Finding Stuff You Need and Raising Money

In order to make aerogels, you’re going to need a bunch of special sciencey stuff and you’re going to need some money. And for high school and college students, you might have to be creative about how you go about getting stuff and money, so here’s some tips to get you started.

Some General Tips Before You Get Started

  • Solidify your idea. Make sure you have a clear goal set for your project and be prepared to explain it to someone in a way that will capture their attention in under 30 seconds. Make sure you’re done your background reading so you can answer questions people might have.
  • Don’t be shy. Don’t be afraid to cold call or email people. You’re going to need to take some risks in talking to people you don’t know, and maybe getting rejected. That’s okay! Most people are delighted to see young people show an interest in a project, even if they can’t help. So muster up a little bit of courage. Email people twice if you don’t get a reply. Always leave voicemail. Call back a couple times if you have to! Persistence pays off.
  • Don’t be afraid to revise your idea. People you talk to might give you some new ideas that you may want to consider to help make your project more manageable or impactful. You might also get new ideas along the way and want to change your project accordingly. Don’t be afraid to!
  • Be creative! Figure out what you can make and do with stuff around you. Be resourceful. Think about stories like the kid who built an electron microscope out of Legos®. Plastic bottles, magnets, parts from Radio Shack, old AC adapters, building blocks, metal and wood scraps, household chemicals, kitchen appliances, old electronics… stuff you’ve got already can go a long way!
  • Access knowledge you didn’t know you didn’t know about. If someone doesn’t have an answer, ask them if they know someone who might know, or if there’s another company or school you could call.
  • Write a short proposal. You might need to write up a proposal and a budget to get funding or donated supplies from some people. It doesn’t have to be superlong, and it’s a good way to help you think through your project and figure out what you really need and where you want to go.

Finding Stuff You Need

  • Chemicals and lab supplies. Chemicals and lab supplies (beakers, magnetic stirrers, etc.) can be expensive or hard to come by. If you’re in high school, you might need a high school teacher to help you to order this kind of stuff. You can also see if there is a science surplus store nearby, like American Science and Surplus, or do a search on the Internet for high school science supply catalogs. Good companies to look at are Sigma-Aldrich.com (chemicals) and Cole-Parmer.com (mostly lab supplies).
  • Safety goggles and gloves. You’ll need both of these to safely do chemistry. Most high schools and college labs can help you get both, probably for free. For goggles you can also check the bookstore at a local college or university, since they often stock them to sell to students taking labs.
  • A scale, a vent hood, and glassware. Ask at a high school or almost any science department at a college or university and see if they will let you mix your chemicals in their vent hood. Tell them that the chemicals only really pose a breathing hazard, and that you’ll be sure to be tidy!
  • A supercritical dryer (or autoclave). You’re probably not going to find a supercritical dryer or an autoclave suitable for doing supercritical drying unless you happen to live near a university that does aerogel research or a company that makes pressure vessels. If you live in California, Missouri, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, or Virgina, there are aerogel groups near you that you might be able to contact. Keep in mind common autoclaves used for biological or medical sterilization only operate at pressures of a few atmospheres-what you need has to get up to 75-95 atmospheres! You might want to consider building one yourself!
  • Stuff to measure liquids with. Check out a local drug store (like Walgreens®) and ask for (or have a parent ask for) a couple baby oral syringes-these are a great way to measure and dispense liquids cheaply! Also metric measuring cups can help you measure liquids and dietary scales can help you weigh liquids cheaply. Look eBay or an online science catalog for graduated cylinders and pipettes, though-it’ll make your life SO much easier!

Pet Stores, Drug Stores, Hardware Stores, Garden Marts…

You’d be surprised at what kinds of stuff they have in retail stores around you. Some examples of surprising things you might find nearby (some of which is useful for aerogel experiments!):

  • Pet stores: activated carbon (aquarium filter carbon)
  • Drug stores: hydrogen peroxide, magnesium sulfate (Epsom salts)
  • Hardware stores: copper sulfate (root killer)
  • Beauty supply stores: pure acetone
  • Liquor store: 95% or 100% ethanol (190 proof vodka or Everclear®)
  • Wal*Mart®: aerogel insulation! (in Toasty Feet® insoles)

Check eBay!

