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VideoRecent Projects: Developing Nations
Developing a Home-Scale Electrocoagulation Arsenic Filter
Team: Muhammed Abdul-Shakoor '10, Remi Gottheil '10, Chris Martin '10
Sponsors: David Sowerwine, Skip Stritter, VillageTech Solutions
Advisor: Dr. Mark Laser
Driven by a need for inexpensive arsenic-removal technology in rural areas of developing countries in south Asia, this project sought to develop a home-scale arsenic filter. It has been shown that electrocoagulation is a promising method for small-scale arsenic-removal systems, so the focus of this project was a sensitivity analysis of the electrocoagulation system and the integration of pathogen removal to the device. After testing the effects of sand filter thickness, sand type, iron dose, current density, and flow rate through the filter, it was determined that arsenic removal depends most strongly on iron dose and flow rate. Additional tests investigated ways of enhancing iron flocculation by mixing the solution during electrolysis or by seeding the solution with pre-filter treated water. Pathogen removal testing using non-chlorinated river water and E. coli test kits demonstrated that the electrocoagulation process reduces cell concentration by 25 fold. A preliminary CAD model and suggested materials were presented to inform future design work.
Gravity Energy Storage
Team: Zachary Losordo, Ignacio Rueda, Marc Shapiro
Sponsor: David Sowerwine, VillageTech Solutions
Advisor: Professor Charles Sullivan
Rural Nepalese receive electricity primarily from micro-hydro projects. During low-demand hours, excess energy is dissipated into a load shedding resistor. VillageTech Solutions would like a way to store this wasted energy for use during high-demand hours. The goal of this project is to assess the feasibility of gravity energy storage in Nepal and to design, construct, and test a prototype system.
Innovative Mobile Phone Solutions
Team: Frederick Tucker, Sherwin Yeo
Sponsor: Ashifi Gogo, NCIIA
Advisor: Professor Paul Meaney
Ghana is one of the most successful West African countries. However, the national postal service (Ghana Post) does not offer regular home delivery, but instead offers a modest system where mail recipients collect mail at a rented P.O. box at a specific post office. People often travel long distances to get to the nearest post office. A system that would notify patrons that their mailbox had mail would save patrons time, benefit the post office by helping to reduce storage costs, and make the overall mail delivery system more efficient. We have thus designed a novel mail notification system that is designed for use both in Ghana and in more developed countries. In our system, the mailbox owner would be notified as soon as a letter or package is delivered to their mailbox. Given Ghana's large mobile phone adoption rate, notification would be by text message. Our implementation included a system that replaced Ghana Post's manual data entry system for international mail packages and had text message notification features. We also developed a voice recognition system to accompany the P.O. box sorting process. This system would use a hands-free wireless Bluetooth headset to generate notifications from verbal cues, giving postal workers the freedom to still use their hands to sort the mail.
Pico-Hydroelectric System
Team: Nick Edwards '10, Caitlin Johnson '10, Emily Porter '10
Sponsors: Dartmouth Class of 1980, Dartmouth Humanitarian Engineering (DHE)
Advisor: Professor Charles Sullivan
Our client has installed a pico-hydroelectric system in Rwanda to charge batteries. However, the current system is extremely inefficient. We worked with DHE and Dartmouth's Class of 1980 to further progress in creating an environmentally and economically sustainable, locally manufactured pico-hydro system for implementation in rural Africa. The three major sources of inefficiency that we identified in the current system are the orifice plate, turbine wheel, and alternator. We focused on improving the orifice plate and turbine wheel. We designed and cast a nozzle and a set of geometrically sophisticated turbine buckets. The pairing of these cast components resulted in an overall efficiency of 80 percent versus the 40 percent efficiency of the original turbine and orifice plate. Our economic analysis indicated that a battery-charging fee between 600 and 700 Rwandan francs is both profitable to the turbine operator and economical to the user.
This team received the 2011 Special Faculty Award for Engineering and Service to Humanity.
Stove Technologies for Coffee Farmers
Team: Michal Jablonski, Ethan Lubka, Laura Tabor, Parker Reed
Sponsor: Green Mountain Coffee
Advisor: Dean Joseph Helble
Traditional household cooking stoves in the rural coffee-growing region of Kigoma, Tanzania contribute to deforestation and respiratory health issues. The majority of cooking takes place inside buildings with little to no ventilation, exposing people to dangerous emissions such as particulate matter and carbon monoxide. Our purpose in this project has been to investigate the potential of coffee husks and parchment as a fuel source and to produce a stove design that will utilize this fuel source as well as other fuels. We have developed a gasification stove that can burn parchment husks, wood, and a mixture of the two. Our testing results have shown that our prototype can provide significant benefit over other stove alternatives. We have developed a plan for Dartmouth Humanitarian Engineering Leadership Projects (HELP) to introduce and implement our stove design with the hope that with its adoption, health will improve and deforestation will slow in the Kigoma region.
This team received the 2010 Special Faculty Award for Engineering and Service to Humanity.