Non-Electric Heat Blanket
Problem: People in cold areas without electricity need to stay warm because they could get hypothermia and face low heart rate or even death.
Name: Srivardhan Dongre
School: Deerfield Elementary
Teacher: Aimee Rosser
Abstract
Snow and hail can create power outages, and this a problem because heaters will not work to keep humans warm. To solve this problem, I decided to create a heat blanket that requires no electricity and is powered by a chemical reaction. I tested 2 different chemical reactions, one with Calcium Chloride and the other being Iron Oxidation. Based on my tests with these chemical reactions, I chose Iron Oxidation to make my prototype heat blanket. I also tested silica gel, a proven heat releasing material to see how it would interact with Iron Oxidation. I added a fiberglass roll strip on one side of the blanket. This is an insulating material and would make sure that no heat could escape from the side. This way, all the heat is going to the user and none is lost. I also added polyester fill to the stuffing to give comfort to the user.Now that I had the inside of the blanket clarified, I used a pillowcase as a prototype for the blanket, stuffing it with the chosen materials in an orderly fashion. The heat blanket worked after doing revisions, the heat lasting for a long time at a temperature above 111 degrees fahrenheit and the materials inside interacted with each other the way I expected it to. I also reached my goal of being cheaper than $37, the blanket price coming up to about $30-35.
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Introduction (Background Research)
“Heavy accumulations of ice and snow coupled with fluctuating winter temperatures can bring down utility poles, trees and limbs. This can disrupt power for days on end.” This is stated in Winter Storm Preparedness, written by Safe Electricity. Without electricity, heaters stop working and people struggle to stay warm. People in cold areas without electricity need to stay warm because they could get hypothermia and face low heart rate or even death. People have worked to solve this problem, creating a blanket that uses batteries to heat up. This is a good solution, but the average price to buy these products are $37. This may be costly for some people. Normal blankets solve this problem, but may create the heat to slow, or not create enough heat.
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The Engineering Solution, Prototype/Model to be tested.
I will create a non-electric heat blanket that will be heated using chemical reaction, such as Iron Oxidation and Calcium Cloride. I will test for the best chemical reaction. I got this idea from 2 scientists, Behram and Samantha Renusch. I decided to choose this idea because blankets are one of the best ways to stay warm. On one side of the blanket, I will put an insulating material, like fiberglass, so that heat cannot escape from that side. On the other side, I will put the heat releasing material with a soft material to give comfort to the user. This will give more heat to the user. I also want to make it cheaper than electric blankets that are sold, making it more acsesible to people who cannot afford electric blankets.
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This is an outdated model because this was my original plan that changed
Materials
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Procedure
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Calcium Chloride heat chemical reaction
I will do this test 3 ways. The first time I will use the previously stated method with the same amount of materials. However, I will half the amount of materials except water the second time. The third time, I will double the amount of materials except water.
Hot hands test/ Silica gel tests
Once this test is done, I will activate another pack and put it in a 8 ounce cup filled with silica gel to see how the silica gel would affect the heat.
Blanket test
Revised Blanket
Results – Data/Observations
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Legend:
CC1=Calcium Chloride test 1
CC2= Calcium Chloride test 2 (half of quantity of test 1 except water)
CC3= Calcium Chloride test 3 (double the quantity of test 1 except water)
HIO= Hothands heat pack test (Iron Oxidation chemical reaction)
H+G= Hothands and sillica gel(in a 16 ounce cup)
HHP= Hothands heat pack (after being in cup filled with silica gel)
* All 111 degrees fahrenheit is actually above 111 degrees
As you can see on the graph, all the Calcium Chloride tests start high, but decrease quickly, meaning that this is not and efficient heat source. The Hothands heat pack, however, start low and increase quickly. After 10 minutes for the first Hothands heat pack test, the results stayed at a high temperature, unlike the Calcium Chloride tests. This proves that Hothands heat pack (Iron Oxidation) is a more efficient heat source. My next test with silica gel showed that the silica gel created more consistent results in the temperature. This would be helpful in my blanket and I decided to use it. My first attempt to make the blanket is not on the graph because the heat was not able to escape the blanket at all. I only wanted the heat to escape on 1 side, but the heat didn’t escape through either. This was because the polyester fill did not let the heat escape through the side I wanted it too.
