Small-scale hydropower system wins top honors at Fall 2025 Capstone Design Showcase
Sponsored by Axxess Energy, the team’s system is awaiting approval to be connected to the power grid
A student team that created a small-scale, affordable hydropower system won first place at the Fall 2025 Capstone Design Showcase, the culmination of a yearlong design experience for seniors at Colorado School of Mines.
While small-scale hydropower can provide a renewable, continuous source of energy, systems can be costly, hard to integrate and inefficient. The Grid-Tie Micro hydrogeneration team designed a system that can operate safely and continuously, while also complying with interconnection standards. Axxess Energy, an energy company in Utah, sponsored the project.
“This was a really cool project to work on. There are almost no micro hydro-generation companies within the U.S. or around the world,” said team member Parker Hewett. “This is a very small sector, and there is almost no information available online or from industry experts, so getting to learn about and building this project from the ground up was an amazing experience.”
Along with Hewett, members of the winning team include Cynthia Zakhem, Anders Olsen, Houston Hood, Titus Smith and Adam Boettcher. The team was advised by Tony Vandenberge, professor of practice in engineering, design and society.
Capstone Design is a signature student experience at Mines that tasks student teams with producing creative, client-driven solutions to real-world problems. Paired with sponsors from industry, government and the broader community, students combine their knowledge in civil, electrical, mechanical, environmental and design engineering to create projects that address realistic, multidisciplinary challenges. The year-long experience ends with Capstone Design Showcase, where teams present their ideas and prototypes to sponsors, judges and members of the Mines community.
Capstone projects were also recognized for their innovation, societal impact and proof of concept:
- Best Innovation: Waterbird Travel Umbrella
- Best Societal Impact (three-way tie): Bear Creek Park – Landslide!; Guanella Pass Road Retaining Wall; Free Form Robotic Glassblowing Apparatus
- Best Environmental Impact: Robotic Sortation Device
- Best Proof-of-Concept: Lunar Analog Lighting Rig to Support NASA Training
The Fall 2025 Broader Impact Essay winner was Hayden Lederhos for “Cooling Without Warming: Why R1234yf is the Right Choice.”
About Mines
Colorado School of Mines is a public R1 research university focused on applied science and engineering, producing the talent, knowledge and innovations to serve industry and benefit society – all to create a more prosperous future.
