K-State to Compete in Solar Decathlon
Reprinted Courtesy of K-State Media Relations and Marketing
Students and
faculty from Kansas State University are teaming up with students and faculty
from the University of Kansas to build a house that runs entirely on solar
energy, all in hopes of winning the 2007 Solar Decathlon.
K-State’s R.
Todd Gabbard, assistant professor of architecture, and Ruth Douglas Miller,
associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, are leading students
from the College of Architecture, Planning and Design , the College of
Engineering and other disciplines like business and interior design to represent
K-State on the interdisciplinary, intercollegiate Project Solar House
team.
At KU, Mario Medina, an associate professor of civil, environmental
and architectural engineering, is leading a group of KU architecture and
architectural engineering students in incorporating his building material
research into the solar house project.
One of 20 teams chosen for the
third decathlon, the K-State/KU group will compete against such schools as the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cornell University and the Georgia
Institute of Technology, as well as international teams from Canada, Spain and
Germany.
The Solar Decathlon challenges each team to design and construct
a small demonstration house that runs entirely on solar energy. The homes, which
must be less than 800 square feet, will be taken to Washington, D.C., in fall
2007, where they will be judged on 10 criteria. The criteria include the
sufficiency of the house’s solar panels to power its systems; the house’s
ability to maintain comfortable interior conditions; and the appropriateness of
the home’s design.
Although the actual competition judging is more than a
year away, the highly technical project required students and faculty to start
on the project this year. The design and coordination phase will continue
through the 2006 calendar year. Construction will begin in spring
2007.
At K-State, students from the architecture and engineering
disciplines are working together to design and construct their solar home.
Students from other disciplines are helping to manage and promote the
project.
The student team includes undergraduate and graduate students,
most of whom will receive academic credit for their efforts. Graduate students
who contribute significantly may base their thesis work on designing particular
environmental systems like lighting or thermal comfort. K-State students
participating in Project Solar House include:
Luke Short, sophomore in
electrical engineering, Auburn; Wes Morgan, fifth-year student in architecture,
Colwich; Aaron Tabares, senior in architectural engineering, Emporia; Shannon
Timmons, senior in computer engineering, Fredonia; Aaron Ledesma and Curtis
Penrol, both fifth-year students in architecture and both of Garden
City.
From Greater Kansas City: Mohamed el-Housiny, junior in
architecture, Kansas City, Mo.; Austin Springer, fifth-year student in
architecture, Leawood; Allie O’Donnell, senior in interior architecture and
product design, Lenexa; Aimee Koop Smith, senior in architecture, Olathe; and
Catie Cosgrove, senior in interior design, and Evan Tinker, junior in mechanical
engineering, both of Overland Park,
Matthew Wineland, graduate student in
business administration, Hutchinson; Jeff Landreth, fifth-year student in
architectural engineering, LaCygne; Ashley Johnson, junior in architecture,
Lawrence.
From Manhattan: Dolores Blas, senior in interior design;
Jenilee Borth, senior in pre-professional business administration; Stephen
Chapes, senior in architectural engineering; Ryan Haugaard, senior in interior
design; John Iiams, fifth-year student in architecture; Breanne Sparrow, senior
in architecture; Alex Usherenko, senior in architecture; and Tara Zimmerman,
senior in interior design.
Patrick Shearer, senior in civil engineering,
Salina; and Eric Watson, senior in construction science and management,
Topeka.
From Colorado: Melody Honnen, fifth-year student in interior
architecture and product design, Aurora; and Jamie Hayes, junior in
architecture, Colorado Springs.
From Missouri: Jeremy Cordell, fifth-year
student in architecture, and Aaron Vanderpool, senior in architecture, both of
Blue Springs; Travina Saindon, senior in architecture, Florissant; Matt
McCaffrey, junior in architecture, Gladstone; Maggie Lock, senior in industrial
engineering, Hardin; David Grubb, fifth-year student in architecture, Imperial;
Mitch Cook, fifth-year student in architecture, Independence; Morgan Phillips,
fifth-year student in architecture, Jefferson City; Annette Rice, senior in
architecture, Joplin; Betsy Pribula, junior in architecture, Lee’s Summit;
Adrienne Stolwyck, senior in architecture, Liberty; Carrie Stiens, senior in
architecture, Maryville; Nic Lamphear, fifth-year student in architecture,
Ozark; Grant McGill, senior in architecture, Raymore; David Ducker, senior in
architecture, Emily Hagy, junior in architecture, and Kim Kolkovich, junior in
interior architecture and product design, all of St. Louis.
From
Nebraska: Stephen Warner, senior in architecture, Papillion.
More
information about the Solar Decathlon may be found at http://solarhouse.capd.ksu.edu/ or at http://www.solardecathlon.org/.
For more information, please
contact:
R. Todd Gabbard,
785.532.1129
Dr. Ruth Miller,
785.532.4596
Diane Potts, 785.532.1090