SLIIT International Conference On Engineering and Technology Vol. 01 [SICET] 2022
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://rda.sliit.lk/handle/123456789/2988
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Publication Open Access A Study on Local Air Pollution Due to Transport Emissions in Kandy City(SLIIT, 2022-02-11) Yatigammana, S; Fernando, G; Liyanage, MAir pollution has become one of the greatest challenges that the world is facing today. According to World Health Organization (WHO)there are 4.2 million annual deaths due to outdoor air pollution. Furthermore, about 90% of global population breathe polluted air. The most harmful cause of outdoor air pollution is recognized to be unorganized traffic management. In the instance of Sri Lanka, Kandy city has been recognized as crucial where necessary actions are required to be taken. This study presents harmful emission values produced by a daily count of vehicles entering the city alongside respiratory diseases and illnesses recorded. Detailed analysis provides pollutant emissions due to unorganized traffic management within Kandy city concentrating over locations from Getambe Junction to Kandy Clock tower and from the city centre towards Mahaiyawa Tunnel and Ampitiya Junction (locations are pinned on figure 1). Calculation of pollutant factors are intended to be done using three main methods namely, Tier 1, Tier 2 and V/C ratio method aided by vehicle fuel type, fuel efficiency, travelled distance and carriageway congestion values. Emission values for pollutants Carbon monoxide (CO), Nitrogen oxides (N2O, NOX) and Sulphur dioxide (SO2) were identified in this study along with PM2.5 and PM10 values. It was to be seen that, over 100,000 vehicle cross Kandy city limits on both weekdays and surprisingly higher values in weekend with each carriageway within the city resulting over a 65% of congestion value. With 31% of daily trips being travel to work, the public transport system fails to deliver its purpose efficiently and effectively. With unorganized traffic management, stagnant and slowmoving vehicles tend to pollute 41% more SO2 and 14% more NOX gasses above global standards affecting the first five kilometers from the city center, which claimed to facilitate the zone of highest quality of life. Current records show PM2.5 values in Kandy to read above 50μg/m3 and PM10 values to be as high as 100μg/m3.Publication Open Access Causes for Death and Injuries in Construction Industry in Sri Lanka(SLIIT, 2022-02-11) Wijesekara, M; Fernando, P; Gunarathna, NThe construction industry plays a vital role in the socio-economic development in any country. However, it has been recognized as one of the most hazardous industries in many counties around the world because of the nature of activities and tasks performed at construction sites. Similarly, presentday construction industry of Sri Lanka prioritizes and considers safety as a primary, complex issue due to its high impact on the industry. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to identify the causes for deaths and injuries in construction sites in Sri Lanka and identify actions to mitigate those accidents. The data collection was in the form of documentary review, semi-structured interviews, and questionnaire survey. This study found that the nine (9) most prominent types of accidents that have occurred in Sri Lankan construction sites include falling from heights and scaffoldings, falling debris or objects and machinery accidents. During the last 10-year period 2,135 accidents have been recorded in the construction industry, including both fatal and non-fatal accidents, among which 311 were fatal accidents. As per the study findings, during the period of 2010 – 2020, 14 fatal construction accidents were reported out of every 100 construction accidents. Usually, most of the accidents at construction sites are due to lack of safety at site, working without PPE, inadequate training and lack of supervision. Further, the study also recommends strategies to minimize the identified nine (9) most prominent types of accidents and to improve construction site safety. Findings of this research could help towards reducing the fatal and non-fatal construction accidents in Sri Lanka and to develop safe work environment in the local construction industry.Publication Open Access Challenging Arbitral Awards in the Construction Industry(SLIIT, 2022-02-11) Jayasinghe, R; Dahanayake, R; Edirisinghe, VOne of the most common alternative dispute resolution methods used in the Sri Lankan construction industry is arbitration. However, challenging arbitration awards based on legal grounds at the courts has been a current trend by the disagreeing party. If this situation occurs continuously, the purpose of having arbitration as an alternative dispute resolution method can be abandoned. Therefore, the study aims to identify the causes where arbitration is challenged in multi-story building construction projects in Sri Lanka through a case study. The methodological choice was qualitative and used semistructured interviews from six arbitrators and 2 case studies that referred to courts to challenge arbitration awards as research strategies. The study found the poor attitude of parties, lack of technical knowledge, reliability, and capability of the arbitrator to act according to the arbitrary acts imposed by the government as the main causes. Further. The study recommends arbitrators consider the reasons to act well enough and reject the cases if the arbitration is likely to be challenged in courts, train arbitrators to be reliable and on technical knowledge, and improve parties' attitudes by educating on the arbitration procedure and its benefits.Publication Open Access Assessment of Nationally Determined Contributions of Sri Lankan Power Sector(SLIIT, 2022-02-11) Dahanayake, A; Fernando, G; Liyanage, MThe nationally determined contributions (NDCs) aim to attend long-term temperature goals, which have been imposed by the Paris agreement to strengthen climate change efforts. Fossil fuel is the major energy source in power generation in Sri Lanka, contributing 67% of total input energies. Sri Lanka is intended to achieve 70% renewable energy in the power sector by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality in the power sector by 2050 through its NDCs. This study analysed the NDCs in the Sri Lankan power sector. The study was carried out through Asia-Pacific Integrated Assessment Model (AIM/End-use), a recursive dynamic least-cost optimisation framework based on bottom-up modelling principles. The Sri Lankan Power sector has been categorised into a few sectors based on the fuels used in power generation. It mainly considers thermal coal, thermal oil, and hydro. It will also consider all the existing power