Week 7: May 15, 2015

This is the seventh laboratory period for the group. This week followed the prototype testing. The new goal is to determine the issues and failures during the testing and to figure out how to create new solutions to them. The main failure was with the Nile Red organic dye. The first step in figuring out how to filter out the dye is to research it. During this laboratory period the dye was researched and solutions were discussed. It was found that the dye binds to fats and oils due to their lipid composition. The group brainstormed to determine what fats or oils if any would be present on a deserted island. Coconut oil was chosen due to its hypothetical availability and solid nature. The filter was dissected to determine where the dye had absorbed. The cloth at the bottom contained a pink tint, meaning that the cloth had saturated with the dye, causing the filter to fail. The group also discussed adding more cloth to absorb more volume of dye. It was decided that a chemical approach to this problem was the correct one. The filter was cleaned by running clear water through it for a few hours following the lab.