Third ACEP/ASU Microgrid Boot Camp Successfully Completed
Eighteen students and industry partners participated in the third Microgrid Boot Camp, which was held in a virtual format again this year due to coronavirus restrictions. The participating students were current undergraduate and graduate students in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer science and economics. Twelve of them were from University of Alaska campuses and five from other universities in the U.S. and Canada. Two people who work in the industry also attended to learn more about microgrids.
The boot camp, a collaboration between the Laboratory for Energy And Power Solutions at Arizona State University and ACEP, introduced energy regulations and policies, power systems design, financial considerations and challenges of renewables integration to the participants.
The students researched and used community energy data to explore how to integrate renewable energy with existing energy systems through instructor-led exercises and presentations.
"Students are creating estimated yearly load profiles for Alaska villages of their choice and using that data to design microgrids that are economically feasible for the area,” said Samantha Janko, managing director of the ASU lab. The simulated results of these microgrid models allow students to engage in conversation about how renewable and traditional electrical generation can be beneficial to villages and in what combination. Students also are considering scenarios where financial incentives can make certain generation types more or less feasible.
Thirteen of the boot camp students will also participate in the ACEP Utility Student Internship, where they will work on projects in collaboration with Alaska utilities, research institutes and national labs and tribal organizations throughout the summer.
Two other boot camp student graduates are the recipients of a Minority Educational Institution Student Partnership Program (MEISPP) internship through the U.S. Department of Energy.
The microgrid boot camp course was originally developed by LEAPS as part of the Naval Enterprise Partnership Teaming with Universities for National Excellence program, an energy research project funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, to break new ground in alternative energy employment for student veterans. This year’s boot camp is funded by the Office of Naval Research.
Boot camp graduates receive one credit through the UAF Bristol Bay Campus.
For more information on the ACEP Microgrid Boot Camp, please contact Heike Merkel.