Wastewater Heat Recovery
Peer review and energy modeling for innovative wastewater heat recovery system at major healthcare facility
Project Overview
The Sunnybrook Wastewater Heat Recovery project involved a comprehensive peer review and energy modeling for an innovative heat recovery system at one of Canada's largest healthcare facilities. Sunnybrook Hospital, a leading academic health sciences center in Toronto, sought to implement a wastewater heat recovery system to reduce energy consumption, lower carbon emissions, and enhance the sustainability of its operations.
Our team was engaged to conduct a peer review of the proposed system design, perform detailed energy modeling to validate performance projections, and provide recommendations for optimization. This project represents an innovative approach to energy recovery in healthcare facilities, where significant volumes of warm wastewater present an opportunity for heat recapture and reuse.
Scope of Work
- Technical peer review of wastewater heat recovery system design
- Review energy modeling and performance simulation
- Revew of carbon reduction and financial payback analysis
- Integration assessment with existing building systems
- Operational optimization recommendations
- Implementation strategy development
Technical Challenges & Solutions
A key challenge in this project was assessing the feasibility of heat recovery from hospital wastewater, which has unique characteristics including variable flow rates, temperature fluctuations, and potential contamination concerns. Additionally, integrating the recovered heat into the existing building systems required careful consideration of temperature differentials, control strategies, and operational protocols.
Another significant challenge was validating the energy savings projections in a healthcare environment with 24/7 operations and critical temperature and humidity requirements.
The peer review process identified opportunities for design optimization to maximize heat recovery while ensuring system reliability.
Results & Impact
Environmental Benefits
- Reductiin in cooling tower operating costs
- Reduction in natural gas consumption
- Improved water conservation through system integration
Financial Benefits
- Energy cost savings
- Reasonable payback period
- Eligibility for utility incentives
The review explored the significant potential for energy recovery in healthcare facilities. By capturing and reusing heat from wastewater that would otherwise be lost, the system can reduce the hospital's carbon footprint while generating operational cost savings. This is an example for healthcare facilities looking to implement innovative sustainability measures while maintaining critical operations.
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