Life Cycle Assessment of Dispersed Phase Change Material Heat Accumulators for Cooperation with Buildings in the District Heating System

Abstract

The wide use of energy-efficient district heating systems allows for decreased atmospheric pollution resulting from lower emissions. One of the ways to increase the efficiency of existing district heating systems, and a key element of new systems using renewable energy sources, is modern heat storage technology—the utilization of dispersed PCM heat accumulators. However, the use of different solutions and the inconsistency of selection methods make it difficult to compare the obtained results. Therefore, in this paper, using TRNSYS software, a standardization of the selection of dispersed PCM heat accumulators for cooperation with buildings in the DHS was proposed along with a Life Cycle Assessment. Life Cycle Assessment could be a good, versatile indicator for new developments in district heating systems. A new contribution to the research topic was the Life Cycle Assessment itself as well as the range of heat output of the substations up to 2000 kW and the development of nomograms and unitary values for the selection of individual parameters based on the relative amount of heat uncollected by buildings. The technical potential of heat storage value, %ΔQi,st, was from 49.4% to 59.6% of the theoretical potential of heat storage. The increases in the active volume of the PCM heat accumulator, dVPCM, and the mass of the required amount of PCM, dmst, were, respectively, 0.8 × 10−2–4.0 m3/kW and 1.3–6.7 × 10−2 kg/kW. Due to dispersed heat storage, an increase in system efficiency of 41% was achieved. LCA analysis showed that a positive impact on the environment was achieved, expressed as negative values of the Eco-indicator from −0.504 × 10−2 to −6.44 × 10−2 kPt/kW.

Life Cycle Assessment of Sensible, Latent and Thermochemical Thermal Energy Storage Systems for Climate Change Mitigation – A Systematic Review

“…Many researchers have highlighted that the use of energy-efficient district heating systems (DHS) allows for decreased atmospheric pollution resulting from lower GHG emissions. Through the utilization of dispersed PCM heat storage systems, the energy efficiency of the existing district heating systems could be further enhanced [43]. When integrated with RE sources, these novel TES systems show great potential in reducing GHG emissions, thereby aiding in climate change mitigation.…”

“…However, one major problem with dispersed PCM heat accumulators is the use of different solutions and the inconsistency in selection criteria. Hence, [43] proposed a standardization method for the selection of dispersed PCM heat accumulators for a DHS, which is presented along with an LCA analysis that takes all the environmental impacts into account. Due to the use of dispersed PCM heat storage, a 41% increase in system efficiency was achieved.…”

Life Cycle Assessment of District Heating Infrastructures: A Comparison of Pipe Typologies in France

“…The results highlight that the comparison heavily depends on the allocation method used for combined heat and power plant production [16]. A similar study with LCA was also applied to test the efficiency of existing district heating networks through applying a Phase Change Materials (PCMs) accumulator to the power plant [17,18]. This technology is designed for return temperature control in the network shared between multiple utilities [19,20].…”

“…The excavation work mainly contributed to the network construction subsystem, especially the trench works [23]. Unlike previous papers, the authors of this article extended the evaluation of district heating networks by comparing different types of pipes and their influence on the overall infrastructure results, as well as analyzing the factors contributing to the environmental profile [11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. The novelty of the work was traced to the environmental outcomes obtained related to a district heating infrastructure.…”

Assessment of Thermal Performance of Phase-Change Material-Based Multilayer Protective Clothing Exposed to Contact and Radiant Heat

“…For decades, PCMs, due to their useful properties, have been widely used as heat accumulators in installations using renewable energy sources (in particular solar radiation energy-photovoltaic modules) [4][5][6][7]; heat insulators in structural elements of buildings [8][9][10][11][12][13]; temperature stabilizers of food products or medicines (isothermal containers) [14][15][16]; temperature stabilizers of road surfaces [17][18][19]. The use of these materials in multilayer wall structures results in a reduction in daily temperature amplitudes inside the building and a delay in releasing the stored heat.…”