International. Aiming to become carbon neutral by 2025, the University of the Sunshine Coast (USC), in Australia, has announced plans to install a giant "water battery" with 5,800 solar panels to provide cold water to its air conditioners.
5,800 rooftop solar panels and a 4,500 cubic meter water storage tank are about to be built by Veolia on USC's main campus. The water for the air conditioning will be cooled. The system is expected to save more than 92,000 tons of CO2 emissions in 25 years. It is the equivalent of the carbon emissions of 525 average Australian homes in the same period.
Veolia will operate and maintain the infrastructure for 10 years, selling the power generated to the university at a cheaper rate than electricity from the grid. After this time, ownership of the infrastructure will be transferred to USC.
The vice-chancellor, Professor Greg Hill, says 60% of the university's energy is used to cool water for air conditioning. The 2.1 MW photovoltaic system will produce enough energy to cool 4,500 cubic meters of water. According to Professor Hill, it will reduce the electricity use of the campus grid by 36% and result in an estimated saving of AUD 100 million over the 25 years of the project's life.
The refrigerant used has not yet been revealed, but USC intends to use an environmentally friendly refrigerant and campus lake water for the air conditioning cooling towers. It should save 800,000 cubic meters of drinking water.
Data Source Provider: Sunshine Coast University.
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