»
»
»
District Heating
3d model of Advanced Absorption Chiller . 3d model of biomass generator .
Technology integration For key WEDISTRICT project members , Miguel Herrador Moreno of renewable technology development firm , Aalborg CSP , and Professor Manuel Ruiz de Adana , University of Córdoba , integrating the numerous renewable technologies to the DHC network has been a significant innovation . “ We wanted to demonstrate that you could build and economically operate a DHC network in a 100 % renewable way ,” says Ruiz de Adana . “ A key challenge [ in the beginning ] was to see which combination of these technologies would provide the most energyefficient and economic Heating , Ventilation and Air Conditioning ( HVAC ) service to our group of buildings all year round .” On the solar side , three different concentration solar collector technologies - the parabolic trough collector , the linear Fresnel collector and the flat plate collector – have been trialled . Together these can generate just over 500 kWth thermal power .
According to Herrador , the flat plate collector uses an autonomous , solar-powered tracking system to move the collectors , so they always face the sun , thereby optimising thermal energy production . “ These different solar thermal technologies are really interesting ,” he adds . “ On the one hand we have the [ more established ] parabolic collectors and the Fresnel collectors , but then we have the flat-plate collector which uses a [ different ] system of mirrors [ to absorb more solar radiation ].” In a similar vein to Ruiz de Adana , Herrador reckons that integrating these technologies has been one of the most innovative , and complex , parts of the project . “ What we ’ ve wanted to see , is how the technologies interact with each other – how they work , how they function , how they operate ,” he explains . “ We really want to understand operating characteristics so the new technologies can then be implemented in commercial plants .”
Renewable air-cooling unit ( RACU ) prototype .
www . heat-exchanger-world . com Heat Exchanger World December 2024
25