Aluminum Cans

BKJ (Earth), 2014

Humans throw so much away with so little thought as to where that trash is going and how it affects us in the future. In my Design and Engineering course, we were assigned to collect samples of a product that was being wasted and assemble the samples into a visual representation of an issue. The purpose of this action project was to create something that represents and illustrates a global issue we are facing: material waste. Our waste material was aluminum, particularly aluminum cans. I learned and appreciate trial and error and I am proud of the way my partner and I worked together.

A beverage can is a metal container designed to hold a fixed portion of liquid such as carbonated soft drinks, alcoholic beverages, fruit juices, teas, herbal teas, energy drinks, etc. Beverage cans are made of aluminum (75% of worldwide production) or tin-plated steel (25% worldwide production)(Wikipedia).

Aluminum is a slippery-white metal and the second most abundant metallic element in the earth's crust. It weighs about 1/3 as much as steel, and is remarkable for its excellent corrosion resistance, durability, ability to be easily machined or cast and its volumetric mass density (density) (Wikipedia). Some of the uses for aluminum are in electrical transmission, packaging, and transportation.

Here are some interesting facts about aluminum waste from Lehighcounty: 

• It takes about 80-200 years for an aluminum can to biodegrade.
• In 2012, 55 percent of aluminum beer and soft drink containers generated were recycled, which is about 0.7 million tons.
• The largest source of aluminum in the MSW (municipal solid waste) stream is used beverage containers and other packaging containers.
• There is no limit to the amount of times aluminum can be recycled. 
• It is estimated that over the past twenty years, we've trashed more than 11 million tons of aluminum beverage cans worth over $12 billion on today's market.
• Americans throw away enough aluminum every three months to rebuild our entire commercial air fleet.

"Liquid Candy: How Softdrinks Are Harming America's Health ~ CSPI." Liquid Candy: How Softdrinks Are Harming America's Health ~ CSPI. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. 

Our installation shows a model earth made almost entirely out of aluminum beverage cans, glue, strings, and a Styrofoam ball as our base. Our installation depicts a model earth with silver representing water, green and brown representing earth. The strings represents how many times the total number of aluminum cans wasted in 2012 would go around the earth. There are 5 string around our earth installation, each string represents 7385.285408 times the number of cans goes around the earth. This piece was inspired by the amount of soda cans our school wastes each year, which is roughly about 29,850 aluminum cans. On average, a person will use 597 cans of soda pop each year.

BKJ and GN (Earth), 2014

BKJ and GN (Earth), 2014

Logistics for cans used in our installation:
2 Diet coca cola cans
7 Root beer cans
4 Sprite cans
1 Coca cola cans
1 Sparking water can
* All of our materials comes from either staffs or students from GCE (Global Citizenship Experience).

Calculations: 
On average each American drinks 597 cans of soda a year. The average life expectancy of an American in 2012 was about 78 years (World Bank). This means that over a lifetime, an American would drink 46566 cans of soda. In 2012, the United States population was 312,780,968 (US. News). Number of aluminum cans of soda drank in 2012: 312,780,968 x 46566 = 1.456495856e13 (14,564,958,560,000 cans).

Amount of times the number of aluminum cans went around earth calculations: 
- Earth's circumference: 24,901 miles.
- Conversion to miles/space: 14,564,958,560,000 cans x 4 (height of a can) x 12 ft/5280 = 919504959.6 miles
- Number of times United States' waste of 2012 goes around the earth: 919504959.6 miles/24,901 miles (circumference of earth) = 36926.42704 times.

Recycling is an important part of a sustainable lifestyle and is a solution to this aluminum waste problem. It’s important for the future of the planet that we all live sustainably. Recycling aluminum saves an enormous amount of energy, because the aluminum is already in its metallic state. Recycling was a low-profile activity until the late 1960's when the growing use of aluminum cans brought it to the public's attention.

Here are some facts about the importance of recycling aluminum:

• Tossing away an aluminum can wastes as much energy as pouring out half of that can's volume of gasoline.
• Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for three hours, this is the equivalent of a half a gallon of gasoline.
• Making beverage cans from recycled aluminum cuts air pollution by about 95%.
• The pollutants created in producing one ton of aluminum include 3,290 pounds of red mud, 2,900 pounds of carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas), 81 pounds of air pollutants and 789 pounds of solid wastes.

