Heat Market Research Articles

Effect of coal and biomass co-combustion on the concentrations of selected gaseous pollutants

One of the main environmental problems is the protection of atmospheric air from pollution, which is a result of increase the cover needs of the energy. This problem is particularly important in Poland, where the heat market is one of the largest in Europe and is based in 75% on the use of fossil fuels. The amount of fuel, its type and quality directly affect boiler operation, heat generation capacity, combustion process and thus emissions. The change of the pollutant emission factor also results in a variable load on the boiler room dependent on external conditions. Reduction of emissions pollutants in the energy production process is possible, for example, by increasing the share of renewable fuels in the overall energy balance. One of the possibilities to increase the share of these fuels in the energy sector is co-firing hard coal and biomass. The paper presents results of measurement of concentrations of selected air pollutants in the exhaust gases from co-firing of hard coal and biomassin the form woodchips coming from furniture companies. Based on experimental research, has been created statistical models on the influence of co-combustion of hard coal and biomass in WR water boilers during unstable conditions on the concentration of selected gaseous pollutants.

Modeling of influence of vibration on intensification of heat transfer within the absorber of the vacuum solar collector

Due to escalating role of mitigation of climate change in power and energy sector, power units based on renewable energy sources (RES) became vital part of global power and heat market, including distributed heat generation as well. Significant number of such installations belong to individual users, commonly using solar collectors to prepare domestic hot water directly at their sites. However, the vitally variable solar irradiance makes the solar energy difficult in efficient harvesting considering long time period. Thus, maximization of power gain from single solar absorber, when the solar radiation flux is temporarily high, might lead to further rise in overall, year-averaged efficiency of such units. The paper concerns modelling of intensification of heat transfer, taking place within the absorber of a vacuum solar collector, due to insertion of vibrating element inside the thermal oil canal, compared to static turbulization method. Different geometries of vibrating elements and amplitudes of oscillatory motion, as well as heat carriers, are investigated using commercially available CFD software. Results indicate rise in solar power acquired within the absorber using vibrating elements, with essential difference between circulating media, and suggest vital benefits from utilization of static turbulizing devices.

Two-Stage Integrated Electricity and Heat Market Clearing With Energy Stations

Integrated energy systems (IESs) provide a synergistic supply of electricity and heat, which offers a new approach for district heating. However, the operational risk of IESs increases continuously as the extent of renewable energy source (RES) penetration continues to increase. This condition negatively impacts the benefits of IESs to the participants in the integrated energy market (IEM) and increases the costs of the system. This paper addresses these issues by proposing a two-stage stochastic programming model that considers RES penetration for IESs operated independently of electricity grids (i.e., islanded IESs). Then, a two-stage clearing model of the IEM is established, and a market settlement process is designed. The simulation results demonstrate that the two-stage clearing model of the IEM can effectively alleviate the operational risk associated with high RES penetration by allowing market participants to make timely adjustments corresponding to their interests according to changes in RES generation.

Smart Solutions and Opportunities for District Heating: The Case of Budapest

The smart city, as a phenomenon, primarily focuses on citizens, city services, decision making mechanisms and information technology solutions, with various criteria such as sustainable development, economic efficiency and broad participation. One of its subsystems is the Smart Environment, which among others, aims for decreasing energy consumption and increasing energy efficiency of the built environment: to make energy processes more sustainable (renewable energies, water management), and circular processes utilizing resources. District heating is one of the most environmentally friendly and modern method of heat supply (with concentrated emission and efficient power supply of renewable energies), which is present in the heat market of Budapest with a share of about 30 %. District heating supplier of the capital city (FOTAV) provides to nearly quarter million dwellings. Present article focuses on the district heat supply in Budapest, the use of resources and renewable energies and demonstrates the investments of the high-efficiency cogeneration facilities according to the EU directive on the heat producer's side. The article also presents public energy saving tenders in district heating in the capital so far: I LOVE PANEL and OKOS-HAZAK project.

