Background
The WaterPod is a project based out of New York designed to be a sustainable, navigable living space, showcasing the critical importance of the environment and serves as a model for new living technologies. It is currently scheduled to launch in New York in May, 2009, navigate down the East River, explore the waters of New York Harbor, and stopping at each of the five boroughs it will dock at several Manhattan piers on the Hudson River. However, The WaterPod needed help developing several aspects of its design, including the processing of drinking water without outside help. To this end, The WaterPod contacted CSU Humboldt State University's Engineering 215 class. The Fire Breathing Dragons are a group of students from Humboldt State University's Engineering 215 class who have developed a system for filtering rainwater based on the WaterPod's needs. The water needed to be drinkable after coming off the roofs and surfaces of the WaterPod project.
Abstract
The FBD rainwater purification system exists to provide clean drinking water for the WaterPod Project. The WaterPod is designed to be a sustainable, navigable living space, showcasing the critical importance of the environment and serves as a model for new living technologies. The FBD rainwater purification system uses a sediment filter, an activated carbon filter, and a .5 micron ceramic filter, to help efficiently process water aboard the WaterPod. In addition it uses a First Flush system to remove a set amount of water at the beginning of a rainfall; water that would otherwise contain contaminats and sediment.
Problem Statement
The objective of this project is to design a safe, cost effective, durable, easy to use water filtering system that will enable the Waterpod team to have a source of renewable, drinkable water supply.
Criteria
The FBD Rainwater Purification Project was designed to attempt to meet a collection of criteria. These criteria were each assigned a number according to their importance, 10 being highest and one being lowest, as shown in the table below.
| Criteria | Description | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Durability | The ability of the project to survive a set amount of time. The project should be able to survive the six months it is to be active. The materials and components should therefore be made of a strong, solid material. | 8 |
| Cost | The amount of money going into the project throughout the duration of its making. The total cost of the project will not cost more than $300. The project will not be constructed if any material components collectively exceed $300. | 9 |
| Safety | The project should not in any way threaten the safety of the WaterPod staff. | 9 |
| Functionality | The projects easy of use. The project should be easy to use on a daily basis. Since only crew members will be using it, the project does not have to be understandable to all ages. | 9 |
| Shipablility | The ability of the project to be shipped. The main components of the project should be able to be shipped to New York via a provided crate. | 4 |
| Educational Value | The ability of the project to be informative. The project should make some sort of effort to be educational to the general public. It should explain the mechanics of the project. | 5 |
| Water Quality | The effectiveness of the water’s treatment. Any water coming out of the project should be potable and ready to use on site. | 9 |
| Maintainability | The projects ability to be fixed when needed. The project should be able to be cleaned and fixed easily when the need arises | 8 |
| Aesthetics | How good the project looks. The project should not look out of place to a very high degree. | 1 |
Description of Final Project
Technical specifications including a schematic (CAD, pictures of the device).
Here is some help uploading files.
Costs
Materials
| Item | # of Items | Cost ($) |
|---|---|---|
| 3/4in x 10ft PVC | 1 | 2.99 |
| ABS Cap | 1 | 6.19 |
| ABS Cap | 1 | 6.19 |
| ABS Pipe | 1 | 5.98 |
| ABS Pipe | 2 | 5.98 |
| Ball Valve | 1 | 4.79 |
| Bush Red | 2 | 3.58 |
| Ceramic Filter | 1 | 24.99 |
| Couple | 1 | 0.79 |
| Couple | 1 | 0.79 |
| Coupling | 1 | 6.99 |
| E6000 Adhesive | 1 | 6.49 |
| Filter Housing | 3 | 39.95 |
| Foam | 1 | 4.33 |
| Male Adaptor | 6 | 2.94 |
| Metal Rod | 1 | 1.30 |
| Metal Rod | 1 | 1.79 |
| MIP Adaptor | 1 | 0.79 |
| PVC Adaptor | 2 | 2.16 |
| PVC Ball Valve | 1 | 8.99 |
| PVC Cap | 1 | 1.49 |
| PVC Elbow | 1 | 1.29 |
| PVC Glue | 1 | 11.99 |
| PVC Pipe | 1 | 5.49 |
| PVC Pipe | 1 | 9.99 |
| PVC Tee | 1 | 1.79 |
| Rubber Packing | 1 | 1.39 |
| Sedi/Carbon Filters | 4 | 15.49 |
| Shipping | 7 | 11.97 |
| Tax | 9.33 | |
| Teflon Tape | 1 | 0.79 |
| TOTAL | $209.01 | |
Maintenance
The filters on this project should be changed out every six months at least, in order to maintain the quality of the filtered water, as well as avoiding clogging. In some cases the filters should be changed out sooner depending on how dirty the water being collected on a regular basis is. In the case of the WaterPod's rainwater runoff, the estimated time to replacement is still six months, but if used in a different location this replacement time may change.
Tools
- Drill
- E6000 glue
- PVC Pipe Cutter
- 2 or 3 step PVC Pipe glue
- Pliers/Wrench (will vary in size for the desired size of pipe)
- Teflon Tape
Discussion and Next steps
The FBD Rainwater Purification System has successfully met most of its criteria. Specifically durability, cost, safety, functionality, water quality, and maintainability. The projects filters can be changed out to different grades of filter quality, depending on the project's use. However, it is recommended that filters of at least the quality specified on this page be used if the water is going to be used for human consumption. In addition the size of the project can be changed by adjusting the length of pipe in between each section, making the FBD Rainwater Purification System versatile.
References
See Help:Footnotes for more.
Categories
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