Left to Right: Andre Steinmer, Luis Castro, Sam Williams, Team Advisor Tom Corry, Alex Benfield, John Illustrisimo
Olympia High School engineering students took first place in design for both the hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicle and the solar energy innovation categories.
The students competed in the Florida Energy Whiz Olympics on Saturday, May 9, 2009 at the University of Central Florida Solar Energy Center.
The annual event features teams of students from all over the state.
Volunteers from NASA and other industry experts judged the Olympia “Titan 1 Rocket” hydrogen Fuel cell-powered vehicle as having the most innovative design and awarded it first place in the competition.
The judges also awarded the Olympia Energy Innovations team first place in the solar design competition. The team developed and built a portable backpack solar power system for third world countries where the energy grid is non- existent or limited.
Team member and Olympia Engineering Club President Alex Benfield said, “This system allows anyone to have power no matter where they are. As long as there is sun to recharge the batteries the power is substantial and unlimited.”
Energy Innovations is a real-world design competition. It was developed to provide a full-scale photovoltaic design challenge for middle school and high school students.
