Below is a collection of my one-off projects and future plans. These projects encompass a lot of my personal interests with varying complexity. Enjoy.
DIY STM
In March, me and a team of 4 other classmates began working on the design of our own Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM) using piezoelectric plates for fine adjustment and several mechanical and material vibration damping systems to suspend the sample for accurate data. The STM’s working principle is based of the quantum effect of electron tunneling. By producing a fine enough tip and precise movement, a tunneling voltage can be observed and plotted. The final plan is to eventually sell this one-off model to a local laboratory.
The above image is showing the scanning tip made from oxidizing a 0.5mm Tungsten wire used as an Anode at 6V in 5M HCl. The equation is shown below along with the final operation.
Lenz’s Law Hyperloop ‘Drone’
This was a Grade 11 design project which used Lenz’s law via roatiting ferromagnetic plates on a conducting plate such as aluminum to create a net repulsive effect; essentially an upside-down drone.
In combination with the Halbach array to strengthen the magnetic field on one side, and measuring the masses and magnetic pull of each magnet with a magnetometer I balanced each plate such that there was as even of a distribution of mass and magnetic force as possible. In the end the major flaw was vibration at RPM’s above 1000 which was the hovering threshold, even with the addition of a flight control board.
This convinced me the main issue was weight distribution; for the reason of it only being a proof of concept, the project paused prematurely and I never quite came back to improve it. However, in the future I’d definitely like to see how this work better and test its performance now that I have much improved design skills.
The first image shown below also uses induces an megnetomotive force but longitudinally rather, for that much needed propulsion to get from point A to B. This way, there is no need for a conventional onboard propulsion system. By incorporating a voltage control unit and vectoring gyros on the spinning plates, I can control the speed of the “train'“. Further, I could vacuum the tube, and put magnets on the sides of the spinning discs and border the rails as in the third image above to provide a magnetic cushion in the horizontal direction. This, along with a swept body covering all the components would immensely improve efficiency.
This, is my ultimate solution for a real-life hyperloop; no friction and mainly rail-powered propulsion. Additionally, to lower costs the copper coil can be hollowed tubes of aluminum, with water circulating through for cooling. I plan to have full 3D models of the first prototype within the next few months.
RC Boats
Ever since I started modelling, I used Rhino and decided to use its excellent surfece modelling features to make what it was originally designed for; boat hulls. Although I have modelled several monohull, catamatan, and even trimaran designs. The two below are the only ones I actually made.
