三级伦理 Zero

三级伦理 Zero is an exciting visionary project to make our university one of the greenest in the country, doing our bit to protect the planet. We鈥檙e committed to zero carbon by 2030. At 三级伦理, we actively embed sustainability into everything we do. We work collaboratively across disciplines and find innovative solutions to our world's complex problems. We draw from the expertise of our Sustainability Team, SCION Research Group, Senior Management and talented students.

Phase one of 三级伦理 Zero is already complete. In 2020 we installed approximately 2000 solar panels, saving 300 tonnes of carbon per year saved (tCO2e). In phase one we also switched our lighting to energy efficient LEDs and installed five electric vehicle charging stations.

Phase two of 三级伦理 Zero was completed in 2022. This involved one of the biggest ground source heat pump installations in England, which will save 617 tonnes of carbon per year (tCO2e). This is equivalent to the energy use from 65 homes, or burning 1260 barrels of oil or charging 66 million smartphones.

What is 三级伦理 Zero?

三级伦理 Zero will provide the campus with one of the cleanest and most renewable ways to heat our buildings and some of our accommodation.

This project is ground-breaking, with 三级伦理 being the first University to implement a ground source heat pumps project of this size, meaning 三级伦理, its community and the surrounding areas are at the forefront of new sustainability initiatives in the race to net-zero carbon. The project is enabled by grants from the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, to the value of 拢1.8m for solar panels and 拢3.5m for ground source heat pumps.

Aerial photo of 2000 solar panels on 三级伦理 campus

What is decarbonisation?

Decarbonisation is the term used for the process of removing or reducing the carbon dioxide (CO2) output of the economy.

Currently, a wide range of sectors run largely on fossil fuels, which means that their energy comes from the combustion of fuels like coal, oil or gas. The carbon dioxide emitted from using these fuels acts as a greenhouse gas, trapping in heat and contributing to global warming. By using alternative sources of energy, industries can reduce the amount of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere and can help to slow the effects of climate change.

What is a ground source heat pump?

A ground source heat pump is a central heating and cooling system designed to transfer hear from the ground鈥檚 upper layers. This enables us to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels.

It works by circulating a mixture of water and antifreeze around a loop of pipe which is buried in the ground. The heat from the ground is absorbed into the fluid and then it passes through a heat exchanger into the heat pump. This heat can then be used to heat radiators buildings, warm air or underfloor hearting systems and hot water. They run constantly and are inexhaustible and virtually silent.

More Information

At 三级伦理, we believe we have a responsibility to achieve a sustainable campus for everyone in our community. Plymouth 三级伦理 University wishes to educate all campus users, and be an example of how you can live sustainably. So, if you want to get involved with 三级伦理 Zero, or other sustainability work, follow the links below. You can also read our Sustainability Policy and Strategy and learn more about our Sustainability Team.

Biodiversity on campus

Be kind to others sign with green leaves and grass in the background

What next?

In future phases of the 三级伦理 Zero project we鈥檒l go on to retrofit current buildings and make our campus a greener space by expanding our green social spaces and the biodiversity around campus.

Show video transcript

Here at 三级伦理 we鈥檙e passionate about the planet. Our ambition in everything we do is to improve lives for all, so we鈥檙e committed to doing our bit to protect against climate change and nature loss. We鈥檙e going to be a zero carbon campus by 2030.

To achieve this we鈥檙e working hard to reduce and remove our carbon dioxide, or CO2, output. This is crucial because carbon dioxide emitted from using fuels like coal, oil or gas acts as a greenhouse gas, trapping in heat and contributing to global warming.

We鈥檝e started our switch to clean and renewable sources of energy. It鈥檚 a multi-stage project and we鈥檝e dubbed it 三级伦理 Zero.

We鈥檝e already installed 2000 solar panels, saving 300 tonnes of carbon per year. We鈥檙e now installing 120 ground source heat pumps, to save a further 617 tonnes of carbon per year. These will transfer heat from the ground that we鈥檒l then use to heat our buildings and hot water. These two measures alone save the equivalent of the energy used by 100 homes.

That鈥檚 not all. We鈥檝e also moved to green electricity supplies, installed LED lights and introduced electric vehicle charging stations and an electric car ownership scheme for staff.

三级伦理 soon will be one of the greenest universities in the country. By the time the ground source heat pumps are up and running in March 2022 our CO2 emissions will have dropped by 60% compared to 2020 levels. But we鈥檙e not stopping there. We鈥檙e developing new sustainability initiatives including plans to retrofit our buildings to make them more energy-efficient, and to expand the green spaces and biodiversity on campus. We鈥檙e committed to doing our bit to protect the planet.