Asee peer logo

TurboFlow: Integrated Engineering Design through an Energy Efficient Building Competition

Download Paper |

Conference

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

San Antonio, Texas

Publication Date

June 10, 2012

Start Date

June 10, 2012

End Date

June 13, 2012

ISSN

2153-5965

Conference Session

Active and Project-based Learning

Tagged Division

Mechanical Engineering

Page Count

10

Page Numbers

25.1380.1 - 25.1380.10

DOI

10.18260/1-2--22137

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/22137

Download Count

395

Request a correction

Paper Authors

biography

Tony Lee Kerzmann Robert Morris University Orcid 16x16 orcid.org/0000-0002-9445-3814

visit author page

Tony Kerzmann received both a bachelor's of arts in physics from Duquesne University and a bachelor's of science in mechanical engineering from the University of Pittsburgh in 2004. After graduating, Kerzmann enrolled in graduate school at the University of Pittsburgh, where he graduated with a master's of science and a doctorate of philosophy in mechanical engineering in 2007 and 2010, respectively. Kerzmann is currently an Assistant Professor at Robert Morris University, where he teaches mechanical engineering courses, as well as courses on alternative energy. His research interests include hybrid concentrating photovoltaic systems, energy system life cycle assessment, renewable energy product development, and active learning.

visit author page

biography

Eugene Joseph Werner Jr. GAI Consultants, Inc.

visit author page

Eugene Joseph Werner, Jr., is a recent graduate of Robert Morris University, May 2011. He is currently working for GAI Consultants in the Mechanical/Electrical Department and is a member of ASME.

visit author page

Download Paper |

Abstract

TurboFlow - Integrated Engineering Design Through an Energy Efficient Building CompetitionAbstractStudents learn best when there is interest in the topic and what better way to induceinterest than to couple classroom theory with real-world application in the form of acompetition. Senior engineering students at Robert Morris University established adesign team to compete in the annual Energy Efficient Building Technologies Challengewhich is sponsored by the Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation. The students werenot only excited to be a part of a design competition that rewarded a cash prize, but therewas a remarkable level of enthusiasm associated with the sustainability aspect of thedesign project.The Energy Efficient Building Technologies Challenge was held over the Fall and Springsemesters of the 2010-2011 school year. During the fall semester the design teamdeveloped an idea for the competition and submitted a proposal. After being acceptedinto Stage 2 of the competition, the students designed, analyzed and fabricated the“TurboFlow” generation device for their Integrated Engineering and Design course. Thisprototype was demonstrated for the competition and the design team won first place, witha $5000 cash prize. Because of the competition, the design team went above and beyondthe classroom expectations to design, analyze, fabricate and demonstrate a device withconsiderable market potential. The students not only analyzed the TurboFlow from anengineering standpoint, but from economic and sustainability standpoints as well. Thefamous saying, “Competition Breeds Excellence,” could not be more true for this groupof students.

Kerzmann, T. L., & Werner, E. J. (2012, June), TurboFlow: Integrated Engineering Design through an Energy Efficient Building Competition Paper presented at 2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, San Antonio, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--22137

ASEE holds the copyright on this document. It may be read by the public free of charge. Authors may archive their work on personal websites or in institutional repositories with the following citation: © 2012 American Society for Engineering Education. Other scholars may excerpt or quote from these materials with the same citation. When excerpting or quoting from Conference Proceedings, authors should, in addition to noting the ASEE copyright, list all the original authors and their institutions and name the host city of the conference. - Last updated April 1, 2015