solar panels at two harbors high school - clean energy ......a close-up of the solar array inverter....
TRANSCRIPT
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CASE STUDY: SOLAR - NORTHEAST REGION
Hands-on Clean Energy Education - SolarPanels at Two Harbors High SchoolBy Kathleen McCarthy • August 2011
In 2004, a group of clean energy supporters broughtthe idea of installing solar panels at the Two HarborsHigh School to the district’s school board. Initially,little support was shown, and the idea was put onthe back burner for about four years. After theschool board elected new members, there was moreenthusiasm for the project.
A few years later, board members found the projecta worthwhile investment, not so much because ofthe energy generation of the panels, which would beminimal in proportion to the school’s energydemands, but rather because of the huge educationopportunities that would accompany the panels. In2007, the project began to move forward.
The educational component of the project hasremained central throughout the entire process.Monitoring was installed and displayed in such away that students can collect data to do math andscience problems in the classroom. Additionally,energy monitoring consequently raises awareness onenergy usage, encouraging students to use less energy in their school and at home.
“Having a renewable energy system on site as anintegrated learning station spurs creative thoughtamong students and will lead some to choose a pathin the growing field of renewable energy technologydevelopment,” explains Jamie Juenemann fromSilver Creek Institute, a collaborator on the project.
After much planning and contacting local contractors, manufacturers, and installers, the schooldecided to install sixteen 180-watt KyoceraKD180GX-LP panels mounted on a Wattsun AZ-225automated dual-axis tracker. The output of the 16solar panels is fed as a series string into a grid tiedXantrex 2.8kW inverter. The array site includes adigital display of instantaneous and cumulative electricity output.
To make the panels as visible as possible to the community, they have been placed between the highschool and the athletic fields. This way, visitors willeasily the school’s dedication to clean energy.Production data from the panels is on a kiosk display there, as well as in the classrooms madeavailable through Bluetooth Technology.
Project Snapshot
Purpose: To install a solar photovoltaic system that produces energy and offers a hands on educational opportunity
Benefits:Students learn about renewable energy technology with a real example at school.Students use the energy production data in manydifferent classes.
Technology:Sixteen 180-watt Kyocera KD180GX-LP solar PVpanels mounted on a Wattsun AZ 225 automateddual-axis tracker and tied into a Xantrex 2.8kWinverter.
Grants:$5,000 from NE CERT, $4,000 from CooperativeLight and Power, $500 from Clover ValleyCommunity, $5,600 from Minnesota Departmentof Commerce, $7,500 from NortheasternMinnesota Sustainable DevelopmentPartnerships, $500 from Two Harbors EnviroClub
Total Cost:$37,353
The solar array in front of Two Harbors High School.
CERTs PARTNERS
University of Minnesota’sRegional SustainableDevelopmentPartnerships
Eureka Recycling
Southwest RegionalDevelopmentCommission
The Minnesota Project
Minnesota Departmentof Commerce, Division of Energy Resources
CERTs FUNDERS
Xcel Energy’s RenewableDevelopment Fund viaDivision of EnergyResources
Bush Foundation
Environment & NaturalResource Trust Fund
To help teachers identify ways to incorporate the energy data from the solar panel into theclassroom, Silver Creek Institute wrote a pamphlet for teachers explaining how electricity ismade from the sun’s energy, and how solar energy translates into carbon reduction from theatmosphere. Silver Creek Institute’s materials also offer activities for the classroom, such astracking sun patterns, as well as additional online resources for teachers. Students haveenjoyed using new curriculum and activities associated with the solar panels since it wasinstalled.
“This project will have far reaching and lasting positive effects within the Two Harbors community as a demonstration of the potential of clean, renewable energy technologies tosolve our current and future energy needs,” says Juenemann. “Schools are in an excellentposition to use renewable energy technologies as a multi-disciplinary learning tool to discuss the economic, social and environmental impacts of continued dependence on fossilfuels as an energy source.”
When speaking of the results of this project, Juenemann replied with enthusiasm: “The primary success is that during the course of four years so many people came together tomake such a complicated project actually happen. It’s simply amazing. And now that it iscompleted, the school and community are now realizing the benefits of the project, particularly in the area of renewable energy education. Simply getting people comfortablewith the idea that renewable energy is productive and reliable will further reinforce theneed and desire to keep moving forward with more clean energy ideas and projects.”
With the expected expansion of the renewable energy industry in the near future,Juenemann believes having a renewable energy system on site will provide students theopportunity to explore the growing fields of research and manufacturing first hand, givingthem an advantage as they further their education.
For more information, please contact Jamie Juenemann via email ([email protected]) or phone 218-834-4746.
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A close-up of the solar array inverter.
The solar array is highly visible from the school.