Cooling by means of well water. New methods for the ecological and economical usage of resources

04/04/2005

Half way between Ingolstadt and Regensburg, Neustadt an der Donau is situated in a landscape characterized by the Danube Valley and by dense forests. As early as 1273 A.D., Neustadt, was the first Bavarian city that came to be chartered.

Today, various branches of modern industry bear witness to the city’s success in reconciling the past with the present and in securing a high quality of life for its residents as well as providing attractive recreational facilities for its visitors.

One of the companies in the Neustadt region, which grew particularly noticeably in recent years, is the Automotive Group Johnson Controls Interiors GmbH & Co. KG. Nearly all well-known German car manufacturers have their interior fittings produced here. Using renewable raw materials such as hemp, flax or sisal, and by means of high pressure and temperature, high-quality parts for car interiors are produced. When it was given the contract for the production of all interior parts for the doors of the new BMW 5 series, the company experienced another push of growth. So today, 800 employees work here in three shifts in a six day work week. Within a few years the number of workers has doubled. This success was made possible by the creativity of the management and the cooperation of the workforce and everybody else involved.

Expansions in manufacturing space and equipment required larger capacities for air-conditioning and especially for the cooling of the presses. Therefore a new plan was laid out to use ground water from take-out wells for cooling and to induct the used water back into the groundwater. Specialized engineering consultants and Peter Rausch, an expert manufacturer of pumps from Eschbach, were chosen to put the new concept into place and to start the licensing procedure with the County Administration in Kehlheim.

As a first step, the geological and hydrological conditions on the premises of Johnson Controls were examined, trial drillings and experiments about seepage conditions conducted. Then information about groundwater levels, supplies, speeds and fluctuations was collected.

Furthermore, it was necessary to test the water quality, to carry out heat technological calculations, to define the technical parameters of the cooling, to plan systems controls and after that to get the licensing procedure started. This vast variety of activities was successfully completed within only two years’ time and the trial operations commenced.

Today, three new wells work to supply the maximum daily demand of 1817 m3 cooling water. Water is inducted into the cooling system by way of 6'-well pumps of the type Z630 and Z642 by Lowara (www.Lowara.com ) and a temperature sensitive Hydrovar® control system. If additional cooling is needed, the amount of water will be increased proportionately depending on the rpm in order to secure the Delta T of seven degrees K between groundwater temperature at withdrawal and at return into the seepage well.

Unanticipated challenges during the trial operations such as a sudden and heavy concentration of ferromanganese and influx of alluvial sand into the groundwater, had to be compensated for by additional filtering. Furthermore, the original seepage wells got jammed with ochre so that a new device to make the water seep away had to be installed.

In spite of such additional expenditure, the cooling by means of well water turned out to be an ecological as well as economical success. As Richard Härtinger, head of Industrial Engineering, puts it: "We proudly announce a cooling performance of 640 MW without any pollution of the environment."

ITT-Lowara (www.lowara.com), headquarters of "Residential and Commercial Water - EMEA" part of the ITT Corporation and located in Montecchio Maggiore, Vicenza - Italy, is a leader in the manufacture of hydraulic pumps and water handling and control systems. It has 1.348 employees in Europe, 771 operating in Italy. In 2007 its consolidated sales totalled about 284 million euro, or over 390 million dollars.
ITT Corporation (www.itt.com) is a diversified high-technology engineering and manufacturing company dedicated to creating more livable environments, enabling communications and providing protection and safety. The company plays an important role in vital markets including water and fluids management, global defense and security, and motion and flow control. ITT employs approximately 40,000 people serving customers in more than 50 countries. Headquartered in White Plains, N.Y., the company generated $9 billion in 2007 sales.