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STATE, FEDERAL FUNDING FUELS EXPANSION OF MINNESOTA MICROGRID RESEARCH CENTER
The University of St. Thomas has been developing its campus microgrid for about a decade. Today, it consists of a 48-kilowatt rooftop solar array along with a diesel generator, a lead acid battery pack, and an inverter that converts direct current to alternating current. A campus substation connects to Xcel’s local grid. Like most microgrids, the St. Thomas system can run in “island” mode, meaning it can operate even when the power grid fails by drawing on the battery, solar panels and backup generation. The Center for Microgrid Research opened in 2020 as a way to build research and education programming around its campus microgrid. Dr. Mahmoud Kabalan, the center’s director, and Don Weinkauf, the school’s dean of engineering, said the new state and federal funding will allow the center to expand both the program and the microgrid system itself.
The University of St. Thomas’ Center for Microgrid Research recently won a $7.5 million state legislative appropriation and $11 million in a federal defense bill to help it expand. The University of St. Thomas’ Center for Microgrid Research plans to triple its three-person staff and enroll more students thanks to money from a $7.5 million state legislative appropriation and $11 million in federal defense bills secured by U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum. State officials who championed the funding said they hope the center’s education and research efforts can help train future grid technicians and smooth the state’s path to 100% clean electricity by 2040.
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