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Syracuse Wastewater Thermal Energy Network

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What is a Wastewater Thermal Energy Network?

The warm water that drains from our sinks, showers, washing machines, and dishwashers is a significant source of untapped thermal energy. Currently, most of that energy gets washed down the drain in the form of wastewater. Wastewater TENs transfer the heat extracted from the wastewater, not actual wastewater. By using a heat recovery system, we are able to capture and recycle this thermal energy to heat and cool nearby buildings — an incredible innovation in sustainability and efficiency.

How will it work?

  • Capture Wastewater: Warm wastewater flows to the Metropolitan Syracuse Wastewater Treatment Plant where it is treated and will be sent to our Energy Center via underground pipes.
  • Transfer Heat Energy: At the Energy Center, an advanced heat exchanger will transfer just the heat from the treated wastewater. That heat will be sent to a closed-loop piping system of clean water, while the cooled wastewater is sent back to the pumphouse, keeping the two water sources separate.
  • Distribute Heat: The closed-loop network of underground piping will carry the recovered heat to buildings in the Inner Harbor area, providing efficient, clean, reliable, heating and cooling.
  • Connect to Buildings: Each building on the network will have its own water-source heat pump connected to the distribution loop to heat or cool the building as needed.

 

Take a closer look at our innovative TEN. Click or tap the "?" to see how thermal energy moves through the system. 

Wastewater Thermal Energy Network Infographic1. How It Starts: Everyday, warm water drains from our sinks, showers, washing machines, and dishwashers at temperatures ranging from 55- 70°F — a significant source of untapped thermal energy.2. The Treatment Plant: More than 80 million gallons of warm wastewater from the City of Syracuse flow to the Metropolitan Syracuse Wastewater Treatment Plant per day, where it is treated.3. The Pump House: A small portion of the treated wastewater gets diverted to the pump house, where pumps circulate the water through heat exchangers at the Energy Center then back into the Metro treated wastewater stream as cooled water.4 .The Energy Center: State-of-the-art heat exchangers at our Energy Center move the wastewater’s thermal energy out of the treated wastewater and into a closed clean water loop.5. The Distribution Network: The recovered heat is continuously pumped through a network of underground piping which connects to buildings in the Inner Harbor area to provide efficient, clean, reliable, heating and cooling.6. Sustainable Heating and Cooling: Each building on the network has its own water-source heat pump to heat or cool the building seasonally as needed, with the capacity for new buildings to join the network over time.

Project Basics

  • We're proposing a pilot wastewater heat recovery thermal energy network (TEN) in Syracuse, NY — the first of its kind in the region and the largest in the United States.
  • The proposed TEN will recover existing heat from the Onondaga County Metropolitan Syracuse Wastewater Treatment Plant.
  • The network will provide clean, efficient, sustainable heating and cooling to new residential and commercial buildings in the Syracuse Inner Harbor.
  • Design: 2024 - 2025
  • NYS DPS Review: 2025 - 2026
  • Construction: 2027 - 2028
  • System startup: Fall 2028

Questions?

For more information on this exciting project, contact:

Melissa Mauro, Principal Engineer, Future of Heat

Will Hacket, Lead Project Manager, Operations

Travis Glazier, Lead Program Manager, Corporate Affairs