Recent Advances in District Heating

Dear Colleagues,

District heating can significantly contribute to achieving carbon-neutral energy supply systems. However, district heating must undergo substantial changes to be able to compete with other heat supply solutions as well as to comply with the new conditions associated with higher share of energy production from renewable energy sources and buildings with low heat demands.

The key challenges for existing district heating systems include reducing heat losses, replacing fossil-based heat sources with renewable or waste heat to reduce CO2 emissions, as well as introducing new solutions and technologies for e.g storage and operation. There are technical, economic, and infrastructural barriers related to these challenges that can be overcome with the help of researchers.

This special issue aims to draw attention to research and review articles on existing district heating systems. The focus will be on transforming existing district heating networks into sustainable, energy-efficient, carbon-neutral energy systems that interact with the power grid and other energy carriers to provide more flexibility in renewable power production.

The topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Temperature reduction in existing district heating networks
• Integration of district cooling into district heating
• Integration of low-temperature sub-networks into existing district heating networks
• Large, centralized heat pumps for district heating
• Large thermal energy storage in district heating systems
• Techno-economic studies on individual heat supply options compared with district heating
• Role of prosumers in district heating
• Waste heat for district heating
• Cost-efficient solutions for achieving carbon neutrality in urban district heating systems
• Innovative and novel district heating sources and technologies
• Smart integration of district heating systems with other renewable energy systems

Dr. Anna Volkova
Dr. Hanne Kauko
Prof. Sanna Syri
Guest Editors

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