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A Submerged Buoy to Extend Data Collection Period in Lake Erie

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Conference

2022 ASEE - North Central Section Conference

Location

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Publication Date

March 18, 2022

Start Date

March 18, 2022

End Date

April 4, 2022

Page Count

2

DOI

10.18260/1-2--39227

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/39227

Download Count

288

Paper Authors

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Sydney Tate Hanratty Gannon University

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Kaylee Hatfield Gannon University

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Nikoly Dos Santos Gannon University

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Molly Elizabeth Burke

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SEECS, Scholars of Excellence in Engineering and Computer Science, is a scholarship group funded by the National Science Foundation. We consist of 8 sophomore students with various engineering and computer science majors. This program helps us to develop our engineering skills and prepare for a professional work environment.

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Lydia Nemeth Gannon University

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I am a current electrical engineer and am rather involved in Gannon's theatre.

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Morgan Louise Schreck SEECS

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Biomedical Engineering Student at Gannon University

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Jacob Dominic Rudy SEECS

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Current Software Engineering Junior at Gannon University

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Daniel Noah Hughes

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Abstract

As harmful algae levels continue to rise in Lake Erie, people and wildlife are at risk. To prevent the water from becoming too dangerous, the Scholars of Excellence in Engineering and Computer Sciences (SEECS) program at Gannon University has collaborated with the Regional Science Consortium to engineer a submerged device that extends the data collection timeline and stores water quality data of Lake Erie. The SEECS program was established in 2008 at Gannon University and is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarships in Sciences, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) program. This device records dissolved oxygen levels and water temperature at fixed intervals. Extending the collection timeline will reveal the conditions under which algae is produced and a solution for this problem could be created to save the lake. We have begun construction of the buoy using a 5-gallon bucket to store the electrical components. The electrical system consists of two batteries, a dissolved oxygen probe, a temperature sensor, an Arduino, and various electrical parts. The bucket contains a metal plate for the components to rest on, an acrylic sheet to separate the batteries from the components, layers of foam to fill gaps, and a metal rod through the bucket to be attached to the anchorage system. The testing has been completed to ensure that the bucket is waterproof and to discover the maximum weight that can be placed into the system. For the anchorage system, chains will be used to connect to a concrete block within the lake.

Hanratty, S. T., & Hatfield, K., & Dos Santos, N., & Burke, M. E., & Nemeth, L., & Schreck, M. L., & Rudy, J. D., & Hughes, D. N. (2022, March), A Submerged Buoy to Extend Data Collection Period in Lake Erie Paper presented at 2022 ASEE - North Central Section Conference, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 10.18260/1-2--39227

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