This project' goal was to design a thermal water storage control system. THis system can monitor the water for temperatures for the SSH.
The sponsor for this project was Dr. Bing Chen, and its duration was 2022 - 2023.
Capstone Team Members:
- Courtney Young
- Osama Atta
- Sean Sterling
- Grayson Arnold
Abstract:
A sharp increase in renewable energy over the last decade is propelling us toward a sustainable future. Renewable energy unfortunately is overwhelmingly intermittent and will suffer from large gaps in demand. One of the largest energy demands in these gaps is nighttime heating of buildings – a problem facing Dr. Bing Chen’s Sustainable Small House. This project delivers a solution for that problem – a heat pump system that delivers fifteen times the heat of the power supplying the system.
This report describes the thermal water storage project from its initial design to closeout
testing. The project centers around using a microcontroller in an embedded system to control
pumps and valves that can move heat using water. The scope of this project includes designing
the controls for the mechanical system, providing a supplemental end user interface, and
interfacing with the HomeSeer smart home controller. Ten (10) project success requirements
were defined in the proposal of this project and have now been met, including several results
that significantly exceed the requirements. The purpose of this project was to both satisfy the
capstone requirement for the electrical and computer engineering program and to deliver a
solution by solving a complex engineering problem for a client with an engineering need. This
project has been a success for both purposes. We recommend installing this product in the
Sustainable Small House and continuing its development with more complex efficiency
algorithms.
Read More
Contact Dr. Chen for full permissions to read more about the Thermal Water Storage project, including a full definition and proposal.