Northern Oklahoma College received a FedEX grant May 18 that will provide a wind turbine for the new NOC Wind Energy program.NOC will receive a Primus Air Turbine, associated hardware, and a small cash award this summer for use this fall, according to Dr. Frankie Wood-Black, Pre-Engineering, Physical Sciences and Process Technology Division Chair.NOC students in Wind Energy and Pre-Engineering will use the turbine for research projects this fall.“This is an exciting opportunity as it is going to allow our students to have hands on experience with a wind turbine as well as be able to conduct real world studies and research,” said Dr. Wood-Black.The grant was awarded at the Clean Power Conference in San Antonio on May 17. NOC adjunct instructor Kathy Jackson attended the grant announcement. The announcement was also made on Facebook Live.REpowering Schools (REpS) worked with FedEx to offer a research opportunity for university, college and community college students that will introduce them to the fundamentals of wind turbine testing, evaluation, and validation through hands-on, experiential learning.The project provides a small-scale wind turbine such as the Primus Air turbine, some testing equipment, and a small research grant to expand research capabilities at applying schools.The turbines will be used for capstone or other research classes or through independent studies and renewable energy clubs during the fall semester of 2022. The specific learning objectives would focus on applied engineering with a focus on small wind turbine design and distributed generation.NOC was one of four schools to receive a small wind turbine and associated hardware for which they are expected to complete a set of defined turbine operational characteristics and then conduct research of the school’s choosing. Small research grants will also be given to support equipment purchases and/or staff/faculty time.Results of research may be presented at a student symposium at the Distributed Wind Energy Association Conference in Washington DC, currently scheduled for late February 2023.