Works Cited:

1. "Aluminum Recycling Facts." Aluminum Recycling Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2014.
2. "Aluminum, Common Wastes & Materials." EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2014. 
3. Aluminium. (2014, October 15). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 02:47, October 24, 2014.
4. "Chemical of the Week -- Aluminum." Chemical of the Week -- Aluminum. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. 
5. "Aluminum Statistics and Information." USGS Minerals Information: Aluminum. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. 
6. "Liquid Candy: How Softdrinks Are Harming America's Health ~ CSPI." Liquid Candy: How Softdrinks Are Harming America's Health ~ CSPI. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014.
7. Robert Schlesinger. "U.S. Population 2012: Nearly 313 Million People." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 30 Dec. 2011. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. 
8. "Life Expectancy at Birth, Total (years)." Data. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2014.

 

A Dream of Science

In my Rhetoric course, we were assigned to articulate a dream that we have for our city and write a speech about it. We identified obstacles to our dream and envisioned solutions to them. We drafted, edited, and revised our three drafts of our speech. The purpose for this action project was to write a persuasive speech about an issues you feel strongly about facing your community. The topic I felt most strongly about was women and minorities in STEM. Science affects us all, and we need to support students who are interested in science and change some of science stereotypes.
Below is my Speech!

"Chicago | US2020." Chicago | US2020. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2014.

AUDIO:

Designed With The User In Mind

SJ, The Diamond Bike 2014

In my Design and Engineering course, we were assigned to brainstorm ideas with our partners to design a reliable bicycle that suits a specific user’s needs. We sketched our three strongest ideas and built a prototype. The purpose of this action project is to create a better bicycle for a particular user. I learned to harness empathy (understand and share the feelings of another) to do things better, and appreciate trial and error. I am proud of completing this project on time, given the deadline.
We were assigned to design a bike for Vanessa, a 17 year old high school student who lives in Oak Park. Vanessa travels a total amount of 9 miles from home to school. She has a baby brother, whom she drops off at daycare everyday. She rides down Lake street, which is a noisy (given the fact that it is under a train track) and busy street filled with potholes. Her apartment has no storage room, so she has to lock her bike outside everyday.

After many ideas and complications my partner and I came up with the Diamond Bike. Its main purposes are safety, durability, maneuverability, speed, and a baby carrier. Although the Diamond Bike was designed specially for Vanessa, there is no reason why it cannot be used or adopted for other demographics.

GN, The 3D Model 2014

The Diamond Bike features:

• Detachable Baby bassinet 

The stroller is detachable, so that the user has a choice of either detaching the stroller or keeping it once they are done using it. There’s a twist type lock that’s a part of the frame.

AJ, Main Feature 2015

•  Built In frame U-lock 

In the top tube of the bike frame, there are two U-locks at the end of each side. The two U-locks are extendable, and are used to lock up the two wheels by them interlocking.

•  Detachable U-lock handlebar

We were inspired by the Denny bike made by Teague and Sizemore Bicycle, to create our own U-lock handlebar that locks the frame.

AJ, U-lock Frame 2014

•  Pneumatic tires with small iron pins

We were inspired by Schwalbe, Marathon winter tires, which have small iron pins that gives the user full control on icy roads. Pneumatic (containing or operated by air or gas under pressure) tires help reduce the effect of bumps.

• Light signals

A lot of cyclist worry about their safety, the Diamond Bike has a lighting system attached above the breaks, that allows the user to signal the driver behind them that they will be making a turn. There are two turning signals, a left turning signal and a right turning signal.

•  Motion detectors 

Our bike is safer than other bikes with our sensor in the back. The sensor will beep whenever a car is coming up fast behind, to alert the user.

•  Triangular frame

The Diamond Bike has a triangular/wedge bike frame which allows the weight of the bike to be equally distributed. For light weightiness, The Diamond Bike is made out of aluminum.

•  Comfortable seat

The Diamond Bike has extra cushion on the bike seat for comfort while riding long or short distances.