generation technologies, committed technologies and technologies identified as candidates. A business-as-usual scenario (BAU) and three alternatives NDC were considered in this study. These NDCs include enhancing renewable energy by adding 3867 MW, converting existing fuel oil-based combined cycle power plants to natural gas and establishing new natural gas plants, and improving the efficiency of transmission and distribution network (lost reduction 0.5% compared with BAU by 2030). The study analysed the output data and confirmed the feasibility of meeting GHG emission reduction targets through consideration of selected NDCs in the time span of 2020-2030. The GHG emissions from the BAU scenario and three countermeasure scenarios were analysed in 2015-2050. The input primary energy supply was determined to compare the variation in energy with the effect of NDCsPublication Open Access Spatial Patterns and Temporal Trends of Rainfall Seasonality in Sri Lanka(SLIIT, 2022-02-11) Amarasinghe, H.G.K.H.; Basnayake, B.M.L.A.Understanding and knowledge of rainfall variability is necessitated for agricultural planning, flood mitigation activities, and water resources planning and management. Like other rainfall characteristics seasonality of rainfall is also spatio-temporally specific which has not been evaluated to Sri Lanka. In this study, seasonality in rainfall over Sri Lanka was analyzed using the seasonality index (SI) proposed by Walsh and Lawler. Rainfall data at 39 raingauge stations for the period 1988-2017 were collected to obtain the annual monthly rainfall cycles. The SI, a measure of annual rainfall distribution, was used to identify different rainfall regimes. Southwest and central highlands covering the stations Baddegama, Pelawatte, Kudawa, Deniyaya, Mawarella, Mapalana and Beausejour (lower) were identified as “equable with a definite wetter season”. Skirting to the definite wetter season was the “rather seasonal with a short drier season” regime surrounding the Colombo, Ratmalana, Nuwara Eliya, and Bandarawela. The region centered on Mannar received the most rain in three months or less. Markedly seasonal with a long drier season is in the eastern extending from Pottuvil to Trincomalee and in the northern part of the country above Puttalam and Maha Illuppallama except the surrounding of Mannar. Intermediate region to SI classes “rather seasonal with a short drier season” and “markedly seasonal with a long drier season” was designated as “seasonal”. However, the seasonal rainfall contribution, i.e., in NEM (Dec.-Feb.), IM1 (March-April), SWM (May-Sep.), and IM2 (Oct.-Nov.), and the annual monthly rainfall profiles confirmed the presence of sub-regimes within the identified rainfall regimes. Non-parametric Mann-Kendall test and Sen’s slope were applied to identify the temporal changes in SI. Approximately, half of the country showed strong trends in the SI. Sixty one percent of the area including the northern part of the country surrounding Jaffna and the definite wetter region in the southern corresponds to the decreasing trend in seasonality.Publication Open Access REGULARITIES AND PATTERNS OF CONSTRUCTION COSTS UPON POLITICAL EVENTS(SLIIT, 2022-02-11) Perera, B. K. C; Jayasena, H. SThough the market prices change before and after political events were often speculated, if such changes could be systematically accounted for in construction cost forecasting was unknown. This study aimed to bridge this knowledge gap by identifying the regularities and patterns of the construction costs upon political events. A decade of period was selected in which the scope of the study started in 2010. Time series analysis was used along with regression analysis, assuming a linear relationship between construction costs and time. After a comprehensive literature review, CIDA construction cost indices were chosen as the most appropriate cost representation for the local context, and these were taken as the dependent variables. All indices were plotted in diagrams and long-term trends were observed, then indices were carried for further analysis of cycles. Major political events were collected through a document survey and the findings were plotted on the time series analysis output. It was noticed that in 2013 indices were changed mostly, where three provincial elections were held, and some more pattern changes had occurred close to the local government elections which took place in 2011 and 2018. The study concluded that there is neither pattern nor regularity in construction costs upon political events where it cannot be systematically incorporated into construction cost forecasting. However, the findings did not deny the impact of political events on construction costs, and novel areas were found where further explorations are required.Publication Open Access Effective Waste Management Strategies of Bentonite in Sri Lanka(SLIIT, 2022-02-11) Guruge, K; Coomasaru, POne of the greatest challenges of Bentonite usage in construction industry is, managing the wastage created in sites thus, it has to be given attention. Therefore, the study would be conducted focusing on the domestic piling construction sites and the process followed by them. Although it is a chemical, it is recognized to be safe for both the environment as well as mankind in an ecological and health protection perspective. However, a proper disposal method in order to reduce the further issues as excessive waste in sites is needed. Therefore, this study aims to explore an effective method regarding the waste management strategies for Bentonite in Sri Lanka. The objectives of the study are, identifying the wasting methods of Bentonite, identifying causes of disposing Bentonite and determining the most suitable method for Bentonite disposal. Data for the objectives one and two were collected through a literature survey and analyzed by using NVivo which was validated using a questionnaire by majority of 5-10 years experienced professionals aligning to mixed method approach. Data for the third objective was found by aegis of the same questionnaire. Noticeably, it was validated through interviews by the industry experts with more than 30 years of experience. The study found that, site conditions are the most relatable reason for the Bentonite waste. Apart from that ‘weather’ and ‘manual handling errors’ can be additional reasons for the wastage. Moreover, most sites consider either ‘when the slurry forms into a cake’ or ‘silos are full’ as the causes for disposal. Furthermore, it has identified that the majority of sites dispose the waste to disposable lands using bowsers as of the disposal method after reusing 3-4 times. The suggested method appears to be cost effective and efficient in comparison to the others. Furthermore, it can be rather safe and environmentally friendly.