The Build your green energy engineering competition organized within the FabLab Chișinău engineering hub for students of the Technical University of Moldova aims to discover and promote erudite and creative students who stand out in a competitive environment, but also to create effective partnerships with energy leaders.
The competition registered 22 participants, divided into teams, who had the task of developing the concept of a renewable energy tree which would generate electricity using renewable sources, allow the storage of electricity, light up during the night for at least 3 hours, and incorporate communication techniques, including wi-fi. The tree has to be made of easily accessible components, be scalable to different sizes and to have a pleasant appearance.
Under the auspices of mentors Iulian ROTARI, Lucian GRUȘAC, Octavian MANGOS (FEIE), Alexandr MUNTEAN and Igor BARAN (FabLab), the teams developed original concepts, which were later put forward for the expertise of specialists in the field.
The AC/DC team (Florin TESLARI, Marcel ROTARU, Valentin BÂNZARU, Corneliu RĂILEANU, Vladislav ENACHI) presented the concept of a renewable tree with the appearance of a sunflower. The surface of the petals are covered in 174 photoelectric cells with a capacity of 6W each. At the end of the main stem is a wind turbine that captures wind energy. The plant has the capacity to produce the necessary volume of energy in order to light up for at least 4 hours at night daily and to power a wi-fi router 24 hours a day. In summer, the excess energy will be exported to the electrical network of the faculty or city.
The X-ENERGY team (Daniel RUSU, Ian ZABRODNÎI, Grigore GUȚU, Marcu MARDARE) set out to create a new concept for the faculty and change its image. The tree designed for this purpose is a place of respite for students during breaks, and a space with a pleasant atmosphere for walks in the evening. All power components will be located in a box next to the tree.
The MAKERS GONNA MAKE team (Iulian LUNGU, Cristian CEBOTARI, Sergiu DONCILA, Neonil ROȘCA, Mariana COȘCODAN) developed a solar tree equipped with photovoltaic panels with 2 axes of freedom, which generate energy only when the sun is above them, rotating according to the movement of the sun with the help of sensors that detect it and the motors that rotate the tree towards it. The attached wind farm allows the generation of electricity when the weather conditions do not allow the use of the solar tree. The Solar Tree and the Wind Power Station are interconnected through a basement module.
The LIDER team (Ion STOLERU, Dan BURIAN, Eugeniu GRĂDINARU, Loredana FLOREA) developed a prototype in the shape of a tree, capable of providing electricity at night (minimum 3 hours), transformed from sunlight, enough to power a network of light, a wifi router and a few USB ports for charging electronic devices, such as smartphones or power banks.
Yesterday, December 22, 2021, on Energy Day, the teams presented their concepts to the evaluation commission. The projects were assessed by a competent jury, consisting of assoc. prof., Dr. Victor GROPA – dean of the Faculty of Power and Electrical Engineering, Nicolae MAGDÎL – senior consultant at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development, Irina ORIOL – representative of the ICT Association, Ion MOCANU – representative of the Future Technologies Project in Moldova, funded by USAID, and Vitalie GLADÎŞ – representative of Fablab Chișinău.
Energy Hackathon is organized within the FabLab Chișinău Engineering Center, in partnership with the Faculty of Power and Electrical Engineering within the Technical University of Moldova, supported by Tekwill and Future Technologies Activity from Moldova, funded by USAID-Moldova and the Embassy of Sweden in Chișinău.
Congratulations to all participants and thank you to the sponsors and organizers! We wish you lots of energy and light in future projects!
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