Alex Stiles, Brigham Young University’s (BYU) mechanical engineering student, along with fellow students, Roger Smith and Steve Gardner, have won the 2012 ‘February Project of the Month’ competition conducted by Cali Bamboo, a producer of green building materials for commercial and residential projects.
Composite material beam
The team has been awarded for developing strong composite material beams using bamboo fibers. The natural fiber double I-beam has gained the most number of votes in the contest and Stiles will be receiving a $500 award.
Cali Bamboo offers a broad range of products made from bamboo, including plywood, composite decking, flooring, and fencing. Fibers, sourced from Cali Bamboo’s composite matting, have been used as raw materials by BYU students to develop the natural fiber beam. The team has utilized the double I-beam to build a bridge for the Student Bridge Contest, hosted by the Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering (SAMPE), in Long Beach, California. The composite bridge achieved second position in the contest’s natural fiber category.
Bamboo is a renewable, sustainable, durable and cost-effective material, stated Stiles. The main aim of the BYU team’s research is to create an inexpensive fiber separation process that enables less developed countries to manufacture strong bamboo fibers to serve as a viable substitute for fiberglass.