A Study of Socioeconomic Aspects of Motor Assisted Pedal Rickshaw and its PV Solution

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Journal of Electrical EngineeringThe Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh

Vol. EE 40, No. I & II, June & December, 2014

32

A Study of Socioeconomic Aspects of Motor Assisted

Pedal Rickshaw and its PV SolutionSujoy Barua

1 and M. M. Hasan

2

1Green Housing and Energy Limited, Dhaka, Bangladesh2Department of ECE, Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh

Email: [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract — People all over the world have keen interest to

look for a new way so that they can lead a comfortable

life. Accordingly various technologies have been invented

in transport system. Motor Assisted Pedal Rickshaw

(MAPR) is a newly discovered technology in which the

traditional cycle rickshaw has completely been re-

engineered with motor for the promptness, safety and

comfort to passengers and to reduce the workload on the

rickshaw-pullers. In this paper, an analysis in using

MAPRs is studied pragmatically and an illustration is

provided technically and financially. Results show that theMAPR has been flooded in Chittagong, consuming a

substantial amount of electricity daily. A very effective

idea of using solar based recharging station has been given

to reduce consumed power from our national grid by a

comparative analysis through this paper. The port city of

Chittagong has been chosen as a prototypical area for this

research activity.

Index Terms — Chittagong, Electricity, MAPR, Recharging

Station, Solar PV System.

I. INTRODUCTION

echnology is improving day by day around the world.Developing countries are not so behind in this race.Battery-run electric vehicles are the blessing of modern

technology used mainly in South Asian countries. Generallytwo types of electric vehicles; motor driven rickshaws andeasy-bikes, ply on the road of Chittagong city. The motor-rickshaws are similar to ordinary pedal rickshaws except witha battery-run motor set under the body. This dc motor is powered by four or in some cases six rechargeable batterieswhich are set under the seat. On the other hand, the easy-bikeslook somewhat like CNG-run auto-rickshaws but are powered by five rechargeable batteries. Around 30,000 MAPRs are plying on the roads of the Chittagong city. In Chittagong all

types of electric vehicles altogether use more than 4,000 unitsof electricity in a day, which cost no less than Tk. 30,000 perday or monthly Tk. 9,00000 [1].

During last three years, the existing traditional cycle rickshawhas completely been re-engineered with motor for promptnessmovement and comfort of passengers and to reduce theworkload of the rickshaw-pullers. Commercially availableMAPRs have been flooded Chittagong city, consuming dailya substantial amount of electricity from the national grid.Each of the MAPRs which has to be charged eight hours in a

day, consumes around 2-3 units of electricity per day [2]. Thefollowing are some reasons behind using the newly developedtechnology:

1. It will minimize the corporal labor of the rickshaw pullers and thus encourage them to earn more money ina day.

2. Passengers are getting benefit of saving time to reachdestination with comfortable journey.

3.

Since there is required minimum physical labor to ride itthe aged rickshaw pullers feel encouraged riding it.

These few characteristics of using MAPRs have increased thenumber of MAPRs all over the country. Economic activitiesare being promoted due to these types of increasedcommunication facilities. And hence electricity demand inBangladesh is increasing fast due to enhanced economicactivities. The total daily demand of electricity in Chittagongduring the peak hour was about 600MW to 650MW againstthe daily supply of nearly 400MW of electricity [3]. The totalgeneration capacity in Bangladesh was about 8100 MW in thefiscal year 2011-2012. The highest peak generation wasapproximately 6066 MW in the same fiscal year, whereas themaximum demand on this fiscal year was nearly 7518 MW.Under the existing generation of electricity in Bangladesh,renewable energy has a very small share of about 0.5% to thetotal generation [4]. Bangladesh Power Development Board(BPDB) has set policies for developing renewable energyresources to meet 5% of the total power demand by 2015 and10% percent by 2020 [5].

