Abstract
Higher shares of intermittent renewable energy in energy systems have
raised the issue of the need for different energy storage solutions. The
utilization of existing thermal building mass for storage is a
cost-efficient solution. In order to investigate its potential, a
detailed building simulation model was coupled with a linear
optimization model of the energy system. Different building archetypes
were modelled in detail, and their potential preheating and subsequent
heat supply cut-off periods were assessed. Energy system optimization
focused on the impact of thermal mass for storage on the energy supply
of district heating. Results showed that longer preheating time
increased the possible duration of cut-off events. System optimization
showed that the thermal mass for storage was used as intra-day storage.
Flexible load accounted for 5.5%–7.7% of the total district heating
demand. Furthermore, thermal mass for storage enabled more solar thermal
heating energy to be effectively utilized in the system. One of the
sensitivity analyses showed that the large-scale pit thermal energy
storage and thermal mass for storage are complimentary. The cut-off
duration potential, which did not compromise thermal comfort, was longer
in the newer, better insulated buildings, reaching 6 h among different
building archetypes.
Original language | English |
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Journal | Energy |
Volume | 153 |
Pages (from-to) | 949-966 |
ISSN | 0360-5442 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2018 |
Keywords
- Thermal energy storage in buildings
- Thermal mass
- District heating
- Energy supply optimization
- Thermal autonomy
- Heat flexibility