This document provides information about climate and natural resources in South Africa, where the floating house prototypes will be tested. It details average temperatures, precipitation levels, and other climate data for Cape Town to help with design considerations. Maps and location information are included to identify areas most in need of housing assistance. Guidelines on recyclable materials in South Africa outline what can be recycled through curbside pickup or drop-off locations to aid recovery efforts from widespread flooding.

1. Eco Project Research<br />John Tobias, Brian Jestice, Anthony Cairns, Diane Kohlin<br />Eco Project Research<br />Country / Geographic Region Republic of South Africa <br />The Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a 2,798 kilometers (1,739 mi) coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans.<br />South Africa is known for a diversity in cultures and languages<br />English has a large role in public and commercial life, it is nevertheless only the fifth most-spoken home language.<br />About a quarter of the population is unemployed and lives on less than US $1.25 a day.<br />The extreme southwest has a climate remarkably similar to that of the Mediterranean with wet winters and hot, dry summers<br />This region is also particularly known for its wind, which blows intermittently almost all year<br />[hide]Climate data for Cape Town, South AfricaMonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYearAverage high °C (°F)26.1(79)26.5(79.7)25.4(77.7)23.0(73.4)20.3(68.5)18.1(64.6)17.5(63.5)17.8(64)19.2(66.6)21.3(70.3)23.5(74.3)24.9(76.8)22.0(71.6)Average low °C (°F)15.7(60.3)15.6(60.1)14.2(57.6)11.9(53.4)9.4(48.9)7.8(46)7.0(44.6)7.5(45.5)8.7(47.7)10.6(51.1)13.2(55.8)14.9(58.8)11.4(52.5)Precipitation mm (inches)15(0.59)17(0.67)20(0.79)41(1.61)69(2.72)93(3.66)82(3.23)77(3.03)40(1.57)30(1.18)14(0.55)17(0.67)515(20.28)Avg. precipitation days5.54.64.88.311.413.311.813.710.48.74.96.2103.6Sunshine hours337.9299.9291.4234.0204.6174.0192.2210.8225.0279.0309.0334.83,092.2Source: Hong Kong Observatory[51]<br />Climate: mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights <br />Natural resources: gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas <br />Land use: arable land: 10% <br />permanent crops: 1% <br />meadows and pastures: 65% <br />forest and woodland: 3% <br />other: 21% <br />Irrigated land: 11,280 sq km (1989 est.) <br />Environment: <br />current issues: lack of important arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water conservation and control measures; growth in water usage threatens to outpace supply; pollution of rivers from agricultural runoff and urban discharge; air pollution resulting in acid rain; soil erosion; desertification <br />natural hazards: prolonged droughts <br />international agreements: party to - Antarctic Treaty, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea <br />From: http://www.postcolonialweb.org/sa/geography.html<br />Terrain: vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain <br /> Elevation extremes: <br />highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m <br />volcanism: the volcano forming Marion Island in the Prince Edward Islands, which last erupted in 2004, is South Africa's only active volcano <br />All of the data and information above is an important aspect of our research. It helps us to know what kind of environment we will be sending our floating houses to. It will help us make good enhancements and changes to prototypes we create so they can work to their best potential. Knowing the amount of annual rainfall will especially help us with our designs.<br />19050-628650This is the South American Flag; although it isn’t essential to our research, it will be good to know.<br />left-685800 This is a picture of the country South Africa, The exact location of where we will be shipping our houses is important for obvious reasons. <br />A more detailed map of South Africa will help us determine where in South Africa needs the houses the most. Areas near rivers or coastlines are most likely to flood<br />Need<br />http://www.actsa.org/Pictures/UpImages/pdfs/ACTSA_South_Africa_country_profile.pdf<br />Pretoria – With the incessant rains introducing a whole new dynamic to the lives of millions of South Africans, the nation has joined hands to deliver much needed relief to those who have been most adversely affected by the floods. <br />The Department of Social Development, business sector, civil society and faith based organizations have formed a task team, which will primarily coordinate humanitarian assistance to people across the country.