P3 Student Design Competition

2012/2013 P3 Grant Recipients

2012/2013 P3 Grant Recipients - Phase I: A National Student Design Competition for Sustainability Focusing on People, Prosperity, and the Planet

Institution	EPA Grant Number	Project Title	Project Description
California State Polytechnic University - Pomona	SU835339	Capturing CO₂ with MgO Aerogels	California State Polytechnic University students are developing a new technology to capture CO₂, a greenhouse gas contributing to climate change.
College of the Atlantic	SU835304	Novel Co-Culture Process for Pretreatment of Food Waste for Alcohol Fuel Synthesis and Methanogenesis	Food waste, the single-largest component of all waste in the United States, is not valued as a reusable resource.
Cornell University	SU835307	AguaClara Stacked Rapid Sand Filtration – A Robust Filtration Process For Sustainable Drinking Water Infrastructure	Suitable drinking water is a critical need world-wide, and fresh water is the limiting resource on the planet for the foreseeable future.
Cornell University	SU835323	Fiber Optic Hybrid Lighting	One of the characteristics that people look for in a green building is access to natural sunlight.
Cornell University	SU835341	Pyrolytic Cookstoves and Biochar Production in Kenya:	Today’s cooking methods in the developing world cause substantial greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation and diseases.
Dartmouth College	SU835298	Small-scale hydropower generation and distribution system for rural electrification	Dartmouth College students have designed a system that supplies power from a waterfall to rural Rwandan villages via a battery rental business.
East Central University	SU835300	Making a Solid State Organic Photovoltaic Cell More Efficient and Economically Beneficial	While solar power offers an attractive alternative to fossil fuels, the technology is expensive for people to use.
Embry - Riddle Aeronautical University	SU835301	Design and Test of a Solar Thermal Energy Storage and Delivery	Storing heat from the sun is useful for both developed and developing nations.
Georgia Southern University Research & Service Fdn.,Inc.	SU835302	Low Temperature Combustion with Reduced PM and NOx Emissions, Achieved by n-Butanol in-Port Injected in an Omnivorous Diesel Engine	Although fuel efficient, diesel engines continue to contribute air pollutants in urban areas.
James Madison University	SU835319	Producing Biochar on Small Farms to Enhance Soil Fertility and Provide Heat	The Chesapeake Bay watershed, which stretches from New York to southern Virginia, is threatened by nutrients running off farms into tributaries.
Johns Hopkins University	SU835318	Integration of Waste Treatment with Algal Cultivation for Sustainable Aquaculture Feed and Renewable Biofuel Production	A challenge to effective wastewater treatment is removal of excessive nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus.
Johns Hopkins University	SU835337	Sustainable Irrigation in Rural South Africa: Studying the Alcock Ram Pump System for Optimized Manufacture and Reproducibility	In rural communities in the developing world, women and children can spend hours each day hauling water for drinking and watering crops.
Loyola University of Chicago	SU835314	A Sustainable and Interdisciplinary Solution to Biodiesel Production Wastewater	Building on the success of the school’s 2008 P3 Biodiesel project, students at Loyola University of Chicago are designing a unique green process to treat byproducts of biodiesel production.
Lynn University	SU835309	From Grey Water to Drinking Water	Lynn University students are designing a home water treatment system by improving on a standard cistern.
Manhattan College	SU835310	A Solar-powered, Sustainable, Hybrid Electrodialysis/Reverse Osmosis Desalination System	The lack of clean drinking water is one of the most significant health issues in many countries around the world.
Michigan Technological University	SU835315	Design Guidance for Healthier Cooking Environments	There is a growing international effort to improve adoption of clean cookstoves in the developing world.
Michigan Technological University	SU835324	Treatment and Generation of Useful Products from Aluminum Extraction Waste Materials	The process for extracting "virgin" aluminum produces a highly toxic waste called "red mud".
Navajo Technical College	SU835335	Designing a Low Cost Solar Oven for Rural Native American Communities	Navajo Technical College students are designing a solar oven made with low cost, available materials for people living in rural areas.
Oregon State University	SU835328	A Web App for Enhancing Residential Green Infrastructure and Community-Based Environmental Management	How homeowners landscape their property has an environmental impact in their communities.
Pennsylvania State University	SU835374	Affordable Greenhouses: Improving Livelihoods while Fostering Food Security and Sustainability	In many parts of the world food security is a challenge. In East Africa, sixty percent of the people are malnourished, and in some regions people are victims of famine.
Purdue University	SU835327	Recycling of Liquid Crystal Displays for Maximum Resource Recovery	With the surge in popularity of Liquid Crystal Displays (LCD) used in TV’s and computers, recycling them is expensive and complicated resulting in many units shipped illegally to Asia and Africa.
Purdue University	SU835345	Community-Scale Water Treatment System for Application in Developing Countries	According to the World Health Organization, roughly 800 million people lack access to safe drinking water.
