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| Kentucky project to harness wind energy |
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By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent RUSSELL, Ky. — Harnessing wind to create energy isn’t a new concept; in fact it can be traced back nearly 2,000 years. Many cultures have used wind-generated energy, generally through the use of windmills, to do everything from grinding corn to pumping water.
It was the idea of the windmill that helped set a Kentucky project into motion leading to energy savings for a school and awards for the teacher and students who put that project together.
Doug Keaton, the electrical technology instructor at the Russell Area Technology Center (ATC) began a collaboration project between his class and a physics class at the local high school. Initially the project was designed to study alternative and renewable energy solutions focusing on wind energy.
The joint project was funded through a state Tech Prep grant. Tech Prep is a federal initiative that provides assistance to states to award grants to consortia of local education agencies and postsecondary education institutions for the development and operation of programs consisting of the last two years of secondary education and at least two years of postsecondary education.
The program also is designed to strengthen links between secondary and postsecondary schools. In Kentucky, Tech Prep grants also call for the development of projects to coincide with the local program.
Keaton’s students known as the E-3 (efficient, electrical, energy) Team and the students of Honors Physics Instructor Joe Aldridge at Russell High School developed a one kilowatt wind turbine generator placed atop a 60-foot tower that now sits outside the ATC.
The students began the project by learning the history of wind energy and constructing mini windmills. The project also included the development of an energy conservation display which consisted of two residential metering devices to compare the energy usage of incandescent and compact fluorescent bulbs prompting the group to become involved in the ENERGY STAR’s Change a Light, Change the World Campaign.
That campaign is designed to bring individuals and organizations together in a nationwide effort to save energy and help fight global warming, starting by encouraging a switch to lighting that has earned the government’s ENERGY STAR label for energy efficiency. Those participating in the switch start by taking the Energy Star Pledge.
The team set up their display at area businesses and signed up 685 people to take the pledge all of which garnered the attention of the Kentucky NEED program.
Kentucky NEED is the state affiliate of the National Energy Education Develop-ment (NEED) Project, dedicated to comprehensive, hands-on energy education.
Keaton and his students took part in training to bring NEED’s Science of Energy curriculum into their project.
The end result has been the Kentucky NEED Senior Level Award for Energy Achievement, the National NEED Rookie of the Year Senior Level Youth Award and an Earth Day Award, presented by the Environmental Quality Commission.
“Being involved with the National Energy Education Development project, or as affectionately put NEED, has been a great blessing to my students. They are the most supportive non-profit group a teacher like me could have for a friend,” said Keaton.
“With their curriculum support and my technological skills and a lot of inspiration from the kids, this wind turbine project has created so much excitement for the students and the school. We believe that when we are finished we can supply 25 percent of our school’s lighting load with renewable energy that we generate from our projects. Not to mention the students who will follow their career paths in environmental, chemical and electrical engineering as well as electrical industry in general as a direct result of the education they are receiving in renewable, alternative energy.”
As much as the group has accomplished, Keaton and his students aren’t finished.
“Mr. Keaton has led us and inspired us to achieve at a level we did not know we could reach. He challenges us daily to solve problems with our creative and logical-thinking skills simultaneously,” said Shaun Stephens, one of Keaton’s students.
“His vision has become our vision, we are working diligently on phase two of our project, to hybrid a solar generation system with a wind turbine to provide power for our school and save our district a lot of money while teaching us scientific methods of study through using technology that is so cool.”
This farm news was published in the Aug. 22, 2007 issue of Farm World, serving Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee. |
| 8/22/2007 |
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