ICING CHEAPER THAN COOLING?

This is one of those retro things that NYC likes to get behind every so often.

NYC Buildings Use Ice to Keep Cool
Colleen Long, July 24, 2007 (AP via Time Magazine)

WHO
William Beck, head of critical engineering systems, Credit Suisse; Todd Coulard, energy efficiency expert, cooling system installer Trane Energy Services;

WHAT
By using large systems to freeze water during off-peak hours and then blowing air on its way to cool offices through the ice to cool it instead of running their air-conditioners during peak electricity cost hours, buildings are cutting costs by using less electricity.
How a "chilled water" cooling system works. (click to enlarge)

WHEN
This is an old idea, going back to hanging wet leaves and grass mats over windows and blowing fans past buckets of ice.

WHERE
Credit Suisse's offices, Metropolitan Life tower, New York City; Morgan Stanley Westchester County offices and Fifth Avenue offices; New Goldman Sachs headquarters;
Over 3000 systems have been installed worldwide.

WHY
- The MetLife Tower system (three basement cooling rooms w/chilling machines and 64 800-gallon water tanks) is reportedly the emission reduction equivalent of taking 223 cars of the streets or planting 1.9 million acres of trees. It lowers peak energy use by 900 kilowatts, cuts 2.15 million kilowatt-hours/year.
- Morgan Stanley/Westchester County cuts peak energy use by 740 kilowatts, cuts 900,000 kilowatt-hours/year.
- Incentives for installation from New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.
- Trane, air conditioning arm of American Standard, is installer. Installation requires large amounts of space and costs approximately $3 million.
The MetLife Tower

QUOTES
- Beck: "If you take the time to look, you can find innovative ways to be energy efficient, be environmental and sustainable…"
- Coulard: "When you make something mechanical, it can break, but a big block of ice ... isn't going to do anything but melt…The idea of not only saving money for large companies, but doing something that benefits the environment, is win—win…It's doing the right thing…This is for companies that want to go green, but there (need) to be other benefits, returns on investments…It works for larger companies because their cooling costs are so considerable."