Cogeneration Plant

In 1998, MTSU installed a cogeneration plant on campus, marking a major step forward in our sustainability efforts. The plant operates by combusting natural gas with fresh air to drive a gas turbine, which then turns a 5‑MW generator that supplies electricity directly to campus. Instead of letting the heat from this combustion reaction go to waste, the system captures the thermal energy to produce steam. Hot exhaust from the turbine flows into a heat‑recovery boiler, where water-filled tubes absorb the heat and convert the water into steam. This steam is then distributed to buildings across campus to provide heating.

The cogeneration plant supports sustainability in several key ways. First, it produces two valuable outputs from a single fuel process: electricity for campus and steam for building heat. Second, generating electricity on campus reduces transmission losses because the power is used at the point of production rather than traveling miles from an external plant. Third, producing our own electricity increases campus resilience. During periods when the regional grid is strained, MTSU can generate a significant portion of its own power.