SunNest

Six different brick compositions made using sand, clay, gravel and cement. Photo: Courtesy MIT D-Lab
Six different brick compositions made using sand, clay, gravel and cement. Photo: Courtesy MIT D-Lab

Heating birthing centers in rural Nepal using primarily non-electrical methods

MIT D-Lab class

D-Lab: Design (2.722J / EC.720) - Spring 2025

Country

Nepal

Team

  • Natalie Dean: 3rd year undergraduate in Mechanical Engineering and Women’s & Gender Studies, interested in medical devices and product design
  • Amee: 4th year undergraduate in Mechanical Engineering, interested in sustainable product and renewables systems design
  • Dalila: 4th year undergraduate in Mechanical Engineering, interested in engineering for development
  • Linda: BS in Molecular Engineering and Visual Art, 1st year Master's in Architecture
  • Edylene: 2nd year undergraduate in Architecture at Wellesley, interested in sustainability and urban studies

Community partner

The National Innovation Centre (NIC), Mahip KC, Sanjay Thakuri, and Swastika Parajuli

Project description, opportunity

In Nepal, temperatures can reach as low as below freezing during the winter. Because Nepal relies primarily on hydropower for electricity, many rural communities don’t have access to electricity in the coldest months. In the home, many burn wood or dung cakes for heating, but this isn’t the most sustainable solution. It also isn’t the healthiest, especially in a place like a birthing center, where a sterile environment needs to be maintained.

Cultural context

Many women choose to give birth at home in rural Nepal for various reasons, including a lack of education regarding the importance of healthcare facilities such as birthing centers. While the education aspect of this project is currently outside of the scope of our project, if we can provide heating to the birthing centers, a comfortable environment can be an incentive to motivate mothers to use the birthing centers.

Proposed solutions

Solar Thermal Collector
The first part of our solution utilizes a 2m^2 solar thermal collector built using wood, steel pipes, a clear cover, insulation, and water. The collector would be placed on the roof, and after the water inside it reaches a set threshold, it would be pumped to a storage tank and replaced with cold water that needs to be reheated.

Thermal Bricks
The NIC plans to build new birthing centers throughout Nepal, so we also explored ways in which the thermal insulation of the building could be improved with the materials used to build it. These bricks could also be used in conjunction with the solar thermal collector for existing birthing centers by helping insulate the water storage tank.

Mixing bricks, pressing bricks, solar thermal collector.
Left: Hand mixing the ingredients for the brick mixture. Center: Pressing the brick into form before it is left to cure. Right: First iteration of the solar thermal collector to test the difference in thermal efficiencies when using different materials. The test pictured above uses a sheet of black acrylic under the pipes. Photos: Courtesy MIT D-Lab

Next steps

This summer, we will be going to Nepal to further develop our prototypes. The collector team will build a full-scale prototype and test more variables such as flow rate, and work on integrating the pump and storage system. The bricks team will build a full-scale room to test structural and weatherproofing properties.

CAD sketch of a heater and housing.
Plans for the next/final solar thermal collector prototype that will be implemented in Nepal this summer. Images: Courtesy MIT D-Lab

 

 

Contact

Ankita Singh or Eliza Squibb, Co-Instructors D-Lab: Design

Topics
D-Lab: Design