Ambient Loop Thermal Energy Design Study

Two Primary Objectives:

1. Could the conversion be completed without widespread electrical system upgrades in the downtown area? To this end, the study establishes the heating, cooling, and simultaneous thermal loads for each of the buildings in the study and determines the water-source heat pump equipment needed to meet those loads leveraging such and ambient loop. Using the heating and cooling load profiles, the study concludes that yes, the conversions to the buildings in the study could be completed without widespread system upgrades.

2. Were there enough thermal resources available to maintain the loop’s temperature with minimal electric inputs? The study lays out two models for this. The first model relies heavily on geothermal resources (57%) with the remaining 43% of thermal capacity coming from wastewater heat recovery and electric cooling towers or fluid coolers. The second model is more balanced, decreasing the geothermal capacity to 29% of the total and introducing an equivalent 29% of thermal capacity from the existing chilled water system that will remain after the implementation of the pilot. Therefore, the study also concludes that, yes, there are adequate thermal resources available.