ENGR-4381/2
Fall 12/Spr 13
PROJECT CHARTER
Project Name: Off-Grid Fridge
Team Members: Hunter Banister, Sean Fronczak, Ruth Hahn, Maria Moreno and Katie
Price
Project Advisor: Alex Bernardo
Project Sponsor: Department of Engineering Science
Other Stakeholders: N/A
Stakeholder Responsibilities: N/A
Problem Description:
As lowering our carbon footprint becomes more of an issue the idea of self
sustaining homes is becoming increasingly popular. One major hindrance to this is the
amount of energy that everyday appliances use. These appliances consume too much
power for most homes to successfully stay off the grid. One of the major consumers of
energy in the average home is refrigeration.
The Department of Energy states that refrigerators accounted for about 8 percent of
the U.S. total household energy consumption in 2007
(http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/howmuch.html). Although air conditioning uses a
higher percentage of energy consumption, refrigerators still account for a large amount
of the household energy consumption. Indeed, according to the Appliance Standards
Awareness Project (ASAP), the average household refrigerator in 2010 used over 500
kW*hr/yr, costing around $550/year (http://www.appliancestandards.org/sites/default/files/Refrigerator%20Graph_July_2011.PDF). In order to
make self sustaining homes a reality, appliances like refrigerators should be redesigned
for maximum efficiency.
The proposed senior design project is to address the issue of the high amount of
electricity that refrigerators required.
Applicable Constraints:
1. Economic: The design, building and testing of the prototype will be under the
$1200 budget.
ENGR-4381/2
Fall 12/Spr 13
2. Environmental: An environmentally friendly coolant will be used.
3. Sustainability: All parts added to the original prototype will be replaceable.
4. Health and Safety: Any addition or alteration to the refrigerator will not affect the
food contained inside or the ability of the fridge to preserve said food in any way.
The chosen design will not pose a safety hazard, especially in regards to tipping,
sharp edges and fire hazards, to the user. Any additional materials used in the
creation of the prototype will be non-toxic, i.e. the coolant, evaporator coils, etc..
5. Manufacturability: Any parts used in the alteration of or addition to the prototype
can be mass produced.
Project Objectives (SMART):
1. The final prototype must cost no more than $1,000. This cost includes the initial
refrigerator price plus the prices of any additional parts.
2. Before converting the purchased chest freezer into a refrigerator, steps will be
taken to improve its energy consumption while functioning as a freezer.
Compared to the original purchased chest freezer, the prototype as a freezer will
consume 90% of the energy of the original chest freezer.
3. After these initial changes have been made, the modified chest freezer will be
converted into a refrigerator and further modifications will be made to lessen its
energy consumption. Compared to the Federal Standard for a refrigerator of
similar size, the final prototype will consume 25% of the energy per unit volume.
4. The prototypes outer volume will not exceed 1.25 of the original outer volume of
the chest freezer.
5. The prototype’s inner volume will not be less than 90% of the original inner
volume of the chest freezer.
Deliverables:
9/6/12
Project Charter
9/20/12
Problem Description Presentations
10/9/12
Decision Table Voiceover PowerPoint
ENGR-4381/2
Fall 12/Spr 13
10/23/12
Decision Table Follow-up Memo
11/20/12
Design Report
11/27/12
Design Review Presentation
12/4/12
Project Plan
12/4/12
Fall Executive Summaries
1/29/13
Project Poster
2/5/13
Project Plan (Revised)
2/19/13
P/POC Presentation
4/18/13
Final Project Presentations
4/30/13
Final Project Report
4/30/13
Spring Executive Summaries
Project Completion Date: 5pm 4/30/2012
Budget: $1200 (ENGR Dept)
Assumptions: This project has a target market of Off-Grid Homes.
Signatures:
We agree to the objectives and metrics above. We understand that changes to the above
must be agreed to in writing.
Students:
We agree that this is a viable project. We authorize the beginning of the design process.
Advisor:
Sponsor:
Administrator:
ENGR-4381/2
Fall 12/Spr 13
Document Change Control
The following is the document control for the revisions to this document.
Version Number
Date of Issue
Brief Description of Change
V1.0
Sept 15, 2009
Approved Version