STEM Senior Engineering Capstone Project -

Earth Power
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Table of Contents

Contributors​…………………………………………………………………………...p. 2

Introduction​……………………………………………………………………………p. 3

Problem Definition​…………………………………………………………………….p. 3

Design Requirements​………………………………………………………………….p. 3

Engineering Design Process Outline​…………………………………………………..p. 7

Conceptual Design​……………………………………………………………………..p. 8

Alternative Concepts​…………………………………………………………..p. 8

Evaluation of Alternatives​……………………………………………………..p. 10

Selection of a Concept​………………………………………………………….p. 11

Detailed Design​…………………………………………………………………………p. 11

Main Features and How they Work​…………………………………………….p. 11

Results of Analysis, Experiments and Models​…………………………………p. 14

Design Defense (Performance Evaluation)​..........................................................p. 16

Lessons Learned​………………………………………………………………………...p. 16

1
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Contributors

Mentors: Pieter Colenbrander and Robert Goralka

Instructor: Claudio Tronconi

STEM Marin

San Marin High School

2
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Introduction

This project aims to address some of the world’s most important problems, including climate

change and access to education, through the design of a sustainable classroom. Earth Power is a

fully off-grid classroom designed with the ideas of simplicity and sustainability. This minimalist

design aims at reducing costs of creating and operating new classrooms, especially in areas

where access to electricity may be scarce.

Problem Definition

When brainstorming, the task was to solve a variety of problems, mainly lack of access to

education in third world countries and the problem of climate change. With this in mind, the

problem definition was as follows: Improve access to education in developing countries with

historically low education rates, while focusing on sustainability.

Design Requirements

The following design requirements were brainstormed as part of the design process. Using the

problem definition as a guideline, these are either demands (D) or wishes (W) to be included in

the final design. In the design strategy used, demands were decided first since Earth Power is

3
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

aimed at simplicity. These initial demands were thought of as the bare minimum for the design.

Then, wishes were added in case they would be able to fit within the design constraints.

Additionally, it is important to note that parts of this list did change later on in the project as new

information was obtained.

■ Performance

D- Must be able to accomodate a 30 person class and teacher

D- Must have whiteboards

D- Must have storage space for paper, pencils, and books

W- Have a projector

■ Geometry

D- Area of less than 1000 square feet per classroom

■ Materials

D- Must be able to support 4 walls and a roof

W- Materials must not degrade under expected range of weather conditions

W- Use fully biodegradable and recycled materials

■ Energy

D- Have zero net energy use

4
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

W- Limit electricity use from lights with natural lighting

■ Time

D- Complete the preliminary design by the end of the semester

■ Cost

W- Limit costs by using recycled materials

■ Manufacture

W- Make a modular structure that can be easily manufactured in local areas

■ Standards

D- must pass permit requirements

■ Safety

D- Structure must withstand rain conditions and other predicted weather conditions so it

doesn't collapse

■ Transport

D- Materials must be portable

■ Ergonomics

D- Must provide a non-distracting learning environment for students

D- Must use a modifiable desk setup

5
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

■ Environment

D- Must not cause detrimental effects to the surrounding area

W- Must not cause waste when degraded

Teacher and student surveys were also done to compile this list of demands and wishes. Here are

some graphs from the results:

Students:

Teachers:

6
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Engineering Design Process Outline

During this project, a systematic approach was followed to ensure the success of the product.

After brainstorming ideas in the general area of sustainability and engineering, the following

design steps of the engineering design process were taken:

1. Defining the Problem

2. Generation of Alternative Concepts

3. Evaluation of Alternative Concepts

4. Detailed Design Experiments and Modeling

5. Design Defense

After step 5, there is manufacturing and testing, which did not pertain to this particular product

since there was never actually anything physical built. The engineering design process also

involves lots of going back to previous steps and revisiting ideas to change them when new

information is obtained that leads to a better solution. The padlet below served as a drawing

board throughout the entire project for ideas, to-do lists, and research links.

7
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Our detailing day to day tasks can be seen in this ​log​.

