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Vol 89 No 36 - October 1, 2012


On the Road Toward Unlimited Clean Energy - Nuclear Fusion


Presented By: Jim Baize


Jim Baize

Jim Baize

The speaker discussed nuclear fusion as a potential ultimate power source of energy for the human race. It is considered the holy grail. While nuclear fusion has been achieved in the laboratory, it is still decades away from commercialization and utilization.

With the world population exceeding six and a half billion, a substantial source of clean and dependable energy is vitally needed to stem the continued increase of carbon dioxide from industrialization and the burning of fossil fuel

In 1985 President Reagan and Premier Gorbachev started an International meeting to create the first International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor. The United States and the Soviet Union were joined by India, Japan and South Korea. Over 3,000 scientists were involved in the project. A successful laboratory creation of fusion which lasted for one second was reported after a $20 billion expense.

Baize then compared fission to fusion reactions for energy production. Fission reactors have been in use for over 60 years. There are 104 reactors in the United States and have been operating with good safety records. The attendant problems are the presence of radioactive waste, and problems related to storage and disposal of such waste.

Hydrogen atoms fused into helium with the release of energy are the primary source of energy radiating from the sun. It is caused by the intense gravitational attraction of the sun's matter, crushing the atoms of hydrogen together with tremendous pressure. This has yet to be duplicated in order to produce energy.

It is hoped that in another 50 years, improved technology may render the fusion reactor production of clean energy a reality.


Scribe: Gonz Chua




Vol 89 No 37 - October 8, 2012


The Evolution of Modern Cataract Surgery


Presented By: Dr. Dan Robinson


Dan Robinson

Dr. Dan Robinson

Dr. Robinson grew up in Greencastle and Atlanta. He earned an undergraduate degree from Purdue and then was awarded an M.D. degree from Indiana University in 1986. He has served as president of Indianapolis and Indiana Ophthalmology organizations.

A cataract is a clouding of the lens of the eye. The lens is replaced in modern cataract surgery. Among the causes of cataracts are: genetics, diabetes, prednisone and UV light.


Eye Anatomy

Human Eye

The anatomy of the eye is:


- Tear film acts as a diffusing surface

- Cornea serves like a watch crystal

- Lens focuses the incoming light. It is connected by zonules to the ciliary body

- Ciliary muscles flex the lens to change the focal length

- Vitreous is a nearly clear fluid filling the center of the eye (floaters occur there)

- Retina receives the focused light image through 1.2 million ganglion nerve fibers


Cataract surgery has been done since the time of the Egyptians. They used couching - the lens was pushed back into the vitreous out of the way. In the 1800s, incisions and anesthesia were introduced. ICCE (Intracapsular Cataract Extraction) removed the lens in one piece. The surgery, which took 20-25 minutes, removed the lens through an incision in the cornea.

Today the phacoemulsification technique is used. The patient is given some anesthetic eye drops and 1 mg. of Versed, one-sixth of that used in a colonoscopy. A small incision is made in the cornea and the cataract is cut into quarters. Each piece is emulsified by an ultrasound hand piece and vacuumed out of the eye.

Next an intraocular lens is implanted behind the iris. In the past, the implant was in the front part of the eye. The material originally used for the implant was PMMA; and it is still used in some instances. Silicone can be used but most surgeons now use acrylic because it is foldable and biocompatible.

Each lens is customized based on the length and curvature of the eye. The lens is usually flat on one side and curved on the other. Astigmatism and spherical aberration can be corrected. Most lenses are monofocal, so reading glasses will still be needed. Multifocal lenses are being developed. The surgery takes about 15 minutes.

Dr. Robinson has been traveling to Guatemala and Panama for nine years. He showed photos of local patients and physicians. They transport their high tech equipment and do as many surgeries as possible, often teaching techniques to the local surgeons.


Scribe: Bill Dick




Vol 89 No 38 - October 15, 2012


Matthew Boulton, Engineer: A Founding Father of Modern Manufacturing and His Contribution to the Industrial Revolution


Presented By: Paul A. Hyslop, PhD


Paul Hyslop

Paul Hyslop

Paul is a Scientech Club member and a member of the Board of Directors. He was born near London, England and received his undergraduate and graduate education at the University of Southampton, with degrees in physiology and biochemistry. He has had several research positions having in recent years retired from Eli Lilly and Company. Currently he is involved in stem cell research at his own company in Indianapolis.

