Circuit Ideas

Build a working model of an energy monitor that displays gas and electricity usage. Unit connected to the power and gas meters.  Maybe place the display next to the thermostat. Displays real time usage as well as weekly and monthly totals.

 Invent an electronic water usage monitor that could be easily attached to a shower head to help the user conserve water.
Demonstrate something using new super capacitors. Perhaps illustrate how a large bank of such capacitors could be used to store energy.
Explore different ways that fresh water could be extracted from sea water.

Types of Capacitors

Capacitor style	Dielectric	Relative Permittivity at 1 kHz	Maximum/realized. dielectric strength V/µm	Minimum thickness of the dielectric µm
Ceramic capacitors, Class 1	paraelectric	12–40	< 100(?)	1
Ceramic capacitors, Class 2	ferroelectric	200–14,000	< 35	0.5
Film capacitors	Polypropylene ( PP)	2.2	650/450	1.9 – 3.0
Film capacitors	Polyethylen terephthalate, Polyester (PET)	3.3	580/280	0.7–0.9
Film capacitors	Polyphenylene sulfide (PPS)	3.0	470/220	1.2
Film capacitors	Polyethylene naphthalate (PEN)	3.0	500/300	0.9–1.4
Film capacitors	Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)	2.0	450(?)/250	5.5
Paper capacitors	Paper	3.5–5.5	60	5–10
Aluminum electrolytic capacitors	Aluminium oxide Al2O3	9,6[9]	710	< 0.01 (6.3 V) < 0.8 (450 V)
Tantalum electrolytic capacitors	Tantalum pentoxide Ta2O5	26[9]	625	< 0.01 (6.3 V) < 0.08 (40 V)
Niobium electrolytic capacitors	Niobium pentoxide, Nb2O5	42	455	< 0.01 (6.3 V) < 0.10 (40 V)
Supercapacitors Double-layer capacitors	Helmholtz double-layer	-	5000	< 0.001 (2.7 V)
Vacuum capacitors	Vacuum	1	40	-
Air gap capacitors	Air	1	3.3	-
Glass capacitors	Glass	5–10	450	-
Mica capacitors	Mica	5–8	118	4–50

Different types of Electronics Component

Electronic Components and Their Function
Battery - provides voltage.
Switch - a device used to break or complete the current path.
Relay - a switch that is designed to trigger another switch.

Circuit breaker - a switch designed to protect an electrical circuit from overload. When the circuit breaker senses an overload in voltage or current it switches off to discontinue electrical flow to the rest of the circuit.

Resistor - produces opposition to current flow. The amount of resistance (resistor value) determines how much current can flow through a resistor.

Potentiometer/Variable Resistor - a resistor whose resistance value is not fixed and can be adjusted.
Capacitor - stores charge and used to filter signal. A capacitors storage capacity can be fixed or adjustable.
Variable Capacitor - a capacitor whose charging capacity is not fixed and can be adjusted.

Inductor - stores energy in a magnetic field and opposes change in current.
Transformer - amplifies or reduces energy.
Transistor - amplifies signal.

Comparator - a device that compares two voltages or currents and switches its output to indicate which is larger.
Operational Amplifier - amplifies output voltage.
NE555 - can be used as a timer, produce pulse or oscillation.

Diode - allows current to pass in one direction while blocking it from passing the opposite direction.
LED (light emitting diode) - a device that produces light.
Varactor Diode - variable capacitor which stores energy and controlled by voltage.

Zener Diode - allows current to pass in the opposite direction after the circuit reaches a certain threshold (for example, it can conduct after voltage reaches -5v).

Photoresistor - light sensing resistor whose resistance decreases as light intensity increases.
Thermistor - a temperature sensing resistor whose resistance increases or decreases based on changes in temperature.
Thryistor - acts as a switch, conducting when it receives current trigger and continues to conduct while it is forward biased.

Darlington Pair Transistors - two transistors connected at the base, which amplifies current twice as much.
Voltage Divider - a strategically placed resistor to decrease the voltage at a certain point of the circuit.
Bridge Rectifier - an arrangement of four or more diodes that can convert AC to DC.