Darwin High School students raise money for LA science fair with cooling strategy

NT students have found a way to cool classrooms and lower power bills, saving their school enough to hire two new teachers. Here’s how you can use their strategy and help them take their idea onto the world stage.

Darwin High School students Monishi Rangchak Tripura, Pothik Vincent Mondol, and Mohammad Niyaz Hasan have devised a strategy to cool rooms cheaply through apparent temperature optimisation. Picture: Sierra Haigh

Three Darwin High School students have devised a cooling strategy that could save their school enough money to hire two new teachers, but they need help presenting their project on the international stage.

In an effort to alleviate cost of living pressures and carbon emissions, Monishi Rangchak Tripura, Pothik Vincent Mondol, and Mohammad Niyaz Hasan set to work on their “apparent temperature optimisation” technique.

The trio – who are the first Darwin students to be invited to attend the International Science and Engineering Fair in the event’s 74-year history – found a way to reduce airconditioning costs without sacrificing a comfortable climate.

But they still need to raise another $6000 to make their dreams a reality.

Darwin High School students Monishi Rangchak Tripura, Pothik Vincent Mondol, and Mohammad Niyaz Hasan are calling on the NT community to help them raise enough money to present their project in LA. Picture: Sierra Haigh

Mr Tripura likened the strategy’s impact to a weather app’s actual temperature and “feels like” temperature”.

He said the perceived temperature of an environment was calculated by the wind speed, ambient temperature, and humidity.

Mr Tripura said manipulating the perceived temperature while lowering energy costs was as simple as cranking the aircon temperature up and turning the fans on.

“(Our) main temperature goal was 24 (degrees), that’s where the human performs at the maximum and they feel the best,” he said.

“So what we’re trying to do is make the room feel as though the person inside is 24 degrees – but the airconditioning is at 28 and the fans are running.”

Mr Tripura said in a school the size of DHS, such a strategy could save the school about $150,000 per year – enough to hire two new teachers – and reduce emissions by 60 tonnes.

An example the actual and "feels like" or apparent temperature in Darwin through the Apple weather app.

The trio is on track to present their findings and represent Australia – alongside eight other Aussie teams – in Los Angeles in May but need to finish fundraising by the end of March.

The competition requires each team to raise $30,000, and it cannot be bolstered by their own funds.

Mr Mondol said they had been presented with a “massive opportunity” and he hoped to inspire more NT students to close the gap between the NT and the other states.

Mr Hasan thanked everyone who had donated to their cause to date, including the Department of Education, and the Chief Minister’s office.

“We never thought we’d get this far in the first place,” he said.

“The $6000, if we can fulfil it, it will be like a dream come true.”

Anyone can donate here.