Assessment #13

Original Work Assessment

Vanshik Aluri
December 12th, 2020
Fuel Efficient/Electric Airplane Model

Summary
For my Original Work in the Independent Study & Mentorship program this year, I decided to
focus on the harmful effects that air travel has on the environment. With jet fuel being the
primary source of fuel for nearly all types of aircraft, an abundance of carbon dioxide and other
toxic pollutants are released into the atmosphere, damaging the overall health of our planet.
While keeping this predicament in mind, I set my eyes on designing a model plane that could
potentially be increasingly fuel efficient and one that could be used for electric planes, which are
on the rise in the aerospace industry. I had to carry out an amalgam of research to fulfill this idea,
and I did this with my research assessments throughout the year.

Dates and Times

❖ November 28th, 3:00 - 7:00 pm
❖ November 29th, 1:30 - 8:00 pm
❖ December 5th, 2:00 - 4:15 pm
❖ December 6th, 3:00 - 7:15 pm

Materials Used
❖ 3 Foam boards, box cutters, scissors, tape, hot glue, ruler, pencil, Canva

Objective
❖ With a more efficient design that will reduce the amount of fuel necessary and could
possibly be used for an electric plane, a decreased amount of harmful emissions will be
sent into the atmosphere, allowing the environment to be less affected by flight.

Description of Process
❖ The first step in the process included me researching all of the instrumental components
of an aircraft and how each section of the aircraft works. I did this within my research
assessments earlier in the year, which allowed me to build a sound foundation of my
aerospace knowledge. With this, I was able to visualize a crude design of the airplane
model that I was going to build.
❖ Next came the process of gathering all of the materials I would need to make my model
plane. I simply had to go to a local arts and crafts store to buy the foam boards, which is
what my plane would ultimately be composed of.
 ❖ With a design in mind, I began to build the model plane that I had envisioned. This
included me using the ruler and drawing an outline of the shape of the part that I would
be building. To build the fuselage (body of the plane), I cut long strips of foam board and
formed them using a container, which was in a cylindrical shape, and made sure that it
was uniform. To construct the wings, I used the ruler to make the lines straight, and to
ensure that all of the measurements were aligned with the other components of the plane.
I used hot glue to attach these wings to the fuselage, and I used tape to ensure that the
fuselage would be uniform. For the empennage (rear of the plane), I traced the horizontal
stabilizer and the vertical stabilizer and then hot glued the vertical stabilizer to the
horizontal stabilizer so that they would be perpendicular. After this dried, I then hot glued
the horizontal stabilizer to the rear of the fuselage, and since the vertical stabilizer was
connected to the horizontal stabilizer both of these components were able to be
successfully added to the aircraft. Lastly, I had to make the nose of the plane. I cut equal
strips of foam board, and then I placed them at the top of the fuselage and pointed them
inwards so they would all be connected, forming a cone shape. I then hot glued each of
these pieces to the fuselage so that they would be in a firm position, and then I also hot
glued the point at which all of the strips of foam board intersected, for increased stability.
❖ After this building process, I needed to find a way to document it. I decided to make a
document on Canva, so that I could explain each major component of the plane, and how
it contributes to a more effective, efficient design. After completing this, I decided to
make an infographic regarding the negative effects of air travel on the environment. I had
to complete an abundance of research for this aspect of my Original Work, and after I did
so, I was able to create a very in depth infographic regarding this topic.

Results/Conclusions
❖ As a result of this, I was able to gain more knowledge about the harmful effects of air
travel and spread awareness for this problem. Hopefully in the future, manufacturing
companies will use more fuel efficient designs, similar to the one I created for my
Original Work, and additionally start to make the transfer towards electric planes well
into the future.

Next Steps
❖ Using the knowledge that I gained from my Original Work, I aim to make a final product
that will be a fully electric plane, in that it will be able to fly with a remote control, which
was my first idea for my Original Work.