Joseph Hummer
Biosystems Engineer
Qualified for a position in
Civil Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Biological Engineering
Process Engineering
Environmental Engineering
Electrical/Computer Engineering
Willing to
Relocate
Travel on the job
Pursue additional training
Senior Project
The Senior Design project is a semester long analysis of a given issue and several possible solutions. This involves the consideration of safety, sustainability, and economic feasibility. Three separate presentations and reports are submitted throughout the semester with other updates given periodically.
After considering the needs for sustainability initiatives around campus, my two groupmates and I decided to address the need to utilize campus food waste by designing scaled up models of existing Black Soldier Fly digesters on campus.
Overview
The Black Soldier Fly digester concepts used in this project are the same as is outlined in my undergraduate research. The new design is simply scaled up to create a much more significant reduction in food waste (which was chosen to be 1 ton per week). In order to determine the economic feasibility of this project, accurate data on the four revenue streams (landfill avoidance revenue and sales from protein, oil, and compost) had to be obtained. This required an in-depth understanding of Black Soldier Fly growth, feeding rates, and conversion rates.
Timeline
Proposal
The proposal presentation and report consisted of project selection and a thorough definition of the problem and design goals.
Midterm
The midterm report and presentation focused more on research of Black Soldier Fly digesters. This included finding data on metabolism, heat generation, growth factors, chemical analysis, and existing models.
Final
The final report included everything from the complete assessment of campus food waste issues to the final physical design and Return On Investment calculations. We were able to estimate a minimum ROI of 2.5 years with daily profits of $1-$2. This profit margin may not seem overwhelming but considering the creation of a part time position, possibility for continued research, and promotion of a sustainable technology, we decided to recommend the implementation of this project to campus facilities.
Memos
Throughout the project, memos were submitted every three weeks for the professional development class taken in parallel to the Senior Design class. Memos were submitted as a way of mirroring common practices of updating superiors of project progress, requiring proper formatting and succinct language.
Poster
I had the opportunity to attend the National Biodiesel Conference again not long after the project was complete. I chose to present on the economic evaluation of the scaled up BSF digester. This poster outlines similar conclusions as the final report for the project, but it also apporaches it from the perspective of the biodiesel industry.