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Kirtland solar thermal system goes operational

  • Published
  • By Penny Huston
  • 377th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
Col. Robert Maness, 377th Air Base Wing commander, and other officials here cut the ribbon Dec. 3, 2010, on a new solar thermal system at the aquatic training facility.

Made up of 72-solar collectors, the array is Kirtland's first active solar thermal system, which uses sunlight to capture and distribute heat energy.

The collected heat transfers to a closed-loop mixture of propylene glycol and water, which is then pumped to a heat exchanger. Pool water is then preheated before entering the boiler system.

The solar thermal system is estimated to provide 76 percent of the energy needed to heat the indoor pool. With projected annual savings of $32,000, the project will pay for itself in less than seven years.

Local companies 310 Solar and Weston Solutions designed, engineered and constructed the $222,000 project. Project management was by Chugach Management Services and the 377th Air Base Wing Civil Engineer Division.

New Mexico ranks second in the nation for solar potential, with most of the state receiving more than six kilowatt-hours per square meter of sunlight every day. That's the equivalent of 20 cubic feet of natural gas.

Kelly Jaramillo, 377th Air Base Wing Civil Engineering Division, said the project is the only one of its kind in the Air Force.

"There are a select number of solar projects across the Air Force. This is the first active solar thermal system on an Air Force facility," she said.

Kirtland AFB has another solar project in the programming stage, which is to be a "net zero" energy facility.

Ideally, it will generate as much energy as the base consumes by designing an extremely energy-efficient passive solar facility that potentially generates renewable energy on-site through an active solar electric and solar thermal system.

"I am very proud of Kirtland Air Force Base and civil engineering. The fact that we are harnessing one of our top renewable energy sources in the Southwest and taking a small step toward energy security and long-term sustainability warms my heart. This project in so many ways feels like the 'right' thing to do in reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and using a local business to do it," Ms. Jaramillo said.