Turning Ideas Into Energy

Maine School of Science and Mathematics' class in Engineering is already delivering on its promise of great challenges and great ideas. This fall, the student design team—officially known as the Watt-ling Penguins—has committed to its first official project: building a biodiesel reactor capable of converting used cooking grease into fuel.

The process, transesterification, is transforming waste grease to a biodiesel usable form through a chemical process in a sequence of reactions. Along the way, the Watt-ling Penguins began mapping out the science, sketching containment systems in vats and flasks, and assigning tasks among themselves. There is something for everyone to do, mirroring the tasks of professional engineering teams.

Wendy Huo, the team’s Marketing and Website lead, shared her excitement about the journey ahead: “I’m really looking forward to learning more about engineering and exploring the field in a hands-on way. It feels like we’re not just studying engineering—we’re actually practicing it.”

This interactive class moves away from the traditional classroom model. Instead, the entire class operates as an engineering firm that must research, plan, test, and ultimately present a completed product to a "client." Throughout the process, students hone their research, problem-solving, and communication skills as they discover what goes into putting a vision for a long-term project into reality.

Throughout the semester, the Watt-ling Penguins will also give regular updates on their design, experiments, and milestones. Look for regular updates to see how this creative MSSM project goes from theory to a working biodiesel reactor.