A biomass universal district heating model for sustainability evaluation for geographical areas with early experience

Abstract

Biomass district heating systems are an optimal economic and environmental solution for generating and distributing thermal energy. One of the main challenges for a broader development of these systems is the complexity of its implementation in the absence of established regulations in the legal, commercial, technical, or economic fields, a situation that occurs in geographical areas with early experience. This work proposes a model for the sustainability of biomass district heating systems, including the whole value chain, taking into account the role of the stakeholders. The design of this Biomass Universal District Heating (BioUnivDH) optimises the implementation and sustainability of the district heating system in geographical areas with early experience. It is conceived to identify implementation barriers and to contribute to their elimination. The model identifies the stakeholders of the project through the analysis of their relationships, objectives, and expectations. This model allows comparison between different systems, and it improves the decision-making process with a holistic approach that identifies strategies for successful implementation and operation based on economic, environmental, and social acceptance criteria. Finally, to show the application of the BioUnivDH model, it is applied in four heating system projects based on biomass and implemented in four Spanish cities.