The Ultimate Water Collection Device

Hello all! Welcome to our project "The Ultimate Water Collection Device" we are Team Sunny D, a college senior design team tasked with building a water collection device. This device, uses a fan to pull outside air in and across a cooling coil through which a closed system of cool water runs. This water is cooled by a series of six Peltier chips; Two sets of Three wired in parallel, those sets wired together in series. As the incoming air passes over the coil water condenses on said coil. That water is then collected. While this particular model runs off of DC power supply, it could easily be adapted to battery and solar power.

Supplies

1 – 4 X 8 Sheet of plywood (1/2 or 3/4 inch thick)
1 –Rust-Oleum Professional Oil-Based Gloss White Interior/Exterior Industrial Enamel Paint (Half Pint)
4 – National Hardware 2-1/2-in Steel Zinc-Plated Corner Brace (4 pk)
1 – Box of GRK #9 x 2-in Yellow Polymer-Countersinking Interior/Exterior Wood Screws
1 - R-3.2 0.5-in x 4-ft x 8-ft R-Matte Plus-3 Faced Polyisocyanurate Garage Door Foam Board 1 – Arduino Kit
1 - assembled partition wall
4 – L brackets
8 – ½ in wood screws
1 – sheet of terra board
1 – water bucket
2 – 2 inch door hinges
1 – door handle
1 – 5x8 inch air vent grate
1 – door latch

1 – Partition board
1 - Heat sink
2 - Cooling blocks
6 - Peltier chips
1 – electric CPU fan
4 - 8in hole plates
16 – ¼- 20 nuts
8 – flat washers
4 – 6in ¼ -20 threaded rod (cut to length)
4 – 5in ¼- 20 bolts
4 – Rubber spacers
1 – 5 x 7 inch foam insulation
10 – zip ties
1 – flow meter/water temperature sensor
1 – water pump
1 – 28 inches of water line
2 – ½ wood screw
4 – 14 gauge wire crimp connectors
1 – tube of thermo paste

1 – LCD Screen
1 – Temperature sensor display screen
1 – Vibration motor
1 – Humidity/Temperature sensor
1 – Power switch
~60 – Jumper wires
1 – 24 inches 14 gauge wire (Black and Red)
1 – 12 inches of Velcro
4 – precut control panel wood
1 – 5x5 inch foam
1 – plastic control panel cover
7 – wire connectors


Tools used:

Orbital sander

Circular Saw

Tape Measure

Cordless Drill

Cordless Drill

Philips screw driver

Wire cutters/strippers

Wire crimpers

5in hole saw

Jig saw

table saw

Step 1: Build Enclosure

I. Exterior:

A. Cut boards for each side of enclosure. Use the Template provided below using one sheet of 4x8 ft plywood.

• Base/Top Board: 12 x 20 inches (30.5 x 50.8 cm)
• Side Boards: 12 x 24 inches (30.5 x 60.96 cm)
• Back: 20 x 22.25 inches ( 50.8 x 56.52 cm)
• Door: 24 x 21.50 inches (60.96 x 54.61 cm)

B. Fasten the corner braces.

• Place side on top of base
• Flip over and place two sides on top board.

C. Cut access doors for each compartment.

D. Cut and install insulation to the left portion of the partition.

II. Interior:

A. Secure the completed partition wall 10 ½ inches (26.67cm) from the left side of the enclosure. Fasten the partition in using 4 L-brackets and ½ inch (1.27cm) wood screws. **See Steps below on assembling the partition wall and cooling system components.

B. Using the provided template, cut and fold terra board for the air duct.

• Using the template provided below, cut your terra board to the correct dimensions and notice that the black lines are the exterior form lines, red lines are folding lines, and the blue X shapes are cut out voids to make space for the coil turns and the gravity fed water droplets that will be collected and dropped into the reservoir bucket.
• Tip: running a non cutting point down the fold lines will create a crease that will ensure the accuracy and ease of the folds.

C. Once the terra board is cut to fit and folded, use the pressure of the exterior wall and the partition wall along with the insulation layer to hold the duct in place.

• Note: you may have to disconnect the water lines temporarily for this install.

D. Insert the water bucket below the air duct. With the terra board air duct and water bucket in place, you should have a setup similar to the one below.

III. Assemble and Install Door

A. Install door hinges along the left side of the enclosure.

• Hinge location from the top of enclosure is 3 inches (7.62cm) for the top hinge and 19 inches (48.26cm) for the bottom.
• Fasten to enclosure using ½ inch (1.27cm) wood screws.