In this work, an initiative has been taken to introduce a newidea to minimize electricity consumption not only for MotorAssisted Pedal Rickshaw (MAPR) but also for all types of battery-run electric vehicles by establishing PV system inCNG stations. The innovative way to save the electricity

consumption for MAPR through detailed discussion ontechnical issue, energy demand and financial factors to meetelectricity demand in Chittagong city and proposes solar based recharging station for MAPR.

II. MOTOR ASSISTED PEDAL R ICKSHAW

Motor Assisted Pedal Rickshaw is a newly rearrangementof old pedal rickshaw. It requires a small motor which isattached under the body of the rickshaw so that it can assistthe rickshaw pullers to pedal whenever they experience load

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Barua, S., et al.: Elec. Engg., Instn. Engrs., Bangladesh, 40 (I & I I ), June & December 2014

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or while going uphill. Since it runs with a battery bank, a lowcost electric charger is used to charge up the battery bankanywhere and all types of battery run electric vehicles can beconsidered as a non-polluting transport system in this regard.A two seated Motor Assisted Pedal Rickshaw (MAPR) isshown in Fig.1 with its front and back view. Battery Pack of2400 Wh (48 V x 50 AH) is placed inside the seat (Fig.2). ABrushless DC motor (500 W, 48 VDC, 13.5 A, 450 RPM as

obtained from field visit) is set under the seat of rickshaw(Fig.3), pedal can assist whenever pullers experienced load.The speed of the MAPR is controlled by clutch (Fig.4).MAPR has several advantages to support sustainable solution.These are:

1.

Electric motor converts about 80% of chemical energyfrom the batteries to power the wheels.

2.

Motor assisted pedal rickshaw emits no pollutants.

3. It provides calm, smooth operation and less

maintenance.

4.

Electricity is a domestic energy source. This can reduce

the energy dependency [6].

A MAPR requires charging its batteries twice in a day. Dailyenergy consumption, as obtained from the field visit, by asingle motor assisted pedal rickshaw (MAPR) is 2.5 kWh/dayand 75 kWh/month. The MAPR is an integrated system withmotor, controller, battery and charge controller. The cost of aMAPR system is around USD 857.15 in Chittagong.Considering socio-economic condition of Bangladesh, themain problems with such types of transports are as follows:

1. Lack of knowledge about charging and discharging of

battery and maintenance of MAPR.

2.

Mechanical construction of MAPR is not enough andhence accident occurs rapidly.

3.

Day by day it is increasing electricity demand in urbanarea. So alternative energy sources are needed for this.

4.

Owners of MAPR are not following commercial orresidential charge rules of electricity authority to chargethe battery.

Table I: Bright Sunshine Hours (Hours)

in Chittagong

Month Hours Month Hours

January 7.63 July 5.42

February 8.55 August 5.38

March 7.56 September 6.09

April 7.75 October 6.49

May 6.97 November 8.03

June 3.99 December 7.38

Fig.1 Front and rear view of a 2 seated MAPR.

Fig.2 Battery pack of four batteries.

Fig.3 Motor is placed under the seat of rickshaw.

Fig.4 Power button and speed controller of MAPR.

Fig. 5 Solar irradiance status in Chittagong.


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III.

POTENTIAL OF SOLAR ENERGY IN CHITTAGONG

The Chittagong city is surrounded by rich natural resourcessuch as- Hilly Terrain, the Karnaphuli River and the Bay ofBengal which can be termed as the “Divine Gifts” for the city

in Bangladesh. Chittagong is the principal seaport and secondlargest city of Bangladesh, located at the estuary of the riverKarnaphuli on the Bay of Bengal in the south-eastern region

of the country. Bangladesh is situated between 20.30

0

- 26.38

0

north latitude and 88.040 - 92.440 east longitude. And thegeographic coordinates of Chittagong is 22.290 north latitudeand 91.820 east longitude

and elevation above sea level is 7 m which is an ideal locationfor solar energy utilization. Chittagong has a tropicalmonsoon climate with short dry season. Average global solarradiation is 4.55 KWH/m2/day. Average Maximum globalsolar radiation is 5.15 KWH/m2/day and minimum is 3.81KWH/m2/day. Daily average global, direct and diffuseradiations in Chittagong are shown in fig.5 [7] and Table I presents daily average bright sunshine hours in Chittagong[8].

