Growing Energy Solutions
Alternative fuels and energy conservation fire research activities
MU is mixing corn cobs with coal to help fuel the campus power plant and test the possibility of using biomass as a heat source alternative.
“Our goal is to explore biomass fuels to reduce emissions, support local agricultural business, and to possibly lower our fuel costs,” said Gregg Coffin, plant superintendent.
The power plant, part of the MU Campus Facilities – Energy Management department, burns up to 175,000 tons of coal a year. In initial tests, two to three percent of cobs by mass were blended with the coal to observe handling, mixing, conveying and combustion.
“The tests went well. We didn’t have any problems at all,” said Coffin. “The heat value of the cobs runs about 75 percent of the coal we burn. Combustibility is not an issue.”
Additional tests may use up to 20 percent cobs.
“I’d like to shoot toward 10 percent, but realistically, I’d be pleased with three to five percent of our consumption by mass,” continued Coffin.
“If we can be revenue neutral, we get great benefit from reduced emissions and establish a renewable energy product to help local agriculture.”
Leon Schumacher, agricultural systems management professor, said using cobs as an alternative heating fuel has great potential for Missouri farmers. A 160-bushel-per-acre yield of corn would produce about 1,200 pounds of cobs, or a return of $9 to $15 per acre on a biomass, which is otherwise left unused.
MU cultivates energy conservation with new center
This is just one of the ways MU is working to conserve energy. MU’s new Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) team opened September 1 as a resource and service center for industrial energy efficiency.
The center, run by the College of Engineering Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering department in collaboration with the College of Engineering Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering department, will perform free energy assessments for small or medium-sized manufacturers in the region.
The center is one of only 26 centers across the nation recently selected and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. MU will receive $180,000 annually over the next five years to operate the center, which will promote energy efficiency through education and outreach programs, as well as through research into new energy-saving techniques and the industrial energy audits.
Each IAC assessment will include a written survey, an on-site review of the plant and a list of specific energy-saving recommendations based on a detailed analysis of the plant’s energy profile.
“This gives us an opportunity to work on something we’re all really passionate about—that is, energy conservation,” said Bin Wu, an industrial manufacturing systems engineering professor who will lead the center.
“Through this program we will be able to reach out to the community and to the industries in this state.”