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About the Project
Located in Pasadena, California, the $193 million state-of-the-art Caltech Chen Neuroscience Research Building (CNRB) fosters cross-disciplinary collaboration, providing wet, dry and computational research labs. The building serves as the university’s new administrative and knowledge center for the Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, supporting more than a dozen principal investigators.
The sensitive and long-term research occurring within the Chen Neuroscience Research Building requires extreme electrical reliability. A loss of power would cause the neuroscience research occurring in the building to be set back years, if not decades. To provide the desired level of reliability, the CNRB building runs independently from the Pasadena power grid, enabling Caltech to operate without disruption and meet sustainability goals. Electrical service is provided through three distinct methods:
- Normal 24/7/365 electrical service is provided by Bloom hydrogen fuel cells, which utilize highly reliable natural gas to create very clean electricity. Fuel cells are not only reliable but also very sustainable since they convert natural gas fuel into clean electricity through an electrochemical reaction instead of combustion. This process virtually eliminates criteria air pollutants, including Nitrogen oxides (NOx) and Sulfur oxides (SOx), which are emitted by conventional power plants.
- Should the unexpected occur and the Bloom Fuel Cells fail, the power source would automatically transfer to Pasadena Water and Power, a reliable local utility that provides electricity to the balance of the Caltech Campus.
- Should both the fuel cells and Pasadena Water Power fail, a diesel-powered generator with 16 hours of fuel would automatically start to meet the critical power needs within the Chen Research Building.
These three interconnected and reliable sources of electrical power will allow the neuroscience research at Caltech to occur without the risk of losing research due to electrical failure.
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