December 2018
Guidelines for writing Concept note for BEAg Final year Project

Instructions

No more than 2 pages in length (excluding title page), a concept paper frame a project idea and explain the importance of a particular project to your supervisor, funding sponsors and/or collaborators. A concept note may include some or all of the following sections, depending upon how developed the research idea and whether or not the concept paper is being developed in response to a specific funding opportunity.

1          Title of project

This should provide a snap shot of your proposed project.

2          Background of the project

This section should explain the background of the project, what motivated you to take up the project and the contribution to knowledge which you wish to make. Indicate why this area you have chosen for the project is important?

3          Objectives of the project

You should list out overall and specific objectives for your project to show what you want to achieve.

4          Project Description:

Describe the "who, what, and when" - i.e. what tasks will be undertaken, who will lead those tasks, and when the work will be accomplished. If a simple, yet effective graphic can be included to illustrate a key point, include it! The project description can be broken down into 3 sections:

4.1         Problem & Significance

Explain why you to think, based on a review of the literature, that the topic needs study and why it is important to the field. Review of literature should outline the important study that has been carried out related to your project. This would provide you assessing the state of knowledge and the knowledge gap and therefore help you putting your project in a perspective.

4.2         Approach/Methodology

Specify what hypotheses you will test and what model will guide your hypotheses. Explain what is new in your approach, why it is important to be done, and how it is unique. Include mention of any resources, collaborators, target populations, preliminary data, etc. that area available to the project.

4.3         Expected Result

Describe the project’s expected result, which may include impacts on the engineering field, societal and economic benefits, etc.

5          Project Team

Identify key collaborators and their sponsoring institution. Identify stakeholders for which significant cooperation will be needed to implement the proposed project. If applicable, indicate which stakeholders are willing to provide a written commitment of support for the project.

6          Budget/Timeline

Write what you anticipate the project will cost (LS) and how long it will take to complete.

Contact Info

Provide the contact information (emails and phone numbers) of each team members. Put project leader name first.

References

For referencing and citation use Vancouver system.


TRIBHUVAN UNIVERSITY
INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING
PURWANCHAL CAMPUS
Department of Agricultural Engineering

Concept note on
(Put Project Title Here)

By
(Put team member name alphabetically)



(Put Date here: Month, Year)


ANNEX – II

Vancouver System of Citation and Referencing
For citation use square brackets. For Eg. [1]
Authors(s). Title of book. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.
Basu P. Biomass gasification and pyrolysis: practical design and theory. Academic press; 2010.
Editor(s), editor(s). Title of book. Edition. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.
Overend RP, Milne T, Mudge L, editors. Fundamentals of thermochemical biomass conversion. Springer Science & Business Media; 2012.
Author. Title of chapter. In: Editors, editors. Title of book. Edition. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication. Page numbers.
Carandang CG, Martin A. Clinical assessment of children and adolescents with depression. In: Rey JM, Birmaher B, editors. Treating child and adolescent depression. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2009. p. 23-40.
Author(s). Title of article. Title of Journal (abbreviated). Date of publication;Volume(Issue):Page numbers.
Author(s) of paper. Title of paper. In: Editor(s) surname and initials, editor(s). Title of conference; Date of conference; Place of conference. Place of publication: Publisher’s name; Year of publication. Page numbers.
Thesis
Author(s). Thesis title [type of thesis]. Place of publication: Publisher; Year.
Kafle S. Development of reduction techniques on tar fouling by dolomite and lime additives in a wood pellet boiler [master’s thesis]. South Korea; Kangwon National University; 2016.
Author. Title of web page [Medium]. Place of publication: Publisher; Date of publication [updated Year Month Day; cited Year Month Day]. Available from: URL
Fehrenbach MJ. Dental hygiene education [Internet]. Chicago: Fehrenbach and Associates; 1997 [updated 2012 Feb 9; cited 2012 Aug 24]. Available from: http://www.dhed.net/Main.html
Author. Title of article. Title of Newspaper (Edition). Year Month Day: URL
Ahikari K, Kafle S. Time to Change. Kathmandu Post. 2016 Feb 23. http://kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/news/2016-02-23/time-to-change-20160223081420.html


