20 JANUARY 2025 WorldWide Drilling Resource® Constructing a Borefield on Science Hill Adapted from Information by Yale University Yale is preparing for a future where every building on campus will be energy efficient and capable of meeting its needs for heating, cooling, and electricity. University leaders, as well as state and local officials, gathered for a ceremonial groundbreaking of the new Physical Sciences and Engineering Building, which is the centerpiece of the new Upper Science Hill Building Complex. The overall project includes a host of specialized design features that promote advanced scientific research and sustainability, including drilling more than 250 geothermal wells. This project covers a vast area of 16 acres, which will have a significant impact on Yale’s research landscape, attracting the best minds, reducing energy consumption, and accelerating discoveries in various fields. Alongside the cutting-edge science features are innovative sustainability elements, including the field of geothermal boreholes now being drilled at the site. Three geothermal drilling rigs arrived on upper Science Hill to begin constructing a borefield to support a new thermal utilities plant for the Upper Science Hill Development. All rigs are operated using directional drilling technology, which is an advanced approach for operating in contained areas. The holes, each one at least 800 feet deep, are being created with a new, angled drilling technique in which boreholes are drilled both vertically and at angles radiating out from a central “spine” to areas well beneath existing and future structures. The project team estimates the drilling work will continue through summer of 2026. Once finished, the Science Hill geothermal grid will connect to nearby buildings and the new thermal utilities plant. The geothermal network and thermal plant will dramatically advance Yale’s climate action goals, using electric equipment to circulate water, replacing steam. The system will send heat to the underground borefield during the summer months and pull heat from the ground in winter. Photo by Yale Facilities. HDD
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