Temperature in degrees farfarenheit
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Revised Solution and Prototype/Model
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I revised my blanket because the heat was not able to escape the original blanket from both sides. This time, I lined the fiberglass roll on one side of the blanket as the first layer, similar to the first time. However, as the second layer, I put the polyester fill followed by the Hothands heat pack and the silica gel, which will be on the side in contact with the human. This change in the order will allow heat to escape the blanket on the user’s side while also allowing the polyester fill to give comfort to the human. As shown on the chart, my project was a success, with one side of the blanket releasing most of the heat in the blanket. I know this because at the start, the temperature of both sides of the blanket was 95 degrees fahrenheit. However after the test, one side became greater than 111 degrees fahrenheit, while the other side became on 98 degrees fahrenheit.
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* All 111 degrees fahrenheit means the temperature is above 111 fahrenheit
Temperature in degrees fahrenheit
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Discussion
All the tests’ results were mostly what I had expected. As predicted, the Hothands heat pack/Iron Oxidation test was better than the Calcium Chloride test, having an average of 107.6 degrees fahrenheit in 10 minutes compared to Calcium Chloride tests’ average of 104 degrees fahrenheit in 10 minutes. I expected the sillica gel to accelerate the heat release, but instead, it made the temperature of the Hothands more consistent. I thought this was a good quality and decided to use it in my blanket stuffing. The first time, my blanket did not release any heat. This was because the polyester fill didn’t allow the heat to escape. Hence, I put the polyester fill next to the fiberglass roll so that it would not stop the heat from escaping from one side of the blanket, while also giving comfort to the human. Although there is a lot of stuffing in my blanket, it is cheaper than electric blankets, having a price of about $33. This means that more people can afford my blanket.
This is the inside of my blanket prototype.
Conclusion
My solution, creating a heat blanket using a chemical reaction, solved the problem - lack of heat in a cold area without electricity. My research did explain the results of my blanket. For example, my research said that fiberglass was insulating. This was proven in my tests where the fiberglass made sure there was no heat loss on one side of the blanket. However, some places my results did not match my research. Silica gel was supposed to release heat faster, but this is not what happened when I tested it. Overall, my blanket turned out to be a success and I think people would find it helpful in survival kits, power outage supply kits, and while going camping. Although my project is over, I do have a couple ideas basen on what I learned doing this project. It is a non-electric cool blanket, for a hot day without electricity to keep the AC running.
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Reflection/Application
This project taught me a lot of things, but mainly showed me that not everything can go your way and that you have to be ready to adapt to changes you might face. Next time, I would plan and think through all the steps I need to do before I did testing because this would help me adapt to changes I might face. My next step in this project would be to make the heat in the blanket easier to activate. Currently, you have to put the Hothands pack into the blanket with all the stuffing already inside. This is little tricky to do. Plus, every time you use the blanket, you have to insert new Hothands pack. However, if I come up with a way to make the Hothands pack to be used multiple times before running out and to be able to activate the heat more easily, my blanket will be much more beneficial to the user. My results taught me more about how heat/energy interacts with materials and this helps me understand the science behind tasks I do every day, like heating food so it stays warm for a longer period of time. This can help me make those tasks easier to do. My results could be applied into other inventions such as heat socks, mittens, and scarves.
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References Cited
zeolite 4A as potential hand warmers. Retrieved October 24, 2024, from
https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/sigma/issue/84423/1461375
https://ecoalf.com/en-us/pages/
is-polyester-warm-in-winter#:~:text=Polyester%20has%20heat%2Dretaining%20properti
es,helping%20to%20retain%20body%20heat.
Retrieved September 30, 2024, from https://www.climatecentral.org/
climate-matters/weather-related-power-outages-rising
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