2023 STANSW Young Scientist Awards Presentation Ceremony
Scientific Investigations Physics 9-10
Jasmine Civardi , PLC Sydney , SPS ( Spinach Powered Solar ); An Alternative Sustainable DSSC Solar Panel for an Agrivoltaic Application
Transition to renewable energy is an ongoing issue . Jasmine tested various natural and synthetic dyes in dye-sensitised solar cells and found that spinach produced the highest voltage . For subsequent tests , she constructed a panel from a set of spinach-dyed cells . Her results showed that more electricity is produced if the panel is moved so that it is always perpendicular to the sun ’ s rays .
Aidan Pawson , Smiths Hill High School , Quantifying Temporal Variations in Light Pollution through Night-time DSLR Photometry of Stellar Magnitudes
Light pollution is an increasing problem for astronomers and astrophotographers , as well as animals that are affected by light levels at night . Aidan used a DSLR camera to make measurements of the amount of light pollution over the course of the night . He found that light pollution decreases , with a sharp decrease in the evening , with a slower decrease over the remainder of the night .
Lily Rofail , PLC Sydney , Tower Power ! Can the motion of a wave induced by building sway generate electricity using electromagnetic induction ?
Tuned Liquid Dampers are used in buildings to reduce building sway due to wind and earthquakes . Lily wanted to explore whether the waves produced in the liquid could be used to generate electricity . Using a shake table and a water tank , she modelled the process and found that electricity was produced by a modified wave surge converter , particularly at the natural frequency and with higher amplitudes of motion .
- 24 -