Overview
The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science operates a marine science research facility, the R.V. Truitt Laboratory, located at the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. The Chesapeake Biological Laboratory (CBL) is comprised of numerous buildings that support three primary area of research: ecosystem studies and restoration science; fisheries science; and environmental chemistry and toxicology. Originally built in 1973, The R.V. Truitt Laboratory contains facilities for the study of ecological, behavioral, and toxicological effects on marine life, and as well as the culture and maintenance of estuarine organisms.
Due to major mechanical and structural issues, the original Truitt building was demolished and construction of a new replacement seawater research laboratory is taking place. The project is being completed in two phases which includes a 1,500 SF support building to house all of the mechanical and seawater systems (Phase I), and the approximately 29,000 SF new Truitt laboratory building (Phase II). Features of the new facility include temperature-controlled seawater, wet labs, dry labs, environmental chambers, collaboration areas and offices.
Engineering Highlights
- The new mechanical support building houses the re-designed 400 gpm seawater filtration and titanium heat exchanger systems that provide the temperature controlled sea water for all the labs
- Specialized mixing and blending tanks along with purposely designed seawater controls provide ± 1 degree seawater temperature control to the labs
- All systems are redundant in nature to allow anaerobic disinfection of select seawater lines.
- The research building features a 40,000cfm variable air volume enthalpy energy recovery air handling system
- The building is 100% exhausted through high dilution exhaust fans
- All ductwork is specially coated to withstand the seawater atmosphere
- Specialized environmental chambers are conditioned through independent compressorized systems that allow the spaces to be heated or cooled to temperatures beyond the normal temperature ranges of traditional HVAC systems
- The entire first floor drainage system is supported by an engineered trench system that returns the continuously flowing sea water systems back to the bay
