ONLINE EXCLUSIVE:
Power Partners’ Eco-Max Chillers Used in Zero Carbon Building
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| AME member Power Partners Inc. sent its ECO-MAX adsorption chillers to be part of a zero carbon emission building in Hong Kong. |
Construction wrapped up this summer on a Hong Kong Construction Industry Council (CIC) building that emits zero carbon and is projected to prevent 8,250 tons of greenhouse gases from escaping into the atmosphere during the next 50 years. The ECO-MAX adsorption chiller, made in Athens, GA, by AME member Power Partners Inc., plays a leading role in the energy-efficient building.
ECO-MAX adsorption chillers save energy by using waste heat to address the building’s refrigeration and air conditioning needs. Tri-generation systems that combine cogeneration with an ECO-MAX chiller enable simultaneous production of power, heat and cooling from a single heat source and result in overall system efficiency and savings in capital and energy costs. Biodiesel derived from waste cooking oil will power 70 percent of the building’s electricity, and the remaining 30 percent will come from solar or photovoltaic panels located on the roof.
The two-story building, which is scheduled to open the public in September, features state-of-the-art eco-building design and occupies approximately 10 percent of a 150,000 square-foot property in Hong Kong’s Kowloon Bay. The project will serve as an educational platform to demonstrate green building technologies and low carbon living to industry, the public and students. The project’s seven key components include zero carbon design provisions and technologies, eco-offices, a showcase eco-home, an indoor exhibition and education space, Hong Kong’s first urban woodland, an eco-garden and an outdoor exhibition area.
The CIC has targeted the building to qualify for BEAM Plus Platinum, the highest benchmark for green construction.
“CIC’s Zero Carbon Building goes beyond internationally recognized definitions of zero carbon building,” said Yu Wai-wai, Zero Carbon Building Task Force chairman. “The building is designed to generate more renewable energy than its operational needs, thus allowing the surplus energy to be used by others in the surrounding area.”
“It is an honor for Power Partners’ ECO-MAX chillers to be a part of such a signature project for China,” said Mike Stonecipher, Power Partners business segment leader. “In a time when products imported to the United States far exceed exports, it is refreshing to have a technology so desirable that it makes the export list and will be showcased to promote green education and a low-carbon lifestyle.” Power Partners manufactures chillers with power production ranging from 10 to 330 tons of refrigeration (RT). The Zero Carbon Building chiller produces 20 RT. In its information materials about the Zero Carbon Building, the CIC says the building will be the first generation plant in Hong Kong that harvests waste heat for energy generation.
