The Duratec 35 Program Area at the Lima (Ohio) Engine Plant is staying comfortably cool thanks to an innovative geothermal project that uses 40-degree quarry water to chill the plant's air.
Harnessing the Quarry's Cold Water
Instead of using cooling towers with mechanical chillers that burn up a lot of electricity and use a lot of water, we're using a natural resource—cold water from nearby quarries—and taking care to protect it. We're constantly monitoring the temperatures and water levels of the quarries.
How It Works
The geothermal cooling process at the Lima plant works in the following way:
- Water from a pair of 85-foot-deep quarries on the Lima Engine Plant property is pumped into the facility through two circulation loops.
- A pump house ferries cold reservoir water up to one of several heat exchangers in the plant. Warmer water from the plant's cooling system transfers its heat to the quarry water. Because the two water supplies circulate in separate paths and never mix, the integrity of the quarry water is maintained.
- The warmed quarry water is then returned to the quarry, sprayed over the surface to encourage evaporation and minimize heat gain. Meanwhile, the plant water is pumped back to the plant, through more than 3,500 feet of pipe, and then returned to the pump house where it is re-cooled.
An Efficient Solution
The Lima plant is manufacturing the new aluminum Duratec 35 V-6 engine. Aluminum engine components react and perform better when the ambient temperature remains constant.
Installing the environmentally friendly project costs $300,000 less than a traditional cooling system. Moreover, we expect the new application to save another $300,000 and millions of gallons of water annually.
