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Portable Generator Out of Recycled Materials

A partial fulfilment of the

requirements in Science 10

Submitted by:
Amorsolo, Jorge P.
Moreno, John Joshua P.
Siy, Stephen Benjamin A.
Allado, Audrey Grace T.

Submitted to:
Mrs. Emmalyn Camu-Maomay

10-Wisdom
February 28, 2019
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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

I. Problem and Background of the Study

Power outages can happen unexpectedly for a variety of reasons. It is always best to be
prepared for a brownout, especially if you live in a place that is prone to power
interruptions especially during a stormy weather. Generator is one of the best
alternative source of electricity. It can help a family to continue using electricity during
brownouts.
An electric home generator is an important device for a modern household. Weather
patterns all around the world have dramatically changed over the past few years.
Hurricanes, storms, and extreme weather conditions as such have become the norm in
modern times. And often when we do encounter storms and other extreme weather
conditions, we also suffer power outages. (Anonymous, 2011)

II. Objectives

1. To be able to light up a miniature light bulb or a diode from a DC Motor

2. To be able to determine the minimal amount of effort to produce electricity
3. To be able to create a successful prototype as a future reference in larger-scale
studies.

III. Statement of the Problem

A lot of urban areas had been turned into rural areas since then technology has been
spread wide around the globe. Leading to a lot of people from rural areas migrating to
urban areas for they seek opportunity to live their life convenient. Leaving rural areas
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to be left behind and to suffer for they lack access to a lot of services such as water,
transportation, and electricity. But what if we solve one of their problem by making our
own small producing power generator?

This study also seeks to answer the following questions:

1. Will it be able to power a miniature bulb or a diode?
2. What is the required rotation per second (r/s) to light up the light
bulb?
3. What would be the brightness of the miniature bulb or diode based
on the rotation per second and the variable used?

IV. Hypothesis

1. At a three (3) volt DC motor will be sufficient enough to power a miniature light
bulb or diode.
2. The more rotations per second (r/s) done onto the DC motor will lead to more light
produced from the miniature light bulb or diode.
3. The miniature light bulb would produced more lights because it needs more power
but it would require more effort. However, the diode would produce less light because
it doesn`t require much power.

V. Significance of the Study

To the community. Our project contributes to this because of its simplicity of

required items and tools to be able to produce an emergency item at time of power
outages.
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To the students. The project is able to contribute to the students through its
structure. Students in the higher grade levels, according to the curriculum, would be
tackling the topic of physics and electricity, and our model would be an example of
how mechanical energy would be able to be transferred to electric energy due to the
technical of the machine.

To the researchers. Researchers are able to use the findings of our study as their
references or starting point of their study that is related to ours. Because we would have
a model they are able to reference and replicate some parts and fix the flaws to create
efficiency with our prototype machine.

VI. Scope and Limitation

This study is limited to the use of Portable Generator as a convenient alternative

source of electricity during power outage. The portable generator is only a hand-
powered model and is only limited to materials with lower voltage such as the small
LED light bulb that was used in the study. Higher voltage appliances require larger
motors. The portable generator is just a prototype and can only light up small diodes.
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VII. Definition of Terms

Generator – a machine that converts one form of energy into another, especially
mechanical energy into electrical energy, as a dynamo, or electrical energy into
sound, as an acoustic generator (Anonymous, generator, 2019)
Portable – easily carried or conveyed by hand (Anonymous, portable, 2019)
Recycled – To treat or process (used or waste materials) so as to make suitable for
reuse (Anonymous, recycle, 2019)
Diode – A device, as a two-element electron tube or semiconductor, through which
current can pass freely in only one direction (Anonymous, diode, 2019)
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CHAPTER 2
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND CONCEPTUAL
FRAMEWORK

I. Review of Related Literature

Generators are used for the generation of electric power. There are basically two types
of generators: standby generators and portable generators. Generators ensure that most of the
essential appliances can be run whenever there is a power outage. Standby generators provide
backup power in homes and offices and are permanently installed outside the house or office
building. They are plugged into the electric circuits or home wiring. Standby generators can
automatically detect disruption in the usual electric supply and begin supplying power within
a few seconds. Portable generators are usually used in places where there is no supply of
power or the need for power is less such as on construction sites camps. These generators are
sufficient for lighting and to run appliances like televisions, refrigerators, sump pumps and
furnaces. (Tobey, 2006)

Portable generators are run by various kinds of fuel. Gas, natural gas, diesel, and others
such as biomass are all used to run generators. Diesel engines are considered to last longer
and require minimal maintenance. Natural gas generators have similar positives as well, but
are a bit more costly. Gas powered generators may not be as durable but are also much less
expensive than the others. (Reeves, 2010)

There are several benefits to having a portable generator in your home. Portable
generators are reliable for supplying power for lighting and to electrical devices when the
electrical service to your home experiences a power failure.
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Backup Support
A portable generator has other benefits besides supplying temporary lighting and
emergency power to critical medical devices. During extreme weather, your home’s power
could be lost for several days. A portable generator offers backup support by providing the
power needed for your refrigerator to maintain stable and safe temperatures to ensure that
foods remain safe to eat. During a power outage, a portable generator can supply power for a
small portable heater for warmth on a cold winter day, or a couple of fans to keep the house
cooler on a hot summer day.
Efficiency, Function, and Affordability
Many people are unaware that portable generators are available in a wide variety of
models, sizes, functions, efficiency and power ratings, and prices. Most portable generators
function with a high level of efficiency, provide power with consistent reliability, and are
cost-effective both to purchase and to use.

