This is the beginning of our solar still frame:

Today, we finally started building the frame of our solar still. We started with measuring the length and width of a bucket that we planned on using for our first solar still. Then we had cut long 2x2 pieces of wood for the frame. We didn't know how to connect the pieces together, so we tried using nails and a hammer. After getting the nail about three quarters a way through the wood, it had started to split and crack. So backing up and taking another path, my group and I drilled holes about half way through the wood. Afterwards, we held the pieces together and drilled a 4 inch screw into the hole that was on the side of one of the shorter 2x2's, through to the top of a longer piece. Screwing together four pieces of wood, we now had a rectangle that would be the side of the solar still.

Now we had to create the bottom of the filter. We laid two pieces of the same 2x2 wood that we used before (these will be longer than before, but equal length to each other) and set them on the ground so that they were parallel to each other. Holes were drilled in these too so we could connect them to the rectangle that we had just made. Then, we set the rectangle on the parallel pieces of wood and flipped it on its side so we could drill in the screw to keep it together. Lastly, a piece was screwed to the end of the bottom boards to create a right triangle. With the right triangle assembled, we had to figure out the length of the hypotenuse so the wood could be cut. Although, the ends of the hypotenuse side would have to be cut at a diagonal. We found the angle of one of the ends to be 25 degrees, but was not able to find the degree measurement of the other end. This was all that we had gotten done today, but we will be working more on Monday. I am excited as to how this filter will turn out.

P.S. Pictures of our frame and measurements of the pieces of wood are to come!

For the past couple of days, our group has been experiencing difficulties assembling our filtration system. We haven’t built is yet because we don’t have the parts, but looking at our diagram we have run into problems that we didn’t think of at the beginning. First, the dirty water is supposed to go in through a PVC pipe. The frame is going to be quite tall, so the water might splash to the other side of the wall that is supposed to separate the dirty water and the clean water. Therefore, we will have to get a longer PVC pipe than planned. Also, the dirty water is to gather on the floor of the frame. The frame is made out of wood; we didn’t think about the fact the wood might rot or fall apart. My group has decided to put a bucket at the bottom of the frame to collect the water. The last difficulty we have is on whether or not PVC pipes give off a chemical when it is in heat for too long. We heard that this was possible and so we are concerned that this might happen because our system includes heat and evaporation. We researched and decided that if PVC pipe did not work then we would use hollow bamboo poles. This would be an easy alternative for the people in Africa because bamboo is easy to grow and is a natural material. Hopefully our problems with this system will work out eventually.




Our revised diagram:

This is a diagram of what our solar still will look like:

This year, we are doing a spring project for school. Our group decided to solve the problem of lack of clean water in Africa. We chose this topic because we realize how hard it is to live without clean water. During our research, we found out that many men, women, and children die every day due to diseases from contaminated water. More than 4,000 people die every day because of diarrhea, malaria, and other diseases. The water in lakes and rivers, that people drink and use the water out of, are contaminated with sewage waste. In Africa, many people don't have access to toilets or clean water. This is why we want to help the people in Africa be able to access clean water.

Many people and organizations are helping Africa by digging wells and trying to clean the water. We want to do the same thing, but differently. After doing research, we found many different designs of water filtration systems that have been used to help Africa. Although, we liked one in particular design the most. It is called a solar still. The person who made another solar still made one called a Solar Ball. The Solar Ball is a sphere that filters water through evaporation. We decided to design one that is similar, but our's is in a triangular shape.

This is how our filtration system works. The frame is two boards connected to make a right triangle. Then, we put plastic bags from each end of the boards to create a cover. There would be a PVC pipe at the top next to the board to pour the water in. Then the dirty water gathers at the bottom and gets evaporated up to the plastic bags. The water then runs down the hypotenuse of the triangular system. The clean water and the dirt is separated by a wall. It then goes through a filter that gets rid of the dirt that was left behind. Now, you have water that you can drink, cook, or bathe with. After building this solar still, we will be able to help many people in Africa have better access to clean water.