IUPUI adding energy efficiency program in Indianapolis

October 10, 2011

There is growing awareness that a practical alternative to building more power plants is to make more efficient use of the energy we already have. That simple concept is behind Wabash Valley Power’s commitment to energy efficiency projects, from the homeowner-oriented second refrigerator disposal program to the incentives offered to commercial and industrial accounts.

Many businesses that are eager to reduce their energy usage lack knowledge about specific steps they can take to achieve that goal. Some of the most effective strategies aren’t readily apparent to managers with little energy expertise.

The Purdue School of Engineering and Technology (at the IUPUI campus in Indianapolis) has been working to bridge that knowledge gap. In recent years, IUPUI added an Energy Engineering degree focused on finding ways to make more efficient use of existing energy resources while developing new sources. The university also established the Richard G. Lugar Center for Renewable Energy to encourage research and knowledge dissemination about important energy issues.

Now, thanks to $1.3 million in Department of Energy funding, the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology at IUPUI will become one of 24 schools nationwide to implement a practical energy-efficiency program that will simultaneously train students in industrial processes, energy assessment procedures, and energy management principles, while bringing that knowledge to area industrial companies through assessments of their facilities.

“We already have a strong base of research and activities related to energy,” explained Dr. Razi Nalim, who serves as Associate Dean of Research and Graduate Programs at the school. “We saw this program as an opportunity for our students to apply their learning in the real world and help Indiana industries become more energy-efficient.”

IUPUI will become the site of one of the DOE’s Industrial Assessment Centers, with 10 to 15 undergraduate- and graduate-level students admitted into the program each year. “Students will come from the Energy Engineering program, as well as Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and other related programs,” Nalim noted. “The top-tier students who are accepted into this program will take additional courses that will prepare them to earn a certificate in energy assessment.”

The students will also form teams and perform energy assessments on industrial facilities. “Each company will have unique issues, but the students will be prepared for those issues because of the classes they have taken. For example, students who have taken my Power Engineering class will be familiar with the operation of cooling towers and turbines, so we would be able to send them into a power plant to see if there were opportunities to save energy.”

IUPUI learned of the funding in September, and a team led by Dr. Jie Chen is currently determining the specifics of the program’s implementation.

“The Department of Energy will offer us tools for assessing different kinds of energy use,” Nalim explained. “We begin an initial assessment by determining which tools we need and what type of equipment we need to look at. The teams will perform this preliminary assessment, identify the biggest opportunities for energy savings, and then determine the specific types of improvements the company would need to achieve the greatest savings.”

Nalim notes that the school has strong relationships with many companies in central Indiana, and it is continuing to expand this network as it develops industry partnerships for this program. He expects that some of the partner companies will also come directly from DOE referrals through the Department’s website for Industrial Assessment Centers [link to http://iac.rutgers.edu/database/centers/].

“The program provides tremendous value for our students as we continue to grow our energy curriculum,” Dr. Nalim added. “They’ll be very well prepared when they go out into the working world if they’ve already had this kind of experience. We also expect we’ll identify significant energy savings that will benefit the companies. It’s definitely a win-win for everyone.”