Grouped Charging of Decentralised Storage to Efficiently Control Collective Heating Systems: Limitations and Opportunities

Abstract

Collective heating systems have multiple end-users with time-varying, often different temperature demands. There are several concepts catering to this, e.g., multi-pipe networks and 2-pipe networks with or without decentralised booster systems. In this study, we focus on 2-pipe networks with a changing supply temperature by smart use of decentralised storage. By grouping high-temperature demands, the average supply temperature can be lowered during large parts of the day, which is beneficial for system efficiency. The actual energy-saving potential, however, can be case-specific and is expected to depend on design choices and implemented control strategies. In this paper, these dependencies are assessed and identified by implementing two optimised rule-based control strategies, providing in such a way a bench-mark for other control strategies. The results show that grouping yields energy savings of up to 36% at similar peak demand as with conventional control strategies. The energy-saving potential is greatest for large storage volumes and small networks, but large networks with large storage and proper control choices can also achieve around 30% energy savings. Moreover, high-temperature time can easily be reduced to less than 40% of the day, which could make space cooling without decentralised booster heat pumps possible, but this requires further research.