RUNNING HEAD: PROJECT ZEPHYR PROGRESS REPORT 6

Project Zephyr
Progress Report 6
Vallabi Vallaban
Kelly Crocker
Noah Wong
January 26, 2017

Objective:
This time was spent designing the payload container, planning out the connections between
electrical components, exploring the carbon monoxide sensor, and researching black carbon as a
possible additional focus of the research project
Previous Objective:
The team spent this time starting preparations for construction, testing components, and
researching legal matters.

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Materials and Methods

Recently, the team discovered that they needed additional connection components to
manage the transfer of data from the sensors to the Raspberry Pi for processing. To enable this,
another supply order was placed within this time period that accounted for a half-sized
breadboard, a breadboard jumper wire bundle, male-to-female jumper wires, a 10K resistor pack,
and a 100K resistor pack. These components are necessary to facilitate the flow of information
from the hydrogen sulfide and carbon monoxide sensors to the GPIO pins of the Raspberry Pi.

Figure 1: This is a drawing of the layout of the payload container. The picture is oriented as if
viewing the container from above. There will be room on either side, next to the outer walls, for
cables and connectors to run. The components included are listed.
The next step after support design for the semi-rigid airship will be the payload container.
This payload container will need to house most of the electrical components for airship operation
in a somewhat orderly manner. An idea was brought up that the container could consist of a
series of slots for different components to be placed in configured like you are looking down at a
toaster. Each slot would house one component and the dividers keeping it from falling over
would not be connected to the outside of the container. Instead, there would be space between

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the dividers and the outside walls allowing for cables and other connectors to get between
components. The order from left to right would most likely be the Raspberry Pi, breadboard,
charge controller, and lastly the batteries. The payload container would also have the two
sensors, carbon monoxide and hydrogen sulfide, mounted on the outside to allow for accurate
readings.
Additional design modifications would include air holes to prevent overheating of the
electrical components and possibly mounting the Raspberry Pi to the leftmost outer wall with
screws to keep it from shifting. A general idea of which components will need connections
between them is shown in the above Figure, but a more detailed layout is included in the Data
and Results section as a circuit diagram.
The team realized, after talking to an electrical engineer, that they needed to connect the
batteries in parallel rather than in series, as was the original plan. This conclusion was drawn and
plan of action decided upon because the team prioritized maximum current over maximum
voltage. Connecting the three batteries in series would have increased the voltage, but the team
needed more current as the output due to the demands of powering the Raspberry Pi and other
electronic components. Connecting the batteries in parallel allows for the team to increase the
current delivered by the batteries. To connect the batteries in parallel, the team will need to join
the three positive wires to each other (one from each battery) and insert them into the positive
terminal of the solar charge controller. They will then need to do the same for the negative wires
and insert them into the negative terminal.

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Data and Results

It was recently brought to the teams attention that black carbon is a large contributor to
global climate change and detecting it with a blimp would be a step towards greatly reducing
global warming. Black carbon is second only to carbon dioxide as a driver of climate change and
may be responsible for up to thirty percent of recent Arctic melting. The reason that reducing it
would be so effective is that black carbon only stays in the atmosphere for 1-4 weeks and
therefore, removing it would have a much more immediate effect on the environment. It would
also have a positive impact on human health as it has been known to cause decreased pulmonary
function and myocardial dystrophy.
Black carbon goes by many names it is called amorphous carbon, black soot, and
acetylene black. Produced by a variety of sources both human and other, black carbon is a
byproduct of incomplete combustion of biomass, fossil fuels, and biofuels. Despite its prevalence
in the atmosphere, the methods used to measure it are anything but common. One idea would be
to use a filter and quantify black carbon using gravimetrics, or by measuring the filter before and
after black carbon rich air was passed through it. The issue with this method of measurement is
that any additional particles caught in the filter would contribute to a significant positive
interference in the measurement, so that idea was discarded by the team.
To get more accurate data, there are two main avenues of measurement: light-absorption
or thermo-optical methods. Light absorption methods relate the amount of light absorbed to the
mass of the absorbing material. The main tool for this type of measurement is a Photoacoustic
Extinctiometer, which is a relatively large and heavy piece of equipment. These characteristics
rule it out as a candidate for flight in a blimp. Thermo-optical methods measure the carbon
evolved under different temperatures and atmospheric conditions from an air sample. This

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method would require the capture of a gas sample from each testing location and a lab in which
to test it. These additional requirements make the integration of this testing method into the
airship design infeasible at the present time. With the different methods of testing and
quantifying black carbon and its effects on the atmosphere researched, considered, and dismissed
for the current blimp design, the team decided that the inclusion of testing for black carbon was
not within their abilities at this time.
In disassembling the carbon monoxide detector, the team isolated the detector portion
from the other circuitry and casing. The casing and unnecessary parts were removed to minimize
the weight of the sensor. This led to further questioning of how the sensor would communicate
with the Raspberry Pi. The original idea was to connect the sensors to the Pi using a USB
connection, but this is not possible because the sensors do not have that capability. An idea was
proposed to connect the sensors to the Raspberry Pi via the GPIO pins on the Pi. This idea is
currently being explored with the new supply order.

Figure 2: This is a circuit diagram showing the connections between the photovoltaic cells, the
batteries, the solar charge controller, the sensors, and the Raspberry Pi.

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The major accomplishment of these last few weeks has been the development of the
above figure. It details the connections between electrical components that will make up the
whole of the navigation, powering, and sensing systems. The connections depicted in Figure 2
required a lot of research to discover. For example, it was determined that a 12V to 5V step
down converter was necessary to complete the connection from the solar charge controller to the
Raspberry Pi. This converter not only changes the voltage to that required, but also neatly
accomplishes the conversion from leads to a USB output that was previously in question. The
only uncertain part is shown in the bottom right corner of the diagram with the sensors and their
connections to the Raspberry Pi. It is known that they will connect via GPIO pins, but not clear
exactly how that connection will be accomplished through the breadboard. Discovering this will
start when the newest supply order comes in with the breadboard and jumper wires.

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Resources
American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009. (2009, July 7). Retrieved January 25, 2017,
from https://www.congress.gov/bill/111th-congress/house-bill/2454/text#tocH46E5056242D549DE8C046DC5F9F54786.
United States, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control.
(n.d.). Occupational Health and Safety Guideline for Carbon Black (pp. 1-6). Retrieved
January 25, 2017, from https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/81-123/pdfs/0102.pdf.
What is Black Carbon? (2010, April). Retrieved January 25, 2017, from
https://www.c2es.org/publications/black-carbon-climate-change.