ФІНАНСУВАННЯ ВІТЧИЗНЯНОЇ ГАЛУЗІ ТЕПЛОПОСТАЧАННЯ ШЛЯХОМ ВПРОВАДЖЕННЯ ПРОЄКТІВ ЕНЕРГОЕФЕКТИВНОСТІ В УМОВАХ ЄВРОІНТЕГРАЦІЇ

Within the article, scientific material on the topic under study is generalized, the idea that at the present stage there is an urgent need to reform the heat supply industry, unsatisfactory financial state of enterprises should be corrected, and measures on energy efficiency and its financing have to be introduced is substantiated. A number of key features of the basic models of the centralized heating market in the European Union is submitted, among which are the following: a single buyer model and an open grid model. Basic legal, economic and organizational principles of the activity of heat supply facilities in Ukraine are studied. Mechanisms for directing funds to energy efficiency have been established, differing in the source of funds and the number of parties involved in the process of allocating funds by the creditor before using them. The main projects financed by IMF are as follows: “Energy Efficiency Fund” (in the draft of the Government);“Municipal Infrastructure Development of Ukraine” - EIB (Loan Unbound) (KfW);”Energy Efficiency” (NEFCO); “Ukrsimbank and IBRD Project, IQ Energy” (EBRD, ESP, other); Demo-Ukraine (NEFCO), Environmental Friendly Net Production (NEFCO) and EBRD loans; Government program “Warm” loans”; preferential lending from the Youth Building Fund; direct bank lending. It is proved that the current methodology for the development of heat supply schemes needs refinement in order to provide local self-government bodies with a full and effective tool for long-term planning of the district heating supply.

Estimation of Effective Demand of Population for Energy Sector Services in the Far East11The reported study was funded by RFBR according to the research project № 17-32-00013-OGN

The article is devoted to estimating the effective demand of population for energy sector services in the Far East. It shows that objective factors connected to geographical and climatic conditions, settlement and housing provision in the region, explain high consumption of energy resources: electricity – 33% higher than country average per capita, heat – 2.3 times higher. The article shows that only electricity market allows population to control the demand, unlike the heat market, where payments are made according to standards and using metering devices is restricted by the specifics of communal infrastructure of housing. Despite the attempts to control the growth of tariffs in the Far East, their nominal size is 2-4 times higher than country average. The article states that the potential for growth of population income in the region is limited and its rate cannot compensate for the growth of tariffs. It is shown that even with the 75% standard of limitation on the level of compensation for utilities cost, the share of expenses on them in regional households in 2016 reached 11.1%, with 70% out of them being electricity costs. In the event of full compensation of costs for the producers of electricity in the Far East either one of the following is required: the increase of population income of 1.5-2 times which is unlikely considering the limited economy growth and labor market, or considerable increase of budgetary social support which contradicts the logic of institutional changes aimed at lowering the financial burden of the state.

Towards marketing biomethane in France\u2014French consumers\u2019 perception of biomethane

BackgroundFrench energy policy calls for ambitious growth in the biogas sector, with the quantity of biomethane fed into the public grid targeted at 8 TWh per year by 2023. Although today biomethane in France serves predominantly as vehicle fuel, the domestic heating market, with its high share of gas heating, should see biogas growth in the future, provided consumer demand can develop and suppliers can emerge savvy enough to respond to that demand.MethodsTowards this end, we conducted qualitative interviews with some mixed-methods elements with French consumers in the South of France to explore their knowledge of and attitudes towards biogas as well as their preferences for specific product features of biomethane-based gas products.ResultsWe found that today’s consumers have little knowledge of biogas production and feel uncertain and doubtful about products. They can name reasons, both environmental and financial, for and against biogas. They favor biomethane products from agricultural residues and biodegradable household waste, rejecting energy crops. In principle, they value local production by small suppliers, find ecolabels helpful, and look favorably upon extra environmental benefits accruing from the sale of biogas. However, consumers labor under misconceptions regarding the costs of biomethane production.ConclusionCrafting communication strategies that address widespread consumer doubt and consumer perceived risk is the challenge suppliers face in order to allow consumers to make a well-based decision.

