Editor’s Note: Campus Findings is a weekly column about things on campus that trigger the curiosity of the Iowa State community. Carrie Sutton, junior in journalism and mass communication, will investigate the inquires each week and post her findings. Submit inquires to [email protected].

Iowa State’s Heating Plant provides a new meaning for the phrase “power trip.”

The Heating Plant, located on the east side of campus, provides field trips and tours of its power facilities to classes, environmental agencies and anyone who is interested, said Jeff Shearer, the power plant’s chief operator.

“Tours are available at any time. Just call us,” Shearer said.

The Heating Plant, also known as the power plant, specializes its tours for environmental agencies, Shearer said.

“We’re quite proud of what we do in [the environmental] area,” he said.

At one time, the power plant burned the highest sulfur content it could out of coal but produced well below the sulfuric acid level, Shearer said. He said the plant mixes limestone with the coal to bind up the sulfur. Huge water walls beside the plant help retain coal from washing down in the creek and keep coal dust down, he said.

Shearer said the power plant burns 160,000 tons of coal per year and delivers 168 million kilowatts (kwh) of power per year from coal.

He said the power plant also provides electrical power and 30.9 million tons of chilled power per year for things such as air conditioning.

“We also power 17,500 street and parking lot lights,” Shearer said.

The power plant only provides power for ISU, but it also retains power from the city through a 20-megawatt connection contract, Shearer said.

He said early Friday afternoon the plant’s reading said it had produced 27.3 megawatts of power.

“Of [the 27.3 megawatts], we produced 17 [megawatts] ourselves,” Shearer said.

Shearer said the plant uses its 4.5 miles of steam tunnels, its eight miles of storm sewer lines and its newly-purchased 2,000-kwh electrically-driven chiller to produce power. He said the plant also has a 300-kwh portable generator for emergency use.

Shearer said the power plant is managed under Facilities Planning and Management. He said it is “totally” funded by ISU, but it is a utility of its own and receives its money by billing departments, like any other utility company.

Shearer said the power plant hires students, and a chemical-treating intern from NALCO is working there presently.

“We hire students to help as the need arises,” he said.

The Heating Plant was first powered in 1891 and was originally located near the water tower, Shearer said. The original generator is open for the public to view in Coover Hall, he said.