Students Infuse Wind Blades at Custom Composites

May 7, 2012
From Career & Technical Education
On the afternoon of April 4, 2012, 16 students from the Bath Regional Career & Technical Center’s Intro to Engineering class worked with Steve Hassett, owner of Custom Composites and Bob Turcotte, owner of Turcotte Yacht Design to infuse their wind blades.

The Maine Wind Blade Challenge is an event that brings science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education into the hands of high school students. The event is a collaborative effort where educators, industry, and students come together to enjoy a day of friendly competition. The Wind Blade Challenge is an educational event that is free for students to participate, made possible by sponsors and endorsed by educators.

Two teams of students, from BRCTC, will participate in the 4th Annual Wind Blade Challenge at the University of Maine, Orono on Friday, April 27, 2012. The teams are charged with designing and fabricating a wind blade assembly that will generate the most energy over a given time period (3 minutes or less). The wind blade assembly is to consist of a set of blades attached to a center hub. The wind blades are to be made using only materials provided (three 18”x3”x6” polyisocyanurate foam blocks, fiberglass cloth and polyester or vinyl ester resin) and fabricated using the Vacuum Infusion Process (VIP). The hub may be made of any material as long as it meets the design requirements outlined in the Design Guidelines and Rules. For more information: mainewindbladechallenge.com

While the two teams are participating in the Wind Blade Challenge two other teams from the same BRCTC class will be competing in the DeepCwind Consortium’s Windstorm Challenge, also being held at Orono on Friday, April 27, 2012.

The DeepCwind Consortium’s Windstorm challenge is a comprehensive high school invention competition focusing on deepwater offshore wind technology. Developed in partnership with the University of Maine and the Advanced Structures and Composites Center, the Windstorm Challenge tasks teams to design and construct a floating platform for a scale model wind turbine, then create a thorough business plan and sales pitch. The winning team members who attend the University of Maine receive a $20,000 paid internship at the Advanced Structures and Composites Center – a rare opportunity for first-year students to be part of one of the leading research institutions in the United States. For more information: windstormchallenge.com