B. Install air vent cover over door insert.

• Center vent over hole
• Fasten to door suing ½ inch (1.27cm) wood screws.

C. Install Door handle on the right side of the door.

• Fasten to the door using ½ inch (1.27cm) wood screws 9 inches (22.86cm) below top of door.

D. Install door to the enclosure

Step 2: Construct Water Cooling System

I. Wire 6 Peltier chips

Note: This set up once completed will provide each Peltier chip with 5V of power and 1Amp of Current. This is required for optimal cooling performance.

A. Wire 3 chips in parallel, connect all positive (red) and Negative (Black) wires to each other. Repeat for other set of 3 chips.
B. Wire both sets of chips into Series, connect the positive wire of set 1 to the negative wire of set 2.
C. The remaining positive and negative wire will go to the power supply.

II. Assemble Cooling System

Note: The hardware seen in the images below were used temporarily to let the thermo paste cure. The Hardware to mount the cooling system to the patrician wall will be explained in the next section.

A. Place 8inch holed plates with 5inch bolts coming through the top.
B. Place the Heat sink on top of plates.
C. Apply thermo paste to the hot side of each chip.
D. Place the hot side of the chip to the top of the heat sink. Align them as seen in photos.
E. Place thermo paste on the cold side of each chip..
F. Place 2 cooling blocks on top of each set of 3 chips.
G. Place foam insulation to the top side of the cooling blocks
H. Lock down system with 8inch holed plates and 4 ¼- 20 bolts.

Step 3: Mounting the Cooling Coil

A. Mark and cut fan location into the insulation side of partition wall.

• Center fan on the top portion of the board. Measure 6 inches (15.24 cm) from the center of the top of the board, then measure 6 inches (15.24 cm) from the side of the board.

B. Once the fan is centered, cut, and remove the insulation so the fan will sit flush to the wood partition.

C. Mark the existing holes located on the fan on the board to drill a through hole.

D. Using the cut to length 5 inch (12.7 cm) threaded rod place a nut on one end and run the rod through the back of the board – through the fan holes and use a nut to fasten the fan to the partition. Repeat for all four holes.

• Make sure that the flow direction of the fan is positioned so that the air flows through the wall. The air should be flowing onto the heat sink of the cooling system.

E. Using these studs, run a nut 2.5 inches (5.08 cm) down from the end of the threaded rod. This acts as the back stop for the cooling coil.

F. Place the cooling coil carefully onto the 4 studs and fasten it down using 4 ¼-20 nuts

Step 4: Mounting the Cooling System

A. Mark the uninsulated side of the partition board using the 8 inch hole plates to drill a through hole for mounting purposes.

B. Repeat step A above and below the fan placement.

C. Using the 5 inch bolts from the insulated side of the board mount the cooling system in the same fashion that was used when assembling the cooling system in section II of Construct Water Cooling System steps A-H.

D. Utilize rubber spaces to bring the cooling system off the partition board to allow for better air flow.

Step 5: Installing the Water Lines

Note: This step will require powering the pump to prime the system when adding water.

A. Mark the uninsulated side of the partition board to drill through holes for water lines to mate cooling system with cooling coil.

• Mark from the left side of the board 5 inches and 9 inches down from the top of the board and 1 inch for the edge.
• Drill both with ½ in wood drill bit

B. Cut water line material to the following lengths:

• 9 inches (Outlet of coil to water pump)
• 11 inches (Inlet of coil to outlet of cooling block)
• 3 inches (Cooling block to water pump)
• 5 inches (Cooling block jumper to connect each both)

C. Mount water pump below the cooling system

• Measurements are 12inches from the top and 7inches from the left side of the partition board.

D. Install Flow Meter and water temperature sensor inline with the exiting line from the cooling coil.

• Fasten to partition using Velcro.

E. Secure all connections with zip ties to avoid leaking.

F. Power system and fill lines with water from the temperature sensor port

G. Reinstall temp sensor.

Step 6: Control System Configuration

I. Assemble control panel.

A. Cut 3 slots out of foam to fit LCD screen, Temperature display screen, and power switch.
B. Assemble 4 precut ½ plywood control panel boards.

• Assemble so that the short board is the front portion of the panel and longer board is in the rear. The template provided earlier will supply the dimensions required.

C. Insert foam and display screens into built control panel and place faceplate over that to protect from moisture.

• Using 4 1inch wood screws to secure control panel to top of enclosure centered over precut 2 inch hole.
• Using 4 ½ inch wood screws secure faceplate to control panel.

