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Appalachian Energy Center Has Six More Workshops Through October, Microhydro, Biofuel Systems and More

By Jesse Wood

Sept. 10, 2013. The Appalachian Energy Center’s workshops will be coming to a close in the next month, but there are some more workshops left, covering topics from small-scale biofuel and microhydro systems to common sense architecture and building for energy efficiency and environmental quality.

The Design and Construction of Small-Scale Biofuel Systems, held on Sept. 21-22, and Microhydro System Design and Installation, held on Oct. 11-12, maybe be of interest to teachers, educators, farm owners and people generally interested in renewable energy.

Check those two workshops out below and click the link at the end of this post to find out more about the other remaining workshops. Info below is provided by Janet Miller, the Appalachian Energy Center workshop coordinator. 

1. September 21-22 Design & Construction of Small-Scale Biofuel Systems (http://energy.appstate.edu/workshops/286)

This two-day workshop will feature one day in the classroom and a site visit on the second day to the Catawba County EcoComplex where ASU’s integrated biodiesel research facility and crop processing facility are located. You will learn about the basic concepts, characteristics and biology/chemistry of the anaerobic digestion process. Actual examples of anaerobic digestion in various forms will be presented detailing feedstocks and by-product end uses. A basic outline for designing a system will be detailed with working examples.

2. October 11-12  Micro hydro System Design & Installation Workshop (http://energy.appstate.edu/workshops/253)

Brent Summerville, a previous project manager at the Appalachian Energy Center, and
Brent Summerville, a previous project manager at the Appalachian Energy Center, and Don Harris, a national microhydro expert, at a prior workshop on ASU.

This two-day workshop will cover the basics of small scale hydro power with a field trip to a local micro hydro installation. Participants will learn about: site assessment techniques including the measurement of head and flow; system design; types of turbines and their associated performance and cost; system components such as the intake, penstock and balance of system; maintenance and troubleshooting; case studies; tips and tricks from an industry icon.

Don Harris is a national micro hydro expert. He has developed residential hydro systems since 1981 and is responsible for nearly 3,000 successful systems. The Harris system is an efficient, durable battery charging pelton turbine making it the most popular micro-turbine in the US.

Also, the Oct. 04 “Building Energy Efficiency & Indoor Environmental Quality” Workshop will be an exceptional building performance workshop with attention on the importance of the relationship between energy efficiency measures and indoor environmental quality (IEQ). Susan Doll will be sharing results from her PhD thesis – Determination of Limiting Conditions for Fungal Growth in the Built Environment and some of her results from a $696,810 grant she received from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). http://sustain.appstate.edu/news/2012/06/doll-receives-three-year-grant-study-effects-energy-efficiency-indoor-air-quality

2013 Appalachian Energy Center Workshop Series (Remaining Schedule)

  • Sept. 13 – Building Envelope & HVAC Design for Efficient Buildings
  • Sept. 20 –  2012 North Carolina Energy Code Training
  • Sept. 21-22 – Design & Construction of Synergistic Small-Scale Biofuel Systems
  • Sept. 27 – Returning to a Common Sense Architecture
  • Oct. 4 – Building Energy Efficiency & Indoor Environmental Quality
  • Oct. 11-12 – Micro hydro System Design & Installation

 For more details, click here