| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 68.32 |
| Liaison | Carrie Metzgar |
| Submission Date | May 3, 2013 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of California, San Diego
OP-8: Clean and Renewable Energy
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.16 / 7.00 |
Anna
Levitt Assistant Campus Energy Manager Facilities Management |
Option 1: Total clean and renewable electricity generated on site during the performance year and for which the institution retains or has retired the associated environmental attributes :
Option 2: Non-electric renewable energy generated:
Option 3: Total clean and renewable electricity generated by off-site projects that the institution catalyzed and for which the institution retains or has retired the associated environmental attributes :
Option 4: Total RECs and other similar renewable energy products that the institution purchased during the performance year that are Green-e certified or meet the Green-e standard's technical requirements and are third party verified:
Option 5: Total electricity generated with cogeneration technology using non-renewable fuel sources :
Total energy consumed during the performance year :
A brief description of on-site renewable electricity generating devices :
Approximately 10% of the campus’s 260 GWh are generated using renewable energy sources. Energy generation systems include:
• A 1.5 MW PV system made up of a combination of conventional flat panels, sun-tracking/concentrating PV, and a PV energy storage demonstration project.
• A 2.8 MW fuel cell that uses renewable methane gas flared at the local wastewater treatment facility. The plant provides enough energy to power 2,800 homes.
• There are approximately 8 kWs of wind turbines located at the Birch Aquarium “Boundless Energy” exhibit.
A brief description of on-site renewable non-electric energy devices:
A 300 kW solar water-heating system installed at the North Campus Housing Phase II project is one of the largest solar-thermal projects at a university in North America..
A brief description of off-site, institution-catalyzed, renewable electricity generating devices:
UC San Diego has an 834 kW photovoltaic installation at 5 off-campus sites. The PV systems include a 188 kW ground mounted array, a 196 kW carport structure and 450 kW of rooftop panels.
A brief description of RECs or other similar renewable energy products purchased during the previous year, including contract timeframes:
Green-e certified RECs were purchased in 2009 for 21% of the campus’s total purchased electricity. The RECs are composed primarily of biomass, wind, and solar PV.
A brief description of cogeneration technologies deployed:
The cogeneration plant provides 85% of the campus’s annual electricity needs. 54% of the campus’s 60 MMBtu/hr heating load (for space heating, lab sterilization, & domestic/industrial water heating for 12 million square feet of buildings) is served by waste steam from the campus's cogeneration plant. Heat recovery from the cogeneration plant also drives 3 steam-expansion chillers that together provide 9,750 refrigeration tons (RT). A 3.8 million gallon chilled water storage tank is connected to the chilled water system, and it permanently load shifts from on peak to off peak 3-6 MW per day. The combined heat and power achieves 66% overall simple efficiency. The two gas turbines in the cogeneration plant use a non-ammonia catalytic emission reduction system that produces only 1.5 ppm NOx.
Thanks to recent regulatory authority for piping "directed biogas", efforts are underway to contract for supplies of remote sources of biogas for use in the gas turbines as a substitute for natural gas. Waste heat from the aforementioned fuel cell, which utilizes renewable methane, will power 300 tons of chilling capacity from an absorption chiller.
The website URL where information about the institution's renewable energy sources is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.