Breadcrumb
Marine Lab Seawater Recir Syst- XHF004
Project Description
In 2014, the Marine Lab Seawater Circulation Retrofit addressed Cal Poly Humboldt’s (Humboldt) most energy intensive building, the Telonicher Marine Lab. The lab hosts students and guests for educational purposes related to marine sciences. The seawater recirculation system transports ocean water into the building’s live marine exhibits. Water must constantly move through the filtering system to simulate movement and mimic a natural marine setting. At the time of the proposal, the pumping system of the seawater circulation used two oversized pumps. Restrictor valves attached to the pumps manually throttle down the pumps, decreasing the efficiency of the system. This project called for the installation of two variable frequency drives (VFD), two pressure sensors, two premium efficiency motors, and two logic controllers resulting in a significant reduction of electricity consumed by the lab.