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Energy
Building
Affordable And Clean Energy
Industry, Innovation And Infrastructure
Sustainable Cities And Communities
Responsible Consumption And Production
District heating and cooling systems distribute thermal energy in the form of steam, hot water, or chilled liquids, from central or decentralised sources of production through a network to multiple buildings or sites, for the use of space or process heating or cooling. For a lower environmental impact, a combination of recycled and renewable heat is the focus for district heating systems. Following the Paris Agreement in 2015 and the EU target to cut emissions by at least 40% below 1990 levels by 2030, there has been an increased effort from member states to foster district heating and cooling using alternative fuel sources and carbon-neutral heat-producing technologies. This transition is challenging as district heating supplies only 12% of the EU´s heat supply, with most of the energy produced from CHP plants powered by natural gas and solid fuels such as lignite.
Problems to be solved
| Carbon emissions | Low-efficient heat supply | Fossil fuel dependency | GHG emissions |
Reducing GHG emissions
Reducing local air pollution
Reducing use of fossils
Enhances grid stability
Shaving peak energy demand
Improving energy supply efficiency
Increasing share of renewables
Minimum efficiency established by regional directives
Temperature range for an appropriate distribution and utilisation
Temperature range for an appropriate distribution and utilisation
These systems must be capable to be incorporated into the city's DH network
Recovery of wasted thermal energy
To reduce energy production through fossil-fuels
Reducing variable costs of heat and cooling energy production
Carbon-neutral and low-carbon fuels such as biomass, waste, and biogas are becoming attractive alternatives for reducing the environmental impact of firing systems. Although these energy sources produce carbon emissions, they have life-cycle neutrality. Biomass energy is carbon neutral if growing the biomass removes as much CO2 as is emitted into the atmosphere from its combustion. Waste and biogas are recovered materials that would otherwise be disposed of.
Energy
Renovation of the whole district heating system to increase energy efficiency and reduce fossil fuel dependency.
Energy
Building
Aiming to achieve a sustainable districts in Tepebasi through deep retrofitting, the improvements in building envelope's designs were implemented. Minimizing heat transfer through the building envelope is crucial for reducing the need for space heating and cooling.
The popularity of P2H plants is growing thanks to the increased installed capacity of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar PV energy. P2H plants harness generated renewable electricity and transform it into heat either by heating resistors, electrode boilers or heat pumps. For an effective integration of P2H, the ratio of renewable energy to fossil fuel production is to be considered. A higher installed capacity of renewable energy would favour a P2H plant's feasibility.
P2H provides an alternative to Demand Side Management system. When there is excess electricity production from renewable sources, P2H plants are powered to produce heat.
Solar thermal energy harnesses energy from the sun to generate thermal energy for use in industry, and in the residential and commercial sectors. In locations where there is high solar irradiance (annual GHI above 1000 kWh/m2), solar thermal plant installations are the most favourable. Nevertheless, in northern European countries such as Denmark (with annual GHI below 1000 kWh/m2) solar thermal energy contributes significantly to the district heating network. Solar thermal energy usually contributes up to 20% to the total heat supply, although including seasonal storage units can increase the percentage of heating that can be met by solar energy on an annual basis to 50% (SDH 2020). Large urban district heating networks typically source thermal energy from large-scale solar thermal plants. Solar thermal flat plate collectors are the most commonly installed systems.
This variant of heat production was conceived for harnessing the thermal energy from pipes carrying the return flow from district cooling systems or sewage pipes. This is achieved by using a heat exchanger and a heat pump powered by solar PV panels, in which heat is recovered to produce hot water in residential buildings.
The feasibility of heat waste recovery is largely dependent on the levelised costs of heat for conventional heat production sources. These implementations carry high capital costs, so economic incentives are required to allow scaling up.
Energy
A highly energy efficient district cooling system was installed in the densely populated city center of Tartu using the river cooled chillers. The system was made more energy efficient by Fortum, using a heat pump that reuses the residual heat from cooling system for the district heating system.
Low-temperature district heating is a heat supply technology for an efficient, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective community supply. In comparison to conventional district heating, the network supply temperature is reduced down to approximately 50 °C or even less.
Energy
ICT
Developing an efficient low temperature heating system out of the returning flow of a high temperature heat network.
The novel concept of cold district heating networks aims to combine the advantages of a centralised energy distribution system with low heat losses in the energy supply. This combined effect is achieved through the centralised supply of water at relatively low temperatures which is then heated up by decentralised heat pumps. These circulation pumps withdraw water from the warm line, use it in a heat pump to reach temperatures suitable for space heating and then discharge the cooled water to the cold line.
Absorption chillers use the collection of waste heat from other processes or equipment to drive a thermodynamic process that allows water to be chilled and distributed for HVAC needs. Absorption chillers do not require the installation of a city-wide district cooling system. They must be installed close to a consistent stream of waste heat, such as near the effluent of an industrial plant or university campus.
