Jun 05, 2011 -

A seven-member Harvey Mudd College team will head to Costa Rica June 5-11 to install a micro-hydroelectric station along a stream in a 150-acre nature reserve.

Designed to be more environmentally friendly, the student-built station will produce an estimated 48 kWh of energy daily and potentially serve as a model other ecology centers can emulate.

Led by HMC engineering Professor Adrian Hightower and biology Professor Donald McFarlane (Pomona College), the team will install the station along Terciopelo Creek on the Firestone Center for Restoration Ecology reserve in Baru, Costa Rica. Unlike large stations that require dams, which alter the local environment, the micro-station will work with the existing ecology, diverting only a fraction of the creek’s water to generate electricity.

“We’re essentially attaching to one of the last waterfalls, which is about 10 meters high. We’ll plug a 3-inch diameter PVC pipe into the stream to collect water,” said Hightower. “At its peak, the [creek] water flows at about 80 liters per second. We’re only taking about four liters of that.”

The diverted water will flow through a PowerSpout turbine generator and then return to the creek. Power produced by the micro-station will supplement the ecology center’s energy needs.

Students Jinhwa Chun ’12, Alice Conant ’13, Abigail Korth ’13 and Lisbeth Santana ’12, and alumnus Brandyn Carlson ’11 will spend the week setting up and testing the system. They will also work extensively with local experts and ecology center staff to ensure the system meets the needs of the people who will use it.

“In many cases, it’s this social aspect of the project that is most challenging for students. Especially those not accustomed to worrying about that part of a project and those unfamiliar with the culture and customs of the people,” said Hightower. “We could build a great system, but if it doesn’t fit in with what they typically do, or if it adversely affects some of their policies or processes, it won’t be a successful installation.”

Working on the station honed not only social understanding but also management skills for student Project Manager Jinhwa Chun ’12.

“The project opened my eyes about areas that most new engineering majors overlook,” said Chun. “I thought this would be a purely technical project, but it required lots of non-technical work such as collaboration with the University of Costa Rica, arranging meetings, requesting a budget, and leading the team. The project definitely provided an opportunity to practice a management and leadership role.”

The team designed the system using materials available locally in Baru, so the ecology center can replace parts quickly, if needed, and work with local partners such as the University of Costa Rica to maintain the system.