| Overall Rating | Platinum |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 85.89 |
| Liaison | Jennifer Andrews |
| Submission Date | Oct. 24, 2024 |
University of New Hampshire
IN-47: Innovation A
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.50 / 0.50 |
Jennifer
Andrews Project Director Sustainability Institute |
Name or title of the innovative policy, practice, program, or outcome:
A brief description of the innovative policy, practice, program, or outcome that outlines how credit criteria are met and any positive measurable outcomes associated with the innovation:
UNH leads the Atlantic Marine Energy Center, one of only four national marine energy centers in the coutnry. It is a consortium that also includes Stony Brook University, Lehigh University, and the Coastal Studies Institute, aimed at addressing the ongoing needs for research, development, and testing in support of wave, tidal, and ocean current energy and Powering the Blue Economy (PBE) applications. UNH is leading this effort to develop the technology and skills that will help unlock the power of the sea as a renewable source of energy.
The AMEC features a host of innovative new improvements to its marine energy facilities, which include a combined wave and tow tank and deep engineering tank on campus and the UNH Tidal Energy Test Site on the Piscataqua River beneath the Memorial Bridge between Portsmouth and Kittery, Maine. Use of these assets extends beyond UNH with researchers and technicians from industry and DOE National Labs traveling to campus to utilize UNH’s unique marine energy research infrastructure.
A series of marine energy summer short courses taught at all four consortium institutions will aim to develop a workforce for this growing industry with “boot camps” for senior undergraduates and more in-depth, advanced courses for graduate students.
UNH is also conducting the following research as a part of this initative:
- Refining models that will test whether assumptions about tidal energy are transferable to other sites.
- Modeling and testing wave energy converters for blue economy applications such as aquaculture.
- Improving the performance of UNH’s wave-powered water pump for promoting growth rates in macroalgae (kelp) aquaculture.
- Improving the design of mooring systems for marine energy and developing new guidelines for marine energy anchor system design.
- Assessing marine energy system sustainability, economic and environmental benefits to microgrids on island communities.
In addition to the faculty researchers leading these projects, six UNH Ph.D. students are involved.
In Sept, UNH was awarded $12 million from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to advance those efforts by funding research, facilities and workforce development for the marine energy industry.
Optional Fields
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
See also https://interactioninstitute.org/the-evolving-story-of-a-network-innovation-fsnes-21-day-racial-equity-habit-building-challenge-2/
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