My Summer Project: Measuring Chilled Water Needs for Winter Cooling on Campus By Scott Womer, Engineering Intern College of Engineering, Class of ‘15

My Odyssey al La Plant Engineering Intern Compost Hauler Technology Trash Recycler

Winter Cooling Summer Project Idea Buildings on campus attached to chilled water require winter cooling. As of now most use air and domestic water for cooling. Is there a way we can use our chilled water to more effectively provide this cooling

Join the Physical plant, go exotic places find interesting equipment and record the information

Coolers/Cold Rooms Server Rooms

Growth Chambers Freezer Rooms

Have all the info but how are we going to quantify the loads and chilled water required? …(stay with me, here’s where it gets “science-y”)

Energy Produced HIGH HEAT LOW HEAT

Reverse…Cool Mike and Take heat HIGH HEAT LOW HEAT

 

Cool in Different Ways Air Cooled Water Cooled

Heat Conduction Difference Air Conduction =.025 Water =.563 Water 25 times better than “conducting” heat than air

Quantify? Total Thermal Energy = Thermal Loss * Amount of Stuff Losing it Q = (Tin – Tout) *(Gallon/min)(500) Temperature DROP & GPM

I got to use a…… Temperature…Laser

then I’m asked to… “Find out how fast the flow goes?” Use a Flow Meter (best and easiest method) Manual (“a pail and a stopwatch”) Guess (using standards and equipment specs)

When there were no flow meters… Liters/Second  GPM Liters Per Second converted into Gallons Per Minute

….but then people wondered what the student intern was doing in the closet all day….

Organized the Information in Shared folder

…and massive Excel file

Chilled Water GPM GPM for known loads already entered into spreadsheet. All information and equations are ready for when the unknown GPM is known

Auto-Cad Cooling Details

Major Opportunity and Solution Example Davis Center Jeffords Hall

Davis Center Proper Controls Set in place Rooftop Condenser to Outside Air

Davis GPM & Temperature Trending Trending of GPM and Temp show maximum and minimum demands on loop

Davis Center results GPM of Food Loop MAX = 22 Max Temperature Drop = 12 F Max HEAT = 121,000 BTU/hr GPM Required Chilled Water = 15.37

More Buildings Ready and More to Come

MUCH Thanks to these PPD staff: Mike Pelletier Russ Charron Dave Blatchly Scott O’Brien Matt Malloy Randall Reynolds Erica Spiegel Corey Berman Former Intern: Shaun Connelly