Boston – Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) CEO Alicia Barton McDevitt announced a grant of up to $260,000 to help strengthen and grow the research capacity of the University of Massachusetts Lowell’s Wind Energy Research Group.
The grant includes $115,000 for a graduate student program in conjunction with MassCEC’s Wind Technology Testing Center in Charlestown. The grant also provides $100,000 to support the continued development of an Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for which UMass Lowell is seeking funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF). If the NSF funds the center, the grant provides an additonal $45,000 for MassCEC’s membership in the center.
“The research center will further strengthen the wind energy research cluster here in Massachusetts by bringing together the university and private developers to reach a common goal,” said Barton McDevitt. “Training the next generation of researchers will accelerate the development of the next generation of high-performance wind energy technologies designed to generate even more clean power from a single turbine.”
“UMass Lowell’s expertise in wind blade technology is helping the nation expand its supply of alternative, clean energy sources. Our partnership with the Wind Technology Testing Center and MassCEC will help ensure that Massachusetts is a center for advances in the industry,” said UMass Lowell Chancellor Marty Meehan. “We are grateful to the MassCEC for their support of the important research being conducted by UMass Lowell faculty.”
More than 50 wind technology companies have expressed interest in joining the research center, which will serve to bring together those in the industry with the students and professors of UMass Lowell. The center will also further strengthen the university’s ability to attract and graduate students in disciplines that support the Commonwealth’s wind energy cluster.