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  • Home
    • What's New
  • Blog
    • Blog Support
  • SketchUp Models
    • SketchUp Resources
    • Bureaucratic Affairs Building HHW System Logic Exercise
    • Bureaucratic Affairs Building Scavenger Hunt
    • Chilled Water Plant System Diagram Exercise
    • The HIjend Hotel >
      • Chilled Water Plant Scoping Exercise
      • Ballroom AHU Scoping Exercise
      • Cooling Tower Scoping Exercise
  • Tools
    • Altitude Correction Factor
    • Economizer Evaluation Checklist
    • Eikon for Educators and WindLGC
    • Effective Duct Length Tool
    • Excel Third Axis Tool
    • Excel Time Value Conversion
    • Insulation Savings Tools
    • Logic Diagram Tool >
      • Logic Diagram Example - Discharge Air
      • Logic Diagram Example - CHW Plant 01
      • Logic Diagram Example - VAV AHU
    • Mixed Air Calculations
    • Monitoring Plan Spreadsheet
    • Pipe Friction Chart
    • Plot Digitizer >
      • Plot Digitizer Pump Curve Example
    • Square Law Spreadsheet
    • System Diagram Symbols
    • Thermodynamic Diagrams Spreadsheet
    • Universal Translator Data Analysis Tool
    • y = (m * x) + b Spreadsheet
  • Useful Formulas
    • Affinity Laws
    • Circular Equivalent Duct
    • Effective Duct Length
    • FT Guide Appendix C
    • HVAC Equations and Concepts
    • Hydraulic Diameter
    • Pump Power and Energy
    • "Square Law"
  • What's That Thing?
    • Cooling Towers
    • Pumps
    • Valves
  • Resources
    • Bill Coad's Writings
    • Data Logging Resources
    • EBCx Skills Guidebook
    • Energy Design Resources
    • Fisher Controls Valve Cavitation Bulletin
    • Functional Testing Guide
    • Honeywell Gray Manual
    • MCC Powers Bulletins
    • NBCIP Reports
    • PEC Tool Lending Library
    • PID Resources
    • Pneumatic Control Resources
    • Resource List
    • Scoping Resources
    • TAB Resources
    • Vintage Carrier Design Manual
    • VRF Systems
    • Williams' Wisdom
  • Videos
    • Bureaucratic Affairs HHW Logic Answers
    • Cooling Tower Flow Variation
    • Economizer Stratification
    • Functional Testing
    • Induction Principles
    • Monitoring Plans
    • CW Pump Deadheaded by Tower Lift
    • Ripple Effects
    • Testing a Pump
    • The Garden of Low Entropy
    • Variable Flow Systems
  • Training
    • Materials from Classes and Presentations >
      • ACEEE
      • ASHRAE
      • ASHRAE - Engineers Notebook
      • BCxA and NCBC
      • BEST Institute
      • Case Studies
      • ERDC 2020 RCx Academy
      • ELPNW
      • ICEBO
      • Marriott AEP
      • Magazine Articles
      • NAVFAC
      • Pacific Energy Center Design, Performance and Commissioning Issues Classes
      • Pacific Energy Center EBCx Project Review
      • Pacific Energy Center EBCx Workshop Series >
        • EBCx Workshop Series 12
        • EBCx Workshop Series 13
        • EBCx Workshop Series 14
        • EBCx Workshop Series 15 >
          • Student One On One Discussions
        • EBCx Workshop Series 16
        • EBCx Workshop Series 17
        • EBCx Workshop Series 18
      • Portland General Electric
      • U of W >
        • U of W Archive
    • On Demand Training >
      • Benchmarking UCA and Scoping
      • Loads and Psychrometrics
      • Induction Motor Principles
      • Introduction to Functional Testing
      • Scope of Work Documents
      • System Diagraming
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​Dual Fuel Hot Water Boiler

It turns out that this is actually a dual fuel boiler.  The primary clue is that it has both fuel oil and gas piped to it.   You can get a sense of that when you look at it in the picture that shows the entire boiler from the front because of the large pipe with a valve in it coming in from the left and the smaller lines with flexible connections coming into it from the right.  In the field you can take a closer look and if you do that, you will discover that there are in fact pipes labeled "Natural Gas" and "Fuel Oil Supply" and "Fuel Oil Return" connected to the boiler and its burner.  

Mission critical facilities like Fred Hutch frequently have multiple energy sources for their prime movers to ensure that they can continue to provide service if the loose a utility due to a disaster like an earthquake.   But the dual fuel capabilities can also provide a cost benefit by allowing the facility to use a curtailment based rate. 

In other words, because Fred Hutch can fire their boilers with oil or gas, they can elect a rate plan with the local gas utility that allows the utility to notify Fred Hutch that they need to go off of gas with-in a certain time frame (usually an hour or two) when the utility is experiencing a demand peak.  If Fred Hutch is able to switch their boilers to fuel oil and drop off of the gas system for a while, that provides capacity for the utility to use to serve other customers with out that flexibility. In return for being flexible, the utility sells gas to Fred Hutch under non-peak conditions at a lower cost.   

But if something happens and for some reason, Fred Hutch is not able to switch over to fuel oil, the utility does not cut them off.  However, they will charge a much higher rate for the gas Fred Hutch consumes during the peak due to what it will cost the utility to provide the service under those conditions.

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