Although there are records of scientific achievements as far back as the Greeks and even before, there was an acceleration of scientific advancements beginning in the 18th century. Advancements in agriculture such as crop rotation and industrial use of technological advancements were instituted. Matthew Boulton was one who could understand and could further the science and technology of his time and developing the industrial uses of these advancements.

He was the son of a small manufacturer and later chose to leave school to join his father in business. He married in 1760 and started a manufacturing facility on his home acreage. He became a skilled gold and silversmith and developed a process for gold plating artistic ornaments and jewelry. He was a leader in the establishment of the Birmingham Assay Office to provide a fair measure of those precious metals. Because of his talent and integrity he was asked to join the Lunar Society (they met at night) in 1766. This society included the leaders in science and technology of the day. Names such as Priestly, Wedgwood, Erasmus Darwin, Withering and James Watt appeared on the roster. In 1796 he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society.


Steam Engine

Boulton Watt
Steam Engine

James Watt, a major developer of the steam engine, was looking for a sponsor. He knew Boulton and asked him to be a sponsor for the further development, manufacture and distribution of the engine. In 1775 the Boulton and Watt Steam Engine Company was begun. By 1798 the engines were exported all over the world; indeed, demand far exceeded supply. Although Thomas Savery invented the concept of steam power in 1698, the first practical device to harness steam power was Newcomen in 1712. His device was used to pump water out of coal mines, coal becoming very important for fuel after the deforestation.

Watt's breakthrough in the development of steam power included thermal insulation to contain the heat, a separate condenser reducing fuel use by 85%, a parallel motion mechanism, a governor to control engine speed and converting the up-and-down motion of the engine to a rotary motion. This Watt and Boulton engine was important in establishing the industrial revolution of the age. In addition to manufacturing these steam engines, the Boulton and Watt factory in Soho Birmingham was the primary minter of coins for the world. Boulton also worked to establish a minimum age for children in his factories, safety procedures, workers' pensions and a dispensary to provide medical care for the poor.


Click HERE to view the Power Point slides used in this talk


Scribe: Jerry Kurlander




Vol 89 No 39 - October 22, 2012


Airplane Crew Training to Avoid Accidents


Presented By: Charles Russell, Training Specialist, Crew Training International


Charles Russell

Charles Russell

Charlie Russell is a recognized expert in the field of aviation safety. His background includes thirty five years in the U.S. Air Force, Reserve, and twenty eight years at IUPUI. With additional training in psychology he has enjoyed an illustrious career focusing on the "human element" in aviation safety.

Flying airplanes involves three fundamental factors:


Physics - What makes a wing fly (Bernoulli's Principle)

Technology - Aircraft design

Human Factors (most important)


His fundamental thesis strongly suggests human factors are much more likely to cause errors leading to accidents than are mechanical failures. Pilots have a 92% chance of surviving an engine failure but a 90% chance of dying in a vertigo-induced stall/spin accident, e.g., in instrument conditions.

A revelation to today's pilots who cut their teeth on check lists is, that prior to the B-17 (a complex airplane with four engines), check lists as such did not exist. A colorful accident history following an approach described as "…kick the tire, light the fire…." created a necessary respect for airplanes and, therefore, checklists. (Every line item on a check list is there because of someone's error in the past).

While accident rates are trending down, we can remember several examples of human error rather than mechanical failure leading to aircraft accidents:


1972 - Eastern Airlines Flt 401 flew into the Everglades while the entire crew was distracted by a (faulty) landing gear lock indicator. The lock was fine: Human Error.

1974 - Northwest Airlines (Detroit) pilots were discovered imbibing IN FLIGHT of the "leftover" liquor bottles in the galley: Human Error.

1978 - United Airlines Flt 173 ran out of gas after flying around burning down his fuel tanks to avoid a "possible explosion". He then ignored his co-pilot's call outs of a declining fuel state and crashed: Human Error (crew management).

1987 - A USAF A7 Corsair crashed into a Ramada Inn attempting to avoid an incident that he thought might damage his career in the classified F-117 (stealth) program: Human Error.


