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Projects Updates for place: Energy Farm

  1. Archive Info - Previous Project Description

    Associated Project(s): 

    In April 2017 three faculty members received $14,522 from the University Research Board to conduct preliminary investigations surrounding crop residue as a building material at both small and large scale. The results of those initial investigations proved very positive. This project primarily strives to turn corn stalks into a building project. Students will support Dr. Mark Taylor throughout the project, giving students research and professional development opportunities. The Student Sustainability Committee provided $47,000 in December 2017 to support the design and construction of a small mobile field station using agricultural waste. Upon completion, researchers and students will have a better understanding on how agricultural waste materials perform as a building material that can get used at a larger scale. Moreover, the campus will have a mobile field station that uses corn stock insulation.

  2. Article: An Earth Month to Remember

    The Spring 2021 iSEE Quarterly Update (iQ) highlighted a diverse array of campus initiatives that made this year's Earth Month one to remember. Ranging from hosted events to sustainable energy, the article discusses the launch of the "TED Talk: Eco Edition" series, Solar Farm 2.0, community trash pickup, and more!

    Read the article in the attached files below. 

  3. Spring 2021: iSEE Quarterly Update (iQ)

    The Spring 2021 iSEE Quarterly Update (iQ) was released with the following message from Madhu Khanna, the Interim Director of iSEE:

     

    Dear Colleagues,

    Attached, please find the Spring 2021 “iQ” – the quarterly update from the Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE).

    It has remained a busy time here on our campus, as we bolstered our outstanding Congress and Critical Conversation events with the addition of two experts — activist Catherine Coleman Flowers and nuclear expert Denia Djokić — who are serving as Levenick iSEE virtual resident scholars.

    Thanks to the support of experts Eban Goodstein, Tami Craig Schilling, and Harriet Hentges, our new Environmental Leadership Program workshops for undergraduates were a rousing success.

    And we were so pleased to have a mix of virtual and in-person Earth Month events to engage students, faculty, and staff from across our campus!

    Please take a quick look at those updates and more in this six-page “iQ.” For more regular news, please sign up for our E-newsletter at https://illinois.edu/fb/sec/5031776.

    Best wishes for the summer,

    Madhu

  4. Halie Collins is the Next President of Illinois Solar Decathlon

    Associated Project(s): 

    Halie Collins is the officially the next President of the Illinois Solar Decathlon (ISD) team! In her new position, she will be leading the efforts to form the next Build Team and Design Team. 

    The outgoing president, Shashikiran Duraisamy, shared this note of thanks with Morgan White at F&S: "The Illinois Solar Decathlon team is extremely grateful for all the support that you have provided in the last two years. Your support was extremely valuable for our success and to support and contribute towards University’s sustainability initiatives. We are so much grateful for the Facilities and Services’ decision to allow ISD to store our construction materials in the Physical Plant Services Building and the constant support that the Receiving team (Dave Boehm & Jim McGuire) provided us to access the materials with ease. This was a lifesaver for our project. I look forward to the continued relationship between Illinois Solar Decathlon and Facilities & Services."

  5. Adapthaus inauguration coming soon!

  6. equipment installed

    The geothermal heat pump is now installed at the Gable Home, at the Energy Farm. Professor Yun Yi will create an energy model, and Mark Taylor said, "I can work with one of my RA’s to draw up the system in a 3D model for use in presentations and papers."

    The model is the “QE0930.” 

  7. Re-Home Wall Rehab and Siding

  8. Design Team results for Uni High

    Associated Project(s): 

    I would like to thank you for the wonderful opportunity. I would also like to thank everyone who attended and gave their encouraging and insightful inputs. It was a rewarding experience to present and get positive feedback. 

    Peter and I, would love to keep working and participating in this process since we are here on campus for another two years. It would be really nice if you would involve us. Excited about that!

     

    Also, I am attaching the PowerPoint presentation for reference and further use. 

     

    Thanks once again, and I hope everyone stays safe and healthy. 

     

    Warm regards,

    Prajakta Gharpure

  9. 18F Semesterly Report - CornCrete

    The most significant development to date is that two buildings have been identified in which the material the team is work with will be installed, one is a single-story building of approximately 400 sq/ft the other has a double height space and a footprint off approximately 1,600 sq/ft that will be enclosed using the material in development.

  10. SSC funds Gable Home

    The Gable Home was designed and built by students to compete in the 2009 US Dept. of Energy's Solar Decathlon Competition. Following the competition, the house returned to campus and was located at the I Hotel until Spring 2017 at which point it had to be moved due to the expansion of the research park. Since then a team of students and faculty have been working on finding a new permanent location for the Gable Home. A suitable location was found at the Energy Farm on Race St. in Urbana. The house is a valuable educational tool for students from many units on campus to visit and experience occupying a space that is powered solely by the sun and uses passive and active systems to create desirable thermal comfort throughout the year. This SSC grant provides support for the installation costs to make Gable Home a permanent fixture at the Energy Farm, so it meets building codes.

  11. steam use at greenhouses

    Associated Project(s): 

    The Deep Direct Use geothermal project has completed a preliminary assessment of steam use for greenhouses on UIUC campus. Steam usage in the greenhouses at Turner Hall and Plant Sciences building were compared with Lincoln Hall (pre and post renovations) for the period 2013-2018.

     

    Generally, the steam use in greenhouses is 3-5 times higher (mmBTU per square foot) than in an academic building. Together, the greenhouses have produced ~25MT CO2/MWh) over the 5-year period.

  12. IWG Meeting Minutes November 30, 2017

  13. iWG meeting agenda November 30, 2017

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