Additionally, a Gantt chart was used for this project, which helped with organizing time. Since it

is so large, the full file can be found at this link: ​here​. Here is a smaller view:

Conceptual Design

Alternative Concepts

There were multiple different ways to address the problem definition. The project was divided

into parts like the lighting and the seating arrangement, and then brainstormed different solutions

for each of those parts. The options were then combined into a decision matrix and ultimately

ended up with the final choices for the design: LEDs/Windows for lighting, Solar for power,

8
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

groups of 4 for seating, shipping container for the structure, and a whiteboard for the teaching

display. (Note: as is common with the engineering design process, sometimes ideas would

change based on new information, so while whiteboards were chosen here, blackbards ended up

being in the final design instead due to the environmental impact of plastic whiteboard markers.)

Padlet showing our subfunctions layout:

A Table of the different concepts:

Functions Concept 1 Concept 2 Concept 3 Concept 4 Concept 5

Moveable Flood

Lighting Sky Lights Laterns/ Lights LED Lights Lights Windows on Walls

Power Solar Hydro Wind Grid Electricity Gas

Ampitheater

Seating Groups of 4* Rows Style Individual Desks Tables of 2

Structure Recycled Tires Adobe Concrete Wood Shipping Container

9
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Teaching Individual

Display Whiteboard Blackboard Projector Smart Board Whiteboards

The three different designs using the concepts above:

Design 1 Design 2 Design 3

LED+Windows Sky Lights+Solar Lanterns LED+Windows

Solar Solar Grid Electricity

Groups of 4* Groups of 4* Groups of 4*

Shipping Container Adobe+recycled tires Wood/drywall

whiteboard Blackboards projector/whiteboard

Evaluation of Alternatives

Here is the decision matrix outlining the reasoning and logic behind the evaluation of alternative

concepts:

Design 1 Design 2 Design 3

Evaluation Criteria Weight*Valu Valu Weight*Valu

Weight Value e e Weight*Value Value e

Modularity 0.15 10 1.5 3 0.45 5 0.75

10
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Sustainability (after

installation) 0.25 9 2.25 9 2.25 3 0.75

Maintenance 0.15 7 1.05 7 1.05 5 0.75

Cost 0.15 6 0.9 8 1.2 5 0.75

Net Energy Use 0.1 8 0.8 9 0.9 1 0.1

Environmental

Impact of Materials 0.2 6 1.2 8 1.6 2 0.4

Total 1 7.7 7.45 3.5

Selection of a Concept

As shown in the decision matrix above, the concept that was selected was Design 1. The parts

that made this design appealing were the LEDs and windows combination, shipping container

frame, and solar system.

11
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Detailed Design

Main Features and How they Work

This is a rendering of the final design of Earth Power. Accompanying it below are building plans

and 3D printed models of the tables, benches, and cabinet. The CAD design was done in the

online program Onshape.

In this design, three shipping containers are welded together to form the outer frame of the

building. A floor made out of a mixture of clay and cow dung is placed over the bottom of the

container. Then, tables and benches made out of wood (ideally reused wood) are placed in the

classroom. An off-grid, battery-powered solar system is placed on the roof, with the battery box

on the side.

12
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Design Blueprints

13
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

This is a line diagram that shows the solar components in the project.

Here is a link to an animation that shows how the different parts work together to create the

classroom: ​Animation

Results of Analysis, Experiments and Models

Two experiments were done in the design process, which can be seen in more detail in their

respective lab reports:

14
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Lab 1: Heat Lab

Lab 2: Solar Panel Location/Orientation

A costs analysis was also done on the materials that make up the design, which is as follows:

Material Use Size Quantity Cost Per Cost Total

1_Tables

Plywood table top 4x8 ft(cut in 4 sections of 2x4) 4 $45.98 $183.92

Plywood table top 4x2 ft, use for extra teacher desk 1 $20.29 $20.29

Lumber table legs 4inx4inx12ft (cut into 27 in sections) 14 $16.97 $237.58

Lumber under table support 2x4inx10ft(cut into 3 40" sections) 12 $3.62 $43.44

Lumber under table support 2x4inx8ft (cut into 6 16" sections) 6 $2.90 $17.40

Screws table 4in, 5 lb box 1 $27.48 $27.48

2_Benches

Lumber seat 2x12x120in(cut into (2x12x38 in pieces) 6 $13.36 $80.16

15
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Lumber legs 2x12x12ft (cut into (2x12x14 in pieces) 4 $16.07 $64.28

