Heat pump drilling underway to deliver low-carbon heating

The installation of a new water source heat pump on the Whiteknights campus has begun, with boreholes being drilled in four locations to reach an underground water source.

The heat pump will connect into the Energy Centre, located next to the new Art Building off Pepper Lane, and act as a lead source in delivering low carbon heat.

The Energy Centre provides heating and hot water to 17 buildings in the central campus via a District Heating pipework network, and currently uses natural gas/fossil fuel as a fuel source.

The installation, led by our Estates team, is partly funded by a £2.2m Government Green Heat Network Fund and will ultimately reduce the carbon footprint of our entire built estate by 10%.

Drilling work

Four boreholes are required to access water in underground aquifers, around 120 metres below Whiteknights campus.

Drilling to create all four is underway at the following locations:

• Borehole 1 - Behind the Energy Centre.
• Borehole 2 - Biological Sciences glasshouses, next to the Harris Garden boundary.
• Borehole 3 - Harborne building, in Car Park 13.
• Borehole 4 - Behind Philip Lyle building, next to Harris Garden entrance.

Two large rigs are on campus, moving from location to location to complete the drilling in phases. It will drill through the surface concrete, the soil and rock underneath, before the layer of chalk above the aquifer.

Drilling work generating the most noise is largely complete. The remaining drilling work will create some noise but, given the locations and with noise tempering measures in place, it is unlikely to disturb teaching or work.

Approximately 25 spaces have been cordoned off in Car Park 13 from today (Tuesday 3 October) and will remain so for two weeks. Some NHS tenants in the Harborne building may need to park in other car parks during this time.

All work is expected to be complete by 3 November.

How do heat pumps work?

The water source heat pump draws heat energy from the water in the underground aquifer, which remains at a relatively constant temperature of 7-12°C all year round.

The heat that is extracted is then used to heat the water circulating within the University’s district heating network. This is then run through a heat pump, boosting the temperatures to around 80°C.

Buildings connected to the district heating network can then draw off this heat during periods of demand in a manner that is similar to the way that gas central heating systems operate.

The cooled water is then pumped back down to the aquifer via a different borehole to be heated again, restarting the cycle. Water volumes within the aquifer remain constant at all times.

As well as reducing carbon emissions which contribute to global heating, the project will reduce local air pollution, by the equivalent of taking 394 diesel cars off the road.