The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) in Western Australia detects noise from space with the help of Australia’s largest cooling-only geoexchange installation.
Located 350km north-east of Geraldton in mid-west Western Australia, the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) is a pathfinder for the international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project, which aims to answer some of the most fundamental questions asked by modern astronomy and physics.
Vital to the project is low radio frequency interference (RFI) and heat rejection.
“An option study conducted by Aurecon concluded a geoexchange system was the preferred option, based on the advantages it offered in terms of RFI emissions and energy efficiency.
Two thermal conductivity tests for a ground-source heat exchanger (GHE) field were conducted on site before commencement of installation. Both yielded positive results, showing thermal conductivity to be 2.664W/m.K and 2.81W/m.K, respectively.
Using thermal modelling software that took the peak and annual heat rejection from the building, the length of the required borehole heat exchanger was determined.
The final system comprises 96 boreholes across a field covering 45,000 sq m, each measuring 125mm in diameter and drilled to a nominal depth of 124m using equipment specially shipped out from Europe for the project.
It is thought to be Australia’s largest cooling-only geoexchange installation.” EcoLibrium, Nov 13
GeoExchange Australia is pleased to have been involved in this project through the provision of expert advice to Aurecon on system feasibility, analysis of the Thermal Conductivity tests and the final geoexchange design.
For more details on the project, you can read the full article from EcoLibrium here.
(Photos source: EcoLibrium)