Additional Project Ideas For Environmental Engineering

A Bright Idea for Saving Energy
In the U.S., lighting homes and businesses accounts for 22% of all electric power consumption (Raloff, 2006). That's $55 billion worth of electricity, or the output of 100 large power plants (Raloff, 2006). How much energy could be saved by switching home lighting from incandescent to more efficient fluorescent lights? Conduct a survey to find out what types of lighting are used in homes in your area. Come up with an estimate of how many light fixtures are used in an average home, what types of light source (regular incandescent, halogen, fluorescent). Do background research to find out the relative efficiency of different types of lighting. How much energy could be saved by replacing incandescent lights with more efficient alternatives? Taking into account the cost of the lamps, how much money would be saved (if any)? You might also want to look into new lighting technologies like LEDs (Raloff, 2006; NGLIA, 2005). Could future light sources offer even more savings? (Idea from Langiewicz, M.T., 2004)
- Langiewicz, M.T., 2004. "How To Eliminate the Energy Crisis in California," California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2004/Projects/J0819.pdf.
- NGLIA, 2005. "Changing the Light Paradigm," Next Generation Lighting Industry Alliance [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.nglia.org/.
- Raloff, J., 2006. "Illuminating Changes: Conventional Lightbulbs May Soon Be Obsolete," Science News 169(May 20): 314.

Remodeling and Energy Efficiency
Has your house (or one of your friend's houses) been remodeled recently? Were any improvements made for energy efficiency (solar systems, better insulation, passive solar heating, better lighting)? Compare your family's energy costs for a similar time period before and after the remodeling (remember that energy usage often varies seasonally). Monthly bills often have a bar graph showing energy usage for the previous 12 months. You may also be able to get information on past energy usage through your electric company's website. Ask your parents for help to access the online records. Did the improvements save you money? Analyze the cost of the remodeling work that was specific to energy efficiency (for example, if your house got a new roof, and insulation was added, find out what was the extra cost for the insulation, don't use the entire cost of the roof). Calculate how long it will take for the energy savings to pay for the improvements.

The Power of Balance
The Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift connecting the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal near Falkirk in central Scotland. It consists of two diametrically opposed caissons which rotate to lift boats between the two canals through a height of 35 meters. The wheel is always perfectly balanced and, despite its enormous mass, rotates through 180° in less than four minutes, using just 1.5 kilowatt-hours (Wikipedia contributors, 2006). Do background research to find out how much energy would be required if a system of locks were used to raise the boats instead of the Falkirk Wheel. How much energy is saved? For a more advanced project, include a comparision of construction costs for a system of locks vs. the Falkirk Wheel.
Wikipedia contributors, 2006. "Falkirk Wheel," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia [accessed June 20, 2006] http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Falkirk_Wheel&oldid=59868527.

Do Plants Promote Pesticide Breakdown?
When pesticides are applied to protect crops, run-off of potentially harmful pesticides is a major problem. Can water plants such as hardstem bulrush, common cattail, parrotfeather and smooth scouring rush promote pesticide breakdown? If so, diversion of irrigation run-off into plant-filled ponds could help reduce pesticide pollution. Mix malathion at 12.5% of the recommended application strength (to simulate dilution by rain or irrigation water). Use 5-gallon buckets for testing various water plants. Each bucket should have at least 2 gallons of diluted malathion, and should be about 1/4 full with plants. One control bucket should contain no plants. At various time intervals (12 hours, 1 day, 2 days, 4 days) test the water for the presence of pesticides. For example, you can add water from the test bucket to a small container with an airstone and a tadpole or minnow. Time how long the tadpole or minnow survives after addition of the test water sample. Does the presence of plants in the test buckets increase survival time? Are some plants better than others at promoting survival? (Fox, 2005; Fox, 2006) As an alternative to animal testing, a mentor with expertise in analytical chemistry could assist you with developing a chemical test for malathion and its breakdown products.
- Fox, J.E., 2005. "Using Plants to Remove Pesticides from Storm Water Run-off," California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2005/Projects/J0803.pdf.
- Fox, J.E., 2006, "Using Plants to Remove Pesticides from Storm Water Run-off: A Continued Study," California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2006/Projects/J0806.pdf.

Fighting Litter in Your Neighborhood
Is there a public park, playground, or beach near you that suffers from a litter problem? Here is a way that you can do something about it! First, get a measure of the size of the problem by conducting a litter survey. Select a fraction of the area to survey at regular intervals (e.g., every two or three days, or maybe once a week). The area should be large enough so that you can get a representative sample of litter, but not so large that you can't clean it up. Each time you conduct your survey, collect all of the litter within your sample area. Count or weigh each type of litter, and keep track of your results in your lab notebook. Which is the most common type of litter? Have your parents, your teacher, and local community groups help to publicize your results. For example, you could post signs on the trash containers listing how much litter the park gets per week, reminding people to clean up after themselves. See if your local Parks Department can help. Maybe they can organize a cleanup day with help from your community. Does the park stay cleaner after your efforts? (Idea from Cannon, 2005)
Cannon, K.B., 2005. "What Is the Most Commonly Found Litter on the Beach?" California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2005/Projects/S0802.pdf.

Can Mulch Reduce Garden Water Requirements?
Divide a part of your garden into two equal plots, with each plot receiving equal amounts of sun. Cover one plot with two inches of organic mulch, such as compost or ground bark. Leave the other plot uncovered. Use the same amount of water for each plot for two or three weeks. At the beginning of the experiment, and at one-week intervals, dig down and check the soil in each plot for moisture content. Which plot holds water better? Which plot shows better plant growth? (McCausland, 2006)
McCausland, J., 2006. "Smart Summer Watering," Sunset July, 2006: 68.

Resources

Sources for Additional Project Ideas

Cannon, K.B., 2005. "What Is the Most Commonly Found Litter on the Beach?" California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2005/Projects/S0802.pdf.
Fox, J.E., 2005. "Using Plants to Remove Pesticides from Storm Water Run-off," California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2005/Projects/J0803.pdf.
Fox, J.E., 2006, "Using Plants to Remove Pesticides from Storm Water Run-off: A Continued Study," California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2006/Projects/J0806.pdf.
Langiewicz, M.T., 2004. "How To Eliminate the Energy Crisis in California," California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2004/Projects/J0819.pdf.
McCausland, J., 2006. "Smart Summer Watering," Sunset July, 2006: 68.
NGLIA, 2005. "Changing the Light Paradigm," Next Generation Lighting Industry Alliance [accessed June 20, 2006] http://www.nglia.org/.
Raloff, J., 2006. "Illuminating Changes: Conventional Lightbulbs May Soon Be Obsolete," Science News 169(May 20): 314.
Wikipedia contributors, 2006. "Falkirk Wheel," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia [accessed June 20, 2006] http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Falkirk_Wheel&oldid=59868527.