ENGR 103 - Spring 2013 Freshman Engineering Design Lab Sustainable Systems: Using Stormwater and Solar Power

Project Design Proposal

Date Submitted: April xx, 2013

Submitted to: Group Members:

Dr. Robert F. Brehm, PE, rfb23@drexel.edu Yosep Bak, yb88@drexel.edu Molly Blakely, mkb87@drexel.edu Paulina Gawor, pmg52@drexel.edu Craig Todd, cat329@drexel.edu Stephanie Smith, ses373@drexel.edu

Abstract: The motivation for this freshman design project is to add a complex system for collecting storm water and solar energy. The collection system will be modeled on the roof of Hagerty Library, an existing university building, sent to an underground collection tank, and used for gray water purposes. There roof will also be put to use as a public space, by adding a garden area and benches. The project will allow students to improve AutoCAD ability, better understand the construction process, and evaluate the sustainability of adding eco-friendly systems. A hypothetical budget of construction will be drawn up, as will a report of projected water use, and how dependent the new system will be on the electrical grid. The project will also give a basic understanding of LEED requirements, and whether the new system will i mprove the buildings sustainability.

ENGR-103 Freshman Design Proposal

Section 063, Group 02

Introduction

The goal of this Freshman Design Lab will be to develop a storm water collection system for an existing Drexel University building, Hagerty Library. Existing literature and plans will be used to create a rooftop collection system that will direct storm water to an underground tank, and used as grey water. Solar panels will be used to create energy that will power the collection tanks pump to feed water to toilets and hoses in the building. The roof will also be put to use as a public space, including a small garden. The goals of the project are to develop an understanding of LEED standards, whether adding complex building systems after construction is financially feasible, whether the systems additional energy and water produced makes enough of an impact to justify the cost of construction. Using software to draw and alter blueprints, schedule and budget hypothetical construction costs will familiarize the group with the construction process, and will also use software including AutoCAD. The desired outcome is to supply the some of the gray water needs of the building by using storm water, and use solar panels to power the system to make the building more sustainable. The project will optimally save money on water and energy costs of the building by using natural, renewable resources, and decreasing the buildings dependency on city water.

Deliverables

The report will, in detail, describe how the system will operate, how the solar energy and the gray water will be used, what the costs and challenges of applying the system will be, and how the project will impact sustainability. In addition to a detailed report, visual interpretations of the system created in AutoCAD will be included. There will be AutoCAD 2D and 3D models of the water collection system, as well as of the systems using the solar energy to pump water throughout the building. As the system will not actually be built, the only results used will be based off of estimates from research.

Technical Activities

The major tasks of this project are research and design. The project will rely on more theoretical outcomes as the system cannot physically be carried out. With Research and design, the group will create an accurate depiction of the project. 1

ENGR-103 Freshman Design Proposal 3.1 Research

Section 063, Group 02

One major task of this project is to research how storm water can be collected from a roof of a building and how solar energy can be used to pump the water throughout the building. From this research it can be speculated how much the system designed to collect and use water through solar energy will save on power costs and water costs. Through research the challenges of cost and energy efficiencies will be addressed. 3.2 Design

Another major task is to design the system and create computer models using AutoCAD. There will be both 2D and 3D models to show how the solar panels and collection systems can be attached to the roof, how the water will run through pipes to a storage area underground, how the energy will be collected from the solar panels, and how the water will be pumped into the system of the building. This task will work to address the problems of integrating the system into a preexisting building.

Project Timeline
Week Task 1 x 2 x 3 x x 4 x x x x x x x x x x Table 1: Schedule for project completion. x x x x 5 6 7 8 9 10

Literature study Site Survey AutoCAD Rendering Sustainability Projections Final report preparation

Facilities and Resources

All sources should be easily available from Drexel. Resources will be found primarily in online databases including ProQuest, Google Scholar, Ei Compendex, and Environmental Engineering Abstracts. AutoCAD and Excel are all available for use in the universit ys CAT Lab. AutoCAD will be used to provide a model of the final system. Excel will be used to create a schedule for

ENGR-103 Freshman Design Proposal

Section 063, Group 02

the project. No further resources should be needed, as the project will not culminate in a physical model.

Expertise

The project requires fundamental knowledge of AutoCAD. AutoCAD skills will be further developed throughout the project, especially in drafting technical blueprints. Knowledge of LEED requirements and storm water systems will be gained during the project through literature review. The project also requires a comprehensive working knowledge of a large scale water distribution and plumbing system. Knowledge of the energy production of solar panels and the energy consumption of Hagerty Library will need to be gained through research.

Budget

The project is to create a water recycling and solar panel system to add to an existing Drexel University building. There will be no actual cost associated with the project, but a budget of construction will be drawn up as review of the literature and understanding of industry costs develops.