Greener energy

Biomass energy facility fires up

Carolina’s $19 million biomass energy facility was completed last year and is ramping up to provide nearly 75 percent of the University’s demand for steam and enough electricity to power the equivalent of 1,500 homes. The plant, built as part of a multi-year energy performance contract with Johnson Controls, brings a number of significant benefits to the University, including:

• annual energy cost savings of $2 million or more
• reduced greenhouse gas emissions
• stable and predictable energy costs
• use of renewable biofuels that are in abundant supply in South Carolina.
  

Unlike traditional biomass energy plants that incinerate biomass materials (forest or agricultural waste), Carolina’s biomass facility uses a next-generation gasification process that superheats rather than burns the biofuel. In this facility, superheated wood chips release gas that is ignited to produce steam, which is used to heat the campus and produce electricity. This process results in fewer particulate emissions than traditional biomass plants and will emit 20,000 fewer tons of greenhouse gases than the natural gas-fired boilers it replaces. In addition to providing a source of clean and cost-efficient energy for the campus, the biomass energy facility is serving as a teaching tool for the College of Engineering and Computing. A technology-equipped classroom is incorporated into the facility and will be used for classes in a number of engineering disciplines.