Optimized Layouts of Borehole Thermal Energy Storage Systems in 4th Generation Grids

Hoofar Hemmatabady, Julian Formhals, Bastian Welsch, Daniel Otto Schulte and Ingo Sass
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Hoofar Hemmatabady: Geothermal Science and Technology, Technical University of Darmstadt, Schnittspahnstraße 9, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany
Julian Formhals: Geothermal Science and Technology, Technical University of Darmstadt, Schnittspahnstraße 9, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany
Bastian Welsch: Geothermal Science and Technology, Technical University of Darmstadt, Schnittspahnstraße 9, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany
Daniel Otto Schulte: Geothermal Science and Technology, Technical University of Darmstadt, Schnittspahnstraße 9, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany
Ingo Sass: Geothermal Science and Technology, Technical University of Darmstadt, Schnittspahnstraße 9, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany

Energies, 2020, vol. 13, issue 17, 1-26

Abstract: Borehole thermal energy storage (BTES) systems are a viable option to meet the increasing cooling demand and to increase the sustainability of low-temperature district heating and cooling (DHC) grids. They are able to store the rejected heat of cooling cycles on a seasonal basis and deliver this heat during the heating season. However, their efficient practical implementation requires a thorough analysis from technical, economic and environmental points of view. In this comparative study, a dynamic exergoeconomic assessment is adopted to evaluate various options for integrating such a storage system into 4th generation DHC grids in heating dominated regions. For this purpose, different layouts are modeled and parameterized. Multi-objective optimization is conducted, varying the most important design variables in order to maximize exergetic efficiency and to minimize levelized cost of energy (LCOE). A comparison of the optimal designs of the different layouts reveals that passive cooling together with maximizing the heating temperature shift, accomplished by a heat pump, lead to optimal designs. Component-wise exergy and cost analysis of the most efficient designs highlights that heat pumps are responsible for the highest share in inefficiency while the installation of BTES has a high impact in the LCOE. BTES and buffer storage tanks have the lowest exergy destruction for all layouts and increasing the BTES volume results in more efficient DHC grids.

Keywords: district heating and cooling; borehole thermal energy storage; dynamic exergoeconomic method; TRNSYS; MATLAB; coupling; multi-objective optimization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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