Overview
Now in its fifth year, the solar oven group was given an excellent opportunity to address many issues critical to the project. The team was larger than usual, with 10 devoted members, and boasted a diverse range of educational backgrounds. The group was also fortunate to have a Chris Tilger as a member of the team. Chris is currently in his third year of active involvement in the project and provided both perspective and insight into the group's efforts throughout the semester. The team was also privileged to have access to a larger 1-dimensionally scaled up solar box oven that is more representative of those currently used in Nicaragua. This oven, completed at the beginning of the fall semester, enabled the project team to investigate and test issues more consistently with those actually faced by the Nicaraguan community. Lastly, the solar oven group was extraordinarily lucky to be able to work with Tim Bond. Tim has been directly involved in the solar oven venture since its inception and has invaluable technical and social understanding of the project.
With this formidable cohort dedicated to the solar oven cause and a brand new oven at the team's disposal, the group was able to meaningfully address the following issues: (1) Pot Quantity, Distribution, and Sequencing, (2) PIV Heating Characterization, (3) Concentrated Solar Cooking, and (4) Resolving Glass Cracking. The group's findings on these four topics are discussed at length individually in subsequent sections of the report. The team divided its human and technical resources according to these issues; however, the solar oven group was unified by the purpose of its investigations. The solar oven group's client is a very specific rural tropical community. Accordingly, the solar oven team must ensure all of its work is both useful and applicable to the Nicaraguan residents. It is not the group's ambition to invent the most technologically efficient and powerful solar cookers, but rather to design solar cookers that are most desirable for the people of Nicaragua and their society. With this goal in mind, the solar oven team complimented its technical research and analysis with investigations into the impact of relevant conceptions of technology and unintended consequences. In doing so, the solar oven group strove to ensure that their efforts best serve the residents of Nicaragua.
Research Teams
Pot Quantity, Distribution, and Sequencing
PIV Testing
Concentrated Solar Cooker
Glass Strain, Breaking