocation in the service restoration application for distribution networks

Abstract: The service restoration of medium voltage distribution networks considering load reallocation in the substation areas that are topological neighbors to de-energized area is presented in this paper. The heuristic graph-based approach based on Prim's algorithm for finding the minimum spanning tree logic is implemented in the service restoration application. Primary objective of the proposed service restoration application is the minimization of the unsupplied load to consumers in de-energised area. Secondary objective is the reduction of the number of switching operations. The approach for the reduction of the number of switching operations is based on the assignment of the weighting coefficient to branches in a de-energized area. Key improvement with the proposed algorithm is achieved by the introduction of the load reallocation consideration during service restoration calculations. The load reallocation significantly improves the fulfilling of the primary objective i.e. the number of consumers in de-energised area that shall have restored service shall be significantly increased.

Innovative learning at The University of Edinburgh

Abstract: The activities available to civil engineering students during the University of Edinburgh's innovative learning week in 2012 were examined. The academic staff proposed a wide range of possible activities and student participation was optional. Popular activities were those with a ‘hands-on’ element: making or doing something. The practical activities offered included designing and building trebuchets, relaying railway permanent way on a heritage railway, practical workshops on engineering in international development and learning to juggle. These activities suggested that heuristic learning by trial and error was likely to enhance the visualisation skills that contribute to good engineering design. Further, the linking of achievement to purposeful practice rather than innate talent could inform teaching methods in the future. They also showed that in some cases safety culture messages were still not fully assimilated by students.

Experimental analysis of fuzzy controlled energy efficient demand controlled ventilation economizer cycle variable air volume air conditioning system

Abstract: In the quest for energy conservative building design, there is now a great opportunity for a flexible and sophisticated air conditioning system capable of addressing better thermal comfort, indoor air quality, and energy efficiency, that are strongly desired. The variable refrigerant volume air conditioning system provides considerable energy savings, cost effectiveness and reduced space requirements. Applications of intelligent control like fuzzy logic controller, especially adapted to variable air volume air conditioning systems, have drawn more interest in recent years than classical control systems. An experimental analysis was performed to investigate the inherent operational characteristics of the combined variable refrigerant volume and variable air volume air conditioning systems under fixed ventilation, demand controlled ventilation, and combined demand controlled ventilation and economizer cycle techniques for two seasonal conditions. The test results of the variable refrigerant volume and variable air volume air conditioning system for each techniques are presented. The test results infer that the system controlled by fuzzy logic methodology and operated under the CO2 based mechanical ventilation scheme, effectively yields 37% and 56% per day of average energy-saving in summer and winter conditions, respectively. Based on the experimental results, the fuzzy based combined system can be considered to be an alternative energy efficient air conditioning scheme, having significant energy-saving potential compared to the conventional constant air volume air conditioning system.