Prototyping for a novel water treatment technology at manual handpumps in Nigeria and Kenya
Amy Pickering, Professor
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Open. Apprentices needed for the fall semester. Enter your application online beginning August 21st. The deadline to apply is Monday, August 31st, 4pm.
The Pickering Lab at UC Berkeley is working to bring safe drinking water to communities globally by disrupting pathogen transmission pathways in drinking water through in-line chlorination. In-line chlorination is a water treatment practice where low-cost, electricity-free devices automatically add chlorine into water for the disinfection of pathogens at the point of collection. In recent years, the Pickering Lab has developed and launched the TuriTap, a passive in-line chlorination device, to increase access to safe water in piped water supply networks in low-resource settings. However, there is no commercially viable in-line chlorination technology for manual handpumps, a major water source for the 2.2 billion people globally who lack safely managed drinking water. We aim to adapt the TuriTap to integrate it with handpumps in rural Kenya and Nigeria to provide safe drinking water.
Role: We are recruiting a mechanical engineering research assistant to contribute to the development of the TuriTap for manual handpumps. This will include setting design directions, iterative prototype development in modeling software (i.e. Solidworks, Autodesk Suite), 3D printing in our rapid prototyping lab, and lab/field testing prototypes while collecting performance data. Research assistants will work directly alongside our design team on real-world prototyping and manufacturing for field deployment in Nigeria and Kenya this Fall. This position is approximately 6-8 hours per week and in person.
Responsibilities will include:
● 3D Printing and Manufacturing Operations
○ 3D printing and iterative prototype development
○ Post-processing and finishing parts
○ 3D modeling in SolidWorks
○ Supporting design validation and team brainstorming sessions
● Lab/Field Evaluations of Prototypes
○ Lab testing of prototypes
○ Rigorous data management and analysis for logging outcomes of tests
○ Remotely support field tests of 3D printed prototypes in Nigeria and Kenya by creating installation, operation, and maintenance guides and communicating with teams in each country
● Design Drawing Development
○ Assembly and tolerance stack up (GD&T, limits/fits tolerancing, etc)
Iterative designing based on lab and field results
Qualifications: We're primarily seeking Mechanical Engineering majors, though strong candidates from adjacent disciplines are welcome. You should have:
Prior experience with 3D modeling and 3D printing (coursework or personal projects)
Familiarity with 3D printer operations and basic printing materials.
Completion of E26, E29, or an equivalent design/manufacturing course, or adequate manufacturing projects from student engineering clubs
A genuine interest in mission driven, development engineering work aimed at improving access to safe drinking water.
Day-to-day supervisor for this project: Kennedy Brown, Ph.D. candidate
Hours: 6-8 hrs
Biological & Health Sciences Engineering, Design & Technologies