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Western
HVAC News
City of Santa Rosa, California, and
Trane to Increase Laguna Wastewater Treatment Plant’s Energy
Independence.
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The City of Santa Rosa, California, is collaborating with
Trane, a leading global provider of indoor comfort
solutions, and services and a brand of Ingersoll Rand, to
execute an innovative project that will increase energy
independence at the city’s Laguna Wastewater Treatment Plant
which is managed by the city’s water department, Santa Rosa
Water.
Trane chose Santa Rosa’s Laguna Wastewater Treatment Plant
for the project to implement a $5 million grant from the
California Energy Commission, the state’s primary energy and
planning agency. The project team, which represents
companies contributing $2 million in technology development
funding, includes, among other companies, Alstom Grid, the
world’s leading power-transmission company.
“Being selected for this grant is a great example of our
commitment to our community’s future,” said David Guhin,
director of Santa Rosa Water. “Santa Rosa strives to find
innovative and cost-effective solutions that improve energy
efficiency, optimize energy production, and reduce
greenhouse gas emissions, making this project a huge win.”
The Laguna Treatment Plant is responsible for treating
wastewater from the California communities of Santa Rosa,
Sebastopol, Cotati, Rohnert Park, and other areas of Sonoma
County. The project will transform the plant into an
advanced microgrid and also will decrease dependence upon
the traditional energy grid by incorporating additional
renewable energy.
Anticipated benefits of transforming the plant into an
advanced microgrid include stabilizing energy costs,
providing additional revenue sources, and delivering the
grid services needed to allow increased use of renewable
energy, including solar and wind. The microgrid is
anticipated to be operational in late 2016.
“We’re leveraging existing technology to support better
regional energy management by making our operations more
efficient and putting available energy back onto the grid
for other consumers to use,” said Michael Day, utility
solutions vertical market leader for Trane in California,
and the principal proposal author. “The project also will
support the use of more solar and wind renewables.”
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An Efficient
Operation Means Available Energy for Other Users
The microgrid will pull power from the main grid when excess
energy is available, allowing Santa Rosa to easily switch back
and forth to help balance power on the main grid.
To treat wastewater from approximately 230,000 customers, the
treatment plant recycles approximately 17.5 million gallons of
water per day, which requires approximately four megawatts of
energy. Roughly 30 percent of this energy is generated on-site
by beneficially using digester gas to run engine-driven
generators. The other 70 percent of energy demanded for
treatment currently comes from the main electrical grid and
costs up to $3.5 million a year.
The project team
selected the treatment plant for the upgrade from among more than 60
wastewater treatment plants statewide based on its strong
infrastructure and its size: neither too large nor too small.
Energy upgrades will contribute to a low-carbon future at the
wastewater treatment plant, and will also include integrated solar
power and energy storage. Implementation will also include an
advanced distributed energy management software system, an
innovative microgrid controller and smart inverter systems provided
by Alstom Grid.
The project team plans
to decrease dependence on the grid and increase the amount of energy
generated onsite by reusing the digester gas and combining it with
renewable energy sources. This will reduce the overall carbon
footprint of the wastewater plant, leaving more energy available for
commercial users in the region and potentially generating a revenue
stream for the city.
About Ingersoll Rand and Trane
Ingersoll Rand (NYSE:IR) advances the quality of life by creating
comfortable, sustainable and efficient environments. Our people and
our family of brands — including Club Car®, Ingersoll Rand®, Thermo
King® and Trane® — work together to enhance the quality and comfort
of air in homes and buildings; transport and protect food and
perishables; and increase industrial productivity and efficiency. We
are a $13 billion global business committed to a world of
sustainable progress and enduring results. Trane solutions optimize
indoor environments with a broad portfolio of energy efficient
heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems, building and
contracting services, parts support and advanced control. For more
information, visit
www.ingersollrand.com or
www.trane.com.
About Santa Rosa Water
Santa Rosa Wateris governed by a seven-member board appointed by the
Santa Rosa City Council. The City of Santa Rosa Water Department
provides water and sewer service to 53,000 customer accounts and
operates the Laguna Wastewater Treatment Plant and a recycled water
distribution system that serves a regional population of 230,000.
For more information, visit
srcity.org/water, email
srwater@srcity.org, or call (707) 543-4200.
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