Water Hogs Receive Award at EPA Design Competition

Photo Submitted

The Water Hogs team with their award winning project. Front row: Christa Hestekin, Lauren Cole, Omar Qasem. Middle row: Florencio Serrano Castillo, Keiron Durant, Cayla Tichy. Back row: Shumon Hasan, D.J. Lee, Jamie Hestekin.Photo credit: USEPA/Erika Nortemann

A team of chemical engineering, communications and Honors College students at the University of Arkansas – collectively known as the Water Hogs – entered their design project in the Environmental Protection Agency’s People, Prosperity and the Planet, or P3, competition. The Water Hogs received the American Society of Civil Engineers Sustainable Development Award.

The student’s system, which uses human power and scrap materials and produces water that meets World Health Organization drinking water standards, is easy and affordable to build. A video explaining their project is on YouTube.

“Unfortunately, 780 million people around the world … don’t have access to clean or safe drinking water. That’s where we come in,” team member Lauren Cole explains in the team’s video.

The Water Hogs’ system uses a filter and bleach to clean water. Using a treadle pump that can be operated by one person, the system pumps water from a well through a filter made of sand, coarse gravel and cloth. After that, bleach is added to the water to remove harmful bacteria. An electrolysis unit, which converts salt water into bleach, is powered by a bicycle, which is connected to a motor that is connected to a 12-volt car battery. “As long as the bicycle is being pedaled faster than the motor will turn the bicycle wheel, the battery will be charged,” the team explains on its Facebook page.

 The Water Hogs team members are Florencio Serrano Castillo, Lauren Cole, Keiron Durant, Jordan Gross, Shumon Hasan, D.J. Lee, Omar Qasem and Cayla Tichy. Tichy, Durant, Cole and Lee have received Honors College travel grants to support their participation in the P3 competition. The team’s mentors are Christa Hestekin, associate professor and holder of the Ansel and Virginia Condray Endowed Professorship in Chemical Engineering; Roy Penney, professor of chemical engineering; and Stephanie Schulte, assistant professor of communication.

“I’m so proud of these students,” said John English, dean of the College of Engineering. “This project is an example of what engineers do best — finding creative ways to make the world a better place. I know our campus and community will support their efforts and take this opportunity to learn more about their amazing project.”