<br />“The function of this team is to … respond to the immediate emergency priority needs, while at the same time, laying the foundations for early and eventual long-term recovery of the affected communities,” said Social Development Minister, Bathabile Dlamini, during a media briefing on Sunday.<br />South African authorities say at least 39 people have died in flooding and thunderstorms in the eastern part of the country.<br />Provincial disaster management confirmed Friday that 26 people, including 4 children, have died as a result of adverse weather conditions in the rural Eastern Cape province since mid-December<br />VISITOR FACT SHEET: THE DECLARED STATE OF DISASTER DUE TO FLOODS IN SOUTH AFRICA<br />1. The general public, investor community and tourists are encouraged to continue with their planned projects in, and travel to, the areas where a state of disaster has been declared BUT to also consider warnings given and other precautionary measures issued in respect of specific areas falling within and outside the borders of the declared areas.<br />2. The numbers that foreign tourists / business people can call to get the latest information on the state of floods in the country or the areas they intend travelling to are the following:<br />· Weatherline: (+27) 082162.<br />· EMS: (+27) 10177 (Emergency services)<br /> <br />Information from the visitor fact sheet will help us know what exactly we’re working against. Knowing locations of disaster areas will also help us know where people need our houses the most.<br />In South Africa, weather-related incidents, including floods, lightning strikes and tornadoes, are thought to have killed 40 people between mid-December 2010 and 17 January 2011, and more than 6,000 people had been displaced, according to the National Disaster Management Centre. <br />Recyclable Materials <br />Acceptable items are the same for the curbside program, drop-off locations and staffed recycling centers except as noted below (see Exceptions):<br />FIBER MATERIALSPAPER <br />White or mixed office paper, computer paper, file folders and manila and regular envelopes, mail items, junk mail, brown paper grocery bags, telephone books, and magazines/catalogs <br />Food-free pizza boxes, paperboard, cereal and gift boxes<br />Newspapers with slick advertising inserts<br />Flattened cardboard pieces no larger than approximately 2 ft x 2 ft <br />NO bound catalogs over 1 inch thick or glued bindings - NO plastic or foil backed paper <br />NO soiled or wax-coated cardboard like frozen food boxes and milk/juice cartons<br />NO wrapping paper<br />CO-MINGLED MATERIALS<br />GLASS <br />Food and drink bottles and jars (clear, brown, green, blue) - remove lids and rinse. Leave labels on <br />NO window glass, mirrors, light bulbs, drinking glasses/mugs, oven/cooking glassware, pottery <br />METAL & ALUMINUM<br />Steel “tin” cans such as soup, vegetable or pet food (rinse and put lids inside), empty aerosol cans (remove plastic lids) <br />Clean used aluminum foil, disposable roasting, pie and cake pans, beverage cans and clean aluminum food containers (flatten to save space if possible) <br />NO pots, pans, coat hangers, or paint cans<br />NO medical waste such as needles<br />PLASTIC<br />Household containers such as milk jugs, cups, squeeze bottles, clear food packaging, soft drink, laundry and dishwashing detergent, margarine and whipped topping tubs, bottles and jars marked #1 thru #7 with the recycling symbol are accepted in the program. SOME ITEMS MARKED ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE AND ARE NOTED BELOW. Clean thoroughly and leave labels and lids on. Flatten to save space if possible.<br />NO medical waste such as syringes<br />NO motor oil or antifreeze jugs, plastic bags or buckets, pumps or sprayers, paint containers or plastic cutlery<br />NO plastic or styrofoam packing material such as peanuts or rigid. Styrofoam cups, plates and food containers are also NOT accepted. (See below for styrofoam recycling.)