Lumber braces 2x4x104in (cut onto 2x4x26 in pieces) 5 $2.91 $14.55

Screws screws 3.5in, 1lb 1 $6.78 $6.78

3_Cabinet

Screws wood screws 3 in, 1 lb bag 1 $6.97 $6.97

Plywood Back Panel 48x24x3/4 in 1 $22.99 $22.99

Plywood Wall Panel 24x24x3/4 in (cut into 12x24x3/4 in sections) 1 $10.14 $10.14

49.5x24x3/4in ( cut into 24x24.75x3/4in

Plywood Door Panel sections) 1 $22.99 $22.99

24x96x3/4in (cut into 11.25x48x3/4in

Lumber Floor Panel/ shelf sections) 1 $45.98 $45.98

Lumber Small Bottom Frame 2x1x24in (cut into 8 in selections) 1 $28.80 $28.80

Plywood Large Bottom Frame 2x1x99 in (cut into 49.5 in sections) 1 $9.90 $9.90

Plywood Top Panel 1-1/8inx2ftx8ft (cut into 13x49.5x1-1/8in) 1 $49.71 $49.71

Handle Handle 2 $1.43 $2.86

4_Structure

Shipping Container structure 40ft 3 $2,000.00 $6,000.00

Cow dung mixed with

clay flooring 920 sq ft 1 $0.00 $0.00

16
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

Chalkboard paint chalkboard 5ftx 22ft (30oz) 1 $10.98 $10.98

Window wall window 3x4 ft 8 $139.00 $1,112.00

Edge Lit Flat Panel

LED lighting 1x4', 30W 12 $168.91 $2,026.92

5_Solar System

SunPower Solar Panel power 345W DC 2 $345.00 $690.00

ProStar MPPT charge controller 25A, 700W 1 $300.00 $300.00

Deka Solar Battery battery 12V, 225 Ah each 2 $400.00 $800.00

Xantrex ProWatt

Inverter inverter 12V, 1000W 1 $298.35 $298.35

EcoFoot2+ Solar

Mount solar mount 6 $0.00 $0.00

Battery Box hold batteries 1 $367.00 $367.00

Total $12,501.47

Design Defense (Performance Evaluation)

There were many different decisions that went into our design process. Here are some examples:

● Windows only on one side to increase classroom wall teaching space

● Benches used instead of chairs due to simplicity

17
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

● Dung flooring used as the cheapest option

● LEDs used for efficiency

● Using flat LEDs to not reduce height of an already short building

● 5000K LEDs lead to more focused learning

● Blackboard chalk has less waste compared to plastic whiteboard markers

Lessons Learned

To improve the project, we would try to add more heating and cooling components,

outlets, and a skylight. Some different options to improve the cooling and heating components

include a heater and AC unit and adding phase changing materials. By adding the heater and AC

unit the temperature can be regulated by using electricity. The phase changing material would

regulate the temperature by cooling the room during the day and heating the room at night. At

night the cool temperature will freeze the material causing it to store thermal energy. During the

day, when the temperature is warmer, the material will melt from a solid to a liquid resulting in

the absorption of heat. The absorption of heat will cool down the room. The outlets are not

currently in our design. Later on we would add a power strip to the inverter that could be used as

outlets in the classroom. If we find that there is not enough light in the classroom, we could add a

skylight to the design that would also help reduce the time that the LED lights would be on

during the day.

18
 Tyler Colenbrander

Alexa Funahashi

STEM - 2

We learned that by going through the design process, we were able to design our project

more confidently. The design process helps keep the project organized and easy to follow. The

design process requires plenty of research. This helped teach us how to backup all of our design

wants and needs with facts and data. In order to decide the different parts of the design, we had

to conduct a survey to get real people opinions on what thought would be necessary for our

project. Even in the beginning of the project, while we were brainstorming ideas, research had to

be done to target our problem that we wanted to solve.

Working on a year long project with a partner teaches many lessons. Communication is a

big part of collaborating with someone. By communicating, it avoids any future contentions that

one might have with their partner about the design. If someone has a problem or question it can

be easily solved or answered by asking a partner rather than wasting time trying to solve it by

oneself. Not only is communication a big lesson learned, but learning how to work with limited

time is something important that we learned. By planning out when we had to complete different

tasks and recording it on a shared document helped keep us on track. Even though we were still

very crunched on time at the end, we were able to finish all that was required on time. Had we

not planned out the tasks, we would not have been able to finish. Overall, communication and

learning how to manage time while working in a team were the two biggest lessons learned.

19