ATLANTA - The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) awarded grants to 14 schools through the 2010-2011 ASHRAE Undergraduate Senior Project Grant program.

The grants, totaling some $65,000, are awarded by ASHRAE to colleges and universities worldwide to promote the study and teaching of HVACR, encouraging undergraduate students to pursue related careers. The grants are used to design and construct projects and provide HVACR students in their senior year with hands-on experience in applications ranging from smart home controls to solar-powered gas refrigeration.

This year, 14 schools from across the country and around the world were awarded grants, with Purdue University – West Lafayette ranking the highest among the applicants for its proposal to develop smart home controls. As the top grant award winner, the school has been invited to send two students to present their project at the 2011 ASHRAE Winter Conference in Las Vegas.

“Purdue University is designing and building a net zero energy home that will showcase a variety of new technologies for residential construction,” said Bill Hutzel, faculty advisor of the project.

Other ASHRAE grant recipients include the following schools: Purdue University–Calumet, California Maritime Academy, Texas A&M University, Florida International University, Pennsylvania State University, Widener University, Montana State University, University of North Carolina – Charlotte, University of Wyoming, Hofstra University, American University of Beirut, University of North Texas, and Oral Roberts University.

ASHRAE will begin accepting applications for the 2011-2012 program in August 2010, with a December 2010 final deadline.

Publication date:06/07/2010