Don’t Be Powerless and in the Dark

An unexpected power outage to your home does not have to cause a severe interruption
to your normal activities. A portable generator will supply you with the power needed to keep
the important electrical devices in your home working so that you can go about most of your
activities. (Anonymous, BENEFITS OF A PORTABLE GENERATOR, 2019)

A study conducted related to ours stated how there were different sources of electricity, one of
which was from a waterfall. They continued on with wind energy as it was a continuous source
because of the blowing of wind. And lastly solar panels are abundant in many tropical countries
because it converts solar power to electrical power. The researcher added that the portable
generator was more efficient it had less consumption than to use fuel, diesel or gasoline, which is
now a rising problem because of the price. (Panes, 2017)
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An article stated that Faraday discovered in 1831 that passing a conductive wire through a
magnetic field produced an electric current in the wire. If a coil of wire was spun around a
magnet then a steady current would be made. Thus, the energy in the spun coil can be converted
to electrical energy. (Grabianowski, 2009)

Power System from 2006 – 2016

Power system restoration has attracted more attention and made great progress recently.
Research progress of the power system restoration from 2006 to 2016 is reviewed in this
paper such as: black-start, network reconfiguration and load restoration. Some emerging
methods and key techniques are also discussed in the context of the integration of variable
renewable energy and development of the smart grid .There is a long way to go to achieve
automatic self-healing in the bulk power systems because of its extreme complexity.
However, rapidly developing artificial intelligence technology will eventually enable the
step-by-step dynamic decision-making based on the situation awareness of supervisory
control and data acquisition (SCADA) and wide area measurement system (WAMS) in the
near future. (Liu, Terzija, & Rui, 2016)

Generator and other forms of electricity

It was identified the components needed for the realization of the project such as inverters,
transformer, electric motor, generator, batteries, controller and wires were the components
of the self-sustaining power generator. Materials needed have been also identified for the
packaging of the project. The conceptualization of the design has been done by using the
selection process of the components and depending also in the needed flow of the project
with respect to the concepts behind every components. The researcher has come up with the
final design and specifications of the project. ( DESTREZA, 2014)
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II. Conceptual Framework

1.5 Volts LED
1 Rotation per (2 pieces)
Second

3 Volts DC DETERMINE
3 Rotations per
Motor WHICH BULB
Second
LIGHTS UP

5 Rotations per
Second
2 Volts LED

Our conceptual framework consists of the independent variable and 2 dependent variables.
The independent variable is the 3 volts DC Motor while the rotations per second of the crank of
the machine would vary in 3 different rates. The first would be 1 rotation per second, the
second, 3 rotations per second, and lastly at 5 rotations per second.
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CHAPTER 3
METHODOLOGY
I. Materials
Tools to be used:
● Glue Gun
● Soldering Iron
● Soldering lead
● Screw driver
● Cross-head screws
● Lighter

Frame/Foundation: Thick wood

Generator:
● Copper wire with resistor (12 inches)
● DC Motor (3 volts)
● Rubber band
● Small plastic tube
● LED Light bulb (1.5 volts)
● Plastic hook lock
Crank:
● Compact Disk (2pcs.)
● Spool of tape
● Metal hook
● Iron rod
● Small rectangular wood (2pcs.)
● Clay
● Pole of CD rack (cut)
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II. Procedure
1. Glue the spool of tape in between the two compact disks. Add a bit of clay inside the
disks.
2. Put the CD rack through the holes. Make sure that there is still a part that is exposed.
3. Heat up the metal hook and put through the top end of the pole (the one without the
hole).
4. Using your two pieces of rectangular wood pierce the top part with the iron rod with
one of the sides exposed more.
5. Nail or screw the rectangular wood to the bottom of the wooden foundation.
6. Insert your crank to the more exposed iron rod.
7. Place the small plastic tube (the size of the rotator of the DC motor) on the rotator of
the DC motor.
8. Place the DC motor at the distance where the rubber band is able to stretch from the
disk to the plastic tube.
9. Place a plastic ring holder on top of the DC motor that it covers its top. Screw it to the
foundation.
10. Solder your LED light bulbs to the copper wire then solder that copper wire to the plugs
of the DC motor. (You can also solder another light bulb to the copper wire of the
already connected bulb.)
11. Stretch the rubber band on the disk of the crank and the plastic tube.
12. Rotate the crank that the motor goes to a clockwise motion.
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CHAPTER 4
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The experiment was done on February 24, 2019 in one of the houses of the researchers.
This was done to be able to have access to the tools, materials, and other paraphernalia needed to
be used in the experiment.
Three variables were used in the experiment, one independent variable and two
dependent variables. The independent variable is the 3 volts DC Motor to produce the electricity
needed for one of our dependent variables. The dependent variable that will be using the
electricity produced is the miniature bulb and a diode. The second dependent variable would be
the rotations per second on our hand-crank.
MOTOR Miniature Rotations per BRIGHTNESS/LUMINOSITY
Bulb second (Results)
3v 2v (1pc) 1/s No produced light
3v 2v (1pc) 3/s No produced light
3v 2v (1pc) 5/s No produced light

3 trials were tested on the miniature bulb with 2 volts.

