The experimenting has died down in a sense because everyone is getting ready to go on Winter Break. Currently, we are planning on doing further experiments relating to our sunlight angles. After break, we will more than likely redo the Clinometers experiments if we need better accuracy, or try another form of experiment if need be.

We have come to an agreement in class on what type of experiment to perform. In order to find the sunlight angles, we will be doing an experiment based on our 9th grade Geometry projects. We will have a viewing tube attached to protractors with sting and weights. As we look up to see the tops of the buildings where sunlight, the weight will pull the string down and show us the angle at which sunlight hits our school. Each group will have their own viewing/angle device and use it to find the sunlight angles at several different points to get an average sunlight angle in the polar directions, east and west from our school.

Now, we are in the midst of finding where the sun strikes the school at different positions. We are discussing how to set up an experiment that will allow us to find the angles that sunlight hits SLA with relative accuracy. Since there are many other buildings around the school, many taller in fact, we know the sunlight angles will be different depending on where we look, so we are also discussing a way to address this in our experiments.

In our engineering class this year we have been talking about the
different types of solar panels there are out there. We have done
research on Copper, Silicon, and Titanium Dioxide solar panels. After
we collected all the information about each type of cell we had a
debate in class about which one was better. The Copper cells lost quite
badly. Copper cells are not nearly as efficient as the other two
options, they weigh a ton and take up more square footage than the
other cells. The debate became about the Silicon and Titanium. Silicon
cells cost close to or over $1000. Also Silicon is getting hard to come
by which is making the cost go up even higher. The efficiency however
is the best there is right at the moment. Titanium cells although right

The task we are working on now in class is to find out how much it
costs per unit of energy for each type of solar cell and compare it to
what we pay now. Than with that information we want to find the point
at which we break-even. We are still gathering the information, but it
looks that it will take quite a few years to break-even.

My engineering teacher is Mr. VK. He was talking to us about the different types of energy and how we are going to have to switch to a  more reliable type(s) of energy because the energy that we are using is running out and it will get to a point where it won't  able to cover the amount of energy that is used  by an average American daily. He had us write a paper about our fuel plan for the next 50 years. We had to work alone on this benchmark.

Geometry Benchmark Overview

For the Geometry Benchmark, students were divided into groups of three or four people and each group was assigned a topic related to geometry that had to be presented in front of class. Within the presentation, each group had to include the shapes of geometry that were used in the topic they received, the materials, the methods, why geometry is used in that topic, and the reasoning behind it all. On the day of presentation, each group explained their topic to the class as if they were teachers. For individual work, each member of the group was responsible for submitting a journal explaining how the group was working and how we were working and a pamphlet that included all the information we found.

Today, our group managed to greatly improve on our experiments from last class. We managed to further compare different potential sources of energy to the miniature solar panels. This was done by hooking up an ammeter to a grapefruit, then the solar panel, then a battery. We found that the battery was the best source of electricity, but we know that the solar panel would last much longer since it can get recharged very easily by the sun and won’t need to be replaced. Overall, I think our second class with the miniature solar panel turned out well.

In Engineering class, we have started an experiment to see whether or not miniature sized solar panels could be useful and efficient to our class, and potentially the world. The group I was part of managed to compare the electricity potentially produced by the mini solar panel, versus that of a grapefruit. It turned out that the grapefruit gave off more electricity than the mini-solar panel, but this is more than likely because there was not a great multitude of light outside and the lights of the room were our main source for the panels. However, we will attempt to improve this upon our next class and try to achieve better results.

Title: Why is biodiesel a cleaner fuel source? ☺
Alison and Yousuf: (act like we are building the reactor)
Robert: Hey what are you guys building?
Yousuf: We are building a biodiesel reactor.
Robert: Oh, what are you building one of those for?
Alison: We’re building it so we can make cleaner fuel.
Robert: (confused) Wait, how is biodiesel a cleaner fuel source?
Alison: There are many reasons as to why biodiesel is a cleaner fuel source. The main reason is that it is a green fuel, meaning that it is good for the environment.
Robert: I still don’t understand.
Alison: Here we’ll explain…Biodiesel can be made out of anything with fat in it, such as; soybeans, corn, algae, tallow trees, and fryer grease. This is good because we can grow the materials and make the biodiesel in America. Which means we’ll no longer have to rely on foreign oil. And that means that gas pump and heating oil prices will go down.  For the first time ever the United States has gotten foreign aid to help pay for heating oil in the winter. And we can make our biodiesel out of fryer grease which is even better. This serves two purposes; One that it gets ride of the fryer grease and two we get a clean fuel source to run cars and generators on.
Robert: So we can use all the grease left over from the fast food places to make fuel and we don’t have to pay huge amounts of money?
Yousuf: Exactly! It’s a win-win. The fast food places get rid of their oil and we get cheaper fuel saving us billions of dollars. Also it means we control our energy. If we control our energy we’ll control our future.
Alison: Also since the biodiesel can be made from waste products we don’t need to use the crops we use for food to make our fuel, which companies are doing now to make ethanol. That would also stop the problem of the increase in food prices and the demand for more farming land.
Robert: This looks hard to build though.
Alison: No, it is actually quite simple to build, it can actually be made at home with simple materials, like sheet metal and pipes from a hard ware store. One reactor can be made at the price of about $150. So it takes a little start up cost, but after that you make money because you won’t have to buy fuel at the gas pump. Another thing, by making biodiesel at home, the fule won’t have to be transported.
Robert: So why does it matter that fuel would not have to be transported?
Yousuf: It matters because if the fuel does not have to travel as far then there would be lower emissions from the transportation of the fuel.
Alison: Also not only will there be less emissions from transportation, but Biodiesel has lower emissions when it is burnt compared to other types of fuels. The CO2 levels are much lower than both gas and diesel and yet it has almost as much energy as diesel. Also biodiesel has no sulferdioxide emissions. This means more miles per gallon and fewer emissions when using biodiesel compared to other fuels.  
Intro: Biodiesel is a cleaner fuel source
2: Renewable resource – kitchen grease oil
3: easy to produce- home made reactors
4: lower emissions – compared to diesel but close to same energy
5: less traveling- made at home
6: compare biodiesel to other sources of energy
7: not taking away from food – making food cheaper or no increes
conclusion:
Diesel is getting expensive
Why is it cleaner?