Developing the US Biomass Residential Heating Market

The objective of this article is to help biomass heating industry in its marketing tasks, by helping the industry segment its consumers so that marketing efforts can be targeted at households that will purchase and use biomass home heating. To achieve this objective, the author classifies US households using structural characteristics (for example, year the home was built) and function or behavioral features of the households (for example, life goals or values of the head of household). Gaining social approval, living an active or exciting life, and a mature understanding of life are the primary motives that influence biomass equipment purchase. One-in-three households in the nation possess these values and hence are the ideal targets for the industry. Since not all geographical locations are equally attractive, the author has developed an interactive computer application that insures that managers target households that meets business goals. Future research on home heating can build on this approach to deduce theorems about consumer purchases of green-energy products.

Integrated Energy Transaction Mechanisms Based on Blockchain Technology

With the rapid development of distributed renewable energy (DRE), demand response (DR) programs, and the proposal of the energy internet, the current centralized trading of the electricity market model is unable to meet the trading needs of distributed energy. As a decentralized and distributed accounting mode, blockchain technology fits the requirements of distributed energy to participate in the energy market. Corresponding to the transaction principle, a blockchain-based integrated energy transaction mechanism is proposed, which divides the trading process into two stages: the call auction stage and the continues auction stage. The transactions among the electricity and heat market participants were used as examples to explain the details of the trading process. Finally, the smart contracts of the transactions were designed and deployed on the Ethereum private blockchain site to demonstrate the validity of the proposed transaction scheme.

Third-party access in district heating: Lithuanian case analysis

Transition from monopoly to competition-based markets is widely recognized processes around the globe when it comes to achieving efficient electricity and gas trade thus presenting direct benefits to the final energy consumers. But when talking about smaller infrastructures like district heating (DH) market is still viewed as a natural monopoly. This article presents Lithuanian case to open up existing municipal infrastructure to third-party access in order to complete fuel switch in DH generation faster and to increase efficiency of the entire system through competitive pressure. The article presents the set of circumstances in DH sector back in 2010; focuses on regulatory framework, which was developed and introduced through two phases in Lithuania; and formulates impacts of the reorganization of DH sector from vertically integrated monopoly to single buyer model for de-monopolized generation.

Demand side management in urban district heating networks

This paper proposes a realistic demand side management mechanism in an urban district heating network (DHN) to improve system efficiency and manage congestion issues. Comprehensive models including the circulating pump, the distribution network, the building space heating (SH) and domestic hot water (DHW) demand were employed to support day-ahead hourly energy schedule optimization for district heating substations. Flexibility in both SH and DHW were fully exploited and the impacts of both weekly pattern and building type were modelled and identified in detail. The energy consumption scheduling problem was formulated for both the individual substations and the district heating operator. Three main features were considered in the formulation: user comfort, the heat market and network congestion. A case study was performed based on a representative urban DHN with a 3.5 MW peak thermal load including both residential and commercial buildings. Results show an up to 11% reduction of energy costs. A sensitivity analysis was conducted which provides decision makers with insights into how sensitive the optimum solution is to any changes in energy, user comfort or pumping costs.

The Role of Knowledge-based Consumption in the Consumers’ Purchase Decisions of Heating Products

The increasing role of the Internet enables the spread of knowledge-based consumption; consumers are turning to their social environment to exchange information and experiences with products either through personal contacts or by contacting others on the Internet. Several former studies analyzed the influencing role of experience-based communication on a variety of products but in the case of heating appliances the scientific literature is lacking. The goal of the study is to reveal the influence of experience in the various stages of the purchase process and to identify the credible information sources that consumers consult while making a decision. A two-step exploratory research was conducted in 2013 with homeowners in Hungary on the residential heat market. Consumers were found be active decision-makers and deliberately planned the purchase of heating products. The influencing role of experience prevails not only in the consumers’ personal experience but also in the experience of other users they interact with and in the experience of professionals they consult. Personal experience starts at the early age as respondents’ recall childhood memories with heating, which influences the consumers’ expectations in the early stage of the purchase process. The experience of other users prevails along the whole purchase process through credible sources and the experience of professionals influences mainly the information search and validation phase of the purchase process. Consumers consult other users (strong and weak social sources) personally or via online sources by the final decision rather than turning to the installer.

