GEOTHERMAL HEATING & COOLING | LOOKING BEYOND THE PLANT ROOM
Last week, we looked at the transition to R32. This week, our Mechanical team turned its attention to a different approach to heating and cooling: ground source geothermal systems.
On 26 August, the team visited the RHCS Experience Centre, where a fully functioning geothermal heating and cooling system provided an opportunity to see the technology operating beyond the drawings.
The centre brings together a live plant room, operational ground loop, underfloor heating circuits, a ground source heat pump and integrated controls, allowing the team to see how the individual components work together as a complete system.
One of the key discussions was around peak electrical demand.
In extreme heat, conventional air source systems reject heat into already hot outdoor air, which can reduce efficiency at the same time electricity demand is peaking. Ground source systems instead exchange heat with the earth, where temperatures remain considerably more stable, helping maintain system performance during periods of high outdoor temperatures and grid demand.
And that has implications beyond mechanical engineering.
Reducing peak mechanical demand can influence a building’s maximum demand calculations and, depending on the overall electrical design, the infrastructure required to support it. It is a useful example of how decisions within one building service can affect the design requirements of another.
The team also looked at ground loop header pipework and manifold arrangements, buffer tank configurations, underfloor heating, water flow temperatures and integration with BMS and building automation. It reinforced the importance of considering the ground loop, mechanical plant, hydronic systems and controls as an integrated system early in the design process.
Thanks to James O'Neill and the Radiant Heating and Cooling Solutions team for taking our engineers through the Experience Centre, sharing their technical knowledge and answering plenty of questions along the way.
#MechanicalEngineering #Geothermal #GroundSource #HVAC #BuildingServices #BuildingAutomation #BMS #GoldfishAndBay
