Crews from SEM will be installing solar thermal and solar PV systems at the same time.
Davidson College is getting ready to install two arrays of solar panels on Baker Sports Complex. The installation could save the college about $25,000 a year in energy expenses, says project manager Kris Krider, and it will help Davidson advance its commitment to sustainability.
The $600,000 cost of the two solar panel projects is being funded by the college and a North Carolina State grant that is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
One project will feature solar thermal collector panels that will use glycol to heat the water for Cannon Pool and the showers in the Knobloch Tennis Center. This project will include 64 four-by-ten foot top panels weighing 153 pounds each. Glycol will be heated in pipes that run through the panels and transfer that heat to the water. “Glycol is a good conductor,” explained Physical Plant Director David Holthouser. “We’ll expose the pool water to the hot pipes containing the glycol, and that will warm the pool.”
In the other project, a separate photovoltaic system will generate electricity to meet a portion of the energy needs for Baker Sports Complex. This project will involve installation of 378 panels weighing 42 pounds each. The PV panels convert sunlight directly into electricity by absorbing photons and releasing electrons. During prolonged periods of cloud cover, the system is engineered to revert back to conventionally generated electric power.
By reducing the amount of fossil fuel energy needed to operate the Baker Sports Complex, the college will reduce its carbon footprint. This is a goal of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, signed by Davidson in 2007.
The projects will be installed by Southern Energy Management of Morrisville, N.C. Work is scheduled to be complete by December 31. Panels for both projects together will cover 75 percent of Baker’s flat roof surface and 60 percent of the pool roof surface facing the Baker parking lot.
“It’s a good experiment to have to have both PV and solar thermal,” said project manager Kris Krider. “This way, we can analyze which system works best.”
He continued, “Davidson College is taking solar energy seriuosly. It’s good for the environment-and in a climate that averages 300 sunny days a year, it ultimately will pay for itself.”
Davidson is a highly selective independent liberal arts college for 1,900 students located 20 minutes north of Charlotte in Davidson, N.C. Since its establishment in 1837 by Presbyterians, the college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars and is consistently regarded as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country. Through The Davidson Trust, the college became the first liberal arts institution in the nation to replace loans with grants in all financial aid packages, giving all students the opportunity to graduate debt-free. Davidson competes in NCAA athletics at the Division I level, and a longstanding Honor Code is central to student life at the college.
