A major refurbishment at the University of West London College has replaced the complex’s gas-fired boilers with a district heating scheme powered by air source heat pumps, with ESBE valves playing a key role in managing the heating and hot water supply.
The upgrade was led by Norfolk-based Finn Geotherm, which installed four Carrier air source heat pumps, each with a capacity of 85.9kW, in a central plant room. A crucial part of the project was managing the different supply temperatures required by the individual heating and hot water circuits.
Technical Director David Alston explained: “We had to opt for high-temperature heat pumps capable of delivering more than 70°C for Legionella compliance, while the radiators were designed to operate at a flow temperature of 50°C.
“It would be inefficient to run the heat pumps continuously at 70°C, so we introduced a switchover process using ESBE valves. When there is a heating demand, a signal is sent back to the district heating system to raise the mains temperature, effectively creating an S-plan arrangement for the hot water.
“The ESBE MBA121 valve allows us to close off the heating when the system is in hot water mode. We are also using the ESBE VRG131 three-port valve with an ARA 659 proportional controller to regulate the temperature to the radiator circuit.”
