Completed Projects

Tree House

This 200-square-foot treehouse was commissioned by a neighbor who wanted her grandson to have a fun place to play. This project included budgeting, designing, physical construction, and long-term planning. The completed treehouse has two multi-ton winch locations, wifi, electricity, a secret collapsible attic ladder, and a wide-angle peephole. To ensure the tree's survival, no structural components are attached to the tree in any way. Constructed solo the summer before leaving for Freshman year, it serves as a daily reminder of how much you accomplish, even during stressful times (COVID-19 summer, 2020).

Kight Light

VIDEO

Knight Light

The Knight Light is one of my most advanced and popular projects. It is an attachment designed for a white laser flashlight capable of shining a concentrated beam of visible light over a mile. This attachment can perform two main tasks.

Task One: Emergency Service Light Replication

Using theatrical lighting skills honed in high school and a laser cutter available in college, I created a color wheel attached to a geared electric motor that, when powered on in conjunction with the laser, produces an effect very similar to police lights. The strobing red and blue lights are so convincing that the device cannot be used in most US cities. However, a benefit of being friends with the police captain in my small college town in Iowa was that I got the Knight Light legalized for use. This privilege allowed me to terrify my drunk classmates heading home from the bars and make a few speedy drivers hit the brakes when rolling through town.

The Knight Light is equipped with custom protective cases for transport and laser-etched legal warnings to stimulate the frontal cortex before use.

Constructing this challenged me to learn about simple electrical circuits and create a wired system with redundant power switches, backlit push buttons, and a geared micro-electric motor. All while keeping the finished product as small and lightweight as possible while maintaining strength and durability.

Task Two: Long Distance Object Projection

This tool utilizes the physics of light refraction and reflection to project colored images hundreds of feet away. This (completely legal) attachment uses a custom glass lens, laser-cut precision projection slides, and theatrical lighting gels to add colors and maintain crisp projections at any distance. This design challenged me to learn how light refracts through the glass and interacts with negative space. Projection slide design is limited by equipment and "free bodies" that can't connect to the rest of the slide.

Inspired by the bat signal used to summon Batman, the light can project a perfect bat signal over 150 feet across and visible up to 2 miles.

Bonus Task: Firestarter

Utilizing the focal point created by the lens, all of the light energy leaving the handheld flashlight is concentrated into such a small area that it can generate enough heat to melt plastic or catch paper on fire. Protective glasses must be worn when starting a fire this way, as the hotspot is brighter than the sun and can permanently damage your eyes.

Type 2 Titanium Anodization.pdf

Titanium Type 2 Anodization.pdf

Type II Titanium Anodization Experiment

This project explored a method to color and improve the durability of commercially available titanium products through a process called electrochemical oxidation, also known as anodization. As a senior, I was the only student trusted by the chemistry department to create and perform my own experiments. I completed this project while also passing an advanced chemistry class.

One of the first steps in my procedure is chemically removing the top few hundred microns of titanium oxide to expose the raw titanium metal underneath. This step essentially dissolves titanium metal using powerful acid (I used concentrated sulfuric acid). This step did require that a professor be in the lab with me while handling and pouring the acid, along with tons of safety gear and a hood.

Titanium Microwave Experiment.pdf

Effects Of Microwave Radiation On Titanium Metal

This was a smaller, less formal, Titanium related experiment involving placing metal bowls of water into a microwave and recording the change in temperature. This project was a result of questions related to what are microwaves, and how do they interact with other molecules besides water?

NIH Autosampler Vials

During an analytical chemistry class, I designed a support-free rack capable of storing 12 gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) autosampler vials. My professor was so impressed with the design that she commissioned additional racks for use in future classes. With her support, my design was also added to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 3D Print Exchange, making it accessible to scientists worldwide.

This design stands out for being exceptionally lightweight, cost-effective, and quick to produce. It features numbered slots to prevent vial mix-ups, and the perimeter of the rack is shaped like the organic molecule cyclohexane. This unique shape not only makes the racks modular and space-efficient but also draws inspiration from nature, adding a creative touch to their functionality.

Check out the National Institutes of Health and download the files here: NIH 3D Print Exchange - Autosampler Vials.

Contact Me

Email: maxwelllundt@gmail.com