General requirements for the implementation of District Heating:
District heating has several land use requirements for its implementation:
EU
1. RHC-ETIP
The European Technology and Innovation Platform on Renewable Heating & Cooling (RHC-ETIP) brings together stakeholders from the biomass, geothermal, solar thermal and heat pump sectors – including the related industries such as district heating and cooling, thermal energy storage, and hybrid systems – to define a common strategy for increasing the use of renewable energy technologies for heating and cooling.
2. International Energy Agency (IEA)
The Technology Collaboration Programme on District Heating and Cooling including Combined Heat and Power[JH1], deals with the design, performance and operation of distribution systems and consumer installations. The Agreement is dedicated to helping to make district heating and cooling and combined heat and power powerful tools for energy conservation and the reduction of environmental impacts of supplying heat. The programme offers a platform for online reports and an exchange of best practices.
UK
1. The Heat Networks Delivery Unit (HNDU)
The Heat Networks Delivery Unit was established in 2013 to address the capacity and capability challenges which local authorities identified as barriers to heat network deployment in the UK. The Unit provides funding and specialist guidance to local authorities who are developing heat network projects.
2. Heat Networks Investment Project (HNIP)
The Heat Networks Investment Project is delivering £320 million of capital investment support to increase the volume of heat networks built, deliver carbon savings for carbon budgets, and help create the conditions for a sustainable market that can operate without direct government subsidy. The pilot phase of the Heat Networks Investment Project ran for 6 months and awarded £24 million to 9 successful Local Authority projects in March 2017.
Stakeholder Map for a district heating or cooling system (BABLE,2021)
The following list of benefits are accompanied by an importance ranking. A value of one, translates to high importance.
Value model for a district heating or cooling system (BABLE, 2021)
Energy
Intelligent operation of heating systems to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions in buildings. This includes analyzing real-time data and adaptive algorithms to control heating more efficiently, solve integration problems and promote user acceptance.
Energy
Other
The study "Renewable Power-to-Heat in Hajnówka" illustrates the possibility and necessity of converting the fossil heating network of the Polish town of Hajnówka to renewable energies.
Energy
ICT
Commercial building reduces its heating needs during peak hours to prevent resorting to fossil fuel-based energy plants. This initiative aligns with demand-side management, aiming to lower CO2 emissions and enhance energy efficiency.
Energy
ICT
Overcoming insufficient power generation by including the Dunker solar plant to supply heat to a district that cannot produce enough renewable energy.
Energy
Waste
The project assesses the city's waste heat sources to potentially integrate them into the district heating system. This includes providing an overview of the industry-specific amount of usable waste heat in Leipzig, to assess the potential for cities with a similar structure.
Energy
The integration of a solar heating plant into the district heating system helps to create a positive energy district. This initiative enhances the use of renewable energy and aids in the city's decarbonisation efforts by adding solar thermal energy to its heating grid.
Energy
Building
In former cotton mill rental areas, a smart heat management system employs intelligent thermostats connected to a local energy management system, allowing tenants to control heating through a mobile app and reduce heat-related emissions by automatically turning off heat supply in unused areas.
Mobility
Energy
In a bid to promote sustainable travel behaviour to businesses, schools and residents, the borough installed solar ground lighting to their network of shared-use footpaths, to facilitate year round access to cyclists, pedestrians and mobility impaired people.
Energy
Building
Leipzig University supports the decision making of LSW by a model-based analysis. The overall aim is to find pathways for increasing the district heating supply in “Leipzig West” and the share of renewable energies and use of waste heat in Leipzig district heating system in the future.
Energy
RES Integration aims to make the Lippulaiva in Espoo an energy positive district, through electricity and thermal energy systems.
Building
Energy
Within the GrowSmarter project."Smart local thermal districts" is part of the building refurbishment in Ca l’Alier, which combines on-site electricity generation (PVs) with the local existing DHC network, reducing the consumption of fossil primary energy for heating and cooling production.
Energy
A highly energy efficient district cooling system was installed in the densely populated city center of Tartu using the river cooled chillers. The system was made more energy efficient by Fortum, using a heat pump that reuses the residual heat from cooling system for the district heating system.
Energy
This Open District Heating aims to recover waste heat to the existing DH network by developing an innovative business model for plug and play heat pumps and contracts where the DH provider buys waste heat from local sources like data centres and supermarkets.
Energy
Renovation of the whole district heating system to increase energy efficiency and reduce fossil fuel dependency.
Energy
ICT
Developing an efficient low temperature heating system out of the returning flow of a high temperature heat network.
Approximately one-quarter of the energy price is owed by the transportation of the energy. The implementation of a local energy system can shift the energy production from a centralised system to a decentralised system.
According to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), buildings are responsible for approximately 40% of energy consumption and 36% of CO2 emissions in the EU.
The supply of energy to households, public buildings and services accounts for the majority of GHG emissions in the majority of municipalities. Municipal Energy Saving Systems represent punctual solutions to optimise energy consumption.
Urban resilience is the ability of an urban system and all its constituents across temporal and spatial scales to maintain or rapidly return to desired functions in the face of a disturbance.
Citizen engagement plays an instrumental role in the way human settlements are governed. Decision-making processes are enhanced by engaging those most affected and intimately connected with societal challenges.