<br />BATTERIES<br />Household batteries, such as sizes AAA, AA, C & D are accepted at all staffed recycling locations and the Household Hazardous Waste site (HAZBIN) only. <br />Household batteries are not accepted in the curbside or unstaffed drop-off programs.<br />EXCEPTIONS: The following items can be recycled ONLY at the STAFFED Recycling Locations.<br />Antifreeze - No containers larger than 5 gallons Motor Oil - No containers larger than 5 gallons Oil Filters Automobile, Boat, and Motorcycle Batteries; Household BatteriesInkjet and Laser Toner CartridgesDVDs and CDsFloppy DisksSTYROFOAM (MOLDED POLYSTYRENE)Molded Polystyrene (Styrofoam) is NOT accepted in any of Louisville Metro's Recycling Programs. This product is generally found as packing material for computers, appliances, fragile items, etc. (This does not include styrofoam packing peanuts) However, product that is clean, white and contained (bagged) may be taken to: Foam Fabricators, Inc. 950 Progress Boulevard New Albany, IN 47150 948-1696There is a receiving bin where citizens may place this material for recycling. For large quantities, please phone the number listed above and make an appointment for delivery.On behalf of Louisville Metro Government, we wish to thank Foam Fabricators for being such good neighbors and allowing our residents to recycle this material!<br />Many 'pack-and-ship' type stores will accept peanuts or polystyrene packing materials, so call to check with the location nearest you.PLEASE NOTE:While we encourage proper sorting of the materials listed above and placement of said items in the proper compartment at the drop-off locations, minimal contamination or recyclable items placed in the wrong compartment will not cause the entire load to be landfilled. The Material Recovery Facility (MRF) hand sorts the materials and removes any contamination and/or places the items into the proper categories.<br />THANK YOU FOR DOING YOUR PART TO MAKE LOUISVILLE CLEANER AND GREENER!!<br />Tips for Recycling Metal Clothes Hangers<br />Gary Barker with the Organic Consumers Association states that recycling wire hangers proves difficult for a few reasons:<br />The hooks catch on recycling equipment causing jams and damage. <br />There is also a petroleum polymer coating on the hangers that makes recycling the metal more of a challenge. <br />Most recycling centers won’t accept metal hangers, due to the low percentage of steel reclaimed per hanger.<br />If you live in an area that accepts wire hangers as part of curbside recycling, take advantage of it, or use Earth911 to locate recycling centers nearest you.<br />Otherwise, reuse is the best option. If you don’t want to keep wire hangers around in your closet, use them for do-it-yourself projects such as unclogging drains. Lastly, many dry cleaners welcome metal hangers back to their facilities for reuse.<br />Buoyancy<br />Why boats float and elephants sink (buoyancy) left0How does a boat or ship carrying hundreds of pounds worth of stuff float while that same stuff would sink to the bottom of the ocean if dumped overboard? How come when you're in a pool and you stretch your body out flat you float. But, if you wrap your arms around your legs and curl up into a ball you sink? Well, it all has to do with how much water is pushing against you and a little scientific principle called buoyancy (the ability to float or in more technical terms - the upward forces exerted by a fluid on a body in it). or floatation. When you stretch out flat more water pushes against you since your body is laid out flatter. When you curl up into a ball, less water is pushing against you. Want to test this for yourself? Try this experiment: Take a piece of clay and split it into 2 identically sized pieces. Take one of the pieces and roll it into a ball. Take the other piece and fashion it into a flat boat shaped object (if needed, get mom or dad to help - that's what they're there for). Now place both pieces into a sink full of water. Which one floats and which one sinks? Both? Neither? So you see, if the total area of the object that makes contact with the water is large enough, the object floats. The object must make room for its own volume by pushing aside, or displacing, an equivalent (or equal) volume of liquid. The object is exerting a downward force on the water and the water is therefore exerting a upward force on the object. Of course the