District cooling systems: Technology integration, system optimization, challenges and opportunities for applications

Gang, Wenjie; Wang, Shengwei; Xiao, Fu; Gao, Dawei

doi:10.1016/j.rser.2015.08.051

Cited by 111 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…In addition, more efficient heating technologies, such as district heating, can be deployed in sufficiently dense urban environments. Similar arguments hold for energy demand for cooling as well, especially considering new advances in district cooling (19).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

Global scenarios of urban density and its impacts on building energy use through 2050

Güneralp

Zhou

Ürge-Vorsatz³

et al. 2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

407

160

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Although the scale of impending urbanization is well-acknowledged, we have a limited understanding of how urban forms will change and what their impact will be on building energy use. Using both topdown and bottom-up approaches and scenarios, we examine building energy use for heating and cooling. Globally, the energy use for heating and cooling by the middle of the century will be between 45 and 59 exajoules per year (corresponding to an increase of 7-40% since 2010). Most of this variability is due to the uncertainty in future urban densities of rapidly growing cities in Asia and particularly China. Dense urban development leads to less urban energy use overall. Waiting to retrofit the existing built environment until markets are ready in about 5 years to widely deploy the most advanced renovation technologies leads to more savings in building energy use. Potential for savings in energy use is greatest in China when coupled with efficiency gains. Advanced efficiency makes the least difference compared with the business-as-usual scenario in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa but significantly contributes to energy savings in North America and Europe. Systemic efforts that focus on both urban form, of which urban density is an indicator, and energyefficient technologies, but that also account for potential co-benefits and trade-offs with human well-being can contribute to both local and global sustainability. Particularly in growing cities in the developing world, such efforts can improve the well-being of billions of urban residents and contribute to mitigating climate change by reducing energy use in urban areas.urbanization | cities | urban form | climate change | mitigation U rban areas account for 67-76% of global final energy consumption and 71-76% of fossil fuel-related CO 2 emissions (1). With the global urban population expected to increase by an additional 2.5 billion people between 2010 and 2050 (2) and concomitant expansion of urban areas (3), the urban shares in total energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are also expected to increase. It is not, however, just the rate or scale of urbanization that matters for urban energy use. An important, and often underexamined, factor is the future spatial patterns of urban development.The most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment report identifies urban form, the 2D and 3D relationships between the physical elements, spaces, and activities that constitute urban settlements, as a key determinant of urban energy use (4). Urban form significantly affects both direct (operational) and indirect (embodied) energy (5). Beyond energy use, urban form also affects two other dimensions of sustainability: human well-being and economic productivity. Urban form that enables nonvehicular transport, characterized by smaller city blocks, higher street connectivity, mixed land use, and higher population and built-up densities, has been shown to be beneficial for health by promoting more physical activity, such as walking and bicycling (6, 7)...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

Global scenarios of urban density and its impacts on building energy use through 2050

Güneralp

Zhou

Ürge-Vorsatz³

et al. 2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

407

160

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…District cooling has been a more recent development compared to district heating: this fact is justified by the greater technologic and non-technologic barriers involved in district cooling in comparison with district heating [39,40]. District cooling systems are therefore neither as common nor as extensive as district heating systems.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Innovative Concept of Cold District Heating Networks: A Literature Review

Pellegrini

Bianchini

2018

Energies

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Abstract:The development of sustainable and innovative solutions for the production and supply of energy at district level is nowadays one of the main technical challenges. In the past, district heating and cooling networks aimed to achieve greater energy efficiency through the centralization of the energy production process but with relevant losses related to heat transport. Moving towards a higher share of renewables and lower demand of primary energy requires redesign of the energy district networks. The novel concept of cold district heating networks aims to combine the advantages of a centralized energy distribution system with low heat losses in energy supply. This combined effect is achieved through the centralized supply of water at relatively low temperatures (in the range 10-25 • C), which is then heated up by decentralized heat pumps. Moreover, cold district heating networks are also very suitable for cooling delivery, since cold water supplying can be directly used for cooling purposes (i.e., free cooling) or to feed decentralized chillers with very high energy efficiency ratio. This paper provides a preliminary literature review of existing cold district heating networks and then qualitatively analyses benefits and drawbacks in comparison with the alternatives currently used to produce heat and cold at district level, including the evaluation of major barriers to its further development.

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“…Refrigerant was used as the distribution medium at that time. Large DC systems were in operation in New York in the 1930s [17]. It first spread to Europe in the 1960s in countries such as Germany, Italy, Sweden and Finland [17], where the second generation DC developed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

District heating and cooling optimization and enhancement – Towards integration of renewables, storage and smart grid

Liu

Rezgui

Zhu

2017

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

133

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Optimization and Enhancement of DHC networks to reduce (a) fossil fuel consumption, CO 2 emission, and heat losses across the network, while (b) increasing return on investment, forming key challenges faced by decision makers in the fast developing energy landscape. While the academic literature is abundant of research based on field experiments, simulations, optimization strategies and algorithms etc., there is a lack of a comprehensive review that addresses the multi-faceted dimensions of the optimization and enhancement of DHC systems with a view to promote integration of smart grids, energy storage and increased share of renewable energy. The paper focuses on four areas: energy generation, energy distribution, heat substations, and terminal users, identifying state-of-the-art methods and solutions, while paving the way for future research.

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District cooling systems: Technology integration, system optimization, challenges and opportunities for applications

Cited by 111 publications

References 63 publications

Global scenarios of urban density and its impacts on building energy use through 2050

Global scenarios of urban density and its impacts on building energy use through 2050

The Innovative Concept of Cold District Heating Networks: A Literature Review

District heating and cooling optimization and enhancement – Towards integration of renewables, storage and smart grid

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