IV.

TECHNICAL CONSIDERATION

The long term commercialization of utility based solarPhotovoltaic (PV) electric generation requires thedevelopment of safe, efficient, reliable, affordablecomponents and systems. The systems meet utilityexpectations of performance and production goals, whileallowing for full integration of time variant intermittentrenewable generation resources.

In Chittagong, inclination angle for solar panel is at 22° andfacing at south to obtain optimum energy output from the

panels. The energy harnessing efficiency of the solar panel isconsidered 90% at this setting and Battery efficiency is 85%.In this system, high temperature of the module, dustsettlement on PV modules and other factors that degrade thesolar cell performance would decrease the amount of capacity produced by the PV modules.

A.

Design of a solar based rechargi ng station

A standalone PV system is simple because the output from aPV module is always DC. Standalone systems vary widely insize and application. A charge controller may be incorporatedin the system to avoid hazardous of battery damage byexcessive charging or discharging and optimizing the

production of the cells or modules by Maximum Power PointTracking (MPPT).

The motor assisted pedal rickshaw (MAPR) is driven by 2.4kWh of battery bank at 48 V voltage. Average bright sunshinehour is considered as about 6.77 hours in Chittagong. The PV panel need to supply the energy to the battery bank at 48 V.Therefore total capacity (Ah) generated by the PV panelsshould be 2400 Wh/48V = 50 Ah. So PV modules should produce the following amount current for a single MAPR.

Fig. 6 Block Diagram of System.

Fig. 7 Tentative place on the roof of genaral refuelingl station.

Fig. 8 Tentative place for panel setup on the roadside.

A

Ah1065.9

85.09.077.6

50

at 48V system voltage.

In this work, PV module is considered of peak power output(W p) of 100W p [9] which at maximum power point (Vm andIm) would be about 18.77 V and 5.353 A respectively. So forthis system, it is required

strings A

2868.1

353.5

10

in Parallel

And 3 modules in series to get voltage higher than 48 V. Thusoverall it requires (3 x 2) = 6 PV modules of 100W p for aMAPR. But solar based recharging station is designed forcharging 10 MAPRs simultaneously. So the number of totalPV module is (6 x 10) = 60 Nos. Therefore, the solar based

recharging station will be 6 KW p system.

A system capacity design depends on the amount of space. Arule of thumb is that each square foot of single PV modulearea produces 10 watts of power in bright sunlight [10]. Aftersite selection, each station can add numbers of MAPR bymultiplying the MAPR with a system capacity. The Solar based recharging station can charge MAPR quickly and moreMAPRs each day, if battery charge controller with intelligentand improved technology is available in market.


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B. Electri city Generation of the Solar PV SystemIn this project the system capacity is 6 kW p. So the dailyenergy generation is to be multiplied the system capacity withmonthly average sunshine duration. Again monthly energygeneration is to be multiplied daily generation to number ofdays each month respectively. Total energy generation is14688.62 kWh, shown in Table II.

C. Proposed space for station

The roof of refuelling station is the suitable and plenteous place for harvesting solar energy. In Chittagong metropolitanarea, there are many CNG refuelling stations. The amount ofroof area is needed to mount a system is based on the size orgenerating capacity or rating of the system. Amount of landrequired for solar PV panel is 1.5 W/ft 2 [11]. For this proposed system the required spaces is 500 square foot tosetup solar based recharging station.