floating object's weight comes into play also. The solid body floats when it has displaced just enough water to equal its own original weight.This principle is called buoyancy. Buoyancy is the loss in weight an object seems to undergo when placed in a liquid, as compared to its weight in air. Archimedes' principle states that an object fully or partly immersed in a liquid is buoyed upward by a force equal to the weight of the liquid displaced by that object. From this principle, he concluded that a floating object displaces an amount of liquid equal to its own weight. (Note: if you don't understand these last two paragraphs, don't worry. They're not on the test). Sources: World Book Encyclopedia (1997) University of Wisconsin Web Site<br />BuoyancyBuoyancy arises from the fact that fluid pressure increases with depth and from the fact that the increased pressure is exerted in all directions (Pascal's principle) so that there is an unbalanced upward force on the bottom of a submerged object. Since the \"
water ball\"
at left is exactly supported by the difference in pressure and the solid object at right experiences exactly the same pressure environment, it follows that the buoyant force on the solid object is equal to the weight of the water displaced (Archimedes' principle). Objects of equal volume experience equal buoyant forces.Applications of buoyancy.IndexBuoyancy concepts HyperPhysics***** Mechanics ***** Fluids R NaveGo Back<br />Equal Volumes Feel Equal Buoyant ForcesSuppose you had equal sized balls of cork, aluminum and lead, with respective specific gravities of 0.2, 2.7, and 11.3 . If the volume of each is 10 cubic centimeters then their masses are 2, 27, and 113 gm. Each would displace 10 grams of water, yielding apparent masses of -8 (the cork would accelerate upward), 17 and 103 grams respectively. The behavior of the three balls would certainly be different upon release from rest in the water. The cork would bob up, the aluminum would sink, and the lead would sink more rapidly. But the buoyant force on each is the same because of identical pressure environments and equal water displacement. The difference in behavior comes from the comparison of that buoyant force with the weight of the object.Behavior of sinking objectsIndexBuoyancyBuoyancy concepts HyperPhysics***** Mechanics ***** Fluids R NaveGo Back<br />Archimedes' PrincipleHmm! The crown seems lighter under water! The buoyant force on a submerged object is equal to the weight of the liquid displaced by the object. For water, with a density of one gram per cubic centimeter, this provides a convenient way to determine the volume of an irregularly shaped object and then to determine its density. What is it's density? IndexArchimedes discussionBuoyancy concepts HyperPhysics***** Mechanics ***** Fluids R NaveGo Back<br />Archimedes' PrincipleHmm! The crown seems lighter under water! The buoyant force on a submerged object is equal to the weight of the liquid displaced by the object. For water, with a density of one gram per cubic centimeter, this provides a convenient way to determine the volume of an irregularly shaped object and then to determine its density. IndexArchimedes discussionBuoyancy concepts HyperPhysics***** Mechanics ***** Fluids R NaveGo Back<br />Archimedes' PrincipleThe buoyant force on a submerged object is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced. This principle is useful for determining the volume and therefore the density of an irregularly shaped object by measuring its mass in air and its effective mass when submerged in water (density = 1 gram per cubic centimeter). This effective mass under water will be its actual mass minus the mass of the fluid displaced. The difference between the real and effective mass therefore gives the mass of water displaced and allows the calculation of the volume of the irregularly shaped object (like the king's crown in the Archimedes story). The mass divided by the volume thus determined gives a measure of the average density of the object. Archimedes found that the density of the king's supposedly gold crown was actually much less than the density of gold -- implying that it was either hollow or filled with a less dense substance. Examination of the nature of buoyancy shows that the buoyant force on a volume of water and a submerged object of the same volume