Calculations

Distance: 9 miles

Diameter: 26 inches

Circumference: (D x pi) 26 x pi = 81.68 inches

Speed: (Distance/Time) 9mi/50min = 10.8 mph or 4.827 m/s

Wheel Rotations: (Distance/Circumference) 6,981.39 rotations in 9 miles.

P.S. The scale used is for our 3D model is a 13 inches, meaning for every 3 inches in our model equals 13 inches in real life. The diameter of the wheels in our model is 2 inches and in real life they are 26 inches.    

                 

In conclusion, when investing in a bike you expect it to be suitable to your needs, "A good bike should pay itself off" said Joey a bike repairer. The Diamond Bike doesn't just cater to the spectrum of people with children, but other consumers that value safety, sturdiness, and easy mobility. The Diamond Bike is not only a form of transportation, but a way of life!

The Evolution a Wheelbarrow

Design and Engineering is a STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) course that focuses on building things well: user-friendly, and sustainable. For our first action project, we were assigned to use physics concepts to sketch an easier to use gardening tool for senior citizens. My partner and I chose to redesign a wheelbarrow. I learned to harness empathy (understand and share the feelings of another) to do things better, and appreciate trial and error.

The Gucci Wheelbarrow

GN (2014)

Vectors

GN (2014)

Storyboard:

GN (2014)

GN (2014)

Gardening is a fun outdoor activity, as the spare time provides exercise, and has various therapeutic qualities. Stephanie Leite believes that "It is just satisfying I think, to see what grows. It's totally unpredictable." There is no reason why a lifelong love of gardening should end as mobility and other limitations arise in senior citizens. Adaptive garden tools, allow senior citizens to continue to pursue their love of gardening. The Gucci Wheelbarrow is an adaptive tool that my partner and I have designed.

A wheelbarrow consists of an inclined plane, lever (handles), axle, and wheels. The wheelbarrow’s handles extend the length of the wheelbarrow and acts as a lever. A lever is a rigid bar resting on a pivot at a fixed hinge, called a fulcrum. The axle, raised up by the wheels, acts as the fulcrum point.

Many wheelbarrow manufacturers emphasize comfort in the grip handles and weight to minimize the force and energy needed to push the wheelbarrow, both in the visual design and in the production descriptions. The more expensive wheelbarrows differentiate themselves by their high quality materials, in the tray, handles, and wheels. The Gucci Wheelbarrow emphasizes high quality, affordability, comfort, and minimization of force and energy used while using the item.

Unlike other wheelbarrow manufacturers, the Gucci Wheelbarrow specifically favors the need of senior citizens. Our design affords strength and stability with the double T-bar handle, which allows the user to maneuver the heaviest load lightly and comfortably. It also permits greater control of deposition of the load on emptying. The Gucci Wheelbarrow handle is designed to keep elbows tucked while using the wheelbarrow, which reduces the strain on the user's shoulders. It also has a spongy rubber sleeve over the T-bar handle to increase grip, therefore reducing the strain on the user's knuckles and joints.

Although, the two-wheeled wheelbarrows are more stable, and the one wheeled wheelbarrows are more maneuverable, the Gucci Wheelbarrow design has managed to blur the line between the one and two wheeled wheelbarrows. The T-bar handle allows the Gucci Wheelbarrow to be more maneuverable and the two low-ground flat free tires make the Gucci Wheelbarrow more stable. One feature that make the Gucci Wheelbarrow special is our lever release system and push or pull handle. The lever release system allows to content/things in the wheelbarrow tray to be easily dumped. The push or pull handle gives the user the option of either pulling or pushing the wheelbarrow.

In conclusion, the Gucci Wheelbarrow design keeps in mind the physical restrictions of senior citizens and accommodates to their needs and limitation.

Works Cited:

"OXO Good Grips." Smart Design. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2014. <http://smartdesignworldwide.com/work/oxo-good-grips/>.

"Protecting Your Joints When You're Gardening." Arthritis Research UK. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2014. <http://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/arthritis-information/arthritis-and-daily-life/gardening-and-arthritis/protecting-your-joints.aspx>.

"Effects of Aging -OrthoInfo - AAOS." Effects of Aging -OrthoInfo - AAOS. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2014. <http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00191>.