News Reporter
Cars of the future, new emergency generators, off-roading wheel chairs, plants that shape history, creative movements and much more. The fourth annual Student Showcase invites the community to view the creations and research projects of students from CMU and WCCC on April 26. This event will highlight students’ hard work and talents in their fields of studies, from mechanical technology to theatre art performances.
For the last couple of months, students such as the ones in WCCC’s Mechanical Technology class have been creating projects to present at the showcase. John Loibl, William Pogany and Taylor Stratton have created a compressed natural gas (CNG) powered vehicle.
“Some look at the tank and think of a bomb on four wheels,” advisor Bill McCracken said. “Really, the tank is made out of three-inch steel. You can’t shoot it with a rifle. It is much safer than a gas tank.”
CNG, though less efficient than gasoline, is cheaper and forty-five percent cleaner than what our cars run off now. CNG is also in more abundant supplies than the typical gasoline. Loibl, Pogany and Stratton took this alternative energy and converted a car to run off it. From the 3,600 psi CNG tank in the trunk of the car to a computer monitoring the engine’s efficiency, the team creatively put it all together to create the car we may all be driving in the future.
The intention of the showcase and projects is to make students of different majors and disciplines learn to work with each other and recognize the importance of different talents in teams.
“What we have discovered about technology students is that (they) do great with technical skills, but bad with teams,” Mechanical Technology teacher John Sluder said. “This class is designed to have an integrated set of disciplines.”
In the same class, another team has developed a similar idea to create a CNG operated generator to present at the showcase. The generator operates on three different fuels: gasoline, propane, and CNG. The concept is so that in an emergency event, responders will have a non-electric and more reliable generator to help with disaster relief and recoveries.
“In emergencies, electricity goes out, and you can turn on the generator,” team member Karen VanHoy said. “CNG stores much more than gas. In gas companies, they bring up diesel for their generators. Why not use what you are drilling? That’s what we are trying to present.”
VanHoy is teamed up with Adam Dahl, Max Spangler and Anthony Vanden-Plas, all of whom have different concentrations in mechanical technology.
Though they have fun, their work is still an important matter. The CNG-powered car project received a $10,000 donation from Encana Corporation and a 50 percent discount on the CNG tank. Many of the students will take their projects after the showcase to earn scholarships and to present to companies that will hire them when they graduate. The same goes for other students presenting in the showcase who will be presenting projects of their various talents and disciplines.
The Student Showcase was developed four years ago by Vice President of Academic Affairs Carol Futhey. She saw all the talents and abilities of the students on campus and thought to present them to the community. Since then, the event has grown to almost 500 presentations and over 450 participating students.
“I want to see what students do in other disciplines,” said Futhey.
To check out the CNG Car, generator and other projects, the Student Showcase will be around campus on the April 26 for students and community members to view.
ebloom@mavs.coloradomesa.edu
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