Lake-Source Cooling

Abstract

The Lake-Source Cooling (LSC) Project at Cornell University uses the deep, cold waters of nearby Cayuga Lake, as a non-contact cooling source for the campus chilled water system. It began providing 16,000 tons (56 300 kW th ) of cooling in July 2000 with an 86% reduction in energy use versus conventional cooling alternatives. Cornell's deep-watersource cooling project is the first to use a deep inland lake's renewable cold water. (All heat gained each year is fully released to the environment by midwinter. LSC's contribution is equivalent to an additional two hours of sunlight each year.) Two technically challenging issues of this project were heat exchanger selection and distribution system hydronics.