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Our innovative product aims to maximize solar energy use through a three-stage process involving separating, focusing, and harnessing sunlight. By utilizing prisms to separate visible and infrared light, we focus energy onto solar panels that produce electricity to power a motor for even cooking. The combination of inexpensive materials, including prisms and solar panels costing around $15 each, offers a cost-effective alternative to electric or charcoal cookers. While cloud cover poses challenges, our prototype demonstrates sunlight's potential in energy production and food heating.
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PBL: Maximizing Use of Sunlight Group 1: Tham Shi Yuan Wong Yi Ren Benjamin Heng Tan Shao Yuan
Contents • Introduction to problem • Product • Concepts • Cost Effectiveness • Problem Faced
Introduction to Problem • The amount of land on earth is only about 148,940,000 km² • Some land can’t be used to harness Solar Radiation • E.g. National Monuments, Famous Landmarks • Supply of fossil fuel decreases and demand for electricity increases • It is essential that we maximize the use of the energy direct from the sun.
Product • The product is made of 3 stages: Separating, Focusing, Harnessing • Prism separates the visible and infrared light • Lenses focus the onto the solar panel and food • Solar panel produces electricity to turn skewer for even cooking of food
Concepts – Prism • The prism refracts the components of sunlight • Visible light, infrared light • Due to the different speeds of visible and infrared light, the refract at different angles • Thus, separating these two forms of radiation in sunlight
Concepts - Lenses • The focusing lenses focuses the beams of radiation due to refraction • Visible light and infrared light would be separated after being refracted
Concepts – Solar Panel • Made of p-type and n-type semiconductor
Concepts – Aluminum Foil • Thermal Radiation is reflected off the Aluminum Foil and towards the food • Shiny surfaces are good reflectors of radiation • Food absorbs Thermal Radiation and temperature increases • Food gets cooked =D
The materials involved are cheap and easily available. Solar energy is free Prisms and solar panels cost less than $15 each A cheap motor costs less than $8. Total Cost – about $40 Cost Effectiveness
Cost Effectiveness • Compared to other cookers that run on electricity or charcoal, our product is: • Cheaper • No Fuel needed • Materials less expensive • More time-consuming • Take longer time to reach a certain temperature
Problem Faced • Sun was often covered by clouds, not enough solar power to heat up the item. • Structure of the product to hold prism and lenses difficult to make • Could not be included in our prototype • To calculate the refraction of visible light and infrared light is extremely tedious • So we did not use the prism
Problems Faced • The motor turned rather too quick • Covered part of solar panel with a piece of paper to slow down motor for even cooking of hotdog
However… • The result of our experiment shows that sunlight manipulated in our set-up can: • Power up the motor • Heat the food
However… • We can be sure that the prism can refract infrared light • Since the lenses can be used to focus the heat energy from the sun, means that these infrared rays can be refracted by glass • Note: Visible light does not increase temperature of food significantly.
Acknowledgements • http://www.visitusa.com/california/images/mojave-national-preserve/lavatube-sunlight.jpg • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth • http://vle.hci.edu.sg/physics/WebTeach/Optics/Optics_YVONNE/index.htm • http://science.howstuffworks.com/solar-cell.htm • http://www.horizonmeats.ca/images/sausage.jpg