A California-based energy company plans to install a heat and electricity system on the roof of the University of Arizona Science and Technology Park in Tucson, in an effort to study the efficiency and viability of the technology, the company and the university announced Tuesday.
The company, Cogenra Solar, will design and install the system, which will be completed in May to provide heat and electricity to Building 9070, a multi-tenant commercial facility. Cogenra is also installing a system at Facebook headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., and two military sites, according to a spokeswoman for the company.
The system will be part of a larger initiative by the university called the Solar Zone, which will test, evaluate and apply solar technologies in a partnership with Tucson Electric Power, said Bruce Wright, associate vice president for the university’s research parks.
The university’s Tech Park will purchase the heat and electricity from Cogenra under a 20-year contract but won’t pay for the installation. Wright said the cost will be slightly higher than the cost of electricity, though it will protect against rising electric and gas prices in the future.
“It’s a unique notion that you can provide both the hot-water needs plus a portion of the electrical needs,” Wright said. The goal, he said, is to help solar developers and consumers determine which technologies work best.
In April of last year, the university unveiled a 2-megawatt photovoltaic system designed and built by another California-based company, Amonix. The 12-acre system uses 36 giant solar panels on platforms capable of tracking the sun’s movements. Reports said it could power up to 500 homes.
During the Institute, students are working journalists supervised by reporters and editors from The New York Times and The Boston Globe. Opportunities for students include reporting, copy editing, photography, Web production, print and Web design, and video journalism. Institute graduates now work at major news organizations, including The Associated Press, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post and The New York Times itself, and dozens of midsize news organizations.