Students score their second Solar Splash win

Benedict Bahner
ASME News

Last year's winner of ASME's Solar Splash solar-boat competition — Cedarville University — cruised to victory again at this year's event, held last June in Buffalo, N.Y.

The team from Cedarville University received more points in the Solar Splash — 910.4 — than any team in the competition's history.

The team, which hails from Cedarville, Ohio, added a new, lighter-weight hull to its boat this year and went on to earn 910.4 out of a possible 1,000 points — more than any other team in the competition's 12-year history. The team, which also designed and constructed its own propellers for the 2005 Splash, continued its reign as overall winner of the Solar Splash for a second year, and was named Collegiate World Champion of the contest. Johnson Controls was the competition's main sponsor.

The 16 teams taking part in the Solar Splash earned points in seven different categories, including technical report, visual display and workmanship, as well as during the boat race's qualification, solar slalom, sprint and endurance rounds.

The team placing second overall, from the University of Arkansas, collected 872.4 points, while the third-place team, California Polytechnic Pomona, amassed 761.9 points.

A team member from Messiah College takes his boat for a spin during the sprint event. Messiah College placed tenth overall during the Solar Sprint.

Although the Solar Splash was originally conceived as an ASME event when it debuted in 1992, this was the first year that the competition was entirely organized and conducted by ASME, noted the event's coordinator, Jeff Morehouse, an ASME Fellow and a professor at the University of South Carolina.

Each team had three chances to race in the Solar Splash's 300-meter sprint event, and the two fastest times were added to arrive at a final score. The entry from the University of New Orleans took top honors during the sprint competition, with a final score of 48.55 and a fastest time of 23.96 seconds.

Second place in the sprint went to the University of Arkansas, with a final score of 53.19 and a fastest time of 26.28 seconds. Cedarville University rounded out the top three teams with a total time of 56.16 seconds and a best time of 28.01 seconds.

The teams line up for the Solar Splash endurance competition.

Cedarville, however, came out on top during the solar endurance event, with a total distance of 60.75 laps. The University of Arkansas was close behind with a total of 57.25 laps, and the U.S. Naval Academy was third with 53.50 laps. Each lap was measured as 695 meters.

The top two teams in the solar slalom competition were the University of Arkansas, followed by the College of New Jersey.

Ecole Technologie Superieur, meanwhile, placed first in the technical report competition, scoring 89 of a possible 90 points. Messiah College and the University of Arkansas, both with 85 points, followed.

The prize for visual presentation went to Cedarville University, while the US Naval Academy earned the design achievement award. The team from Webb Institute won top honors for outstanding system design, with Messiah College winning for outstanding solar system design. The College of New Jersey captured the award for outstanding electrical system design. Ecole Technologie Superieur won for best hull design, while Messiah College picked up a second design award, this time for outstanding drivetrain design.

Other awards given at this year's Solar Splash included the US Naval Academy, for most improved team; Buffalo State, for rookie team with the highest overall score; Elizabethtown College, for notable performance by a rookie team; Kansas State University, for "hottest" looking boat; Ecole Technologie Superieur, for outstanding workmanship; and the University of Northern Iowa, for most commercially viable hull.

The University of South Carolina and the State University of New York's College of Environmental Science and Forestry picked up awards for perseverance and teamwork, respectively. The teams from Washington State University and Buffalo State both received honors for sportsmanship.

The next Solar Splash will be held in Fayetteville, Ark., from June 21–25, 2006, with the University of Arkansas as host. That university is scheduled to host the competition again in 2007.

To find out more about Solar Splash 2005, and to view more photos from the event, visit www.solarsplash.com.

back to news & features