Photos
Frisian Solar Challenge 2008 - 423 photos
The team put up a great fight at the 2008 race. Naturally we were a bit disappointed with the ultimate result but we showed that there was great potential to work with and we look forward to challenging the best in 2010!
Beale Park Thames Boat Show 2008 - 206 photos
Once again the team displayed at the Beale Park Boat Show near Reading. It was a useful chance to check that the electrical systems were all working prior to the race! We'd like to thank TELCO for once again letting us display on their stand.
Outdoor Land Testing - 13 photos
The Solar Spirit Team also took our boat unto the Queen's Lawn in Imperial College to test our electronic systems together with the solar panels for the first time. A bright and sunny day provided ideal test conditions for us as the team also took some time out to get some good sun-tanning done!
Indoor Aquatic Testing - 51 photos
The Solar Spirit Team recently took our boat down to the water tanks based in the Civil Engineering Department to conduct some aquatic performance tests on her. It was the first time that the boat was tested with electronical and mechanical components fixed in. The boat has shown a lot of promise for the upcoming race and we are looking forward to it!
Bulkhead Manufacture - 31 photos
The bulkheads add strength to the hull, as well as providing attachment points for the various fixtures and fittings. The bulkheads were attached in using the same type of epoxy that was used in the layup of the hull.
Testing on the Thames - 29 photos
The team took the boat down to the Imperial College boathouse at Putney to do some drag testing. We'd like to thank the IC Rowing team for their assistance and provision of a launch for towing!
Beale Park Thames Boat Show 2007 - 87 photos
The team presented their boat at the Thames Boat Show near Reading. We had an excellent response, promoting the project, Imperial College and our sponsors. In addition we managed to get our boat (although in a fairly unfinished state) out on the lake. We'd like to thank the Thames Elecric Launch Company for giving us the opportunity to display on their stand.
Post Cure - 20 photos
The team had got permission to post cure the boat in the heating tunnels underneath the mechanical engineering department. This meant taking it in through level 0. The problem was that the lowest entrance was on level 1 and the stairs are too small. The solution - lift up the floor and drop it through!
Solarshuttle Trip - 14 photos
The team had a break from their work to have a trip on the Serpentine Solarshuttle, in London's Hyde Park - just a few yards from Imperial College. Here are a few photos of the trip on the 2kW, 14m long, 7.5 tonne solar powered catamaran.
SAMPE Visit - 10 photos
Solar Spirit were delighted to be invited to do a presentation at the SAMPE (Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering) AGM on May 17th. Here are a few photos taken during the day, during which we were able to have factory visits to GKN, SCS and Gurit, all based on the Isle of Wight. The trip involved 4 tube trains, 3 mainline trains, 2 bus journeys, 2 fast ferries, 3 car journeys, a chain ferry and plenty of walking!
Testing - 42 photos
Our first test of the boat hull - buoyancy and stability. We would like to use this opportunity to thank the Imperial College Civil Engineering Department for the use of one of their tanks for the day.
Test Preparations - 3 photos
Before testing, we needed to check for any major problems with what we were planning on doing. The apparatus shown here, although fairly crude, should enable us to confirm how much the boat tips when we apply weights to the edge (an important competition regulation).
Hull Finishing - 6 photos
Once we had finished the main layup of the boat we had to do some finishing. The edges had to be tidied up, the surface had to be washed to remove the sticky oxide layer that had formed and the boat had to be sanded (although we weren't able to get any pictures of this). In addition we put a thin strip of glass fibre tape around the top of the hull where the join was.
Inside layup - 19 photos
This is the last bit of work we'll be doing with the glass fibre. Basically it was exactly the same as the process on the outside, except this time we only did two plies.
Inside filling - 2 photos
Once we had the hull off the mould, the inside had to be tidied up and the cracks between the core material filled, as with the outside. Naturally this was a bit more difficult than the outside because of the restricted space!
Hull removal - 8 photos
One of the most exciting/worrying parts of the project was removing the hull from the mould. First we had to wedge pieces of wood under the edges to loosen the double sided tape holding on the core material. As it became free we had a team of people to lift the hull off and reveal the inner surface for us to work on.
External layup - 5 photos
The layup is done directly onto the core material. The rolls of glass fibre have to be carefully smoothed down onto the epoxy that has been put onto the surface below. The sheet is then covered with another layer of epoxy. This was done for 3 layers of glass on the outside. Once it's dried, the boat can be removed from the mould!
Filling core material - 8 photos
After cutting and sticking down the core material, it had to be filled to make it more rigid. This was done using the normal epoxy mixture, together with microballoons - a very light powdery substance - to give the mixture more volume without adding much weight.
Glass fibre cutting and rolling - 4 photos
The 3 external layers of glass fibre needed to be cut to the right size on a dry mould before we could begin applying the epoxy. They then had to be rolled up neatly and accurately to ensure they would unroll onto the mould well without creases or bubbles.
Core material cutting and attaching - 9 photos
The core material needed to be cut and stuck down to the mould - strongly enough to stop it popping up but not so strongly that it wouldn't come off again! This whole process took rather longer than we thought - we decided at 10pm that it was probably best to leave the filling for another day!
Lightglass layup - 12 photos
Our first experience with using glass fibre was a thin layer of 'lightglass' we put over the mould to seal it. These photos show the team cutting up the glass fibre beforehand and painting the mould with epoxy.
Miniature boat layup - 10 photos
We made a small boat to practise using composite materials. Initially you can see us cleaning up the mould (having been manufactured on a computer controlled machine it was quite dirty) before applying several layers of release agent to make sure the carbon fibre wouldn't stick to it. We could then apply the 3 layers of carbon fibre.
Group Photos - 5 photos
Here are some photos of the team taken around Imperial.
3D Renderings - 7 photos
Here you can see what we hope the boat will look like! These renderings were produced with Blender, using data from Michlet for the wake, which is the package we used to design and optimise the hull. Of course the final design could look a bit different!
Mould Manufacture - 51 photos
The team have been spending time manufacturing the mould for the hull. A thin layer of plywood was attached to ribs to make the boat shape. The mould was finished off by laying a layer of glass fibre over the top.
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