On the plus side, a dramatic example of human factors overcoming mechanical failure occurred when US Air Flt 1549 departed LaGuardia (NY) and experienced a bird strike over the Hudson River. Nothing focuses the mind like an engine failure at low altitude and a very experienced, professional crew calmly ran their check lists and evaluated their options. Audio records of cockpit discipline (Crew Resource Management) demonstrated how far we have come since the "B-17" era.

There are two skill sets evident in successful aviation operations (or others):


Technical/Individual:                   Team/Organizational:

    Mission planning                               Technical skills

    Situational awareness                       Aircraft procedures

    Crew coordination                             "Stick and rudder" basic flying

    Communication                                 Weapons procedures

    Risk management                             Tactics

    Task management                             Operational plans

                                                           Crew Resource Management (CRM)


US aviation culture leads to "briefing" to solve errors - team approach. Russian aviation culture is somewhat exotic.

Charlie is now engaged in an interesting and challenging project that applies the hard-earned lessons in aviation to the medical community. Both of course share the same characteristic: errors are fatal. We wish him success in this worthwhile endeavor.


Scribe: John Morrical




Vol 89 No 40 - October 29, 2012


Passenger Trains: Past, Present & Future


Presented By: Nicholas Noe and Tim Watson, DDS


Nicholas Noe

Nicholas Noe

Nick and Tim are Scientech members and are passenger train fanciers. As Nick said, they are "chasers of the iron horse". They ride trains, and study trains old, new and in the future. Nick spoke on past and present passenger trains, and Tim spoke on trains of the future.

Trains are a civilized means of travel. They are relatively quiet and smooth-riding, extremely safe for their passengers, and can deliver the passengers right to a city center. As you ride a train, you can see the best view of America: the farms, the cities and towns, all at eye level.

Nick showed an advertising film from 1955, which followed a train passenger, checking his bag, finding his seat, eating a meal in the dining car, and safely arriving at his destination. But 1955 was about the time that the airlines began expanding and taking passengers away from the railroads, and also was the year that the interstate highways began to throw cobwebs across the country. People left the railroads to ride in their own cars.


Tim Watson

Tim Watson, DDS

The railroads discussed their disappearing passengers, and they simultaneously downsized their passenger capacity. The government responded by creating Amtrak, and that is all we have today. It is a political creature, hated by conservatives and admired by liberals, and its routes are very limited. Some say it's an investment, and others say it is just a subsidy.

Nick says its service is unpredictable; the food may be good or bad; the trains may be on time or not, and the cars may be hot or cold. Don't trust their online reservation service. Carry a day pack with a blanket and snacks.

Tim told us that the fastest trains in the US are on the Acela line in the NYC-Washington corridor, and they run only 80 mph. They are slow compared to some European and Japanese trains because they run on the old grade-level tracks and make many stops. Modern high speed trains run on tracks either above or below grade level and stop only at major cities. It is questionable if such a line could be built in the USA.

Thirteen nations now have modern high speed trains. Substantially all of them run on steel rails, and are powered by electricity which they pick up from overhead power lines. They are highly streamlined, of course, and they are growing lower as the generations of trains go by.

The next power may be Maglev-magnetic levitation. The "track" for it is a rectangular trough, the walls of which are filled with magnetic coils. When energized, a magnetic field is generated, which raises the train off the bottom of the trough, centers it between the walls, and propels it as desired. A Japanese company is now proposing a 300 mph Maglev train!

A Maglev line can be built to allow a train to leave the mainline and swing off to a station, decelerating as it goes, and leaving the mainline clear for other traffic.


Click HERE to view the Power Point slides used by Tim Watson in this talk


Scribe: Joe Jones




Vol 89 No 41 - November 5, 2012


Periodontal Plastic Surgery


Presented By: Kurt D. Van Winkle, DDS, MSD


Kurt Van Winkle

Kurt Van Winkle

Our presenter today was Dr Kurt Van Winkle DDS, MSD specializing in periodontics and implant surgery. He is a graduate of Brebeuf. He has a BS in Biology, a MS in Dentistry and a Doctorate in Dental Surgery, all from IU, and has been in private practice since 1990.

