The University of New Mexico’s Physical Plant Department Ford Utilities Center Cogeneration Unit was recognized by the United States Environmental Protection Agency for its commendable “combined heat and power generation” and will be presented with a 2008 Energy Star Combined Heat and Power award.
Cogeneration – also called “combined heat and power” (CHP) – occurs when a power station or heat engine is used to create heat and energy at the same time. Conventional power plants emanate heat as a byproduct of creating energy. Cogeneration plants capture that heat and put it to use. CHP generation is an efficient, clean, and reliable approach to generating power and heat from a single fuel source.
To earn this award, an energy project must meet EPA criteria for energy efficiency and fuel savings, and must make an outstanding contribution to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from energy generation.
The EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation noted “Through the recovery of otherwise wasted heat to produce steam to support campus demands, the University of New Mexico has demonstrated exceptional leadership in energy use and management. The CHP system operates at approximately 64 percent efficiency and uses approximately 18 percent less fuel than equivalent separate heat and power. By this comparison, we estimate that the CHP system effectively reduces CO2 emissions by 8,200 tons per year.”
The six megawatt gas-turbine generator and heat recovery system was completed in April, 2005 and produces approximately 18 percent of UNM’s main campus electricity needs and 28 percent of its steam requirements.