Technical and Economic Assessment of Supermarket and Power Substation Waste Heat Integration into Existing District Heating Systems

Hrvoje Dorotić,Tomislav Pukšec,Neven Duić,Josip Miškić,Kristijan Čuljak

doi:10.3390/en15051666

Abstract

District heating systems are almost always located in densely populated urban areas where various heat sources are available, such as cooling and refrigeration systems in supermarkets, shopping malls, and power transformers. These urban sources often have a large share of waste heat, which is usually emitted into the environment. This waste heat could be used to partially cover the thermal load in district heating systems. The biggest challenge for their integration is the spatial distribution of urban heat sources in relation to the existing heat network and the temporal distribution of the availability of waste heat energy throughout the year. In this paper, we have developed an economic assessment model for the integration of urban heat sources into existing district heating systems. By the hourly merit order of waste heat utilization technologies based on pinch analysis, we have defined the most suitable integration of urban heat sources into existing district heating systems. Different temperature regimes of the urban source and the existing heat network have been considered. Finally, the method was tested on the case study of a supermarket and power substation located in Zagreb, while the sensitivity analysis was carried out with a focus on various technical and economic boundary conditions.

Highlights

The role of district heating and cooling in the reduction of greenhouse gasses and the increase of energy efficiency has previously been emphasized by the EU [1]
Both sections present the analysis for the heat exchanger and heat pump utilization technology
With the reduction of temperature regimes in the thermal networks, the new potential was unlocked in the shape of urban heat sources, such as data centers, supermarkets, power transformers, wastewater treatment plants, metro stations, and other tertiary buildings

Summary

Introduction

The role of district heating and cooling in the reduction of greenhouse gasses and the increase of energy efficiency has previously been emphasized by the EU [1]. Tems can produce energy in the most efficient way using large‐scale cogeneration [2], providing power–heat sector coupling [3], integrating large shares of renewable energy, and even recycling thermal energy from various waste heat sources [4,5]. The potential of the last two features is heavily affected by the temperature regimes of thermal networks. The trend of temperature reduction through the years is evident.

Methods

Results

Conclusion