ETHOS Technical Reports

Document Type

Report

Publication Date

9-6-2019

Abstract

This past summer, Victoria travelled to Bangalore, India to work with SELCO Foundation on a couple different projects. Bangalore is the capital to the southern state of Karnataka in India and holds the name of the technology hub of India. India has a wide variety of cultures, religions, and languages that vary state to state. Bangalore is fairly western in their ideals while still holding on to the rich culture India preserves. SELCO is a non-governmental organization (NGO), focusing on solar applications to better the lives of various communities in India. They strive to make an impact in developing section through sustainable energy innovations. These technologies are made possible for these communities through installment-based payment plans. SELCO partners with donors as well as reduces risk of bankers and increasing access to loans to help make these technologies more accessible to these communities. Through her time at SELCO, Victoria focused on two main projects. The first of these projects was solar powered elephant repellents, which use sensored sound and light patterns to safely scare away elephants from farms and villages. For this project, Victoria performed extensive comparative research on current product partnerships with SELCO, and other possible modes of repellent. The second project she worked on was solar powered screen printing, where she helped design a screen printing box to mimic a dark room in hopes of making the exposure process more energy and time efficient. She performed research regarding various materials to line the interior of the box with to maximize reflectivity as well as ran small scale energy audits on various light bulbs to cut down both time and energy use. She created a testing plan, and she did not get to see testing fully complete, she managed to reduce exposure time from seven minutes to three minutes, and energy usage from seventy-two watts to thirty watts. The project was considered successful, and Victoria awaits the finished test data results.


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