Radford University	SU835311	Synthetic Humic Acid Materials for Improved Water Purification	Radford University students are designing new coatings to help ordinary sand capture heavy metals, such as cadmium and lead, as well as arsenic and organic contaminants.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	SU835305	A Novel Microbial Fuel Cell Reactor Design for Drinking Water Treatment	Treating water and wastes can be an expensive challenge for small communities.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	SU835320	Sustainable Accommodations for Communities in Need: Providing Affordable, Sustainable and Portable Housing for Developing Nations	The 2010 earthquake in Haiti left more than one million people homeless, including thousands of orphans.
Rowan University	SU835355	Marine Electricity from High Altitude Wind	There are more than 10 million boat engines operated in the Unites States, and they are among the highest contributors of air pollutants that cause respiratory diseases in many areas of the country.
San Jose State University	SU835321	3D Printing Sustainable Building Components for Facades and as Window Elements	San Jose State University students are applying 3D printer technology to make sustainable building materials.
Southern Polytechnic Applied Research Corp	SU835299	Increasing Photovoltaic Panel Power Output by Having the Solar Cells Track the Sun	One challenge to widespread use of solar power is how to increase the energy collected by photovoltaic panels.
Stanford University	SU835313	Community-Level Water Disinfection Technology for Dhaka, Bangladesh Treatment	Diarrhea is a major cause of death of young children in developing countries. The microorganisms that cause the disease often enter water distribution systems through broken pipes.
University of California - Riverside	SU835346	Pasteurization Using a Lens and Solar Energy (PULSE) Method	University of California- Riverside students are designing a technology for solar disinfection that will rapidly pasteurize water in developing countries using a Fresnel lens and waste plastic bottles.
University of Florida	SU835326	Urine Source Separation and Treatment: Nutrient Recovery using Low-Cost Materials	Today farm fertilizer is made primarily from fossil fuels and mining minerals.
University of Illinois at Champaign	SU835340	Design and Implementation of a New Top-Lit UpDraft Stove (TChar) in Gressier, Haiti	Charcoal use, especially for cooking, is a major contributor to extensive deforestation in Haiti.
University of Kentucky Research Foundation	SU835303	Marine Developing a Novel Low Cost Biodiesel and Biochar Processor for Rural Cameroon	In rural parts of the developing world, electricity and fuel sources are often expensive and unreliable.
University of Massachusetts - Lowell	SU835342	‘Greener’ Surfactants from Bio-based Waste as Efficient Alternatives to Nonylphenol Ethoxylates	Surfactants are predominantly petroleum based compounds used in millions of everyday products such as household detergents, personal care products, and industrial cleaners.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	SU835351	A Decision-Making Support Tool for Water and Sanitation Projects in Low-Resource Settings	Despite significant global investments in Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WaSH) initiatives, 35 to 80 percent fail in low resource communities.
University of North Carolina at Charlotte	SU835322	Beyond Green: Bio-reactor Integrated Building Envelope (BIBE) in Urban Environment	University of North Carolina at Charlotte students are designing a building with exterior walls made of plexiglass enclosed tubes of algae.
University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez	SU835325	Evaluation of Chitosan and Chitosan - Ag Electrospun Membranes for Lead And Bacterial Removal From Potable Water of Puerto Rico	At least the 79% of the population of Puerto Rico has consumed drinking water that does not meet the quality standards established by the local and federal regulations.
University of Tennessee - Knoxville	SU835344	PSTAT: Promoting Sustainable Transportation Among Teens	In a recent survey, 18 to 35 year olds made up 23 percent of new car buyers.
University of Toledo	SU835297	Design a clean energy generation system via biophotofuel cell approach	University of Toledo and California State Polytech University students are developing a more efficient fuel cell that applies nanotechnology to generate energy and hydrogen from wastewater and sunlight as it cleans the water.
University of Utah	SU835308	Treatment and Recycle of Olive Mill Waste at Rural Olive Mills in the West Bank	Food production around the world often generates highly toxic waste products. This is a particular problem for small operations such as olive oil mills in the Mediterranean region.
University of Utah	SU835316	Optimizing the Use of Biofuels in Cook Stoves for Improved Indoor Air Quality and Forest Sustainability in Rural Nepal	Today rural Nepali communities use open fires for cooking and heating their homes.
University of Washington	SU835312	SQWater: Atmospheric Water Resources in the Slums of Lima, Peru	In Lima, Peru more than a third of the city’s 9 million occupants live in slums, many without reliable access to clean water.
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee	SU835306	Development of Photo-Bioelectrochemical Systems for Wastewater Treatment and Bioenergy Production	Recent technology innovations have used microbes in a fuel cell to produce energy or algae in a bioreactor to treat wastewater.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	SU835317	Design and Prototype of a Sustainable Egg-Washer	With the rise of pastured egg production, there is a critical need for egg washers work for small-scale farm operations.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	SU835352	Vision-based Monitoring and Control of Construction Operations Carbon Footprint	The construction industry is a large contributor of greenhouse gas emissions, and will be subject to new EPA air regulations.

