Educating Industry: Private sector leans on University for innovation, answers.

• Author: Kreilkamp, Danny
• Position: EDUCATION

Back in April, Alaska Business explored some exciting developments in the state's geothermal industry. In "Heating Up," we spoke with Gwen Holdmann, who is not only one of Alaska's most respected thought leaders on geothermal but also the director of UAF's Alaska Center for Energy and Power (ACEP).

Our conversation ran the gamut from early versions of Organic Rankine cycle generators to the steps necessary for developing a national energy strategy.

At one point, Holdmann touched on a previous project at Pilgrim Hot Springs where her team at ACEP combined basic thermal imaging with a novel data processing technique that offered a more comprehensive look at the area's geothermal resources.

She noted that by using this method, her team was able to identify thermal signatures that were well away--almost a mile--from the primary hot spring area.

And that's the first time we've identified that the overall footprint of that system is much larger than just the signature at the surface.

This finding served as the groundwork for their 2013 project, and based on the overall results of their research, a power purchase agreement was signed between the City of Nome, the landowner, and a private developer regarding a 2 megawatt power plant. The project is still in the works today.

The importance of projects like these, and their applications to Alaska industry, can't be understated.

"People don't always understand the value of research being conducted at the University. I come from an industry background and I really value what the University can contribute. This is a perfect example of innovation and innovative techniques that were pioneered by the University that were then used by private sector to make development decisions," says Holdmann.

And it turns out--there's plenty more where that came from.

'In a Nutshell'

ACEP is an applied energy research program based at UAF. It was formed over a decade ago with a vision of leveraging university resources and expertise to help solve pressing issues facing Alaska's energy sector.

The program has grown to include more than sixty researchers, staff, and students, and continues to serve as an invaluable resource for the state in a nutshell (which also doubles as the title of ACEP's latest marketing campaign that consists of a dozen videos detailing recent projects)--ACEP is keeping Alaska's energy industry competitive.

As Holdmann puts it in her own two-minute clip, the program "is working with our...