Table II: Monthly Electricity Generation of 6 kw System

Month Sunshine

duration

( hour)

Daily Energy

Generation

(kWh)

Monthly

Energy

Generation(kWh)

January 7.63 45.78 1419.8

February 8.55 51.3 1436.4

March 7.56 45.36 1406.16

April 7.75 46.5 1395

May 6.97 41.82 1279.68

June 3.99 23.94 718.2

July 5.42 32.52 1008.12

August 5.38 32.28 903.84

September 6.09 36.54 1096.2

October 6.49 38.94 1207.14

November 8.03 48.18 1445.4

December 7.38 44.28 1372.68

Total 14688.62

After investigation, it is seen that some refuelling stations aresituated in potential place (Fig. 7) where PV system can produce energy without any obstacle and panel installation onthe roadside (Fig. 8) will increase beauty of town. Some places are not suitable to accommodate PV modules. Whiledesigning the solar PV systems, site selection should becarefully handled to avoid possible shadow from trees, hills,the water tanks, sidewalls, columns and nearby buildings.

V.

FINANCIAL ANALYSIS OF THE PROJECT

Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) depends on total cost of project in three phase: construction phase, operational phaseand decommissioning phase [12]. The construction cost is theinitial investment cost of project. Operational cost includesfuel cost and the incurred cost of operation and maintenanceof project. The decommission cost is related to termination ofthe project and disposal of the equipments. All these costs aresummed up to prepare the total life cycle cost of the project.The following values of economic parameter are consideredfor analysis, period of analysis ( N ): 20 years, discount rate (d )10%, Inflation rate 0%. For LCC calculation at first the total

net present worth of recurring ( P r ) and non-recurring ( P nr )cost has to be calculated. To do this, the future cost ismultiplied by a factor to incorporate the inflation and discountrate.

Since MAPR is integrated with battery and other components,there is no need to use extra battery. The required equipmentsare PV modules, solar charge controllers, mountings and otheraccessories. The different essential components associatedwith this project costs (BDT 70/USD) for the period of 20years.

In this project the quantities of PV modules and dc combiner

boxes are calculated manually. The wiring, installation andmaintenance cost is considered approximately. The cost ofthese components may be varied depending on its brand,quality, place and quantity.

Solar PV systems is for the period of next 20 years, authoritycan make profit by selling KWh solar energy from solar basedrecharging station which assist to find payback period of this proposed system. The analysis shows the income from the proposed system for two different considerations: per kilowatthour equal to 7 taka (USD 0.1) and 9 taka (USD 0.13). Seventaka and nine taka are the residential and commercial chargeof electricity respectively [13]. Considering USD 0.1 andUSD 0.13 taka per kilowatt hour the total yearly incomes areUSD 1,468.86 and USD 1909.52 respectively.

A simplified form of cost/benefit analysis is the simple payback technique (eq. 3). This method yields the number ofyears required for the improvement to pay for itself [14].

(3)

Considering commercial and residential tariff rate, payback period is 14.49 years and 18.84 years respectively.

Total LCC cost of system = USD 27673Annual income = USD 1,909.52 (at tariff $0.13)Payback period in year = 14.49 yearsAnnual income = USD 1,468.86 (at tariff $ 0.1)Payback period in year = 18.84 years

VI. OPPORTUNITY AND BENEFITS

There are numbers of refuel filling station around Chittagongcity. So it has immense opportunity to install and feed solarPV energy through this kind of project. The opportunity and benefits are given below:


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1. Using this project, Motor assisted Pedal Rickshaw(MAPR) can be permitted on road to promotesustainable development in urban and rural area.

2.

Large amount of energy is needed to recharge MAPRfrom national grid. So authority can take step to reduceenergy demand to take initiative such types project.

3. To install the system, site is available in the urban and

rural area.

4. Dependence on conventional power sources such asdiesel, gas can be lessened.

5.

Initial project cost is high but maintenance and projectrunning cost are very low. And payback time is nolonger than system life time and lesser than other projects.