Periodontal plastic surgery focuses on:


- Soft Tissue Grafting

- Gingivectomy / Gingivoplasty

- Crown Lengthening

- Hard Tissue Grafting


Soft tissue grafting repairs damage to the gums from accidents, neglect, or natural aging. Its goal is to reestablish form and function, i.e. decrease sensitivity of exposed roots, enhance esthetics, and provide support. Flaps stretch the tissue at the gum line to a problem area while grafts add tissue to build up the area. The graft tissue can be excised from the palate. For deeper restoration, sub-epithelial connective tissue can be packed into deep recesses near the gum line. If natural tissue is not available, an acellular dermal matrix (Alloderm) can be used to restore the missing gum tissue.

Soft tissue grafting can also be used to eliminate pigmentation, in crown lengthening, and in grafting around implants to hide metal.

Root surface restorations and uneven crown margins can be addressed by soft tissue grafted to cover the exposed root.

Gingivectomy / Gingivoplasty deals with enhancing smiles, reducing "gummy smiles", improving asymmetrical gingival contours, and pre-restorative crown-lengthening. This may involve removing "bubbles" under the gum or restoring gum lines.

Crown Lengthening is done for esthetics and also to prepare for new crowns. This surgery reduces the gum to show more of the crown. Pre-restorative crown lengthening may be needed when there is decay under the crown.

Hard tissue grafting is used on periodontally involved teeth, socket preservation, ridge augmentation, and sinus lifts. Osseous (bone) regeneration restores bone supporting the teeth or supporting planned implants. A physical barrier may be required to prevent the gum tissue from invading the area that needs new bone structure. This can apply at the sides of a tooth or in socket restoration after tooth extraction. Ridge augmentation is the restoration of the "ridge" across extracted teeth spanned by a bridge. This bone structure naturally atrophies when not supporting teeth.

Sinus lift grafting is a technique to add bone in the bottom of the sinus cavity when the bone is too thin to support an implant. Dr Winkle described a technique to go through the roof of the mouth and "raise a tent" in the sinus cavity which is then filled with bone growing material from below. It is important to not puncture the sinus cavity.

Many of the procedures above are enhanced (or made possible) by advances such as 3D imaging and the use of advanced "stents" (positioning tools).

As for preventive measures, Dr Winkle said flossing is important as well as at least semi-annual cleanings (every 4 months is even better). He would recommend only Listerine for an over-the-counter mouthwash as it is the only product with supporting research.

The range of techniques described by Dr Van Winkle was eye opening. As he said at the outset, the technology has progressed so fast that many dentists and dental hygienists are also not aware of what is now possible.


Scribe: John Peer




Vol 89 No 42 - November 12, 2012


Update on Aerospace Industry Programs


Presented By: David B. Newell


David Newell

David Newell

David Newell is the Director of Market Research and Analysis of Rolls-Royce and president of Heritage Trust. He graduated from the USAF Academy and has an advanced degree from USC. He predicts future markets.

Rolls-Royce is a world-leading provider of power systems and services in civil aerospace, defense aerospace, marine and energy. Rolls-Royce has a new facility in Indianapolis and a total of 66 facilities in the United States. A Rolls-Royce powered aircraft takes off every 2.5 seconds.

Over the next 20 years, Newell sees market opportunities of $800 billion in civil aerospace equipment and $600 billion in services. In marine, he sees $215 billion in equipment and $125 billion in services. In energy, he sees $120 billion in conventional power and $640 billion in civil nuclear.

For the future, Newell's very interesting predictions are:


Ceramic Blades raise engine operating temps for efficiency gains -2017

US fields UAV's with wingspans of 3 cm - 2019 (by the thousands - like gnats)

Airplanes 20% more fuel efficient than in 2009 - 2019

Supersonic biz jets first test flights - 2020

Library of Congress data fully stored in a sugar cube sized memory device - 2020

Desktop computer as fast as a human brain - 2021

Single stage to orbit launch vehicles - 2022

25% of TV celebrities are synthetic - 2023 (I thought they were already!)

Unducted Fans enter service - 2024

Molecular level manufacturing - 2025

Hypersonic drone bomber w/ global range - 2026

Military combat aircraft fully autonomous - 2026 (impact on FADEC?)

