KEENzine5

This theoretical vector analysis is used to solve example problems such as suspending traffic lights. However, I want my students to see an even bigger picture and connect with the course content. By integrating an EML-based project into one of their first core engineering courses, students learn from the get-go that engineering is not an exact, straightforward process. There are high levels of complexity that require the integration of a broad range of skills. I created an EML module about 3D particle equilibrium for two reasons: 1) It can be a dry topic, heavy in mathematical vector manipulation. 2) Integrating EML early in the course sets the tone that technical engineering skills should be used in conjunction with reasoning and problem-solving skills. To start, student teams immerse themselves in a remote village in Sub-Saharan Africa, where USAID reports two out of three people lack access to electricity. Teams are tasked with developing an anchoring system to provide electric power to the community, based off a floating wind turbine design developed by Altaeros Energies. They are given the external forces acting on the turbine balloon and are directed to design a three-cable anchoring system that will hold the turbine in place without exceeding the maximum allowable tension in the cables. Designing the cable anchoring system involves selecting three locations to place the turbine anchors as well as determining the height of the turbine. Students are given a fictional map of the village, which includes descriptions of eight zones in which the village is divided. Based on the scenario within each zone, there is a construction cost and a social impact score. Negative zone scenarios include environmental effects such as CO 2 emissions from developing swamp lands and potentially constructing on religious burial grounds. Positive zone scenarios include the reduction of mosquitoes that may spread infectious disease and developing private land to allow the owner to start a business and hire local workers. Student teams must weigh the pros and cons of the regions while simultaneously calculating cable tensions for the anchoring system. Technical, social, and financial effects are determined not only by anchor locations, but also by turbine altitude. The power output potential is an essential element of the system design. Students brainstorm electrical power uses within the community to determine the local power requirements. I add an additional entrepreneurial aspect to the project by informing the students that the village would like to sell power to neighboring villages in order to pay back the initial cost of the balloon. The higher the balloon, the more power they will generate, leading to a faster return on the initial investment. The students use their own values to determine the social impact score and balance payback time. 47