Dyplast Products proudly announces the
donation of some of its high quality Polyisocyanurate ISO-C1® to Florida Atlantic University
American Society
of Civil Engineers Student Chapter (ASCE)
to be used in their canoe construction for the annual ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition. Below is the FAU ASCE article written
by Christina Rosa.
Florida Atlantic University American
Society of Civil Engineers Student Chapter
Concrete Canoe Team
The Florida Atlantic University American Society
of Civil Engineers Student Chapter (ASCE)
has
competed in the annual ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition
for the past eleven years. Each
year
the ASCE team at FAU has strived to improve
and
increase the quality of the annual canoe. In the Concrete
Canoe Competition, universities from across the
nation, as well as universities from around the world, compete in races using
the canoes that they have designed and constructed out of concrete. This year the FAU concrete canoe team plans to again successfully
design and build
a canoe, with the hopes
of being able to compete
on the national level.
In order
to design the Concrete Canoe, the team must design and build the canoe
from
the ground up. This
process includes designing
the mold and framework that will serve as the form for the canoe.
This step is pivotal in the design process.
Without being able to successfully create a workable mold, it will be impossible to build the canoe with the accuracy that is needed
for maximum performance.
This year the team has decided on using a male mold as the mold
for the canoe. Although the body
of the mold will be constructed out of wood cross-sections; to
ensure precision,
the two ends will be made from
foam.
These end pieces consist
of two 20"x13"x6" and two 17"x12"x6". The canoe was designed in a program called SolidWorks.
In order to construct the mold, the team will utilize
a CNC machine to achieve the exact measurements needed for the
canoe.
Material selection is a very important part of using a CNC machine to cut out a mold. After researching the different materials available, the team decided that Polyisocyanurate foam was an excellent choice. The Polyisocyanurate material has unique properties that make
it desirable for
our applications.
The material is soft enough to be easily cut with most drill bits, yet rigid enough to hold the weight of the concrete. In addition, the
material does not succumb to
excessive creep and will hold its shape
for extended periods of time.
The
combination of being easily cut and the high density properties, were the determining factors in choosing
this material.
The team is confident
that
this material will
be able to meet the needs
of the project.
We
would like to thank Mr. Jorge Salazar and Dyplast Products for the generous contribution of their high quality
product Polyisocyanurate ISO-C1® to these academic endeavors. The use of
their foam is a defining and pivotal piece
of the entire project that we
have
undertaken here at
FAU.
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