is the same. Since it exactly supports the volume of water, it follows that the buoyant force on any submerged object is equal to the weight of the water displaced. This is the essence of Archimedes principle. Application to determining densityIndexBuoyancy concepts HyperPhysics***** Mechanics ***** Fluids R NaveGo Back<br />Current Viable Solutions<br />http://morfis.wordpress.com/2010/11/19/futuristic-floating-dwellings/<br />This is an article about the MORPHotel, a concept by Italian architect Gianluca Santosuosso it is a floating living space, however these are very complex structures so it’s a little different than our project. The article isn’t very specific about the design of the dwellings, so maybe there are things that can be applied to our design.<br />http://www.holcimfoundation.org/T1228/A08AMngNG-prog10.htm<br />This article is about floating dwellings in a small village near Lagos, Nigeria. These dwellings, like ours are made mainly out of recycled materials. This project also launched a nonprofit business called Hope Floats Initiative that we could use for our project. The team used recycled wood, plastic foils, used sheet metals, reeds and thatch. <br />Using ideas other people have come up with is great to work off of in our own project. They can help us understand what we know works and what we know doesn’t. From this we can come up with bigger and better ideas.<br />Calculations<br />Proof<br />Friday, February 04, 2011<br />1:12 PM<br />ρ= density. Fresh water is 1000kg/m^3<br />Salt water is 1022 kg/m^3<br />Let us assume that because there will be more molecules in any given cubic yard of flooded water, then the mass will be greater, as is seen in freshwater to saltwater. So in a floodzone, the water will have topsoil and other such minerals which will increase the density of the water. With this assumption there is now an ability to estimate the density of this dirt saturated water.<br />The density of a tightly compacted cubic meter of average soil is 2002 kilograms/m^3. A rough estimate of the density of the water places the dirt to water ratio around 1:5. now, the approximate density can be calculated.<br />V= volume. Volume displaced by the submerged is equal to the volume of the submerged object which is the bottles.<br />g= gravitational constant: 9.8 m/s^2. This term cancels out.<br />The sum of forces is zero because the house is not moving so there is no net force on the house.<br /> <br />2002*1/6=333.6667<br />1000*5/6=833.3333<br /> <br />333.7+833.3=1,167<br /> density of muddy water: 1167 kg/m^3<br /> <br /> <br /> <br />4 feet = 1.2192 meters<br />1.2192/.0986760648=12.3555798711 bottles<br /> <br /> <br />4 feet = 1.2192 meters<br />1.2192/.3=4.064 bottles<br /> <br />If the palate is 4 feet by 4 feet then that means there can be 12*4 bottles on the palate<br /> <br /> <br />∑Forces = 0 = mg-ρfluidVdisplacedg<br />mg= ρfluidVdisplacedg<br />mmax= ρfluidVdisplacedg<br />g<br />mmax=ρfluidVdisplaced<br /> mmax= (1167kg/m^3)(48)(.002m^3)=112 kilogram = 246.917 lbs<br /> <br /> <br />Other Missing Research Elements that are Essential to the Project<br />http://www.obviously.com/recycle/guides/common.html<br />http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/deputate/airwaste/wm/recycle/recywrks/recywrks2.htm<br />http://www.suite101.com/content/materials-best-suited-to-recycling-a64182<br />Bibliography<br />Futuristic floating dwellings. (2010, November). Retrieved from http://morfis.wordpress.com/2010/11/19/futuristic-floating-dwellings/ <br />La City of Louisville, Kentuckyst, Initials. (2010). Recyclable materials . Retrieved from http://www.louisvilleky.gov/SolidWaste/recycling/Recyclable+Materials.htm <br />Nave, R. (n.d.). Buoyancy. Retrieved from http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/pbuoy.html <br />Reeko, . (1997-2005). Why boats float and elephants sink (buoyancy). Retrieved from http://www.spartechsoftware.com/reeko/experiments/floating.htm <br />Smith, John. (2011, January 24). South africa flood death toll rises as government declares 33 disaster zones. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jan/24/south-africa-flood-death-toll <br />World New. (2011). 377 dead in west and central african floods: un . Retrieved from http://article.wn.com/view/2010/10/20/377_dead_in_west_and_central_African_floods<br />