Airplanes 50% more fuel efficient than in 2010 - 2026

Unmanned aircraft replaces F-35 - 2028

First double-bubble design airlines cut fuel burn by 70% - 2029

Economically practical supersonic airliners - 2029

FAA approves autonomous drone airliners - 2032 (nothing can go wrong, go wrong, go wrong…)

50-100 pax Mach 5 airliners enter service - 2033

Fully automated "hop-in and go" aircraft with 300 mph speed - 2039

Hydrogen-fueled executive jets - 2041

Oil production nears its end - no new discoveries - 2060

200 + pax SST with Mach 2+ low boom for overland use - 2075


Click HERE to view the Power Point slides used by David Newell in this talk


Scribe: Malcolm Mallette




Vol 89 No 43 - November 19, 2012


Tour of the Quayle Vice Presidential Learning Center


Hosted By: Daniel Johns, Executive Director


So what does one expect upon arriving at the Quayle Vice Presidential Learning Center, located in Quayle's hometown of Huntington, Indiana? The museum's slogan is "Second to One," but can any display or artifact disprove the notion that the Veep is the vestigial organ of national politics?

James Danforth Quayle served as George H. W. Bush's Vice President for one term from 1989-93. The pair failed to get re-elected, Quayle fell from the spotlight and a brief attempt to secure the Republican presidential nomination in 2000 ended quickly.


Quayle Museum

Quayle Museum



We entered the old Christian Science Church that houses the museum, and the curator lead us around the exhibits. The first floor is dedicated to all who have served as vice president. Each one has his own display column, featuring political cartoons, letters and other memorabilia. Much of the material has been purchased from eBay, including Millard Fillmore's hat, which is given special treatment. Quayle has donated more than 400 boxes of personal papers.

Particular attention is given to the five vice presidents (and the three losing vice presidential candidates) hailing from Indiana. At one time in our history Indiana was a "swing state," and Hoosiers like Schuyler Colfax, Thomas Hendricks and Charles Fairbanks helped to secure it. Indiana State Highway 9, which runs through town, is known as The Vice Presidential Highway, connecting the homes of Quayle, Hendricks and Woodrow Wilson's VP, Thomas Marshall.

Upstairs focuses on the life of Dan Quayle, including items like the "Danny" sweater he wore as a child, the sweater in which he played golf as vice president, his hometown Little League uniform and other items from Huntington. The dog-chewed law degree is clearly displayed, with photos of the offending pooch, Barnaby.

There are artifacts from his time as a congressman and senator, such as the desk item reading, "In appreciation of your continuing support of cruise missile programs." Gifts from foreign visits and foreign visitors are featured with Marilyn Quayle's inaugural gown, the Bible he was sworn in on and his vice presidential hand-painted golf bag. The Quayle - Murphy Brown debate is chronicled, as is his short 2000 presidential run.

The big fundraiser is the annual Quayle Center golf tournament, held at a local country club and often attended by the former vice president himself. He currently lives in Arizona where, according to Johns, he is an "an investment broker and is doing international banking type things." We found him listed as a director of sporting goods maker K2 Inc., which says he is the chairman of Cerberus Global Investments.

When the Dan Quayle Commemorative Foundation opened the museum in June, 1993, it believed, as it says in the Center's current literature, "There was a huge desire to know more about Dan, coming from people all over the country." The center's primary focus is educational programming for elementary and middle school students both on-site and off-site in Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and even New York, helping them to learn about the vice-presidency and America's system of government.




Vol 89 No 44 - November 26, 2012


Vehicle Crash Reconstruction by Photogrammetry


Presented By: Lt. Brian Stevenson, Boone County Sheriff's Office


Brian Stevenson

Brian Stevenson

Lt. Brian Stevenson changed his ambition to law enforcement when a friend let him ride along in a squad car one night. He has been in charge of crash investigation in Boone County for several years.

When he started investigating crashes he had car lights, a siren, a tape measure and not much else. A road might be closed for 7 hours while the investigators measured and checked the entire scene, and they would spend more long hours drawing maps and writing up the report.

All the time a road is closed there is a possibility of "secondary crashes" which are dangerous to the public and to the officers on the scene. It takes four times as much time to clear out a closure as the time the road was closed!

With photogrammetry (PG) the road is closed 1/3 as long, and, back at the office, software helps to prepare the drawings and the report.

