Concrete canoe

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A concrete canoe is a canoe made of concrete, typically created for an engineering competition.

[edit] Overview

In spirit, the event is similar to that of a cardboard boat race—make the seemingly unfloatable float. However, since concrete and other poured surfaces are an integral part of a civil engineer's education, concrete canoes typically feature more development than cardboard boats.

Most ships or boats float because the weight of the water they displace is greater than the weight of the boat (Archimedes' principle). Concrete canoes, however, are actually lighter than water, as required by the rules of the competition. They must pass a test in which the canoe is filled with water and pushed below the surface; the canoe must then resurface in order to qualify for racing. This is possible because, unlike normal concrete which uses sand and small rocks, concrete canoes are created with hollow aggregates such as Macrolite and microspheres. However, because many teams still design their concrete mixes to be more dense than water, in the United States, teams are allowed to insert concrete-covered, non-structural foam pieces in their canoes to make the canoes float after being submerged.

In the U.S., around 200 universities participate in the event every year in 18 regional competitions. The winners of these competitions and up to five second place finishers move on to the national competition, which is called the "olympics of civil engineering." Typically, frontrunners include the University of Nevada, Reno, University of Miami, University of Alabama in Huntsville, the University of California at Berkeley, Clemson University, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Concrete canoe teams must design their canoes from scratch. Typically they create the shape of the hull with a computer design program specifically made for yachts, canoes, and other watercraft. The shape is optimized for racing. This hull shape is then given to a construction team, responsible for making a mold for the canoe to be formed on. A special concrete mix is designed over several months, emphasizing among other qualities, an optimal balance between strength and low density. The finalized mix design is placed on the form; the hull thickness usually ranges from about 3/8" to 3/4". Teams later spend hundreds of hours sanding and applying exterior graphics to their canoes for a nice finish. Scoring in the competition is based on the quality of construction, race performance, a design paper, and a business presentation.

In the USA, the American Society of Civil Engineers sanctions yearly competitions. The 2007 National Concrete Canoe Competition was held in Seattle, Washington and hosted by University of Washington. The University of Wisconsin-Madison took first place, continuing a five year streak at the top spot. University of Florida took second while University of Nevada-Reno rounded out the top three. The 2008 National Concrete Canoe Competition will be held in Montreal, Canada.

In Canada, the 2006 National Concrete Canoe Competition was held in Sherbrooke, Quebec and hosted by Sherbrooke University who were also the overall winners. Laval University's team typically also places very well.

Qualifiers for the 2007 National Concrete Canoe Competition are determined as each regional conference is held. Mississippi State University was the first to claim a spot after winning the Deep South Regional Conference. After extremely close competition in the presentation, design paper, and final product judging, the University of Florida became the second team to punch their ticket after dominating on race day. The Gators won all five races and posted the fastest times in every round of heats. Florida's women's team performed well enough to place third in both men's endurance and men's sprint races behind the University of Florida and Florida Institute of Technology's male paddlers. It should be noted that there was some controversy regarding University of Florida's decision to allow their varsity rowing team to enter the competition.