The University of Connecticut was one of four institutions to receive a grant from the Department of Energy to support their offshore wind power development program. According to a press release from UConn, the grant contributes $2.1 million to the project, which is expected to cost $3.7 million in total. The difference will be covered by industry partners such as Eversource, an energy company that partnered with UConn to create the Eversource Energy Center, which researches and develops technology for more reliable power. According to the press release, the main focus of the project is maximizing the grid capacity of the offshore wind farm with their current transmission lines. The project looks to accomplish their goal by utilizing dynamic line rating sensors to monitor the transmission lines of an offshore wind farm. The sensors will collect data such as wind speed and the line’s temperature. This data will ideally be used to ensure that wind farms are consistently operating at their maximum safe capacity.
UConn receives federal grant for offshore wind farm development project