UTT on its way to energy self-sufficiency
Six years ago, the University of Technology of Troyes embarked on a strategic plan (UTT 2030) to make its research, training and transfer activities sustainable. Now in phase 2 (2021-2025), this plan has taken an important step with the Evolution project. Its purpose is to shift the school and its uses towards a post-carbon university.
©JP Gilson
The main levers selected are energy efficiency of the buildings, efficiency of the services and activities hosted, functional management and optimization, changes in usage and behavior, a low-carbon energy mix, and mobility and transportation. To achieve energy self-sufficiency, the project relies on the deployment of solutions that associate solar, wind and methanization. An energy hub has also been created to collectively develop the most appropriate solutions to transform UTT into a positive energy school. Eventually, the entire campus will be involved. UTT has thus "become a laboratory for experimentation and a showcase for its skills. The site will be transformed into a demonstrator to enable the replicability of the approach", explains Youcef Bouzidi, a teacher-researcher and head of the UTT's Energy Transition mission.
Several concrete actions already implemented
UTT buildings which were so far heated with natural gas are now connected to the local authority's biomass heating network (wood - straw), which allows a 35% reduction in annual CO2 emissions. It is also worth noting that the widespread use of LED lighting in all teaching buildings has contributed to a 65% reduction in the lighting component of overall energy consumption.
In addition to this, solar energy is particularly highlighted in the project, in three different applications. First, a solar installation that will come into service in 2022 will be able to provide energy to local residents when the facility is no longer in use, i.e. from April to October, thanks to a two-way connection. "It is the first time that the university has taken it upon itself to inject its own heat", says Youcef Bouzidi, who has put himself in the shoes of a project manager and discovered the various hazards involved. On the other hand, the parking lot will be equipped with PV shades whose production will be self-consumed. The set-up is original: a 12-year lease will be drawn up during which UTT will buy the electricity produced, then the school will become the owner and will benefit from the installation. Finally, solar energy will also be used in its "cold" form: an absorption refrigeration unit will produce cold from the heat produced by the installation. This will improve the comfort of users in hot weather, without using refrigerant and with insignificant electricity consumption compared to conventional air conditioning systems.
Another aspect of the project is an urban micro-methanizer that will transform the university restaurant's waste into resources (energy, compost and clean water) and, in a longer run, that of other nearby restaurants. The equipment will be connected to a greenhouse in the garden that supplies the restaurant's kitchens.
What funding?
All in all, these first elements totaled €1.1 million. Europe and the Region contributed 40%, the French ecological transition agency provided 20% via the Fonds Chaleur (equiv. Heat Funds) and the Aube General Council also contributed up to 20%. “The rest, says Youcef Bouzidi, is UTT's payroll, which we are using”.
Other future projects will benefit from the French Recovery Plan, such as large-scale insulation. As the owner of the premises, it is the Aube department that will benefit. It has already announced its intention to deploy the approach throughout the campus.
Continued momentum
New perspectives are opening up for this large-scale project. These include optimized management of interconnected networks and modes of production and consumption using Big Data and algorithms, and the development of tools to facilitate the integration and management of renewable energy and the flexibility of production in relation to demand. Emphasis will also be put on the development and support of low-carbon mobility and new uses.
In the end, this project is 100% beneficial for UTT, which gains in attractiveness, controls its operating expenses and actively contributes to the environmental and energy transition all at the same time.
