WKU receives $2 million to develop microgrid to improve campus safety during power outages
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Western Kentucky University will receive a $2 million award from the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet’s Office of Energy Policy, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s State Energy Program, to develop a resilient microgrid at the WKU Innovation Campus, according to a release.
The project aims to create a platform for research, education, and disaster resilience. Officials say the project will support WKU’s campus critical support operations during power outages and improve every day energy management.
What is a microgrid?
The microgrid will integrate solar power, battery energy storage, existing backup generators and advanced controls. A microgrid is a coordinated local energy system designed to operate alongside the utility grid and, when needed, independently during an outage. It is intended to support critical facilities at the Innovation Campus during outages, including WKU’s Disaster Science Operations Center (DSOC), which works alongside Kentucky Emergency Management to coordinate disaster response.
Researchers and students will use the microgrid as a research platform to develop data and artificial intelligence applications that connect weather, energy use and emergency operations, according to the release.
Selections to the Project team
- Dr. Manmeet Singh, Assistant Professor, Department of Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences (principal investigator)
- Dr. Pallav Bera, Assistant Professor, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
- Dr. Josh Durkee, Professor of Meteorology and Director, Disaster Science Operations Center
- Dr. Leslie North, Chair, Department of Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences, and Director, Office of Sustainability
- Partner: Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
