Industrial district cooling plants can reduce electric consumption by at least 40 per cent over traditional air conditioning systems, said an expert.

Kamal Taj, head of mechanical engineering for KEO Consultants, said because district cooling plants use industrial equipment such as chillers, cooling towers and pumps, they operate more efficiently than commercial equipment used in local plants, resulting in a reduction of electricity consumption by 40 to 60 per cent.

He was speaking at a recent conference on revolutionary and eco-friendly systems organized by the International District Energy Association (IDEA) in conjunction with their hosts Qatar Cool, the leading district cooling solutions and services provider in Doha.

“Using thermal storage in district cooling plants can further reduce electric energy consumption by 15 per cent,” said Taj.

“Gas engine chillers using natural gas can be used for standby or peak sharing operation in parallel with electric chillers which can further reduce electric energy consumption.”

“There are many other advantages of district cooling applications such as system reliability, reduced noise level, reduced maintenance, reduced co2 emission and better space utilization, for example.   All these factors can benefit the end users and building owners,” he added.

There is also an opportunity to reduce the use of potable water by using treated sewage effluent for the cooling towers in district cooling systems. The integrated district cooling plant built by Qatar Cool on The Pearl – Qatar Island, the largest district cooling plant in the world, is an example of this, Taj pointed out.

“Due to scarcity and cost of potable water production, municipalities in the Middle East are mandating the use of treated sewage effluent to conserve potable water. It’s more practical and economical to treat and use treated sewage effluent for large district cooling plants for cooling tower make up than for smaller scattered cooling plants,” said Taj. – TradeArabia News Service