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Yarbrough Chiller Plant
North Carolina State University commissioned the design team of RMF Engineering, Inc. andBBH Design to design a new chilled water plant at a prominent location adjacent to the YarbroughSteam Plant, Riddick Stadium, and the future corridor for the Triangle Transit Authority light railsystem. The Chilled Water Plant provides the necessary chilled water capacity for the immediateand future academic building planned for the North Campus. The uniqueness of the design iscontributable to the integration of operations within the facility and the reconciliation of a centralutility plant’s image with the vernacular of the campus. It serves as the main chilled watergeneration site for North Carolina State University’s Central Campus and provides administrativeareas for the University’s Facilities Operations group. As a central utility plant, the plant currentlycontains two 2,000 ton electric centrifugal chillers and one steam turbine driven centrifugal chillerfor a total cooling capacity of 6,000 tons. To allow future expansion of the chilled water capacity,the plant is designed to accept an additional two 2,000 ton electric centrifugal chillers and oneadditional steam turbine driven centrifugal chiller for a total cooling capacity of 12,000 ton.Currently, three 2,000 ton cooling towers constructed of fiber-reinforced plastic are mounted onthe rooftop structure with allowable area for three additional towers planned to support theanticipated growth. The associated primary and secondary distribution pumps are locateddirectly below the chillers in a pump bay on-grade. Three 150HP primary chilled water pumps,three 350HP condenser water pumps, and two 500HP secondary chilled water distribution pumpshave been installed to circulate the chilled water internally and throughout the campus. In order to reconcile the infrastructures presence on campus, the organization of spaces andselection of materials infuses the industrial nature of the building into a campus setting. Based onthe idea of “phase change”, the transition between solid, liquid, and gaseous phases of water, thedesign of the building emphasizes the level of energy required at each phase change. Theactivities are organized relative to the velocity of the system. Operation spaces are organizedalong the North elevation toward campus or solid state, and the machinery for chilled waterproduction is organized along the South elevation toward the railway or vapor state. Thecirculation space between operations area and the machine signifies the liquid state, the fluidcommunication between the operator and machine. Continuing the tripartite composition of the adjacent Steam Plant, the arrangement of masonryand metal is on a cast-in-place concrete base of substantial mass. The mass of the concretewalls matches the adjacent steam plant in elevation and isolates the industrial sounds bothinternally from the operations area and externally from the campus. The use of masonry andmetal on each elevation is varied depending on the scale of the space and the relationship of thefaçade to the community or campus. Expanses of glass and masonry dominate the Southelevation to provide passive lighting of the space and the prospect of a night view into the life ofthe plant during an evening transit after work. Proportioned not to mimic the adjacent SteamPlant, the glazed area of the Chilled Water Plant respects the balance between transparency andopacity exhibited in the Steam Plant’s elevation. Similarly, the North elevation of both the Steamand Chilled Water Plant has minimal glazing within the masonry wall to enhance the relationshipof the building and operations along this edge to the campus. The pinnacle of the building is theplacement of the cooling towers on the roof to provide the third layer to the composition.Pragmatically, the cooling towers placement is efficient for the generation of chilled water and therelease of energy through evaporation. The placement also maximizes the available site forfuture academic buildings which are planned adjacent to the Chilled Water Plant. The most significant challenge for the project was integrating the new central chilled water systeminto the existing matrix of utilities and simultaneously decommissioning the existing localizedsystems to various buildings. Coordinating a mile of electrical distribution and chilled water pipingwith utilities placed over 100 years ago required intense collaboration of the project team and owner to confirm underground systems as either operational or abandoned. With the majority ofthe underground systems installed below the roadways throughout campus, cooperation of thevarious departments within the University was required to maintain vehicular and pedestrianaccess to adjacent buildings and alternate routes through campus. Vehicular access to buildingswas not a concern of convenience but a responsibility to provide emergency personnel access tothe buildings to assure the health and safety of the occupants. The North Campus Chilled Water Plant is an example of astute attention to the campusvernacular, a respect to the composition of the industrial form, and the successful integration ofengineered and architectural systems. Project Description:
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