Renovation of Old Power Plant Building (Engineering Research Building 43)

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NSF funding of $580,000 will be equally matched by monies from Texas Tech University for the renovation of research facilities for the interdisciplinary Plasma and Pulsed Power Research Program. The building is important to affected researchers, because it provides separate and unique facilities for experiments in physics and electrical engineering. Isolation of the space from classroom and administrative uses is important for experiments which involve high levels of noise and electrical interference and which sometimes continue for 24 hours/day over several days. The 60-year old building will be completely renovated for removal of all contaminating asbestos, repair of leaking windows and roof, installation of new flooring, a partial second floor, a new HVAC system, an overhead crane and a large access (loading) door. The renovated building will provide a dedicated facility for conduct of research that is seldom undertaken at universities, because of the interference with other normal university functions. The program receives approximately $2M per year and is the largest research program on campus. Support comes from a variety of federal agencies as well as industry. The research is directed primarily at high power activities, including industrial and military applications and NASA lunar and planetary missions. The facility will be used for the interdisiplinary work required for studies in power generation, conditioning, and applications for space and terrestrial missions in the next 10-30 years and will benefit 12 faculty members, 3 post docs, and 30 graduate and 10 undergraduate students. ***