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Calorie Killer
The Background
Spurred on by chilly winter temperatures, the Science class was motivated to explore heating their demountable classroom without the use of fossil fuels. After an extensive brainstorming session, the students identified the generation of greenhouse gases and the incidence of obesity as significant problems facing Australia. They developed an all-encompassing solution in the form of a pedal powered classroom heater. The “Calorie Killer” project aimed to reduce the unnecessary generation of greenhouse gases and to recover the energy wasted from exercise equipment while heating up their science classroom.
The Project
Using a bicycle frame attached to an old air blower the ‘Calorie Killer’ pumps cold air through a solar collector in the playground into the classroom. As a starting point students researched solar collectors. Black plastic and poly pipe were collected and patched together to create the solar unit, while metal workers connected a bicycle to the constructed solar unit. After extensive testing and trialling over a period of time, the students
made many modifications to the design. During the trials, the Calorie Killer recorded temperature increases of up to 14 degrees centigrade in the room. The class continues to discuss enhancing the energy efficiency of the project, as a potential entry in the Sustainable Living Challenge in future years.
The Journey
- The group of students learned to work together as a team; from the generation of ideas to the demonstration of the Calorie Killer at the 2004 Sustainable Living Expo.
- The students integrated their learning skills by approaching and collaborating with teachers from the science, maths, and technology areas.
- Students creatively maximized their resources by using local and readily available materials.
One of the main challenges of the project became its most valuable asset: the formation of project ownership among the students. Furthermore, the Calorie Killer revealed the interdisciplinary nature of solutions to social and environmental issues.