PG provides a scale model of the crash scene with important locations marked, and the distances between them precisely calculated. The first step is to set out identified markers at the important locations and also at numerous random locations. A major accident scene may be 2000 feet long. Each marker has a bull's-eye on each side, and the two bull's-eyes precisely coincide, so that the eye or camera can look at either side and get the precise location.

A quality digital camera is used to take numerous shots of the scene from numerous angles, and specialized software will be used to triangulate the distances between event locations. Such measurement are off less than 1/4 inch in 500 feet.

At the same time the texture of the road is measured or estimated, witness statements are taken and, if needed, evidence of alcohol abuse is collected by members of the crash team.

Then the markers can be taken up and the road can be opened. Everyone brings their data back to the office where the digital photographs are entered into the computer, along with the road surface data. Measurement of the length of skid marks, with the road surface data, allows accurate calculation of the speed of the vehicle when the skid began. Measurement of the usually curved path of the vehicle after impact also assists in calculation of its speed and direction before impact, particularly when one vehicle leaves no skid marks before impact.

The technique has been proved and approved in numerous federal and state courts. About 20-25 counties and cities in Indiana now use it.


Click HERE to view the Power Point slides used by Lt. Stevenson in this talk


Scribe: Joe Jones




Vol 89 No 45 - December 3, 2012


Annual Update on the D. J. Angus Foundation


Introductory Remarks by George Cunningham
Main Address by Jim Amidon, Wabash College


Jim Amidon

Jim Amidon

Today we had a brief update from George Cunningham on the DJ Angus Foundation followed by Jim Amidon of Wabash on the OLAB Summer Intern Program.

D J Angus Foundation George is a member of the Foundation Board. The Foundation was incorporated in 1967 to support:

- college students who have improved their grades from their freshman year,
- the concept of the free enterprise system, and
- good citizenship.

The Foundation Board is composed of past Scientech Presidents of which about a dozen were present. The Foundation will disburse $110,000 in 2012. It has an endowment of $1.8Million whose principal is preserved. Primary programs are:

-Most improved student (19 colleges)
-OLAB at Wabash
-Five $5K college scholarships
-Summer programs for high school and younger students at IUPUI (cees@IUPUI) and Purdue
-Three-day summer trips to the Angus Water Resources Institute at Grand Valley State for 20-25 students


OLAB Jim Amidon is a professor at Wabash and runs the "Opportunities to Learn Business" (OLAB) summer intern program at Wabash. OLAB started in 1973 and has 3000 graduates. The original vision was a "Hoosier Boys State" modeled on business. It runs an intense one-week program for 64 promising students entering their senior year of high school. It is nationally known and well respected. It is a scholarship program free to the participants. Initially it was largely funded by the Chamber of Commerce. The D J Angus Foundation donates $4,500/yr supporting 5 students.

The 6-day program is intense from 7AM to 11 PM. It immerses the 17 yr olds in a semester's (150 hrs) worth of classes focusing on team building skills, pushing the 17-yr olds outside their comfort zone, forcing them to take risks, and giving them the opportunity to be (discover) themselves.

The curriculum starts with consensus building and a sense of each being responsible to each other. Marketing, production, and accounting concepts are taught followed by social activities including talent shows. Monday brings public speaking before the whole class which is recorded for self-critique. The topics are taught by lecture, workshop, and structured games to reinforce the principles.

On Tuesday the fun begins with a business simulation game. The students are teamed to run 12 "companies". Their product is a hand-held device (e.g. cell phone) to which they can add features. They must come up with marketing, advertising, production, and finance plans. All their decisions are fed to the simulation program which generates all the results, including profit.

Intervention occurs with a labor strike. Then a second challenge is introduced - ethics vs. profit at any cost. The week concludes with the "CEO" of each company giving a 10-minute presentation to their stockholders (classmates) competing for "Best Managed Company" Award.

OLAB can be a transformative life changing experience.


Scribe: John Peer




Vol 89 No 46 - December 10, 2012


Sustainability and Paradigm Shift: Burning Coal to Geothermal


Presented By: Jim Lowe, Ball State University


Jim Lowe

Jim Lowe

The geothermal project at Ball State University is the largest geothermal heating and cooling project in the United States. 47 individual buildings on the Ball State campus are involved. Sustainability is defined as the capacity to endure. It indicates being good stewards of the earth's resources without compromising the needs of future generations. This includes storm water management, recycling and waste collection, and energy efficiency in construction and, of course, in heating and cooling.