Search for a market equilibrium of Cournot-Nash in the competitive heat market

The paper is concerned with a «Single-buyer » heat market model. A mathematical model is developed. In this model, optimal distribution of heating load among heat sources, that corresponds to the Nash equilibrium is determined based on the Cournot approach. The mathematical model makes it possible to take into account heat production and transportation as well as physical and technical properties of heat supply systems. The model was applied to conduct the studies on a heat supply system with three heat sources in the town of Angarsk.

Challenges for business change in district heating

BackgroundThe Swedish district heating sector is successfully transitioning to a low-carbon energy system. The industry has expanded since the 1950s and currently meets more than half the Swedish heat demand. The heat market was deregulated in 1996, and thereafter, companies have been exposed to an increasing number of challenges related to technology, institutional factors and market. Since municipal ownership dominates, municipal companies must manage these challenges to ensure future competitiveness. However, theory suggests that business change is difficult when the current model is still working. To date, Swedish district heating companies have revisited their price models and customer perceptions. There is limited knowledge on how the business challenges are managed and on the management strategy’s impact on the business. In this paper, new knowledge is generated regarding how the customer and resource-oriented sides of the municipally owned district heating business in Sweden are changing.MethodsA case study approach was adopted. Data were collected by interviews and by review of the national research programme on district heating (Fjärrsyn). The programme served as a proxy for frontline research on Swedish district heating. The data were analyzed through the business model canvas framework.ResultsChanges to meet external pressures are identified on the customer side of the business model, but changes are also spreading to other parts of it. However, the key resource component (distribution networks and production unit) and its logic of economics of scale are unchanged and dominate. The logic is not compatible with shrinking heat demand; nevertheless, it is preferred.ConclusionsIt is concluded that external challenges have resulted in changes in the customer side of the business model. However, the largest challenge is the transformation of key resources. Accounting for external challenges extends the life of the current business model, but it is not increasing competitiveness. The prolonged life creates a window of opportunity for the companies to begin the needed transformation of their key resources. If the transformation is successful, district heating will have a role in the future energy system. If the transformation is not undertaken, the future is less certain.

What are the potential end customers of the heat market like? The customer segmentation challenge on the heat market

Due to the increasing role of the digitalization and the emergence of new consumption patterns, end customers became empowered decision makers. They show the tendency to trust less the professionals and rather consult their social environment by their purchase decisions. As a consequence, marketers – who apply a 2-step sales strategy, by focusing on the professionals at the first place – are challenged in their customer segmentation. It is essential for marketers to get a deeper insight into the underlying motives and motivators behind the end customer attitude towards heating products, as installers fulfill less and less the mediator role in the purchase process between end customers and heating manufacturers. In this paper the authors treat the heating market as a special case, where they put the end customers in the focus of the research – instead of the heating technology they adopt – and investigate the characteristics of the potential end customers, their needs, expectations and purchase motivation. The authors carried out a two-step explorative research with homeowners in Hungary, which they consider as the first step in the investigation of the end customer characteristics from a marketing managerial approach. The results show that in general end customers are mainly driven by financial and functional factors in their customer behavior and plan the purchase deliberately instead of facing and emergency situation, which means that heating manufacturers have a lead time to reach end customers with tailored offers.

Potential of Photovoltaics for Water Heating in South Africa

ABSTRACTElectric water heating (EWH) is the most common technology used to heat water in residential and commercial buildings in the country of South Africa. Water heating typically accounts for roughly 40% of the energy consumption of a typical South African home. The high capital costs of solar thermal water heating (SWH) systems in South Africa have made implementation of this technology very expensive. Recent reductions in the costs of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems have made them economically competitive with conventional electrical systems. The relatively steady annual electrical generation output of the PV systems when compared with the seasonal performance of the conventional SWH has created opportunities for solar PV to capture a larger share of the local water heating market. This article reviews and assesses the three primary water heating technologies currently used in South Africa and provides an energy and financial analysis of each technology.

DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT ON THE MUNICIPAL HEAT ENGINEERING MARKET OF UKRAINE: FOREIGN EXPERIENCE AND UKRAINIAN REALITIES

Introduction. The research presents the justification for measures to develop a competitive environment on the market of municipal heat and power engineering in Ukraine and qualitative transformations in this area. It is indicated on the problem of the entry of new entities on the market of thermal power engineering and a number of factors that cause it. The identified problem is reduced to the development on the basis of study and adaptation of international experience of the functioning of competitive heat supply rhythms, practical recommendations for the development of a competitive heat supply market in Ukraine. Purpose. The article aims to study the foreign experience of functioning of the competitive district heating market and its adaptation to the Ukrainian realities for the formation of a competitive environment in the district heating market of Ukraine. Method (methodology). In the process of research, the following methods have been used: method of synthesis, method of analysis, method of comparison, method of synthesis and method of induction. Results. In this paper, the following concepts have been scientifically substantiated: competitiveness, third party access to the networks, financial unbundling and property unbundling. Proposals for increasing competition within the framework of district heating systems have been developed. They are justified on the basis of the following reasons: increasing competition and the share of renewable fuels in heat production, benefiting from the existing infrastructure of the heat supply network without the risk of investing in their own infrastructure, etc. The models, which promote the introduction of European experience of development of a competitive environment on the market of heat supply according to the Ukrainian market, are considered. Accordingly, it is selected a model that can perfectly be implemented in the Ukrainian heat supply market. The approach of increasing the efficiency of competitiveness through a number of measures is proposed. It concerns the development of a transparent mechanism for the connection of independent producers to the grids, requirements for the establishment of individual tariffs by type of activity, bonding of ownership of heat generation.

Selected aspects of technological innovations management in district heating companies

The accession of Poland to the EU results in the realization of EU directives, including the field of energy efficiency and CO2 emissions. The regulations oblige enterprises that produce and distribute heat to technical activities involving the use of existing heat sources and modernization of thermal networks, as well as economic and environmental optimization of the heat supply process. The implementation of these projects requires a change in the way the energy sector is managed and thoroughly restructured by implementing and applying technological and product innovations. The article discusses the legal and environmental conditions of the heat market in Poland, the key challenges for the heating industry and selected innovations in heating companies regarding two areas: technical infrastructure and management of the heat production and transmission.

Future views on waste heat utilization – Case of data centers in Northern Europe

In this study the potential for data center waste heat utilization was analyzed in the Nordic countries. An overview of upcoming data center projects where waste heat is utilized is presented. Especially in Finland data center operators are planning to reuse waste heat in district heating. However, business models between the district heating network operator and data center operator are often not transparent. The implications of economics and emissions on waste heat utilization in district heating were analyzed through life cycle assessment. Currently the biggest barriers for utilizing waste heat are the low quality of waste heat (e.g. low temperature or unstable source of heat) and high investment costs. A systematic 8-step change process was suggested to ensure success in changing the priority of waste heat utilization in the data center and district heating market. Relevant energy efficiency metrics were introduced to support rational decision-making in the reuse of waste heat. Economic calculations showed that the investment payback time is under the estimated lifetime of the heat pump equipment, when waste heat was utilized in district heating. However, the environmental impact of waste heat utilization depends on the fuel, which waste heat replaces.

How to decarbonize the natural gas sector: A dynamic simulation approach for the market development estimation of renewable gas in Germany

The dedicated emission reduction and renewable implementation goals of several countries within the European Union led to the implementation of different support schemes and consequently to market development for biomethane. As the development and market penetration of biomethane as a renewable energy source is in most cases dependent on governmental support (in the form of incentive schemes or support programs) it is highly beneficial to be able to estimate the effects of planned actions. The current framework for biomethane encompasses high uncertainties within the market due to changing legislative conditions. Consequently this research presents a dynamic market model developed that is able to determine the effects of different policies and regulations to producing biomethane capacity, substitution pathways, land use and greenhouse gas emission reduction. It is the first model that encompasses the three sectors power, heat and transport in a dynamic model for biogenic energy carriers exploring the effects of new Government policies. Results indicate that a large proportion of the biomethane used today can no longer be produced economically when the financial support ends after a period of 20 years. Those plants, receiving a comparably high financial support, can only keep on producing and selling biomethane if there are other market opportunities than the CHP market. New instruments like blending could increase the biomethane sale in the direct heating market above the level shown in our results besides other measures like the prohibition of fossil fuels. The transport market would be able to compensate large proportions of the losses from the CHP market under a strong stepwise increment of the price for emission allowances.