Get overall idea from this flow chart

SOLAR PHOTO-VOLTAIC SYSTEM AND APPLICATION  
AE …

Lecture     :   3                                                                                              Year   :   IV
Tutorial    :   1                                                                                              Part    :   II    
Practical   :   1.5                                                                                                         
Course Objective:
The primary objective of this course is to introduce solar photo-voltaic system and their conversion technology used to fulfil the requirement of energy in Agricultural Engineering activities in rural areas. Secondly this course emphasizes in design and development of such simple and effective technologies that converts solar energy into usable form and supply it to operate tools, equipments and machineries used in agricultural works.
1.       Fundamentals of Solar Photo-Voltaic System                                   [10 hours]
1.1.     Principle of Photo-Voltaic Energy Conversion:           
1.1.1.      Review of Electrical Power System
1.1.2.      Principle of photo-Voltaic effect
1.1.3.      Types of Solar cells
1.1.4.      Spectral response of Solar cell materials
1.1.5.      Electrical parameters of Solar cells
1.1.6.      Effect of environment on performance of Solar cells
1.2.   Solar Modules and Arrays:                                                                              
1.2.1.      Solar cells modules
1.2.2.      IV Curve for a module
1.2.3.      Blocking Diode and bypass Diode
1.2.4.      Solar arrays- role of installation Diode
2.       Components of Solar Photo-Voltaic System                                      [10 hours]
2.1.     Batteries
2.1.1.      Types of batteries
2.1.2.      Battery terminology and performance characteristics
2.1.3.      Chemistry of lead acid battery
2.1.4.      Battery Test and Maintenance
2.2.     Charge Regulators
2.2.1.       Principle of operation
2.2.2.       Parameters of charge regulator
2.2.3.       Methods of battery charging through charge regulator
2.3.     DC-AC Inverters
2.3.1.      Basic principles of an inverter
2.3.2.      Parameters of an inverter
2.3.3.      Types of inverter
2.4.     DC- DC Converter
2.4.1.      Principle of DC-DC converter
2.4.2.      Parameters of DC-DC converters
2.5.     Lamps and Non-luminous Loads to Solar PV System
2.5.1.      Basic lamp types of Solar PV System
2.5.2.      Other loads to Solar PV system
3.       Design of lighting with Solar PV system                                              [10 hours]
3.1.     Load Calculation
3.1.1.      Load characteristics-AC or DC, Apparent or Real,
3.1.2.      Critical and Non-critical
3.1.3.      Annual loading profile
3.1.4.      Maximum load and current
3.1.5.      Nominal system and array voltage
3.2.  Module and Array Sizing
3.3.  Battery Sizing
3.4.  Sizing of Charge Regulator
3.5.  Cable Sizing
3.6.  Inverter Sizing
3.7.  DC-AC Converter Sizing
3.8.  Sizing of luminous and non-luminous loads
4.       Design of Solar PV Water Pumping System                                       [10 hours]                                   
4.1.      Solar PV water pumping system configurations
4.1.1.      Appraisal of Solar PV water pumping for drinking
4.1.2.      water supply and Irrigation
4.1.3.      System components
4.1.4.      Selection of pumps
4.1.5.      Selections of motors
4.1.6.      Configuration of Solar arrays and panels
4.1.7.      Maximum power point tracking circuitry
4.2.      Array wiring and mounting of water pumps
4.2.1.      Array wiring
4.2.2.      Array Mounting
4.2.3.      Considerations for tracking support structures
4.3.      Water pumping system design
4.3.1.      Array sizing
4.3.2.      Selection of pump form manufacturer’s data
4.3.3.      Installation diagram
4.3.4.      General algorithm for system design
5.       Solar PV Technology in Nepal                                                                  [5 hours]
5.1.     Scope and potential of Solar PV system in Nepal
5.2.     Agencies involved in development and promotion of Solar PV system
5.3.     Policies and program for promotion of Solar PV system
5.4.     Nepal PV quality assurance- conditions of NIPQA- 2000(2002)


Practical:
1.       Measurement of electrical parameters of Solar Cells
2.       Evaluation of effects of environmental parameters of output of Solar Module
·         Effect of Solar radiation intensity
·         Effect of temperature
·         Effect on shade
3.       Studies on PV Solar lighting system
4.       Evaluation of performance of solar lighting system
5.       Study on Solar PV water pumping system
6.       Evaluation of performance of Solar PV water pumping system




References:
1.       S. P. Sukahtme. Solar Energy: Principle of Thermal Collection and Storage. Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co., New Delhi (latest edition)
2.       H. P. Garg and J. Prakash. Solar Energy Fundamentals and Applications. Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co., New Delhi (latest edition)
3.       John A. Duffie and W. A. Beckman. Solar Engineering of Thermal Process. John Wiley & Sons. (latest edition)
4.       W. J. Kennedy Jr. and Wayne C. Turner. Energy Management. Prentice Hall Inc.
5.       Journals of American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers on Solar Energy Application (ASABE)
6.       FAO Journals on Solar Energy Conversion Technologies.
7.       Vervaart, M.R. and Nieuwenhout F.D.J., 2001. Manual for design and modification of solar home system components. IBRD/ The World Bank.
8.       Solar Water Pumping. ITDG Publications.
9.       Wave sites: www.pvpower.com and www.pvresources.com



Evaluation Scheme:
The questions will cover all the chapters in the Syllabus. The evaluation scheme will be as indicated in the table below.
Chapter
Hours
Marks Distribution*
1
10
10
2
10
20
3
10
20
4
10
20
5
5
10
Total
45
80
* Minor deviation on mark distribution can be made.

