Friday, January 5, 2007

 

TESTING OF MWCC’S NEW BIO-POWERED SYSTEM GETS UNDERWAY

By Kimberly B. Caisse

A rendering of the BioMax gasifier system being tested by the college.

Mount Wachusett Community College has begun a one-year test of its new bio-powered micro-cooling, heating and power system, making the college a nationally recognized center for applied research of renewable energy technology. The system is supplying 50 killowatts of electricity, 80 killowatts of heat and at least six tons of thermally activated cooling for the college's Gardner campus.

The installation of the BioMax system is a collaborative effort between its maker, Community Power Corporation of Littleton, Colo., and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the USDA Forest Service and MWCC. The goal is to determine the effectiveness and technical and economical viability of this type of biomass system and increase awareness of using small modular bio-power as an energy source.

The project is mostly funded by a $1 million grant from the US Department of Energy.

The BioMax, which uses woodchips as its primary energy source, provides an extremely clean gas that powers a General Motors Corp. gasoline engine and generator. It can also convert other types of biomass, such as switchgrass, pellets and agricultural byproducts. The result is emissions that meet California’s stringent emissions regulations.

“This collaboration is an important milestone for the college. It comes as we begin the fifth year of our renewable energy initiative,” said MWCC President Daniel M. Asquino.

Dennis Vinroe of Community Power Corp., Littleton, Colo., helps install the BioMax system in the biomass plant at the Gardner campus on Thursday, Aug. 24.

Accomplishments of this initiative include the following:

• A biomass plant at the Gardner campus began operating in 2002, reducing the reliance on electricity for heating by 80 percent.
• The college’s investment in biomass energy has led to a savings of over $1.2 million in three and a half years.
• The campus’ greenhouse gas emissions have declined by 22.5 percent in four years.
• The college has offset over 18 million kilowatt hours of electricity and reduced water consumption by 10 million gallons in four years.
• The Commonwealth of Massachusetts recognized these achievements by giving the college the 2005 Environmental Purchasing and Sustainability Award.
• The campus’ main building has a 5-kilowatt-hour photovoltaic array supplying continuous power to the college’s electrical grid. (The college recently applied for a Clean Renewable Energy Bond to install 100-kilowatt-hour photovoltaic solar panels.)
• Through a state grant, the college purchased and erected a 50-meter metrological tower that will quantify the Gardner campus’ wind resource for potential electrical generation via a 1 to 1.5 megawatt wind turbine.
• The college is currently under contract with the U.S. Department of Energy to test a biomass gasification system that will provide heat and electricity for this campus.
• With funding from the National Science Foundation, the college offers renewable energy courses to students.
• MWCC Executive Vice President Edward Terceiro Jr. was appointed to American Council on Renewable Energy’s Higher Education Committee Steering Committee.

MWCC TO OFFER EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT COURSES

By Kimberly B. Caisse

To enhance its public safety training, Mount Wachusett Community College is offering three new Emergency Management courses in the spring semester, which begins Thursday, Jan. 18, at its Devens campus, 100 Jackson Road.

• Introduction to Emergency Management will be taught by Donald Carlton, the former operations manager for the Massachusetts Emergency Management Association, Tuesdays from 6 to 9 p.m.
• Charles Coggins, the emergency management director for the city of Leominster, will teach Introduction to Emergency Management Planning Wednesdays from 6 to 9 p.m.
• Students who enroll in Introduction to Incident Management on Thursdays from 6 to 9 p.m. will be instructed by Lynne Shaw, RN, MBA, CAN, c-MSEM, the emergency management coordinator for the town of Petersham.

The courses will be part of an Emergency Management program, which is expected to begin in the 2007 fall semester.

Students who enroll in this program will become better prepared to respond in natural and manmade disasters as well as to enhance their planning for large events, such as the Van’s Warped Tour held in Fitchburg last August.

Numerous police officers, firefighters, EMTs and nurses working in the area are MWCC graduates. The emergency management training offered by MWCC will help them prepare for new job responsibilities. It also offers a new specialty for individuals interested in a career in emergency response.

To receive a course brochure, contact Ken Hanson, MWCC’s workforce development coordinator, at (978) 630-9179 or khanson@mwcc.mass.edu. To register for one or more courses, contact MWCC’s Admissions Office at (978) 630-9110.

More MWCC News:

• Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I of England

  MWCC’s Leo & Theresa LaChance Library will host the "Elizabeth I: Ruler and Legend" traveling exhibit through March 30. The library is one of only 40 public and academic libraries in the nation to host this exhibit. This new exhibit commemorates the 400th anniversary of the death of Queen Elizabeth I of England and encourages audiences not only to reacquaint themselves with the Queen, but also to become more familiar with the historical and cultural forces that shaped her personality and her time, and to examine the mixture of history and legend that continues to surround her today. The American Library Association Public Programs Office, in partnership with The Newberry Library of Chicago and the National Endowment for the Humanities, is sponsoring the traveling exhibit. All showings of the exhibition and related programs will be free and open to the public. For more information, contact Reference and Instruction Librarian Ellen Pratt at (978) 630-9125.
• MWCC’s new Biotechnology manufacturing program will host information sessions Tuesdays Jan. 9 and Jan. 16 from 6 to 7 p.m. and Jan. 16 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the main campus, 444 Green St., Gardner. With the decision by the drug manufacturer Bristol-Myers Squibb to locate a large biotechnology company at Devens, the college anticipates a 64-credit degree program will begin in fall 2007 and a 28-credit certificate program in fall 2008 at the Devens campus. The Massachusetts Biotechnology Council predicts more than 100,000 biotechnology jobs will be added statewide by the end of the decade. Registration is required. To register and for more information, contact MWCC’s Dean of Science Charles Weitze at cweitze@mwcc.mass.edu or (978) 630-9207.
• MWCC will host a Renaissance performance by actor Marilyn Murphy Meardon on Wednesday, Feb. 28th from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the main campus. The 45-minute, solo performance, “Queen Elizabeth I: In her Own Words,” was researched and composed by Meardon, who used the Queen's own letters, poetry, prayers and speeches to create a performance that brings the monarch's words to life. Meardon’s performance will complement the “Elizabeth I: Ruler and Legend” traveling exhibition on display in the Leo & Theresa LaChance Library through March 30, 2007. For more information, contact the library at (978) 630-9125.