References [1]
According to the findings in the survey of the apartment build- ings in Viborg, Denmark, the authors hope that a more open discussion can be initiated among all district heating stake- holders regarding fair end-user billing legislation. This may consider correctly disseminating the correlation between con- trolling and operating the radiators with higher return tem- peratures and unfair energy distribution among flats, using the data from energy meters, submeters, and sensors. For in- stance, in several countries, such as Poland, Hungary, and Slo- venia, corrective measures for both low and high consumption are part of the national legislation/directive or integrated into the common market practices. Recommendations and future outlook The current level of digitalization on the demand side already offers a new opportunity to gain insight into the actual opera- tion of space heating systems. The analysis shows that in many cases, the end-users tend not to use all radiators in their flats, keeping some of them closed. This negatively affects the cor- rect operation of the entire system, leading to unnecessarily higher operating temperatures. Therefore, one of the future challenges is to engage with the end-users and make them an active part of the green transi- tion of the energy system. This is crucial because the end-users exclusively control the return temperature in district heating networks. To the best of our knowledge, in the vast majority of cases, they are not aware of the implications of their behaviors. Effective communication, enhanced by customized heating bills, can cost-effectively secure low operating temperatures without investing in deep building renovation. Finally, in cases where apartments are not occupied or when the tenants may be away for extended periods, we believe that indoor temperatures should drop in no circumstances below 17 °C during the heating season. This will avoid mold formation inside flats, which will be more expensive for the building own- ers to renovate and affect the quality of the indoor environ- ment. On the other hand, it will mitigate the negative effect of the non-uniform heat distribution among flats and help mini- mize the overall return temperatures. We believe these simple actions can secure a better economy for the utility company and end-users and pave the way for a smooth transition toward 4GDH and for the profitability of future green investments. Acknowledgment The authors thank the Danish Energy Agency and the EUDP program (Jr 64019-0545 and 64019-0554) for funding the in- vestigation.
O. , Antoni et al., “Optimised Operation and Main- tenance of District Heating and Cooling Systems via Digital Process Management,” 2023. Accessed: May 06, 2024. [On- line]. Available: https://www.iea-dhc.org/the-research/annex- es/2018-2024-annex-ts4 M. Tunzi, D. S. Østergaard, and S. Svendsen, “Develop- ment and Test of a Novel Electronic Radiator Thermostat with a Return Temperature Limiting Function,” Energies (Basel), vol. 15, no. 1, Jan. 2022, doi: 10.3390/en15010367. [2] T. Diget, “Motivation Tariff - The key to a low-tempera- ture district heating network.,” Hot & Cool Magazine. [Online]. Available at : https://dbdh.dk/motivation-tariff-a-key-tool-to-a- low-temperature-district-heating-network/ [3]
For further information please contact: Michele Tunzi, mictun@dtu.dk
18 HOTCOOL no.5 2024
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