TESTING & EVALUATION OF AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY & TRACTOR 
AE …
Lecture     :   3                                                                                              Year   :   IV
Tutorial    :   1                                                                                              Part    :   II    
Practical   :   1.5                                                                                                                 
Course Objective:
·         To familiarize students with testing and evaluation of agricultural machinery and tractor.
·         To acquaint and equip the students with tractor testing and tractor testing equipment with their constraints and evaluation techniques with procedure.
1.       Objectives and  Importance of Testing and Evaluation                     [2 hours]
1.1.  Concept of testing and evaluation
1.2.  Testing and evaluation procedures
1.3.  Terminology used testing and evaluation of agricultural machine and tractors
2.       Instruments used in Testing and Evaluation                                        [3 hours]
Instruments for the measurement of:
2.1.     Draft
2.2.     Wheel slip
2.3.     Shrinkage
2.4.     Soil resistance
2.5.     Sound
2.6.     Vibration
3.       Test Codes for Agricultural Machines and Tractors                            [6 hours]
3.1.  Purpose of test codes
3.2.  Types of test codes for agricultural machine
3.2.1.  RNAM Test Codes
3.2.2.  BIS Test Codes
3.2.3.  Nebraska Test Codes
3.3.  Differences in the test codes for agricultural machine
4.       Testing and Evaluation Procedures                                                        [8 hours]
4.1.  Preparation for tests
4.2.  Specification of implements
4.3.  Test conditions
4.4.  Laboratory tests
4.5.  Performance test
4.6.  Field test
4.7.  Evaluation criteria
4.8.  Test report format
5.            Test Codes and Testing Procedures for Primary Tillage Implements [2 hours]
5.1.  Test codes for Ploughs  
5.2.  Test procedures for Ploughs (M.B., Chisel, Disk)
6.       Test Codes and Testing Procedures for Secondary Tillage       Implements  [4 hours]
6.1.  Test code procedure for rotary tiller
6.2.  Test code procedure for disc harrows
7.          Test codes and testing Procedures for seeding and planting    implement                [5 hours]
7.1.  Test code and procedure for seeding equipment with or without fertilizer attachment
7.2.  Test code and procedure for rice transplanter
7.3.  Test code and procedure for row- crop cultivators
8.       Test Codes and Testing Procedures for Plant Protection Equipments    [4 hours]
8.1.  Test code and procedures for liquid (herbicide, fungicide, insecticides) applicators
8.2.  Test code and procedure for duster application
9.       Test Codes and Testing Procedures for Harvesting Implements     [2 hours]
9.1.  Test code for reaper
9.2.  Test procedure for reaper
10.    Test Codes and Testing Procedure for Threshers                                [2 hours]
11.    Tractor Performance Criteria:                                                                  [7 hours]
11.1.     Power Measurement Methods:
11.1.1.      Absorption Dynamometer
11.1.2.      Transmission Dynamometer
11.1.3.      Hydraulic Dynamometer
11.1.4.      Electric- direct current Dynamometer
11.1.5.      Spring Dynamometer
11.1.6.      Strain gauge Dynamometer
11.2.     Power Estimating            
11.3.     Engine Test Apparatus
11.3.1.      Air supply measurement
11.3.2.      Engine pressure indicators
11.3.3.      Fuel flow meter
11.3.4.      Torque sensor
11.4.     Engine performance
11.5.     Efficiency of tractor engine
11.6.     Nebraska and ISI tractor test code


Tutorials:
1.       Study and Comparison of Procedure and Test codes for farm Machines and Tractors-RNAM, BIS, Nebraska
2.       Preparation of Tractor Engine Testing Parameters



Practical:
1.       Visibility, noise and vibration test on farm tractors
2.       Determination of turning radius of general purpose farm tractor
3.       Measurement of basic dimensions of tillage tools
4.       Field and performance testing of seeding and planting machines
5.       Field and performance testing of sprayers and dusters
6.       Field and performance testing of harvesting machines
7.       Performance testing of threshers

References:
1.       Mehta M. L., Mishra S. K., Verma S.R. And Sharma V.K. Testing and Evaluation of Agricultural Machines, National Agricultural Technical Information Center- 5 copies
2.       OECD 1991. Standard code for the official testing of agricultural and forestry tractors. Organization for economic cooperation and development, Paris- 5 copies
3.       Inns R. M. 1986. Selection, Testing and Evaluation of Agricultural Machines and Equipment. FAO service bulletin no. 115- 5 copies
4.       Smith, D.W., Sims B.G. and O’Neil D. H. 1994 Testing and evaluation of agricultural machinery and equipment: principle and practices. FAO, Rome
5.       Test codes for Bureau of Indian standards, New Delhi for agricultural implements, IC engines and tractors
6.       RNAM test codes and procedures for farm machinery. Regional network for agricultural machinery Bangkok/ Philippines.


Evaluation Scheme:
The questions will cover all the chapters in the Syllabus. The evaluation scheme will be as indicated in the table below.
Chapter
Hours
Marks Distribution*
1
2
8
2
3
3
6
8
4
8
16
5
2
8
6
4
7
5
8
8
4
8
9
2
8
10
2
11
7
16
Total
45
80

* Minor deviation on mark distribution can be made.