One of the major challenges faced in the optimization process of existing heating systems is the harnessing and integration of a higher share of renewable energy. Centralized integration at the thermic source leads to high investment costs at the first investment stage, and low values of conversion, transport, and storage efficiencies, due to high levels of heat loss from large-capacity entropic systems. This research paper presents a case study on the partially decentralized integration of thermal solar fields that are used for heat production in crowded urban areas within the optimization process of the existing heating system in the city of Oradea, Romania. A deterministic method was used as the method for the calculation of heat demand, in both stationary—hourly heat demand and dynamic regimes—annual heat demand, and the simulations within the configuration and the optimization process of the hybrid heating systems were carried out. In the case study, four representative urban areas with different thermal densities were analyzed within two working scenarios, which took into account the energy performances of the buildings inside the studied areas before thermal retrofitting, and after a usual thermal retrofit.

The recycling issues related to the construction and demolition (C&D) wastes in the sustainable development and the circular economy context represent a continuous challenge for researchers. This paper reveals the possibility to recycle the hardened mortar recovered from C&D wastes. Thus, the recovered hardened mortar with grains size less than 16 mm was used in the concrete structure. The compression resistance of the final concrete was determined using a Heckert 3000 KN testing machine and the results showed a better compressive strength for the samples with C&D waste content than the standard sample of about 1.19 times. This is a good premise for improving the researches related to C&D waste usage in concrete production.

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