6.

Environment pollution free and CO2 free energy producefrom solar energy.

7.

Project authority can sale the energy per kWhcommercially.

In this paper, the EACA has been effectively implemented tosolve Reactive Power problem.

The main advantages of the EACA are easily handling of non-linear constraints. The proposed algorithm has been tested onthe IEEE 30-bus system to minimize the active power loss.The optimal setting of control variables are well within thelimits. The results were compared with the other heuristicmethods and proposed EACA demonstrated its effectivenessand robustness in minimizing the real power loss.

VII.

CONCLUSIONS

A Country like Bangladesh where low wages and surpluslabor are substantial features of the economy, rickshaws may be the main vehicle for short-distance movement of peopleand goods. The motor driven rickshaws are environmentfriendly, carbon emission free, and hence these are being popular all over the country day by day. The motor assisted pedal rickshaws (MAPR) ply on the roads of Chittagong morethan in other cities of Bangladesh. The proposed idea can be areward to minimize the electricity consumption for thisnumber of MAPRS and thus to facilitate the life of therickshaw pullers.

So the concerned authority should take the adequate steps forimposing the proposed solar system on the roof of each

refueling station as an alternative power source for MAPRS.This will meet the energy demand for MAPRS as well asreduce the carbon emission from fossil fuels. The generatedenergy from the recharging stations can be sold per KWh incommercial sectors after meeting the demand of MAPRS.

In case authority bans the MAPRs, stations would be usedcharging battery for SHS and IPS systems. Though this

project and research has been done in Chittagong city but the proposed system can be designed and implemented anywherein Bangladesh.

R EFERENCES

[1] M. Uddin, “Unauthorised battery-run vehicles floodChittagong city”, The Daily Star news article, December

30, 2012.[2] The New Age, “Unregistered Easy-bikes Still Plying

City Streets”, 2011.

[3] T. Hayat, “Unbearable power crisis in Chittagong",Dhaka Tribune Online News , 2013.

[4] BPDB 2013, “Annual Report 2011-2012”, BangladeshPower Development Board 2013.

[5]

BPDB 2008, “Renewable Energy Policy of

Bangladesh”, Bangladesh Power Development Board

2008.

[6]

M. B. Molla, “An Analysis, Design and opportunity of

solar based recharging station for electrical vehicles in bangladesh”, ICDRET 2012, January 2012, Dhaka,

Bangladesh.

[7]

NASA 2013, Surface meteorology and Solar EnergyAccess, August 2013.

[8]

S.U.H. Khan, T.U. Rahman, and S. Hossain, “A brief

study of the prospect of solar energy in generation ofElectricity in Bangladesh”, Cyber Journals:

Multidisciplinary Journals in Science and Technology,JRSE, June Edition, 2012.

[9] www.parasol-energy.com / Access on: august 2013.

[10]

N. Fatemi, “Solar ready roof design for high- performaning solar installation in Dhaka: Potential andstrategies”, ICDRET 2012 P.235 2012.

[11]

H. Chowdhury, N.A. Masood, M.A. Fuad,M.A.U.Zaman, and R. Rahman, “Savings of Electricity

Consumption Cost in Commercial Sector ofBangladesh”, International Journal of Innovation,

Management and Technology, vol. 4, no. 4, 2013.

[12] A.Kabir and A. Roy, “Life Cycle Economic assessmentof solar pv systems in Bangladesh wirh respect toconventional sources”, ICDRET 12, January 2012.

[13]

BPDB 2013. Website: http://www.bpdb.gov.bd/ Access

on: August 2013.

[14]

M. Chowdhury, “Design and Cost Benefit Analysis of

Grid Connected Solar PV System for the AUSTCampus”, ICECE 2010 IEEE.

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A Study of Socioeconomic Aspects of Motor Assisted Pedal Rickshaw and its PV Solution