II. Assemble Arduino and sensors

A. Connect the 5V and ground pins to the closest positive and negative railways respectively. They will serve as the power source for almost all the electronics.

B. Humidity/Temperature Sensor.

• For a three-pin DHT11 sensor, select three consecutive lines in the breadboard. One for the positive lead, one for the information readout, and one for the negative lead.
• Connect a jumper wire to each line and marry those wires to three female-female jumper wires.
• Connect the other ends to the sensor. This will be enough distance to reach from the breadboard to the enclosure.
• The middle pin, the one in the center of the consecutive lines on the breadboard, must be connected to Pin 5 of the digital pins. This will give feedback.
  
  • Confirmation of functionality can be checked when all assembly has taken place and the serial monitor is enabled. It will return information from the sensor if working correctly.

a. Incorrect energy flow will return -999.99°C and -999.99% relative humidity.

C. Vibration Motor

• Select two lines in the breadboard for leads from the positive and negative railways. The positive lead will then be connected directly to a female-female jumper that leads to the vibration motor.
  • The positive lead taking up a slot in the breadboard is intended to prevent the wires from becoming lopsided and unable to reach its place in the enclosure.
• The negative lead will connect to the E pin of the transistor. This can be identified from a top-down perspective looking at the flat side as the left pin (if it is not labeled).
• The center pin of the transistor is to be connected to Pin 12 of the data pins. When activated, this will close the circuit and let the motor run.
• The right pin of the transistor will be the negative feed coming from the vibration motor.
• The positive lead should be connected to one female-female jumper set to extend its reach, so the jumper from this right transistor pin must attach to the corresponding negative wire from the motor itself.

D. LCD 16X2 Monitor

• Set up the potentiometer a few lines away from the start of the LCD
  
  • Select three consecutive lines and connect the potentiometer across them. Connect the positive railway to pin 1 and the negative to pin 3.
  • Pin 2 is to have a free jumper attached to it for the LCD itself. Turn the potentiometer’s dial so the arrow points from positive to negative.
    
    • This will control the contrast of the LCD’s display.
• The following is connected into breadboard lines. They were not done consecutively, but rather as a mirror to their designated positions as listed below to avoid confusion. There exists a skip in the pins used on the component to function properly, so it was convenient to have the layout on the board reflect that.
  
  • There are 16 pins on the component, labeled 1 through 16 from left to right from a top-down view.

a. Pins 1, 5, and 16 will be connected to the negative railway as ground. They are the GND (ground), R/W (read/write), and K (cathode) pins.

b. Pins 2 and 15 (VCC [5 volts] & A [anode]) will be connected to the positive railway.

c. Pin 3 of the LCD is to be connected to the free jumper from the potentiometer.

d. Pin 4 is connected to Pin 7 of the data pins. This is the RS (register select) pin.

e. Pin 6 is connected to Pin 6 of the data pins. This is the E (enabler) pin.

f. Pins 11 through 14 are to be connected to Pins 8 through 11 of the data pins. They are pins D4 through D7.

• All the above is to be connected to assorted male-male jumpers, then assorted female-female jumpers. This is done to extend the reach of the LCD display.
• When all is connected, gently push the display screen into its housing with one’s fingers.

E. Optional: Motor Relay.

• Connect three female-female jumper wires to the DC motor control port A on the dual H-bridge motor driver. Keep in mind what the pin designations are.
• Connect the I1, I2, and EA pins to Pins 2 through 4 of the data pins with jumper wires.
• Connect a jumper to the logic power supply and the positive railway.
• Connect the ground and motor power supply to the 12 Volt power source.
• Take the wires for the pump and strip them. Insert the stripped wires into the DC motor wiring port A and tighten it down with a precision flathead.

F. Flow Temperature Sensor

• Take two adjacent power supply wires connected to the molex heads and strip them. This will be directly connected to the positive and negative railways.
• Slide the readout screen into its foam housing.
• Thread the sensor into its box; ensure there is no interference or air pockets between the sensor and the water.

III. Connect all components to main power supply.

A. Connect the Red (12V power) wires of the cooling system and 12V fan together. This new connection will go to the power switch.

B. Connect the black (ground) wires of the cooling system and 12V fan together and terminate that new connection to the power switch.

• You must terminate the connection ends with a 12 inch black jumper wire that will go directly to a power supply.

C. The water pump will wire directly to the Arduino as explained in section B.

D. Connect power supply to the terminated Red and Black 14 Gauge wire coming from the power switch.

• The system at this point is ready to run. Do not supply more that 14V of power or damage to Peltier chips can occur