SA school pool to use geothermal energy

Adelaide-based boys’ school St Peter’s College is set to become the first school in South Australia to use a geoexchange heating and cooling system to heat its indoor pool and provide space conditioning to the pool enclosure.

The geothermal technology, to be designed and installed by GeoExchange Australia, is expected to save the school over a third of the energy costs required to run its sports centre.

Geoexchange systems utilise constant stable temperatures in the ground to increase the efficiency of heating and cooling systems. In the St Peter’s College project, ground temperatures of 17°C will be accessed through the installation of a ground heat exchanger (GHX) beneath the adjacent sports oval. This will consist of 45 boreholes drilled to a depth of 70 m each.

The water circulated through the polyethylene pipe within this GHX will extract heat from the ground and deliver it to a series of ground-source heat pumps (GSHPs) that will be located in the main plant room. Two of the GSHPs will transfer this heat from the GHX into the pool water, while four GSHPs will supply the pool hall with space heating and/or cooling.

According to St Peter’s College Director of Finance and Administration Jason Haseldine, the installation of the system aligns with the school’s vision for sustainability. He added the system will help the school educate its students about living sustainably so they develop into environmentally responsible adults.

GeoExchange Australia Managing Director Yale Carden said St Peter’s College is to be commended for identifying the importance of energy efficiency to its sustainability strategy. He said St Peter’s College has embraced its responsibility in the transition to a clean energy future, playing an important role in helping Adelaide become a carbon-neutral city by 2050.

The geothermal works are expected to be completed by mid-2016.