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In a recent upper school assembly, students learned about a new addition to the science program. The school will receive laboratory-scale Microbial Fuel Cells (MFCs) and accompanying equipment to establish the McDonogh Energy and Environmental Nexus Laboratory to be housed in the new Naylor STEM Building, scheduled to open in September 2013.

The school is partnering with Dr. Bruce Logan of The Pennsylvania State University and Robert Kerschner of Kerschner Environmental Technologies, who is a McDonogh parent, to establish this program. According to Kerschner, “There is no other high school in the world that has this type of technology. And, it is the only technology that addresses two of society’s problems in one device - energy conservation and environmental renewal.”

This spring, interested students will have the opportunity to start the microbial process in Kerschner’s lab, where the device is being stored until it is moved to its permanent location in the Naylor Building. "Not only is this device a teaching tool for science, but through this partnership, our students can experiment with new energy technologies," said science teacher Rob Smoot.

To read more about this cutting-edge technology, scroll to McDonogh at the bottom of this link.