Advanced Structures & Composites Center

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins and U.S. Rep. Michael Michaud welcomed top officials from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to Castine on Sept. 5 to celebrate a successful year of the VolturnUS floating wind turbine deployed off Castine. “This anniversary is another great day for our state, the university and its many partners, and for […]

Jeff Thaler, assistant university counsel and visiting professor of energy law and policy, was asked by the editor of Ocean and Costal Law Journal to write an article. The focus is on how climate change’s impact on public trust resources (e.g. oceans, wildlife, fisheries) compels a faster move to ocean-based renewable energy — and a […]

Douglas Gardner, professor of forest operations, bioproducts and bioenergy, will receive the 2014 Society of Wood Science and Technology (SWST) Distinguished Service Award at the society’s 57th international convention, June 23–27 in Zvolen, Slovakia. The award recognizes distinguished service to the profession of wood science and technology. In his nomination, Gardner was cited for his […]

Advanced Materials in Infrastructure and Energy has been selected as one of seven Signature Areas at the University of Maine, alongside Forestry and the Environment, STEM Education, Climate Change, Marine Sciences, College of Engineering, and the Honors College. The designation will inform strategic and focused planning in resource allocation to preserve UMaine’s national stature and […]

“There’s a great deal of satisfaction knowing that something we developed and designed is being used and is helping to save lives,” says Paul Melrose, engineering manager at the Advanced Structures and Composite Center. The University of Maine’s Modular Ballistic Protection System saved lives inside the United States consulate during a September 2013 attack in […]

An update to a story we told you about last week… an offshore wind energy project in Maine has received a key approval from state regulators. This article from CompositesWorld.com says the Maine Public Utilities Commission gave the go-ahead for the Maine Aqua Ventus project, a pilot offshore wind farm project designed to prove the feasibility of floating […]

HALLOWELL, Maine (AP) _ A panel of state regulators is poised to vote on a proposal to build a 12-megawatt wind project off the coast of Maine.The Maine Public Utilities Commission is expected to vote Tuesday on whether to grant initial approval for a state contract to the University of Maine and its partner companies, […]

The 12MW Maine Aqua Ventus offshore wind project cleared a critical hurdle today when state regulators approved a term sheet for a long-term energy contract. The Maine Public Utilities Commission voted 2-to-1 to accept the proponent’s bid to produce an estimated 43,000MWh/year at a price of 23 cents/kWh. The price shall increase 2.25% annually for […]

Cape Wind is probably the most famous wind farm in the United States, which is especially telling because it doesn’t exist. Its planned 130 turbines in Massachusetts’ Nantucket Sound have been controversial enough to receive national attention — both supporting and opposing the project — ever since developers announced it in 2001. After years of […]

Maine Aqua Ventus GP LLC released yesterday the public version of its proposal to develop a groundbreaking offshore wind project in the Gulf of Maine, called Maine Aqua Ventus I. This follows the last-month’s ruling by the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC), according to which Maine Aqua Ventus should release some of the details on its offshore […]