2012/2013 P3 Grant Recipients - Phase II: A National Student Design Competition for Sustainability Focusing on People, Prosperity, and the Planet

Institution	EPA Grant Number	Project Title	Project Description
Vanderbilt University	SU835287	Don't Eat Your Spinach: Nature Inspired Biohybrid Solar Cells	Students from Vanderbilt University are developing bio-hybrid solar panels where the active components are nanoscale solar cells for improved solar conversion efficiency.
Gonzaga University	SU835295	Integrating Improved Sustainable Technologies into the Heart of the Home-the Kitchen	Students from Gonzaga University are developing, testing, and improving technologies to improve indoor air quality and ceramic water filtration systems in homes for developing nations.
Santa Clara University	SU835288	Passive Regenerative Fuel Cell for Energy Storage in Off-Grid Locations	Students from Santa Clara University are optimizing and scaling-up power production of their Passive Unitized Regenerative Fuel Cell (PUReFC) to provide a supply of clean, reliable energy storage to those in off-grid locations.
University of Oklahoma Norman Campus	SU835289	Comparing the Sustainability of a Compressed Earth Block House to a Conventionally Framed House	Students from the University of Oklahoma-Norman are constructing a compressed earth block (CEB) house and comparing it for sustainability and energy efficiency to a conventionally constructed house.
Embry - Riddle Aeronautical University	SU835290	Portable Solar Water Purification System for Public Use during Disaster Recovery	Students from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University are improving on the P3 Phase I design of a prototype solar powered water purification backpack for use in post disaster response by reducing its weight and cost and increasing its efficiency.
Princeton University	SU835364	Power in a Box: Bringing Sustainable Energy to Recovering and Off-Grid Communities	Students from Princeton University are developing a novel technology, “Power in a Box,” for portable sustainable power generation on the scale of 1kW that is reliable, cost-effective, and easily deployable.
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus	SU835291	Community based biodiesel production from trap grease	Students from the University of Cincinnati are developing and evaluating technologies that successfully convert trap grease into biodiesel to reduce waste and generate fuel.
Texas State University - San Marcos	SU835292	Extracting lignocellulose and synthesizing silica nanoparticles from rice husks	Students from the Texas State University-San Marcos are developing the technology to extract lignocellulose from rice husk (RH) biomass to form gas hydrates (methane, hydrogen) for use as a biofuel.
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry	SU835331	Sustainably Overcoming Hindrance to Struvite Recovery from Anaerobically Digested Dairy Manure	Students from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry are optimizing the process developed in Phase I to recover struvite for fertilizer use from digested dairy manure and sludge and operate a pilot system at a nearby farm for proof of concept.
Appalachian State University	SU835330	An On-Site Biological Greywater Treatment System Suitable for Small Business	Students from Appalachian State University are designing and implementing a plant-based biological filter for graywater remediation and reuse in a small business.
Butte College	SU835294	Rice Hulls as Alternative Building Material	Students from Butte-Glenn Community College are developing an environmentally acceptable method for disposal of rice hulls which are left behind in huge quantities after harvesting and processing.
University of California - Riverside	SU835329	Heating Attic Air for Space Heating and Dryer Applications Using Solar Thermal Energy	Students from University of California-Riverside are designing an energy efficient heating unit for space heating needs that combines air in home attics and solar energy to heat ambient air.
Oregon State University	SU835348	Developing Sustainable Alternatives to Plastic Mulch	Students from Oregon State University are developing and testing a sustainable mulch prototype made from flax and conducting an analysis of the cost of different mulches throughout their lifecycles.
Southern Illinois University - Carbondale	SU835349	The Production of High Grade Minerals and Cement-less Green Concrete	Students from Southern Illinois University- Carbondale are developing low cost processes to extract metal oxides (like Iron oxides and Aluminum oxides) from fly ash and bottom ash for re-use, as well as developing a method for producing cement-less geopolymer-based concrete using fly ash and bottom ash.