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ESF Energy Project Gets High Marks in Competition
ESF had one of the top projects in the New York Power Authority/New York State Energy Research and Development Authority's Geothermal Energy Challenge.
ESF's ground source heat pump (GSHP) project was among the highest-scoring projects in New York state, enabling the College to continue to the challenge's second stage.
Josh Arnold, ESF's energy manager, identified Moon Library as a prime candidate for larger scale GSHPs that would use the earth underneath ESF's Quad as a heat source during the winter and a heat sink in the summer.
There are a number of advantages to this project, according to Arnold. "It would be an excellent demonstration project of GSHP technology, reduce ESF's carbon footprint, save energy and money, as well as enable ESF to use the combined heat-and-power plant to serve the rest of Illick Hall with steam."
GSHPs have an efficiency of 300 to 400 percent. This means that for one unit of energy in, three to four units of energy are transferred to and from the condition space, Arnold said.
The project will include a free advanced report on the site that provides an expanded economic analysis and includes a review of GSHP environmental impacts and regulatory requirements, as well as a streamlined building energy model for Moon Library connected to the potential GSHP system. These reports will enable campus leaders to decide whether to advance the project if it's selected for the third and fourth stages in the competition, said Arnold.