Solar Powered Speed

by Brian S. Leibowitz

	What pulls 800 amps, hydroplanes, and is made of Styrofoam and fiberglass? Columbia University's second entry in the annual Solar Splash collegiate electric boat regatta! Once again Columbia Engineering students produced great results and drew high praise for their hand crafted solar/electric racing boat at Solar Splash '96, held on Lake Michigan this past June.
"Wet Willie" lickin' a fast one!
	The most remarkable improvement since the '95 boat was the completely rebuilt hull. Optimized for weight, the new hull was built out of excess insulating Styrofoam from the recent Law library construction and coated with a single layer of rigid fiberglass. Hull weight was reduced approximately 70% from the previous plywood and epoxy hull. In addition, the solar panels used were stripped of their aluminum mounting frames, the rudder was optimized to create a high performance foil, and two custom propellers were purchased for the boat.
The Solar Splash '96 Team in Milwaulkee: Left to right: Mr. Robert Stark, Binu Mammen Parayil '97, Manny Garcia '96, Greg Zimmerman '95, Michael Jenkins '95 (standing), Scott Dubler '98 (in boat)
	The net result of all of these optimizations was a 15-20% improvement in cruising speed (the fastest speed that can be maintained for two hours continuously) as well as a 10-15% improvement in top speed. On the day of the competition the boat averaged around 18 miles per hour in a 300 meter standing sprint, but the boat's designers claim that a peak performance of over 20 miles per hour is attainable. The Solar Splash competition consists of two main races: the sprint and the endurance race. The endurance race is a two hour long distance competition. Unfortunately, the Columbia team was hit with a flurry of technical difficulties just before the endurance race and was forced to enter over 45 minutes late, basically removing us from competition in that event. The sprint is a 300 meter standing start. In the sprint event, Columbia took fourth place out of 16 entries, a very respectable position. Our highest award in the competition was a second place finish for "Outstanding Technical Paper". The Mechanical Engineering department is already gearing up for Solar Splash '97, so now is the perfect time to get involved! It is a rewarding experience for people of all talents. Whether it is mechanical design, electrical engineering, construction, project management, or just plain cutting and gluing, you can have a tremendous impact on our continued success. It can be a great way to increase the quality of your education at Columbia, as well as to bolster the reputation of the Engineering school. Those who are interested should contact Mr. Robert Stark in the Mechanical Engineering department at extension x4-4465 or go down to 294 Engineering Terrace to talk to him in person.
	Columbia in Solar Splash '95