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Team Solkraft

Team Solkraft. Thomas Buck, Kyle Garner, Alexandra Jung, Quinn McGehan , Mark Sakaguchi , and Scott Taylor. Final Presentation 11/30/2010. Mission Overview. Objective To determine the effect of near space conditions on solar cell output. Temperature, light intensity, and altitude.

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Team Solkraft

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  1. Team Solkraft Thomas Buck, Kyle Garner, Alexandra Jung, Quinn McGehan, Mark Sakaguchi, and Scott Taylor Final Presentation 11/30/2010

  2. Mission Overview • Objective • To determine the effect of near space conditions on solar cell output. • Temperature, light intensity, and altitude. • Expect to prove that there is a relationship between the variables above and the output of two different types of cells. • Determine effectiveness of using solar cells on stratospheric platforms. • Hypothesis • The monocrystalline cells will outperform the polycrystalline cells, while both cells will perform better in near space than on the ground.

  3. Mission Design: How? • Experiment will incorporate three main categories • Photodiodes: Detect light intensity to determine the “amount” of sunlight hitting the panels • Thermistors: On each face to detect temperatures effect on output. • Solar cells: Two different types to determine which one is most efficient • All three components will be flowed into multiplexer • Multiplexer will deliver multiple logs per minute • Arduino will log results to MicroSD card to be uploaded into Matlab/Excel

  4. Mission Design HOBO (Velcroed to wall of Balloonsat) Arduino (Velcroed to wall of Balloonsat) Switches Heater Camera Polycrystalline Cell Multiplexer (Later moved to fit directly on top of Arduino) Monocrystalline Cell HOBO External Temp Sensor Photodiode Thermistor

  5. Power Switch Provided Hardware Sensors Solar Cells Mission Design

  6. 128 mm 220 mm 90 mm 110 mm Differences • Changed some of the layout of the BalloonSat so that there would be more room. • Arduino moved to sidewall instead of on bottom • Heater moved more toward center of satellite • Batteries laid flat against bottom • Originally started with just one type of solar cell. • Originally did not have multiplexer in the design, but would have needed one with what we were planning on doing in the beginning.

  7. Results • Hypothesis: • (1)The monocrystalline cells will outperform the polycrystalline cells • (2) Both cells will perform better in near space than on the ground • Results: • Both portions of our hypothesis proved to be true based on our experiment • Monocrystalline: • Average output of 0.526V during flight; .490 V on ground • Polycrystalline • Average output of 0.458 V during flight; .437 V on ground

  8. Landing

  9. Landing

  10. Burst Landing

  11. Turned BalloonSat Turned BalloonSat Turned BalloonSat

  12. Upper line is when side was directly in the sun. Lower line is when this side was away from the sun.

  13. Failure Analysis • Inside of BalloonSat dropped below -10 °C • Inadequate insulation around camera • Happened immediately following burst • One thermistor failure • Wiring broke loose during flight • Re-tested and works

  14. Failure Analysis Burst

  15. Conclusions • Solar cells perform better in a near-space environment than on the ground • As temperatures decrease, solar cell efficiency increases • As altitude increases, solar cell efficiency increases (could be the effect of temperature) • Temperature effects solar cell output more than altitude, therefore, the effect of the atmosphere on ground based solar cells is minimal • Monocrystalline cells are more efficient than polycrystalline cells • The use of a stratospheric platform in the tropopause at the coldest point would prove to be optimal for voltage output

  16. Lessons Learned • Organization • Did not plan out how the wires were laid out • As a result it would have been much harder to repair or change • Teamwork • Working as a team is important • It is important to split up the work evenly • Self-Discovery • Finding answers is difficult • Start looking for help early

  17. Ready to Fly • Problems • Internal temperature dropped below -10 • Faulty thermistor • How they were fixed • Extra insulation around camera hole, and insulation between HOBO and foamcore. • Corrected a solder joint in the wire where it had come undone. • Things to do before flight • New Batteries • Set HOBO to record

  18. RFP Requirements

  19. RFP Requirements (cont.)

  20. Mass/Budget

  21. Message to Next Semester • This class will be one of the most rewarding and unique experiences of your education. Gateway will give you an inside look into the life of an engineer through hands on experience. That being said, this class is very difficult and very time consuming. Be prepared to learn entire new concepts with little guidance in a very short amount of time. If you have the dedication then you will get through it, but it will be challenging. Start early, work hard, and you will have the time of your life.

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