Four coal fired boilers were installed at Ball State between 1941 and 1945. In the 1970s three natural gas-fired boilers were added. These seven boilers are located in the heating plant. Five electrical centrifugal chillers are located in the chilled water plant. The pollutants produced from burning the 36,000 tons of coal needed at Ball State each year includes 85,000 tons of carbon dioxide contributing to global warming and 1400 tons of sulfur dioxide producing acid rain. In addition there are substantial amounts of other pollutants such as nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide and particulate matter produced in this process.

In 2005 the State of Indiana appropriated $45 million to replace the 64-year-old coal fired boilers. By 2008 the cost of boiler replacement escalated to $65-$70 million. Coal prices during this interval were also increasing. All along there had been continuing international research in geothermal energy production. Considering these factors, plans for a district geothermal system to provide hot water and chilled water were developed. The estimated cost was $75-$80 million. A $2 million savings was estimated by eliminating coal purchases. A $5 million US Department of Energy grant was received in 2009 making the total funds available for the project of $50 million.

Geothermal resources in the United States providing the greatest potential are in the far west. In the Midwest the potential is low. With this in mind a vertical ground- coupled heat pump exchange system was chosen. The ground temperature is approximately 55°. In the winter the heat from the ground is extracted from the in-ground loops of circulating water and distributed from the thermal station to buildings across campus. In the summer the process is reversed and hot water is pumped into the ground to cool the buildings. Some further cooling capacity is also required. In our area it is necessary to sink the pipes to a level of 400 to 500 feet for the size of the Ball State System. The boreholes are designed to be about 15 feet apart. The piping is of high density polyethylene 1 1/4 inches in diameter and of the recirculating double loop variety. 3600 boreholes and about 1000 miles of pipe are needed. Installation of the pipe and the required grout-sand mixture is an immense project. To get the water temperature to 150°F and 42°F additional heating and chilling is required.

With the geothermal conversion 75,000 tons of carbon dioxide and 1400 tons of sulfur dioxide pollutants are eliminated. 36,000,000 gallons of water are saved along with the $2 million in the cost of coal. The total project is more than half completed and will require 2 1/2 years to finish as soon as additional funds become available.

Delegations from more than 30 colleges and universities as well as many other interested parties have visited this project at Ball State in preparation for possible geothermal conversion in the future.


Scribe: Gerald Kurlander




Vol 89 No 47 - December 17, 2012


The Scientech Web Site in Depth


Presented By: Paul McLear and Bill Stanley


Paul McLear

Paul McLear

Paul gave a review of the functions of the www.scientechclub.org web page at today's meeting, the last meeting in 2012.

At the top of each website page is a bar that you can click on to obtain access to the major sections of the webpage: Home, Club Information, Weekly Programs, Presentations, Foundations, Forms and a return to the top of the page. Most of these items will result in drop-down menu for enhanced navigation to relevant topics.

The "Club Information" page provides the name and picture of the present officers of the club and the board of directors. Likewise it provides a copy of the bylaws, committees and organization of the club. A brief history of the club is also included in this section, and information on special honors our membership has received.

The "Weekly Programs" provides information on the current program, the calendar and schedule of club events. The schedule of events in this section provides information the current program and all future presentations. This Web page is the most widely used part of the Web site.

"Presentations" provides a summary of each presentation given since 2006 by year. It is a great way of reviewing the meetings you may have missed. It will also include the last week's presentation.

"Foundations" gives a review of two foundations that the club and its members have sponsored over the years. Likewise, information on how to support the D. J. Angus - Scientech Educational Foundation can be found under this tab.

Lastly, "Forms" provides a way to make a membership application to the club using an on-line form , or a PDF form that can be printed and mailed. If a member has a program that they would like to recommend, a program proposal form is available.

The membership discussed ways to improve the Website, including a way of sending comments to the officers and committee chairmen. This would further enhance the Website as a two-way communication service.

Thanks for Bill Stanley for his input during the meeting and his past years as serving as Web Master.


Scribe: Hank Wolfla