EGEN SWATeam Meeting (2.17.17)
The EGEN SWATeam held another bi-weekly meeting. Topics covered include:
- Updating the EGEN objectives project page
- Reporting steam generation on-campus
- Plans for this semester
The EGEN SWATeam held another bi-weekly meeting. Topics covered include:
The EGEN SWATeam a meeting for the Spring 2017 semester. Topics covered include:
The EGEN SWATeam held their first meeting for the Spring 2017 semester. Topics covered include:
The EGEN SWATeam held their final meeting for the Fall 2016 semester. Topics covered include:
"As the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign considers installing more solar photovoltaic modules on the roofs of buildings, the discussion turns to the type of mounting systems to consider. This discussion often elicits the tale of the modules that were originally installed on the roof of the Business Instructional Facility (BIF) using a ballast-mounted system, that is, a mounting system held down using heavy weights such as concrete blocks. The story goes that a few of the PV modules blew off the roof of the building, and this subsequently led to the modules being installed with a racking system attached to the roof of the building.
This story is an urban legend..."
Read file for more information and photos.
The 2015 iCAP, chapter 3, objective 2 is "Expand on-campus solar energy production. By FY20, produce at least 12,500 MWh/year, and by FY25 at least 25,000 MWh/year, from solar installations on campus property."
The 2015 iCAP also described the following potential strategies for achieving this objective:
The campus has a 33 kW photovoltaic array on the roof of the Business Instructional Facility (with an annual production of 44 MWh/yr) and a 14.7 kW ground-mounted array at the Building Research Lab (20 MWh/yr). During FY15, we began installation of a 300 kW array on the roof of the new Electrical and Computer Engineering Building (402 MWh/yr), and the 5.87 MW Solar Farm on the south campus (7,860 MWh/yr). There is also a solar thermal array on the roof of the Activities and Recreation Center. There are many other buildings, parcels of land, and parking lots that are well positioned to host sizeable photovoltaic and/or solar thermal arrays. Although each array in itself would make a small contribution to campus energy generation, taken together the contribution could be significant.
The solar consultation group is identifying the best places to install the next round of photovoltaic projects, and planning to move forward on several projects simultaneously. Solar thermal may make sense in some situations, as well. Student design teams could be organized through classes and volunteer groups to assist with the planning and prioritizing of on-campus solar installations.
The best time to plan for the installation of photovoltaics on a building is during the design phase. The campus could implement standards requiring that all new construction and additions include solar photovoltaics on the roof. In some cases it may also be effective to install photovoltaics on the exterior walls of the buildings."
AASHE Conference, October 11, 2016 presentation
Using Campus Solar Deployment Roadmaps to Guide University Investment: The Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA), Second Nature, and TurningPoint Energy have developed an approach with four Midwest universities to define opportunities for on- and off-campus solar investment through a Campus PV Deployment Roadmap. In this panel, participants will hear presentations about the roadmapping process in general, specific incentives to universities and students, financial modeling and assistance offerings, and first-hand experience from one of our pilot universities.
The EGEN SWATeam held their second meeting for the Fall 2016 semester. Topics covered include:
In support of the U.S. Department of Energy's SunShot initiative, NREL is offering no-cost technical assistance to universities seeking to go solar.
In the Energy Billing System (EBS), there are meters for solar energy on campus. In BIF, 3D stands for electricity delivered and 3R stands for received (the energy the arrays use when not generating).
Japan is now implementing floating solar farms, on large bodies of water. The water keeps the panels cooler than ambient temperature, so they are more efficent.
the Indy airport solar array is 17.5 MW AC.
The Architecture Review Committee (ARC) got an inquiry about the possiblity of mounting solar vertically on south-facing walls (without windows). This could be a sheer flush-mounted solar PV array immediately against the wall. The PVs would not produce as much energy as a roof-top array, but there could be fewer issues with rooftop penetrations, etc. The ARC noted that there is not a specific policy about this idea yet, and they would willing to work with the idea on installation on a case by case, building by building basis, at least until there is a comprehensive policy in place.
For a given capacity of PV modules, a vertical wall will harvest 78% of the energy that a flat roof would, and 67% of the energy that could be harvested at a 40 degree tilt. While this is not ideal, the costs may be lower and the maintenance and roof loading concerns would not pertain. Two possible candidates are the south wall of NSRC (which has no windows in the "central" part) and the south facade of the Tryon Festival Theater in Krannert, which is actually somewhat tilted.
<post edited on 7/15/2024, added "Vertical Solar Panels on MEB" project, mbwhite>
To fund solar panels, there could be a Solar Donor program. Tom Abram, previous F&S Sustainability Coordinator, wrote about the concept in 2009 (see file).
Allerton Park already has a solar array located near its Visitors’ Center. The second phase of the Allerton Park Solar Array project involves working with a Learning In Community (LINC) class to construct a second ground-mounted solar recharge array. This second phase builds on the success of the existing array with the adjacent construction of an additional 60 panels. The design of the Phase 2 array utilizes an innovative floating foundation system that allows for portability of the array if necessary. The total array provides 14.7kW of peak power, which translates to a projected annual output of 14,653 kWh(about 15-20% of total apCAP solar goals). Power at the panel and array level can be monitored remotely and be publicly viewable via an online dashboard which displays the impact of the solar power contribution in terms of energy equivalents: gallons of gasoline, light bills, tons of coal, barrels of crude oil, and planted trees.
F&S Engineers provide input on solar film technology: "We experienced delamination with these in the past; about 25 years ago. I’d be curious if the adhesives have gotten any better." - John Prince
"Films have come a long way. Like John, I have seen several versions of solar films and have not been impressed with their durability. The newer films and coatings are much better but the effectiveness is still dependent to the quality of installation. The films may have some applications on campus but must be evaluated in terms of cost. The solar transmittance is low enough for me to question whether IHPA would have a problem with our historic buildings. We would also want to avoid a checker board appearance if the product were applied randomly to a building windows. I don’t want to dismiss the product but it does need more investigation." - Fred Hahn
Facilities & Services created a list of existing and planned Solar installations on campus:
a. Installed:
i. #1206 BIF – Approx. 3,700-4,000 s.f. on a building roof.
b. Active:
i. Approx. 20”x20” panel for a fixed speed radar detector near lot E-15.
ii. Approx. 20”x20” panel to power lights for pedestrian crossing on Springfield Avenue. Lights have been removed due to maintenance issues. Panel remains.
iii. Approx. 20”x20” panel for a mobile speed radar detector on Lincoln Avenue.
iv. Approx. 20”x20” panel for an electric tractor/mower charger. Item is off the grid. Location?
c. In Planning:
i. #0052 KCPA
ii. #0409 Electrical and Computer Engineering along with #1094 NCPD
iii. South solar farm
iv. Housing
v. #0118 ARC - Solar Thermal
vi. Residence Hall #3
vii. College of Engineering discussing something at MNTL with grant funds.
The 2010 iCAP included goals to increase renewable energy on campus. Regarding solar energy, the 2010 iCAP said, "A full study for solar electric or thermal energies has not yet been conducted. Estimates of the built campus area of ~5 square kilometers can likely accommodate 5 percent solar photovoltaic (PV) array coverage as rooftop solar—or about 250,000 square meters, with peak generation capacity of 25 MW, and generating 45 million kWh of electricity. This has the potential to displace 10 percent of current campus electricity usage. Potential for larger tracking arrays on the South Farms also exists." It also included the strategy, "Increase the amount of solar photovoltaic and thermal projects."