In an effort to improve indoor air quality and save energy, Bosch Thermotechnology Corp. has introduced a new portfolio of IAQ accessories for integration with its Greensource line of geothermal heat pumps or other compatible HVAC systems.
The city of Côte Saint Luc in Quebec recently opened its new Aquatic and Community Centre with a cost of $18 million. While this may seem like a hefty price tag, the city will be saving millions of dollars on energy costs, thanks in part to the center’s HVAC system.
The American Swedish Institute looked homeward to plan for its future, using geothermal technology to achieve high-performance energy solutions in an urban setting.
Reflecting a long-established Swedish commitment to environmental stewardship, the Nelson Cultural Center addition at the American Swedish Institute (ASI) in Minneapolis integrates several technically advanced sustainable features, including a high-efficiency geothermal heating and cooling system that reduces energy consumption by nearly 30 percent (based on an ASHRAE 90.1 baseline) while supporting the Institute’s diverse community programming.
What are the key technical challenges and design options for optimizing a geothermal heat pump design? Review the pros and cons involved with centralized or distributed pumping, with hybrid or decoupled systems, and with the controls that can guide them.
With a wide spectrum of specialized spaces and particular outside air requirements, a hospital’s en-ergy-efficiency efforts start when arranging which areas go where. From there, the author leaves no technology unturned — chilled beams, geothermal, DOAS, VRF, etc. — in evaluating which ap-proaches might best contribute proper ventilation and humidity in which environments, with an eye on minimizing facility energy consumption.
For the massive 235,000-sq-ft Merrimack County Nursing Home in New Hampshire, the geothermal source available nearby may not have been the fountain of youth, but it did prove key to the center’s “uber-green” mechanical system retrofit. See how the companies involved brought together 16 wells, over 300 water-to-air heat pumps, and the rest of the 615-ton system to serve this 290-bed facility.
For a nonprofit located on the shores of Lake Michigan and an adolescent treatment center in Minnesota, geothermal heat pump systems have been an upfront investment that pays off in terms of maintenance, ROI, and effectiveness within an integrated sustainable design.