The project is called "The Octopus" to symbolize the Ångström Laboratory's total of ten buildings, the design of which can be seen as a head with arms like an octopus. The work will take place in different stages and will extend until 2025. In the first phase, which was recently completed, Akademiska Hus has invested approximately SEK 40 million. The measures that have been taken aim to enable energy to be moved between the buildings and used where it is most useful.
"Akademiska Hus has a zero vision for its climate footprint, and an important part of this work is to reduce the amount of energy supplied. The investment we are making in the Ångström Laboratory is unique to us, and when the work is completed, the goal is to reduce the annual energy supply to the building by as much as 8 GWh," says Andreas Kupenberg, Director of Technology and Service at Akademiska Hus.
The heat of the server halls becomes circular
The Ångström Laboratory conducts energy-intensive research and teaching in areas such as batteries, solar energy, IT and cybersecurity. Today, the buildings' energy needs measure 26 GWh per year, where a majority of the energy is used to cool the large data centers needed for the university's technology-intensive activities to function. The work in the first phase of the project has focused on taking advantage of the heat created in the server halls and efficiently moving it to other parts of the building where heat is needed and then going back as cooling to the server halls. The circular energy system means that the amount of energy supplied that would otherwise be required to heat and cool the building can be drastically reduced.
"It is important that we as a higher education institution are involved in this development. Uppsala University is strong in energy research, and it is not only about developing new energy technologies, but also new solutions for energy saving," says Charlotte Platzer Björkman, Professor of Photovoltaic Engineering and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the Disciplinary Domain of Science and Technology at Uppsala University.
The work to significantly reduce the energy supply to the Ångström Laboratory is now continuing with the remaining two stages. In these, Akademiska Hus is investing an additional SEK 35 million. The focus is, among other things, on improving ventilation.