Purdue University
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory

A 2020 senior capstone project planned to increase the amount of food waste being sent to the West Lafayette Waste Water Treatment Plant anaerobic digester to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions and landfilled food waste. A food waste drop-off location was implemented at the West Lafayette Streets and Sanitation Department so that city residents may bring their food waste to be sent to the digester. Data was taken at the drop off location as to the volume of food waste obtained. Utilizing that data, a city-wide drop-off location program was designed and presented to the West Lafayette Go Greener Commission as a recommendation for how they can continue to further expand food waste diversion. The location and number of drop-off points were recommended for West Lafayette neighborhoods. From there, a cost analysis was performed, and four pickup routes were created to optimize pickup efficiency and minimize program costs.

A 2020 senior capstone project planned to increase the amount of food waste being sent to the West Lafayette Waste Water Treatment Plant anaerobic digester to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions and landfilled food waste. A food waste drop-off location was implemented at the West Lafayette Streets and Sanitation Department so that city residents may bring their food waste to be sent to the digester. Data was taken at the drop off location as to the volume of food waste obtained. Utilizing that data, a city-wide drop-off location program was designed and presented to the West Lafayette Go Greener Commission as a recommendation for how they can continue to further expand food waste diversion. The location and number of drop-off points were recommended for West Lafayette neighborhoods. From there, a cost analysis was performed, and four pickup routes were created to optimize pickup efficiency and minimize program costs.

The Environmental and Ecological Engineering senior design team has been tasked with improving the transit options for the university area with a specific focus on Zucrow Labs. Design objectives of this project included identifying infrastructural and behavioral variables influencing existing transportation demand, creating a list of potential transportation solutions which consider cost and the environmental impact of each solution and proposing an immediate solution and long-term transportation plan. A key factor in determining the transportation solutions was carbon emissions. The final recommended design option was the use of an autonomous shuttle. The autonomous vehicle produces the lowest yearly CO2 emissions and was determined to have a lower startup and yearly cost than the rideshare service.

In Fall 2021, a special Honors class had a student group that wrote a report on the development of an integrated carbon-neutral energy solution should be seriously considered at Purdue University. The student team researched multiple renewable and carbon-free power sources that could be integrated into Purdue’s existing infrastructure and buildings. Each power source was evaluated not only from an energy production perspective but also based on level of capital and operating expenses in comparison to return.

In the course, MET 42200 the goal is to learn about energy conversion. Half of the course is spent on traditional power generation and the other half is on renewable energies. As a capstone course, students are required to complete a feasibility study focused on the improvement of the campus energy utilization.



The goal of a 2022 spring semester project was to determine a way to positively impact Purdue’s energy facilities. The project team decided to pursue installing renewable energy educational tools at Pickett Memorial Park. Pickett Park provides a unique opportunity for Purdue to improve the quality of its students’ extracurricular and educational lives and enforce its commitment to investing in renewable energy in a way that is both publicly visible and tangible. The project included installing solar panels, placards, live solar surveillance, new solar powered drinking fountain, improved walking paths, and an improved parking lot. With Pickett Park being a popular location on campus, these improvements will allow students and the surrounding community to gain exposure to renewable energy.

A student team participated in the 2020 Campus RainWorks Challenge, looking at transitioning campus from an “out of site, out of mind” approach to stormwater management, to an interactive and educational approach, highlighting how stormwater can be treated in a sustainable, beautiful, and visible setting. The team specifically looked at the Purdue Agricultural Mall, a underutilized space on campus and a prime site for redesigning and implementing green infrastructure technologies. A visible and interactive solution creates new spaces that not only better cater to pedestrian flow and education of sustainable stormwater management but will also support Purdue’s goals in the 50-year master plan, set to take campus completely off the combined sewer system, eliminating its contribution to CSO events. A Visible Solution’s design demonstrates a network of relevant green infrastructure technologies, showcasing the benefits of local sustainable stormwater treatment and allowing for education through interaction of the GI(s) and its ecological impact.

