The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) has set ambitious goals for deployment of renewable energy over the next decade. The EERE strategy is to decarbonize the sectors of our economy that are major contributors to our nation’s greenhouse gas profile, including the grid, transportation, industrial sector, buildings and agriculture. Learn how these goals can be addressed through innovative geothermal district heating and cooling technical assistance and deployment for communities and what initiatives DOE’s Geothermal Technologies Office is working on in this space including results from geothermal advanced energy storage studies.

Speaker.
Arlene Anderson, Technology Manager, US Department of Energy

Cool TES typically involves Ice or Chilled Water (CHW). Low Temp Fluid (LTF) TES is an alternative with higher efficiency than Ice TES, and smaller volumes with lower supply temps than CHW TES. 20 yrs ago, DFW Airport rehabbed its Central Utility Plant as part of a major expansion. TES was an obvious choice to reduce peak demand costs and minimize chiller capacity & capital. However, CHW TES was not an option for the desired 90,000 ton-hr installation, as DFW’s CHW network operates with a 36 F supply temp, below that achievable with CHW TES. Accordingly, LTF TES with supply/return temps of 36/60 F was selected for the 6-million-gal TES tank. Two decades of experience include demand mgmt, water treatment, and other operational results. Please reach out to speakers directly with
Speakers.
John Andrepont, President, The Cool Solutions Company
Brian Yancy, Assistant Vice President of Utilities and Automation Systems, DFW International Airport

Variable power demand presents a huge challenge for campuses looking to meet consumption needs while maximizing energy efficiency. This case discusses a 3 step solution Radix implemented for UMass-Amherst, focused on an Operational Assessment, Energy Audit, and finally, a scenario-based Advisory System that provides ongoing control and visibility over energy usage and makes real-time recommendations to keep the physical plant running at maximum possible efficiency. Expected results are a 3%/$1,000,000 annual reduction in operating costs. Please reach out to speakers directly with

Speaker.
Thiago Bacic, Business Development Manager, Radix Engineering

IDEA2026 Track: 5B - Capturing and Delivering Value Through District Energy Session: 5B 1

Presentation Description: Rathco ENG's lead district energy designers combined their Danish training with Canadian experience to solve some of the most challenging district piping systems design they've ever faced. Capturing waste heat from an industrial process to provide over 4 million square feet with zero emissions heating, cooling, and domestic hot water required 3 different loops covering over 6km of piping. This presentation will cover some of the highlights challenges, solutions, and processes.

Case Study: Zibi adheres to all 10 principles of the world-class One Planet Living Framework. Developing the region's first zero-carbon district energy system is a significant contributor to Zibi's strategy and Rathco is their lead district energy engineering firm. Rathco is currently delivering detailed engineering drawings and specifications for the installation of their six pipe, EN253 European pipe system. Rathco's design role on this project has recently expanded to include the HDPE ambient temperature piping system on the Quebec side of the project as well as advanced hydraulic modelling.

Topic: Energy Recovery/Waste Heat/Wastewater Systems

Keywords: System Development, Expansion, and Modernization

UNL commissioned its first chilled water thermal energy storage tank over 10 years ago and its second in 2018, now managing over 11 million gallons of storage capacity. This presentation will provide an overview of the system design considerations, operational and cost savings data, and demonstration of the benefits and drawbacks of operational flexibility that TES operation brings to UNL's chilled water system. Final consideration will be given to how operational dispatch of the TES tanks is changing amidst electrical rate structure changes and the increased availability of Demand Response programs.

Case Studies: UNL City and East Campus Thermal Energy Storage Tanks

Keywords: Thermal Energy Storage, Chilled Water, Demand Management

Staying ahead and being proactive with campus growth is key for utilities to meet future demands.  This presentation will provide the importance of utilizing planning and hydraulic modeling for successful thermal distribution expansion.  The presentation will utilize Auburn University as a case study.  Over the past 20 years, Auburn has expanded as a University, while also extending their chilled water distribution system and converting the campus from steam to central hot water.  Planning ahead and utilizing hydraulic modeling has been vital to meet the growth demands.

Speakers.
John Lee,Project Manager,Burns & McDonnell
Rob Engle,Energy Engineer III,Auburn University

181 Mercer Street is a 750,000 sf academic mixed-use building located in highly urbanized lower Manhattan. This $1.5B project utilizes cutting-edge technology and clever design to get the most out of the resources provided by New York University's Trigeneration Plant. Key strategies include active desiccant air conditioning, digital optimization algorithms and a high-tech building skin. This presentation will show how District Energy can successfully partner with Building Services Engineering to achieve the next level in energy performance!

Case Studies:

Keywords: TriGeneration, Desiccant, Controls

181 Mercer Street is a 750,000 sf academic mixed-use building located in highly urbanized lower Manhattan. This $1.5B project utilizes cutting-edge technology and clever design to get the most out of the resources provided by New York University’s tri-generation plant. Key strategies include active desiccant air conditioning, digital optimization algorithms and a high-tech building skin. This presentation will show how District Energy can successfully partner with Building Services Engineering to achieve the next level in energy performance!

Recycled Energy Development (RED) Rochester provides utilities to 16 million SF of building space at Eastman Business Park’s campus in Rochester, NY. RED reduced its carbon footprint by replacing a steam turbine-driven centrifugal chiller with a single 2,000-ton magnetic bearing chiller that contains five variable speed compressors. Through the project, RED was able to lower their natural gas usage and reduce CO2 emissions by more than 23,300 metric tons. Being in Upstate New York, RED can take advantage of cold-weather conditions to operate at 45°F condenser water temperatures and achieve efficiencies as low as 0.15 kW/TR and turndown to 10% capacity.

 Speakers.
 Ryan Voorhees, Senior Project Manager, CHA Consulting, Inc.
 Craig Avalone, Energy Manager, RED-Rochester, LLC

Conference proceedings from IDEA2021: Powering the Future: District Energy/CHP/Microgrids