Geothermal air conditioning for the new Lithgow Hospital

摘要

The New Lithgow Hospital was the first NSW Government project to use geothermal air conditioning. This system was selected based on life-cycle costings and the system's ability to handle the climatic conditions at Lithgow. One of the client's principal requirements was to minimise recurrent costs and we believe that geothermal air conditioning will achieve this goal. This paper begins with a description of the project and an overview of the principles of geothermal air conditioning. This is followed by a brief analysis of why the system was chosen and a description of the components that make up the system as installed at Lithgow. Energy monitoring, energy guarantee and operating costs are also discussed. The paper concludes with some observations and comments on project specific issues.