A 2020 project focused on the analysis and recommendation for future electric vehicle charging stations at Purdue University. By understanding the current status and future growth of electric cars on campus (goal 1 of the project), the team worked to be able to identify logical locations for future EV charging stations (goal 2). The final recommendation included information on the economic analysis and decision matrix to identify the recommended EV charging station vendor and including a recommendation to increase the total number of charging station location by 10 dual mount charging stations.

A 2020 project found that 15.8% of Tippecanoe County is food insecure, and that there is infrastructure at the West Lafayette Wastewater Treatment Plant that exists for energy recovery. However, there is no centralized information about existing waste practices. The goals of this project were to map food waste streams at Purdue University, quantify the best existing practicing in food waste collection and disposal, and identifying areas for improvement. Recommendations were split into three categories: immediate, long-term and last priority. Immediate recommendations included the reinstatement of weekend dining court food waste delivery to the biodigestor with specificities added for different type of campus living areas. Long term recommendations included retail dining non-perishable recovery and serve at a campus food pantry. A last priority recommendation included collection from public spaces due to contamination risks.

Reduced building occupancy can cause water to stagnate in plumbing, and the potential water chemistry and microbiology consequences are of growing interest. Water quality during low water use in two old and large (> 58 years) and two new and small (> 13 years) institutional buildings were studied in the early COVID-19 pandemic period (March-July, 2020). Water usage during the study period in smaller buildings significantly decreased while large buildings were like the previous year. First draw cold/drinking water samples rarely contained detectable residual chlorine (2 of 60). Other chemical and microbiological results such as pH, dissolved oxygen, total organic carbon, and total cell counts in first draw cold water samples were similar across all buildings. Heavy metal concentration ranges in large buildings were broader than small buildings. Cu, Mn, and Pb exceeded drinking water limits at cold water fixtures, but sporadically throughout the study. (max. 2.7 mg Cu/L, 45.4 μg Pb/L, 1.9 mg Mn/L). Flushing 5 min resulted in detectable residual to the faucet in 3 buildings, while no residual chlorine was detected after 125-minutes of flushing in the largest and oldest building. The building owners conducted fixture flushing activities during the present study and may have influenced the results. No official flushing protocol was used by the building representatives during flushing activities where one to a few fixtures were operated per visit. Research is needed to understand the fundamental processes that control faucet water quality from service line to faucet. In absence of this knowledge, building owners should have as-built drawings and develop flushing plans so they can make evidence-informed decisions when it comes to plumbing flushing.

Purdue’s Horticulture Park is approximately 24 acres and serves as a teaching and research tool for the Horticulture and Landscape Architecture Department. As campus continues to expand, land use surrounding the area is changing from open fields to dense urban buildings. In 2021, Purdue Landscape Architecture students played an integral role in the development of a master plan for Horticulture Park, supplying the consultant team with a comprehensive inventory and analysis of the park, participating in design workshops, and serving on the steering committee. The resulting master plan honors the legacy of the Horticulture & Landscape Architecture Department’s involvement with the park, while also restoring and expanding native plant communities in ways that provide meaningful experiences and valuable educational opportunities for visitors. The plan ensures the relevancy and importance of the Horticulture Park to the campus community and development continues adjacent to the park and solidifies the role of the park as a primary campus open space.

The indoor green wall project within the Green Campus EPICS team aims to have a student team build an indoor living wall on campus. The main purposes of this wall are to educate students about green infrastructure, provide a stress relieving atmosphere inside of a building, and provide another attraction on campus for current and prospective students. In addition, the wall would ideally improve the indoor air quality of the space it is in. In relation to the STARS categories, this project is strongly related to campus engagement and wellbeing. It has been shown through research that indoor plants help boost the mood of people. The team is hoping to have the green wall placed in a study space on campus so it can help stressed out students. Also, there will be an educational component for people that pass by the green wall in the form a QR code or poster board explaining what the green wall is and the benefits of green infrastructure in general. In this way, the wall is also providing an opportunity for students and faculty to learn more about sustainability. In addition, one of the design goals of the wall is to have it be aesthetically pleasing, so it can be another Purdue attraction for both current and prospective students. The final category that this project can pertain to is in buildings, specifically in indoor air quality. Because the wall will be made up of living plants, it can help to filter the air around it and provide a cleaner indoor atmosphere.