You might be surprised what kinds of stuff you can buy used on eBay and through Internet companies that sell used laboratory supplies. Make sure it’s what you need and meets the specifications of what the thing has to do (particularly if you’re building a supercritical dryer).

Consider Working With a Mentor

If you live near a place that does aerogel research or you can find a scientist who is willing to work with you on making aerogels, you’ll find a lot of your chemicals, supplies, and money needs will be taken care of! Look to see if there is an aerogel research group near you, or try going to the website of a nearby college and calling a professor who works in a related area.

Raising Money

High Schools

Try talking to science teachers in your high school to see if there is any money in the science budget they could use to help you buy chemicals or parts for your project. If not, they will probably be able to help you out by lending you a vent hood, scale, and glassware.

Colleges and Universities

There’s lots of money at colleges and universities that you can get to do an independent project if you talk to the right people and can put together a small proposal and budget. First, try talking to some individual professors, who usually maintain their own research budgets. For aerogels, you might be able to find someone in a chemistry, materials science, physics, or mechanical engineering department who might be interested.

Next, try setting up an appointment to talk to the head of different departments at your school and to talk to them about your project and see if there might be departmental money or scholarship/fellowship opportunities to help you fund your project.

Often times if you are willing and interested in doing outreach along with your project there are more opportunities for funding available, for example, if you set up visits to present your project at local middle schools and high schools, or if you develop educational materials the department can use on the Internet or for public events.

State Space Grant Consortia

In the United States, every state has what’s called a Space Grant Consortium, a NASA-funded center whose mission is to engage the public on space matters. Lots of times they have special funding they can only give to high school and college students. Search for “(your state) space grant” and get in touch with someone at the space grant office to see if you can apply to get some funding from them for your project or if they could help connect you to a university nearby where you could work on your project.

Companies

  • Sponsorship. If you’re putting together a project that has potential for media exposure, ask local companies if they would be willing to sponsor part of your project financially in exchange for their name or logo being featured along with your project. Some companies will even sponsor your project with only the expectation of getting updates from you that they can use to help satisfy their company’s own outreach goals.
  • In-Kind Donations. Lots of times companies that make materials related to your project can’t support you financially but are willing to donate or give discounts on stuff you need. Don’t be afraid to ask!

Successful Entrepreneurs and Philanthropists

If you know anyone who has started their own company, particularly in a science- or engineering-related field, they may have a special willingness to support courageous young people taking on science endeavors of their own. It never hurts to ask-and if they are unable to help financially, they may be able to serve as a mentor who can help you to find money, supplies, or figure out how to do stuff without finding more money or supplies.

Philanthropists are people who donate money to special causes because they feel strongly in a cause. Ask around and see if anyone knows of a local philanthropist or foundation who might be willing to sponsor a young person interesting in pursuing science and engineering. Especially for young women, people from underrepresented ethnic backgrounds, and financially challenged students, you may find opportunities specially designed to help you out!

Family

Relatives and parents are usually willing to support you if it’s for an educational cause, so don’t be afraid to ask the ‘rents for some dough to help you get going.

You can tell them your project will help you get into a really good college or win a scholarship or something, and that they’re investing in your future!

Compete in a Science Fair

One way to make back some of the money you spend is to compete in a science fair. State science fairs often have lots of money in prizes that can help you to pay for and even make money off of your project!

Hold an Event

Have a bake scale. Sell some lemonade. Wash some cars. Lots of ways to make money!

Divide and Conquer

Try finding a bunch of friends who are interested in working on the project together. Together you can potentially raise more money, hold a bigger event, or split the costs and make the project affordable.

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