Affordable and Clean Energy, Eighth Grade, Energy & Power Science Projects (23 results)

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) are a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.
These projects explore topics key to Affordable and Clean Energy: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy.

Whether you are working, studying, or being entertained, much of our daily routines rely on being plugged-in. You probably don't spend a lot of time thinking about where all that power comes from, but someone has to! Figuring out the best ways to produce energy is a big job that is growing along with the world's population. Energy production is a complex topic with debates about whether to invest in fossil fuels or clean renewable energies like solar, wind, water, and geothermal. Take a first-hand look at some of the problems and challenges scientists and engineers are tackling as they look at making and storing energy.

Find the Best Place to Put a Solar Panel

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Imagine trying to put a solar panel on your roof or outside your home to generate clean, renewable energy. Where would you put it so it generates as much power as possible throughout the day? What direction should it face? Is there a way to take measurements to find the best location before you install the panel? In this project, you will use a tiny programmable device called a micro:bit to record light data and find the best place to put your panel. Read more

Build a Solar-Powered Car

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Do you want to build a solar-powered car? How about enter it in a competition and race it against other people's designs? If so, this is the project for you! These instructions will show you how to get started building a solar-powered car that you can enter in a science or engineering fair. No experience needed. If you want, you can even compete in the Junior Solar Sprint, a regional competition for solar-powered cars. Get more information about your regional competition. Are you a… Read more

Build and Test a Sun-Tracking Solar Panel

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

How can you get as much power as possible out of a solar panel, even in the morning or evening when the sun is low in the sky? With a solar tracker system! While many solar panels are fixed in place on rooftops or large ground-mounted poles, a solar tracker system is motorized and lets the solar panels track the sun through the sky during the day. Are these systems worth the added complexity? How much more power do they produce? Try this project and find out! Read more

Now You're Cooking! Building a Simple Solar Oven

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Here is a project that uses direct solar power, gathering the sun's rays for heating/sterilizing water or cooking. It is a low-cost technology that seems to have everything going for it. Does it work? Can you find ways to improve it? Find out with this project. Read more

Human-Powered Energy

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You have probably read all about forms of alternative energy like solar and wind power. But what about human power? With the aid of a coil of wire and some magnets, you can generate electricity with nothing more than a flick of your wrist. In this project, you will build a small hand-powered electrical generator that can power a series of tiny lights. Get ready to save the planet and get some exercise at the same time! Read more

Turn Mud into Energy With a Microbial Fuel Cell

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

What can you do with a bucket of soil? You could use it to grow some beautiful plants and vegetables—or you could use it to produce electricity! Surprised about that? You actually can power electric devices with just mud! Are you curious about how this works? You need some little helpers in the soil—bacteria—that are able to turn their food sources within the soil into electricity in a device called a microbial fuel cell. But is this possible with any soil and does the soil… Read more

Design a Mini Solar Tracker System

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

How can you squeeze as much power as possible out of solar panels if you do not have a lot of space to install them? By tracking the sun! Keeping a solar panel pointed directly at the sun throughout the day can maximize the amount of power it produces. In this project you will design, build, and test your own miniature solar tracking system using a fun block-based programming language - no coding experience required! Read more

Spice Up the Power of a Microbial Fuel Cell with a Dash of Salt

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Generating power from mud sounds like science fiction, but it is actually real science, and a promising source of alternative energy. Topsoil is packed with bacteria that generate electricity when placed in a microbial fuel cell. Because such bacteria-laden soil is found almost everywhere on Earth, microbial fuel cells can make clean, renewable electricity nearly anyplace around the globe. They are an up-and-coming technology that scientists and engineers are working to make even more… Read more

Water to Fuel to Water: The Fuel Cycle of the Future

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Solar cells are popping up on rooftops everywhere these days and are a model for clean, renewable energy. Did you ever look at those solar panels and wonder how we can get electricity produced by solar cells when the sun is not shining? It is a great question because solar panels do not produce electricity when it is dark outside. One strategy to overcome this challenge is to store the energy produced by solar cells during the day in the form of a fuel that can be used at a later time. In this… Read more

How Does Solar Cell Output Vary with Incident Light Intensity?

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Solar cells are an alternative method for generating electricity directly from sunlight. With this project, you can get down to the atomic level and learn about the world of solid-state electronics as you investigate how solar cells work. Your experiment will measure the effect of changing light intensity on power output from the solar cell. A possible variation would be to investigate the effect of changing the color of the light. Read more

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