Energy pilots include summer installation of UFA solar panels

The University of Richmond will implement new pilot projects around campus to determine savings on energy-usage costs with projects such as electric and water-heating solar panels on the University Forest Apartments.

Apartment numbers 1606 and 1607 will likely be the chosen buildings to have new photovoltaic (PV) and water-heating solar panels installed this summer around June 1st. The panels will be provided and installed by PM Contractors, a local Richmond-owned company.

Two other apartments without panels will be used to collect normal data from electricity and hot water usage. Upon comparison, the economic and environmental effectiveness of the panels can be judged, said Sustainability Coordinator Megan Zanella-Litke.

Zanella-Litke said the panels would constantly be monitored and their energy production would be made available to the University community online. It would be similar to the energy dashboard system that monitors energy consumption in dorms.

Residents who will live on the 1600 block next year have been made aware of the experiment.

The electric panels are about a 2-kilowatt system, Zanella-Litke said, which is about the same amount of power used by a hairdryer. Initially that may not seem like a lot, she said, but that energy will substitute nearly a third of the students' yearly usage.

It is hoped that the pilot project would lead to an expansion of panels around campus, said project engineer David Merchan.

Solar water heating panels seem more practical for expansion because they have a faster payback compared to PV panels to generate electricity. Merchan said the panels could be used effectively in places such as the dining hall and pool, where the hot water demand is constant.

Panels are solid and reliable and were described the panels as having their own brain by Merchan. Should one malfunction, it would not affect the others. The system would also send an email notification to alert of a failure.

Freshman Patrick Love works with the university's sustainability office and with facilities as the energy program assistant.

Love said he thinks the expansion of the panels is a good thing so that students can see the university cares about climate and energy issues. He has worked with other initiatives to make the university more energy cost effective and environmentally friendly, like wind power. It is another possible exploration for energy-alternatives, but lack of wind in the region makes expansion unlikely.

A small vertical wind turbine may be installed on campus. It would measure about 6 feet tall and 4 feet in diameter. However, the display would mostly for education purposes, Zanella-Litke said. It will allow students to see how wind power works to generate electricity.

Zanella-Litke also works with the university's community garden to promote educational awareness of sustainability. She has four plots reserved year-round for interested students who are interested in gardening. The garden uses organic farming methods that include pest control and fertilizing.

These initiatives are part of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) that was signed by President Edward Ayers in 2007.

The plan was approved last year in December to commit the University to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 (leaving a net zero footprint in emissions of greenhouse gases). By 2020 it wants to reduce its carbon usage by 30 percent.

Contact staff writer Keon Monroe at keon.monroe@richmond.edu.