Abstract
In the last years, international programs in diverse sectors and national frameworks have been driven by the need of a sustainable growth, in a green economy perspective. In order to reduce the energy losses/dissipations, as well as the fossil fuels employment and related pollutant emissions, indeed, the spread of combined heat and power units and/or renewable sources generators is promoted into both the electrical grids and the thermal networks but are often in conflict with the economic aspects. In this context, the optimal management of complex energy networks – including, in particular, smart district heating – may lead to the achievement of important goals from the environmental and sustainability viewpoints. The aim of this paper is to develop a preliminary methodology for the complete evaluation of complex energy networks, considering energy, economic and environmental aspects. With this purpose, a case study consisting in a network for the fulfillment of electrical and thermal needs of the connected users will be analyzed, considering different scenarios in terms of energy generation mix and operation and applying different optimization software. In addition, the carried out evaluations will allow to set the basis for the discussion about the future of energy policies and possible incentives towards the sustainable development of the energy sector.
Highlights
The last years have been characterized by a growing attention to the sustainability in the energy sector, which involves the need to increase both the penetration of renewable sources and the energy conversion efficiency towards the reduction of the fossil fuel consumption and, of the greenhouse gas emissions [1]
In order to evaluate the environmental aspects related to the energy production and distribution, in this study the definition of an energy-ecological efficiency from literature has been extended for the first time to the complex energy networks, including comparative considerations about several energy systems for electrical, thermal and cooling production
The new developed parameter has been applied to a case study represented by a middle size network for the complete fulfillment of the connected users’ energy needs, allowing to demonstrate the need of supporting actions from the lawmaking bodies
Summary
The last years have been characterized by a growing attention to the sustainability in the energy sector, which involves the need to increase both the penetration of renewable sources and the energy conversion efficiency towards the reduction of the fossil fuel consumption and, of the greenhouse gas emissions [1]. To this respect, both international and national legislations promote the spread of distributed generators, as well as the district heating networks for the thermal needs fulfillment [2]. The actions towards the economic and the environmental goals are often conflicting, requiring high investments for the energy systems which maximize the environmental sustainability
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