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SMART HEAT METERING WITH CONSUMER RELATED SERVICES
INSURANCE DISCOUNT Via a serial data connection to the energy meter with Leak Surveillance the DanTaet System KMP-F receives the necessary data for performing automatic leak protection by means of two check valves placed directly after the flow sensors. Furthermore, theDanTaet-systemcarries out a supplementary patented leak control. Once every night the valve in return flow will shut down and cause an increased pressure in the installation. The pressure increase will reveal any small leakages which could over time aggravate and become detrimental. The continuous control undertaken by the leak protection system has a pre-emptive function as it detects leakages before they develop into real damages. Normally in case of a leakage a consumer will often compensate for the drop of pressure by filling in more water in the heating system, but this will result in more water flowing through the outlet pipe than through the inlet pipe which will also be registered by the system and interpreted as a leakage. Depending on the insurance company the Automatic Leak Protection qualifies for an insurance discount of 25-50%. “We chose to offer this automatic solution because leak surveillance alone does not protect against leak damages, if the house is empty. In order for leak surveillance to be efficient it is dependent on a manpowered response. The automatic leak protection system gives us a possibility of offering an even better customer service,” says Department Manager, Lars Andersen, at Thisted District Energy. AUTOMATIC VALVE CONTROL Automatic Leak Protection clearly demonstrates how the energy meter’s data production can be used for intelligent service functions adding extra value for the consumer. The energy meter so to speak extends its operative space from being a mere cash register into serving as a security instrument. Automatic valve control features a similar value augmentation by extracting consumption data to be used for energy efficiency and economic purposes. Via the up/down-port on the circuit board the energy meter is capable of connecting to a motor operated valve, a so called PQT-limiter, with the purpose of limiting and opening up for the energy supply. (PQT-limiter stands for: P = Power (kJ), Q = Flow (m3/h), T = Temperature (K)). This feature offers the possibility of automatically limiting the consumption to the ideal level with regards to economy, energy efficiency and network capacity.
Energy meter MULTICAL® 801 with opened case featuring the valve control port (yellow border) and the serial data port (red border) for connection with DanTaet Leak Protection System.
District heating customers and utilities can for various reasons be interested in a consumption limitation. It will for instance be possible to reduce return flow in order to ensure an adequately high Delta T which means that a maximum of energy is extracted from the water. According to billing policy the utility decides onwhich parameter to base the valve control: Energy, flow or temperature. Depending on the programming of the energy meter the PQT- limiter will be controlled by data from an according register. Automatic valve control is applicable in various areas: 1) Reserving energy for emergency situations In the city Odense (Denmark) the university and the hospital share a common supply pipe which is laid out for a normal consumption pattern. But in case of emergency situations like very hard frost, the valve will automatically curb the supply to the university to a minimum in order to let the hospital continue with normal comfort. In this case the PQT-limiter enables less critical parts of the supply network to shut down to a frost free level, thus avoiding a straining of the network. 2) Budget planning Based on experience utilities know that building developments most likely will be expanded within a certain period of time. Planning with due foresight the utility may choose to lay out an over-dimensioned pipe to the development area and install a PQT-limiter which can later open the pipe to its full dimension when the development area is being expanded. A housing area of a certain size may be duly supplied by a 150mm pipe, but the utility chooses instead to lay down a 250mm pipe and reduce the diameter to the more adequate 150mm. In this way the utility secures the possibility of turning up the supply at a later time without having to lay out new pipes.
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