Santa Clara University once again will have the chance to show the world that solar innovation and technology in the hands of students can make a difference. Santa Clara has been selected as one of 20 university-led teams to participate in the Department of Energy's highly competitive Solar Decathlon, held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in the fall of 2009.
The announcement comes on the heels of SCU's triumphant finish in the 2007 competition, taking third place overall, outdistancing Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cornell, and two-time decathlon winner University of Colorado, Boulder.
"We are thrilled to have been selected once again to participate in this competition. It is the mission of Santa Clara's School of Engineering to serve our students, our community, and our world. How better to do so than through this exciting competition that engages our students, faculty, staff, and industry partners in developing and promoting sustainable solutions to our global energy challenges," said Godfrey Mungal, dean of the School of Engineering.
Cornell University (Ithaca, N.Y.), Rice University (Houston, Texas), and University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (Urbana, Ill.) are some of the other universities participating in the 2009 Solar Decathlon. Teams are selected from universities in the United States, Canada, and Germany; each team will receive $100,000 from the DOE as seed money to begin to design, build, and operate a unique, energy efficient, fully solar-powered home for this competition. Each entry will use sustainable technology and demonstrate that homes powered entirely by the sun do not have to sacrifice all the modern comforts and aesthetics Americans are accustomed to.
The Decathlon gets its name from the 10 specific areas of competition; in 2007 these were: architecture, engineering, market viability, communications, comfort, appliances, hot water, lighting, energy balance, and getting around, (transportation). Each home must produce enough electricity and hot water to perform all the functions of a home, from powering lights and electronics to cooking, washing clothes and dishes. The team that finishes the week of competition with the most points wins.
In the 2007 competition, SCU earned first-place points in the hot water and energy balance categories, and took second place in communications, appliances, and getting around. In all categories except architecture, the team finished in the top 10. In hopes of capturing the top prize in 2009, Santa Clara is partnering with California College of the Arts' architecture program to create a design plan.
"The 2007 team has set a very high standard, and it will be our goal to do even better. The team will build on the lessons learned from 2007, and will also seek to add significant new innovations to the structure and systems of the house," said Timothy Hight, chair of Santa Clara's mechanical engineering department.
Applications for the 2009 competition were evaluated by a panel of engineers, scientists, and other experts from the DOE and its National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Teams were required to meet specific criteria, demonstrating their ability to design and build an innovative 800-square-foot solar home from scratch, including the ability to raise additional funds and assemble a team that will carry the project through to completion.
