Projects & More

This page showcases my past and ongoing projects, amidst status, findings and regular updates

The Aerodynamic Trade-Off: Analyzing Fuel Efficiency Impacts of Open Windows vs. Air Conditioning in Passenger Vehicles

I explore the aerodynamic and fuel efficiency trade-offs between lowering car windows and using air conditioning in passenger vehicles. Via controlled experiments on 3 passenger vehicles(2 Sedans and 1 SUV), I measure the impact of open windows and AC usage on fuel consumption at varying speeds, from city driving to highway conditions. This work provides data-driven insights into optimizing fuel efficiency while maintaining driver comfort by analyzing drag, vehicle design, and energy consumption. My intention is to highlight practical recommendations for eco-friendly driving habits and contribute to a deeper understanding of automotive aerodynamics.

Investigating Hybrid Boundary Layer Control and Management Using Distributed Electric Propulsion on Wing Sections: A Study on Active Boundary Layer Energizing and Ingestion

Traditional methods of boundary layer control, such as vortex generators, wing slats, and boundary layer suction, are primarily passive in nature and offer limited adaptability to dynamic flight conditions. Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP) heralds a new era by introducing the capability for real-time, active boundary layer control and management. This is achieved through two main avenues: energizing and ingestion. While each approach offers unique advantages, their synergistic application - Active Boundary Layer Energizing and Ingestion – promises significant aerodynamic performance enhancement

Design, Fabrication and Testing of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle for the Acquisition of Naval Intelligence via Surveillance along Ghana’s Maritime Boundaries

Designed and fabricated an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) weighing 2 kg with a wingspan of 1.5 meters, specifically for security intelligence acquisition and maritime surveillance along Ghana’s borders. The UAV, equipped with advanced surveillance cameras and GPS technology, covered a range of up to 10 km with a maximum altitude of 900 meters. Rigorously tested the UAV under varying weather conditions, ensuring robust performance and reliability in maritime security operations

Lift, Drag and Vortex Shedding Analyses of Two-Dimensional Flow over a Hemispherical Body in a Turbulent Boundary Layer

Investigated the nature of flow separation behind a hemispherical body across different ranges of Reynold’s number. Observed that the separated flow behind hemispherical bodies can be modelled as “Von Kármán”-type vortex shedding represented by the first three energetically dominant nodes.

Design, Fabrication and Testing of a Subscale RC model Northrop Grumman B2 Spirit (Stealth Bomber) Flying Wing Aircraft for Demonstration and Educational Purposes

Precision-crafted a 90% accurate subscale RC model of the Northrop Grumman B2 Spirit, with a wingspan of 1.8 meters and a weight of 2.5 kilograms. Conducted extensive flight testing, achieving stability and control, with the RC model capable of reaching speeds of up to 80 km/h and maintaining 20-minute flight durations. Addressed stability challenges through meticulous design adjustments, ensuring the RC model's flight characteristics mirrored the actual aircraft, enhancing its educational impact.

FastRegrid: Efficient Regridding for Large Spatio-temporal Datasets

FastRegrid is an open-source C++ library designed to provide efficient and scalable regridding algorithms for large-scale climate and spatial datasets. It implements optimized methods like nearest neighbor and inverse distance weighted (IDW) interpolation, allowing fast and accurate transformations between grid resolutions. FastRegrid is built for researchers and engineers working with climate models and complex environmental data, offering high performance even with extensive datasets

Development of a Unified Modular Control System Architecture for a DEP VTOL Aircraft with Vectorable Thrusters for Enhanced Control and Efficiency

There is a need for further research into the development of unified, modular control system architectures for Vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircrafts that can safely and efficiently navigate urban environments while extending their flight envelope using Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP) systems. This research project focuses on augmenting a four-passenger, plus-one pilot DEP-VTOL concept for emerging advanced air mobility (AAM) markets within the aeronautical flight radius. In this research project, I present a modular control system architecture that decouples the DEP-VTOL aircraft configuration model from the rest of the control system.

Motion Under Aerodynamic Drag: A C++ Open Sourced Project

The model numerically computes key variables of interest, such as velocity, speed, range, maximum height, and time of flight, for well-known two-dimensional (2D) projectile motions with and without aerodynamic drag. The kinematic variables are compared to investigate how they vary with and without aerodynamic drag. This toolkit serves as a valuable learning resource for students of physics, aerodynamics, and engineering, offering practical insights into how aerodynamic drag influences the motion of physical bodies. Extension of the codebase for 3D applications to be released shortly.