ECO-Airport

Event Year: 2024
Event Location: Cocoa-FL
Competition: Energy Inspired Art
School: Sally Ride Elementary
Team Name: Space X
Project Name: Alligator Central Airport
Team Size: 6

Alligator Central Airport

Team members: Adrian O.; Anthony T ; Darian R. — 3rd graders — Sally Ride Elementary School

This team project recreates not only the design skills and passion for the aviation field of its members but also our firm energy awareness and deep love for the BLUE PLANET!

When our team got together we knew we wanted to create a realistic piece for art that was inspired by our love of aviation and our passion to recycle. We brainstormed a few ideas and possibilities, but always knowing we only wanted to use recycled materials. An eco-friendly-airport seemed like the best combination of all of our ideas and interest since we all had plenty of materials to work with.

The goal of this project was to plan for an airport that would be 100% reliant on natural resources of energy. Having a solar powered airport would greatly reduce the carbon emissions, and provide a reliable source of energy. Fortunately for the world this is not an original idea, currently there are over 8 fully solar powered airports in the world, including one in Tennessee, US. Solar airports are becoming more popular due to the energy demands and much lower CO2 emissions. Solar airports can store enough energy to continue working through the nights and are not affected by power outages. Solar airports tend to be smaller, and can be usually found in small towns.

We took all of these ideas, expanded them and created our Alligator Central Airport. In Alligator Central Airport everything works with renewable energy; whether is wind-powered, solar-powered, or hydro-powered. No single source of energy goes unused.

Starting with the main building itself we decided to use an item that cannot be recycled and is causing a lot of damage to our planet just sitting on landfills: Styrofoam. Styrofoam is a great insulator as it keeps temperatures cool or warm depending on how we set them. We installed solar-powered fans inside the building to keep it cool during the warm months. We also installed giant windows to let the natural air in.

We decided that we wanted a rooftop garden and lots of trees, so water collection and retention were critical as we know how much of a drain on our planet’s water usage is. We decided to create a retention pool and so that water will always be collected and reused when it rained. We also installed wind mills as they are great at collecting energy with the storage units on the roof of the walkway.

As accessories to complete our Alligator Central Airport we used toys and supplies from our parents.

Materials Used

Styrofoam	Cables	Paint	Rocks
Solar panels /Solar cells	Water pipes	Reflective tape	Water
Wood	Popsicle sticks	Glue sticks	Plastic Plants
Electric motors Car wheels	Moss Toy planes	Glue Toy people	Straws LED lights

What is so special about our airport?

From the drawing board to reality

Biggest Challenges

During this project we ran across a few challenges. One of them was putting all of our ideas together and coming up with a design plan that worked for all of us. Finding a good material for the terminal was also challenging. We tried multiple options including cardboard, plywood and others, but in the end decided to go with styrofoam due to the insulating abilities that it has.