Design a micro grid for isolated rural villages and disaster and humanitarian relief situations. Using a wind turbine as the primary power sources, backed up by photovoltaic panels, and managed through battery storage technology to ultimately provide energy security for many vital needs, such as medical treatment facilities, schools, and water pumping.
We partnered with a company with proprietary wind turbine blades to design a sustainable micro grid system that could be shipped in a standard 40’ shipping container.
Using a 20m steel monopole tower and the unique wind turbine blades provided by our partner company, a wind/photovoltaic system was developed. The system would consist of all commercially available products, with exception to the unique parts attaching the tower to the container floor and supporting structure. The wind turbine system would be classed as 150kW and be supplemented by 250m2 of flexible, lightweight, high-efficiency PV panels. The commercially sourced micro grid management system would also include around 200kWh battery storage, meaning it could provide long-term, reliable basic power services for whole communities.
The same can be said for the shipping containers used in the design; due to inspection and certification legislation, the containers can be used by all standard shipping channels and methods to get to their final destination.
It was decided that rather than designing a base structure to fit into a storage container, that the chosen storage container be used as the base structure.
A flat rack container was chosen for its versatility and reenforced base, which is unique and exclusive to this type. Because of its design, access all components, for assembly/disassembly, maintenance, and repair is possible.
Using commercially available system components also ensures that ISO standards are followed and allow these systems to be connected to local main grids – if one exists – or to other micro grids, adding additional redundancies.
Introduction from my final paper:
1.1 Knowledge Gap & CPD
With the uncertainty going forward, in my career or in continuing education, and the vast and varying challenges ahead, it is important to be able to adapt and fill holes in knowledge and continue learning - adding new weapons to the arsenal that you can call upon to solve any problem that may come up.
Not only a great ethos for a career, but in life.
As part of my Continuing Professional Development (CPD), I wanted to fill the gap in my knowledge around programming and coding. In the past I have worked on numerous projects that involved – or could have greatly benefited from – coding and programming either from a control point-of-view (Arduino) or from software. My final year project was a good example, utilizing both an Arduino control system, being supplied commands from a RaspberryPi.
The ever evolving, vastness and adaptability of coding as a subject means that there is always progression to be made, and various methods of its utilization. For the same reason, it is also fair to say that in the future, as things become more connected and technological, coding will become increasingly essential in the design, manufacture and retiring of products and waste
Adding a practical project to my learning plan will help cement the knowledge and add a tangible goal. The project will also add extra motivation by involving my family, as they will be the “client” of the project.
Introducing the Family Terminal – an organizational hub that will keep the whole family informed of upcoming events, meals, and adolescent finances. A Raspberry Pi run python application that will be used to keep track with the daily family admin. Upon consultation with the clients (children and partner), a list of essential functions were outlined:
Using video classes, reinforced with PDF publications that feature “text-to-speech”, digital notes will be taken on a drawing tablet or the coding text editor. Implementing “Learning-By-Teaching” method, the material will be taught to my children, who then can ask questions that can be jointly researched and appropriatly implemented into the notes or the app code itself.
