Month: February 2020

Capstone Methodology

Equipment to be Utilized:

  • Compound Microscope with camera setup & Slides
  • P&G Water Purification Packets
  • Sawyer Mini Water Filter System
  • MSR Miniworks EX Microfilter System
  • Beakers, Pipets, and other experiment materials
  • 1 A gallon of distilled water.

 

A sample of water from a natural source will be obtained using a five-gallon bucket. This will serve as the base sample that all tests will be derived from. From this base sample, five microscope slides will be prepared. After stirring the base sample before each slide to equally distribute any contaminants, a pipet will draw a small amount of the sample to prepare a slide. Each slide will be observed under the microscope and contaminants will be counted. The average of these slides will be used to extrapolate the concentration of contamination of the base water sample.

After stirring the base container, a sample of water roughly one liter will be drawn from the base sample into a sterilized container. This will be repeated three additional times to obtain a total of four one-liter samples. Each sample will be labeled with the method of filtration it will undergo. Prior to filtration, the one-liter samples will be shaken to ensure that any contaminants are evenly distributed. The two physical filter systems (excluding the powder treatment which has a different procedure) will be flushed with distilled water prior to filtering the samples. The powder treatment will be repeated twice, one sample will be filtered with a paper coffee filter as it is transferred to the sterile bottle, the other sample will remove the purified water by pouring it into the sterile bottle carefully so as not to pour any coagulated solid contaminants into the sterile bottle. Each one-liter sample will be treated or filtered according to each manufacturer’s instructions. The filtered water will be filtered directly into a sterilized one-liter bottle or the clean water will be decanted into the sterile bottle in the case of the powder treatment as described previously.

Each one-liter sample will be shaken, and a pipet will be used to create a microscope slide. The slide will be observed under a compound microscope and visible contaminants will be counted. A photo of each microscope slide will be captured. This will be repeated a total of 5 times for each one-liter sample. The average value will be obtained for all 5 trials. The results will be compared to determine how effective each treatment is at purifying the water sample. Data and images will be compiled into an excel sheet and graphically analyzed.

My Hobby in Photography

For as long as I can remember, I have been in love with nature and its beauty. To me the art of photography is a great way to attempt to capture that beauty at a particular instant. To freeze it in time, and create awe-inspiring views. I’m just an amateur, I don’t have any fancy ultra-high resolution camera rigs. It’s just me and my iPhone. I did acquire a camera drone to get some arial views of my grandparents woodland cabin as a surprise gift for their 50th wedding anniversary. Presenting the printed photos to them is a memory that I particularly treasure.

I don’t go on photoshoots, or plan my photos. What I do is observe. As I walk around campus, I don’t wear headphones or walk with my face staring at a screen. I observe the beauty of our campus, and sometimes some picturesque moments arise. Photography is something serene, to freeze a moment in time is incredible. It is enjoyable to look at these images and think: “I took that.” One of my favorite shots of campus I’ve taken so far is the header image above, it was August, before classes started. I was walking around trying to learn my way, and I stumbled on this amazing shot of the lights of Pomerene Hall reflecting of the newly revitalized Mirror Lake, surrounded by an illuminated summer-evening sky.

Of the other photos I’ve taken, here are some of my favorites:

Grasses against the summer sky. Barcelona, Spain

Family & friends kayaking on a July afternoon.

CBEC’s vibrant reflection after a rainy day.

Sunlight peaks through the clouds on a Northern Michigan summer day.

Planning For the Capstone

Research will be conducted to determine the effectiveness of three categories of small-scale water filters. Three water treatment systems were chosen based on their complexity and price-range. A powdered water purifier, which requires no device to purify water and is the cheapest of the three systems to be tested. A mid-range small filter device will be tested retailing around $30. And an expensive premium filter will be tested that retails for around $90. The treatment powder and mid-range filter have yet to be acquired and will need to be before the start of testing.

For testing the samples, a compound microscope will be utilized to take before and after images. This microscope and related equipment will need to be acquired before the start of testing. A full procedure for acquiring, testing, filtering, and analyzing samples will need to be researched and will be described in detail in the methodology section. A basic plan of procedure is as follows: a large water sample (a minimum of a few gallons) will be collected from a natural source. (pond, river, etc.) This untreated sample will be stirred and analyzed via a microscope. This data will be extrapolated to estimate the number of contaminants in the water before treatment. This will be repeated, and an average value will be obtained.

After stirring the raw water sample, a 1-liter sample will be treated by each system in accordance with its manufacturer’s specifications. The samples will be analyzed via a compound microscope and any contaminants will be counted. This will be repeated at least 5 times per 1 L sample so an average value of contaminants can be obtained for each sample. Before and after photos will be captured of the untreated water and the 5 test samples from the treated water for each system. This will allow a visual comparison as well as a numerical statistic.