For our first trial we spun the crank at 1 rotation per second, there was no light produced.
For our second trial we used the same miniature bulb, but this time we increased the rotations
per second to 3, still no light was produced.
For our third trial we used the same miniature bulb and increased the rotations per second to 5.
No light was produced.
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Motor Diode Rotations per BRIGHTNESS/LUMINOSITY

second (RESULTS)
3v 1.5v (2pcs) 1/s No produced light
3v 1.5v (2pcs) 3/s Low light is produced, stutters
3v 1.5v (2pcs) 5/s Bright light is produced, continuous

3 more trials were tested, this time on the diode.

For our first trial we spun the crank at 1 rotation per second, there was no light produced.
For our second trial we used the same diodes, but this time we increased the rotations
per second to 3, low light was produced, but it was stuttering.
For our sixth and final trial the same diodes were used and a bright light was produced, it was
continuous due to the rotations per second.
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CHAPTER 5
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary of Findings
1. What kind of LED light bulbs can the recycled generator power?
1.1 Based on our results 2 pieces of 1.5 volts of LED bulbs can be powered by our
generator.
1.2 From our prototype it cannot power a 2 volt light bulb.

2. What is the required rotation per second (r/s) to light up the light bulb.
2.1 At least 3 rotations per second are required to power up our diode
2.2 Based on our study 5 rotations per second is the best rate of rotation for our prototype
generator.
3. What would be the brightness of the miniature bulb or diode based on the rotation per
second and the variable used?
3.1 The miniature bulb did not light up no matter how quick the crank was spun.
3.2 The diode, however, lit up when the crank was spun at 3 rotations per second, although
it was a lowlight and was stuttering.
3.3 The diode lit up the brightest and was continuous when spun at 5 rotations per second.
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Conclusions

Based from the findings of the data gathered, the following conclusions were drawn:

1. To be able to power larger electronic appliances the rotation per second of the motor will
not matter if the motor cannot produce a larger voltage due to the lack of size and
conductors of the motor itself.

2. If the motor is large enough that it can produce the exact amount or more needed to light up
a diode or bulb then a sufficient amount of rotations are required in order to light up the
bulbs. Quicker amount of rotations are needed to produce a continuous source of light.
3. In our 3 voltage DC motor we were not able to light up a 2 volt miniature light bulb, but two
pieces of diodes were able to be powered from it being spun at both 3 rotations per second
and 5 rotations per second.

Recommendations

1. When conducting an improved experimentation of this or a similar one change the

independent variable, the motor, to a bigger one that can produce more voltage to have
different variables to control.
2. Add variety to the dependent variables instead of using LED’s. Alarms or larger electric
appliances may be used.
3. Instead of transferring mechanical energy, try out different sources of energy that can be used
on the movement of the shaft of the motor.
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4. When experimenting on a larger-scale increase the amount of motors to be used on varying
variables for a different study.

References
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https://group6jstud.wordpress.com/2017/03/10/chapter-2-review-of-related-literature/
Anonymous. (2011, October 16). The importance of / different types of electric generators. Retrieved
from Norwall Power Systems: https://blog.norwall.com/generator-information/the-importance-
of-and-the-different-types-of-electric-generators/
Anonymous. (2019, February 24). BENEFITS OF A PORTABLE GENERATOR. Retrieved from Parker Heating
and Air Conditioning: https://www.parkerheatingandair.com/home-tips/benefits-of-a-portable-
generator.php
Anonymous. (2019, February 24). diode. Retrieved from Dicitonary:
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/diode
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Anonymous. (2019, February 24). portable. Retrieved from Dictionary:
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Anonymous. (2019, February 24). recycle. Retrieved from Dictionary:
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Grabianowski, E. (2009, June 9). How Hand-Generators Work. Retrieved from HowStuffWorks:
https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/travel/hand-powered-generators1.htm
Liu, Y., Terzija, V., & Rui, F. (2016). Power system restoration: a literature review from 2006 to 2016.
Retrieved from Research Gate:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/305450670_Power_system_restoration_a_literature
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Panes, C. V. (2017, March 10). Chapter 2-REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE. Retrieved from Wordpress:
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Reeves, M. (2010, July 12). Retrieved from http://ezinearticles.com/?Portable-Generators---Power-
Supply-on-Demand&id=4654779
Tobey, E. (2006, February 13). Generators. Retrieved from
http://ezinearticles.com/?Generators&id=144254