Energy, Environmental, and Economic Analyses of a District Heating (DH) Network from Both Thermal Plant and End-Users’ Prospective: An Italian Case Study

Corradi, Erica; Rossi, Mosé; Mugnini, Alice; Nadeem, Anam; Comodi, Gabriele; Arteconi, Alessia; Salvi, Danilo

doi:10.3390/en14227783

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Finally, literature studies usually relate to the thermal network or relate to the user side (i.e., the building). To this respect, an exception is made in [26], where an Italian district heating network has been analysed (from both thermal plant and end-users' perspectives) considering energy, environmental and economic aspects; however, it does not include a detailed modelling of the network.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficient District Heating in a Decarbonisation Perspective: A Case Study in Italy

et al. 2022

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The European and national regulations in the decarbonisation path towards 2050 promote district heating in achieving the goals of efficiency, energy sustainability, use of renewables, and reduction of fossil fuel use. Improved management and optimisation, use of RES, and waste heat/cold sources decrease the overall demand for primary energy, a condition that is further supported by building renovations and new construction of under (almost) zero energy buildings, with a foreseeable decrease in the temperature of domestic heating systems. Models for the simulation of efficient thermal networks were implemented and described in this paper, together with results from a real case study in Italy, i.e., University Campus of Parma. Activities include the creation and validation of calculation codes and specific models in the Modelica language (Dymola software), aimed at investigating stationary regimes and dynamic behaviour as well. An indirect heat exchange substation was coupled with a resistive-capacitive model, which describes the building behaviour and the thermal exchanges by the use of thermos-physical parameters. To optimise indoor comfort conditions and minimise consumption, dynamic simulations were carried out for different operating sets: modulating the supply temperature in the plant depending on external conditions (Scenario 4) decreases the supplied thermal energy (−2.34%) and heat losses (−8.91%), even if a lower temperature level results in higher electricity consumption for pumping (+12.96%), the total energy consumption is reduced by 1.41%. A simulation of the entire heating season was performed for the optimised scenario, combining benefits from turning off the supply in the case of no thermal demand (Scenario 3) and from the modulation of the supply temperature (Scenario 4), resulting in lower energy consumption (the thermal energy supplied by the power plant −3.54%, pumping +7.76%), operating costs (−2.40), and emissions (−3.02%). The energy balance ex-ante and ex-post deep renovation in a single user was then assessed, showing how lowering the network operating temperature at 55 °C decreases the supplied thermal energy (−22.38%) and heat losses (−22.11%) with a slightly higher pumping consumption (+3.28%), while maintaining good comfort conditions. These promising results are useful for evaluating the application of low-temperature operations to the existing district heating networks, especially for large interventions of building renovation, and confirm their potential contribution to the energy efficiency targets.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficient District Heating in a Decarbonisation Perspective: A Case Study in Italy

et al. 2022

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“…Among different technologies for recovering geothermal energy, a ground source heat pump (GSHP) is one of the most energy-efficient, environmentally clean, and cost-effective systems available with a long life span and high energy conversion rate into a heating and cooling system [10]. Spitler et al [11] reported the technical benefits of ground source heat pumps and showed that it could be a promising option for improving the sustainability within the building.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design and Parametric Investigation of an Efficient Heating System, an Effort to Obtain a Higher Seasonal Performance Factor

2021

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The present work introduces an innovative yet feasible heating system consisting of a ground source heat pump, borehole thermal energy storage, an auxiliary heater, radiators, and ventilation coils. The concept is developed by designing a new piping configuration monitored by a smart control system to reduce the return flow temperature and increase the temperature differential between the supply and return flows. The radiators and ventilation heating circuits are connected in series to provide the heat loads with the same demand. The investigation of the proposed model is performed through developed Python code considering a case study hospital located in Norway. The article presents, after validation of the primary heating system installed in the hospital, a parametric investigation to evaluate the effect of main operational parameters on the performance metrics of both the heat pump and the total system. According to the results, the evaporator temperature is a significant parameter that considerably impacts the system performance. The parametric study findings show that the heat pumps with a thermal capacity of 400 kW and 600 kW lead to the highest heat pump and total seasonal performance factors, respectively. It is also observed that increasing the heat pump capacity does not affect the performance indicators when the condensation temperature is 40 °C and the heat recovery is 50%. Moreover, choosing a heat pump with a smaller capacity at the heat recovery of 75% (or higher) would be an appropriate option because the seasonal performance values are not varied by changing the heat pump capacity. The results reveal that reducing return temperature under a proper parameters selection results in substantially higher seasonal performance factors of the heat pump and total system. These outcomes are in-line with the United Nations sustainable development goals including Sustainable Cities and Communities.

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“…The modelling of DHC networks is often seen in the published literature, featuring a diverse array of objectives. Performance assessment, from different points of view, was the main topic of the study by Corradi et al [4]. Primary energy savings, the amount of CO 2 avoided, and economic indicators were computed for a DH network, in Central Italy, characterized by multiple technologies and energy vectors.…”

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confidence: 99%

District Heating and Cooling towards Net Zero

Ravelli

2022

Energies

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Energy, Environmental, and Economic Analyses of a District Heating (DH) Network from Both Thermal Plant and End-Users’ Prospective: An Italian Case Study

Cited by 7 publications

References 31 publications

Efficient District Heating in a Decarbonisation Perspective: A Case Study in Italy

Efficient District Heating in a Decarbonisation Perspective: A Case Study in Italy

Design and Parametric Investigation of an Efficient Heating System, an Effort to Obtain a Higher Seasonal Performance Factor

District Heating and Cooling towards Net Zero

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