-
    

Hello reader, I'm currently in a class called biomimicry. Biomimicry is when humans use nature to improve their designs. There are 3 main types of biomimicry: mimicking an organism's shape, mimicking an organism's process, and mimicking an organism's ecosystem. I am working on a design that mimics an organism's form and process. Before I tell you my design let me give you some background knowledge. November, 2021 I had broken my pelvis and snapped a tendon in my hip. Given both these severe injuries I managed to Recover in only 4 weeks. There are multiple things that are a tribute to my speedy recovery but one of the main things would be hyperbaric oxygen. What the heck is hyperbaric oxygen? Hyperbaric oxygen is when a machine called a concentrator converts the air around us from containing 21% oxygen to containing roughly 95% oxygen which is then connected to a compressor which forces the oxygen into your lungs, bloodstream, brain, etc. Hyperbaric oxygen is typically dispensed into a chamber. This chamber is put under pressure by the compressor producing the air from the concentrator. These chambers are usually no larger than 16 square feet. They also apply quite a bit of pressure to your ears and if you are in any warm climate being in them is almost unbearable due to the temperature rising due to the pressure. How does it relate to biomimicry? In Biomimicry class, we have learned that when you have a problem you should look to Nature to solve it. I found a creature called the lungfish.

 The Lungfish ( Protopterus annectens) is a type of modern fish that has an organ called a swim bladder. That is a vestigial adaptation ( when an organism has a feature it no longer uses so it finds a new purpose)  that the fish now uses as a way to store more oxygen. The Lungfish lives in warm, freshwater lakes in South and West Africa. 

Image of the Lungfish:
Speckle-bellied lungfish (Protopterus aethiopicus), Toba Aquarium 

    After seeing this fish I had a thought. Many people have tried to create rebreathers ( a device that allows you to breathe underwater) based on fish gills but have had very little success due to the amount of oxygen human beings need. So instead I applied the rebreather design based off a rebreather by a company called Triton to create a hyperbaric oxygen mask that's meant to improve the air on land (not to allow people to breathe underwater). 
      
    I tried to find a way that a person could get the benefits without the inconveniences of a hyperbaric oxygen chamber. So how does the mask work you may ask. The mask will be a gator style mask with a hole in the back for a tube that connects to a small battery pack containing a mini concentrator, mini compressor, 5000 milliamp hour hydrogen battery, and a 20 watt solar panel. This battery pack would then pump the concentrated and compressed air into the mask which would have a valve that releases the carbon dioxide when you breathe out. The mask also will have a foam and rubber seal around the outside. As you can see, it is a closed loop system. A closed loop system is something that doesn't constantly need external resources. 

                                Image of the mask:                                    
  
                                                           

 Image of the battery pack:


    Is the product sustainable? It can evolve to survive because it keeps humans alive for longer, the benefits of hyperbaric oxygen are limitless. It is very resourceful because most hyperbaric chambers require large compressors and large compressors and large concentrators to fill an entire area containing a human's whole body. The Lungfish mask does give you the same benefit but with the ability to move around, do daily life, and use way less power (the entire system can be run the small solar battery pack). It ties in perfectly to The United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The SDG's help the UN track there progress towards a sustainable future. They want to achieve these goals by the year 2030. The Lungfish mask ties in with SDG #3: good health and well being. SDG #3 has individual targets as well. The Lungfish mask connects to SDG #3.9 which is health and well being surrounding air pollution and air quality.

Call to Action: The air we breathe is only 21% oxygen. Oxygen fuels every cell in the human body. If we increase the amount of oxygen in our body we will improve the function of our whole body and our life.

Citations: 

  1. Clegg, D. Y. (2009, August 5). How do fish gills work? Highlights Kids. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://www.highlightskids.com/explore/science-questions/how-do-fish-gills-work 

  2. Mikkelson, D. (2015, November 4). Triton 'tankless' scuba mask -- real or vaporware? Snopes.com. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/triton-scuba-mask-design/ 


  4. Kerin, Elizabeth. Personal Interview. Dec. 15. 2021 


  1. "antiCovid-19 Mask respirator (decor)" by Vladislav Evdakov is licensed under CC0 1.0   / modified by FK ( dec 2021) 


  1. Raymond , M. (2015, December 7). African lungfish. Oregon Zoo. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://www.oregonzoo.org/discover/animals/african-lungfish 

6.. "Speckle-bellied lungfish (Protopterus aethiopicus), Toba Aquarium" by Joel Abroad is licensed under CC BY 2.0 






Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Manlet Bridge

-
Hello Reader, This was our 1st unit of Urban Planning called "Load". During this unit, we focused on truss bridges and their mathematical concepts, using only 75 popsicle sticks and glue to build bridges that could support 10 lbs and span a minimum of 18 inches. The bridge designs were completely up to us, and we were encouraged to be creative. This project mirrored the work of Mark Bennett, an urban planner for Chicago who has to work within resource constraints. Our efforts gave us better understanding of the dynamics of bridge engineering and how to apply mathematical concepts to our designs. Furthermore, we gained insight into the challenges faced by urban planners, who must successfully balance design creativity with material limitations engineering requirements. My bridge is called "The Manlet Bridge" because of it's size. The bridge that inspired the Manlet Bridge was the Somerset Bridge because it is the narrowest bridge at just 56cm wide. In order to ac...
Read more

Miguel's Bike

-
Image
Hello reader! This is my action project for Design & Engineering unit 2. This unit I learned about the design process, gears, circles, ellipses, the ethics of design, gear ratios, and much more. This unit we went on a lot of great FE's but the FE to Dyson was really great in my opinion because we got to work WITH design not just have them talk to us then us doing nothing with it. Something I am very proud of this unit is my interview because I put a lot of work in to it. For this project I was given a persona to design a bike for based off the situation the person is in. The purpose of this project is to use all the information we have learned this unit on a real world problem being solved by others around the world but in our own GCE kind of way. Persona: Meet Miquel Location: Sitges, Spain Age: 12 Distance from school: 1.5 miles SITUATION Sitges is a small coastal town on the water, but it’s also full of tourists - meaning Miguel has to worry about vandalism when they lock ...
Read more

FK Action Project For "Food Class" Unit 3 "GMO's"

-
Image
  GMO’s. Ok ok, before you think I’m some hippie who’s here to tell you how awful GMO’s are I’m actually here to tell you the opposite and i believe they are totally fine. But first some background info. I am a student at GCE lab school, this is my action project for my 3rd term of food class. During this class we discussed a man named Norman Borlaug. Norman Borlaug was an american scientist who introduced new, disease-free wheat to India and solved hunger there. Thanks to Norman Borlaug Morocco has much better yields of wheat.  During this class we also discussed probability for a little bit, and connecting it to Punnett squares. We also discussed plant reproduction, such as the parts of male and female plants like the stigma, and the stamen. We also went on a field experience to a farmers market and discussed different types of foods with the farmers and  had interesting conversations with them. It was also a blast having lunch with the class.  Now getting to the p...
Read more