FABRIC BUCKET
Emily Ledermann
First Year Engineering Design Day
E101 Section 10
North Carolina State University
Problem Statement
Our project is the "portable textile bucket to
carry water". The goal is to create a bucket out of
fabric that is easy to transport.
The bucket must:
Hold at least one gallon of water without
leaking for one minute
Hang from a hook
Be less than 30" in height (including handle)
Fit (while collapsed) into a 6x 6x 6 box
Be made with a $40 budget
Summary of Research
Water Resistant Materials
Beeswax
Beeswax has a melting point of 60o C (140o F)
Consists of long-chain carbon components
There are alkane, acid, and ester carbon chains
making up beeswax. These nonpolar molecules
do not react with water, a polar molecule, so
beeswax is hydrophobic (Kameda 2004)
Paraffin Wax
Made up of solid straight-chain hydrocarbons
Melting point: 48 to 66 C (120 to 150 F)
Is a nonpolar, hydrophobic molecule (Britannica
2008)
Pectin
Any of a group of water-soluble carbohydrate
substances that are found in the cell walls and
intercellular tissues of certain plants.
(Britannica 2007)
Strength of hydrophobic interactions can be
modified by adding different sugars or by
changing the temperature (Oakenfull 1984)
Calcium helps strengthen bonds within pectin
Fabric and Collapsible Bucket Patent
Duck cloth is a durable, heavy
weight fabric (Doe 2008)
Looped finger pieces applied to
the bottom of bucket assist in
using the bucket when it is full
When collapsed, there are loops
to latch to ensure the bucket stays
collapsed (Parker 1917)
Scan the QR code to visit our blog or
go to waterandseams.weebly.com.
Allie Wright
WATER & SEAMS Harshith Aileni
Relynne Wolf
FEDD PROJECT DEVELOPMENT Budget Breakdown
Supplies Cost
Brainstorming
Fabric and thread $12.00
We had many different ideas for the shape of the bucket, including cylindrical and cone shaped, but we
decided on a circular drawstring bag, so that it could be worn as a backpack. For our fabric laminate, we Beeswax (#1) $3.00
looked into both beeswax and pectin, but after testing, we decided on using beeswax. Pectin $3.05
Beeswax (#2) $10.39
Paintbrushes $2.00
Total $30.44
Conclusions
The bucket holds a gallon of water, but begins to
Design Process Iterations slowly drip before the minute is up. After each
We went into the prototyping phase with doubts about our structure holding enough water, so we made collapse/folding of the bucket, the beeswax
two prototypes: one that was a rectangular drawstring bag (image 1) with side seams and one that was a weakened and cracked a little. The backpack
circular drawstring bag (image 2). After looking at these prototypes, we decided that adding handles to component was a success because it can still be
the top of the bag would make it easier to hang on a hook for testing. We also tested the beeswax vs. carried with handles or worn via the straps. Even
pectin coating the pectin was not at all waterproofing (image 4), but the beeswax-coated fabric held though it drips, we are still proud of this
water (image 5). accomplishment because it is a simple backpack
that can hold water.
Reflection
If we were to re-do this project, we would modify
the laminate and add paraffin wax since paraffin
has a more flexible structure, benefitting the
collapse of our bucket. We would also look at
other ways of waterproofing the fabric. The
straps could be widened to help distribute weight
Final Design on the shoulders. We could also work with the
Our final bucket is created from one 36 diameter circle of our shape of the bag so it would be easier to close at
duck cloth. We created a casing to put a drawstring through, the top.
and sewed two handles directly across from each other. We References
attached triangles of fabric with grommets to the bottom; the
drawstrings get threaded through the grommets to become Doe, Sarina. Fabric Dictionary - 200+ Fabric Names. Sew
Guide, Sew Guide, 20 Feb. 2017, sewguide.com/fabric-
straps like a backpack. Then we coated it in beeswax, and later, glossary/.
we completely re-melted the beeswax with a hairdryer so that
The Editors of Encyclopdia Britannica. Paraffin Wax.
it permeated the fibers for waterproofing. Lastly, we strung Encyclopdia Britannica,
paracord through the casing to make it into a drawstring bag. The Editors of Encyclopdia Britannica. Pectin.
Encyclopdia Britannica, Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc.,
Materials List: duck cloth, thread, beeswax, hot glue, grommets 27 Oct. 2007
and drawstring; the beeswax was applied with a paintbrush Kameda, Tsunenori. Molecular Structure of Crude Beeswax
Studied by Solid-State 13C NMR. Journal of Insect
Science 4 (2004): 29. Print.
Oakenfull, David, and Alan Scott. "Hydrophobic interaction
in the gelation of high methoxyl pectins." Journal of
Food Science 49.4 (1984): 1093-1098.
Parker, Henry M. Patent US1233117 - Collapsible Fabric
Bucket. Google Patents, Google, 10 July 1917