Multimodal networks and decentralized renewable generation: Network modeling and energy/exergy performance evaluation

Abstract

The first part of this chapter, written by Mario Potente Prieto, establishes some fundamental notions for urban energy planning with a focus on district heating networks. These fundamentals are based on how to use the different types of energy systems for each considered urban area. The chapter continues explaining the evolution of thermal networks throughout history and their current state of the art, including options that allow moving toward the fourth generation of district heating networks. Modeling methods for district heating networks are discussed by Pilar Monsalvete. Finally, some theoretical foundations are described for modeling and energy-exergy analysis. In Chapter 10, all this knowledge is put into practice in a real case study located in the city of Vienna/Austria. The second part of the chapter written by Nina Solomakhina deals with multimodal networks. The more renewable energy sources and energy conversion technologies such as solar, wind, hydroelectric power, or fuel cells are being utilized, the more dependent utilities become one from another and the more they interact and exchange resources. For instance, renewable energy is typically intermittent, and it is often required to convert it into other utilities or store it for further use. Another example of interdependencies of utilities is cogeneration with the production of several utilities from a single fuel. In this section, the focus is on the city infrastructure networks that supply buildings with utilities such as electricity or heating and consider them jointly for the analysis of interdependencies between them. A graph-based approach to represent utility networks and their interconnections is suggested. Different applications of a graph-theoretical model are discussed that capture not only the topological structure of the city networks but also its physical properties. Further, we propose that such graph models can be used not only in vulnerability analysis where similar graphs have been used until now but also for other purposes, such as condition monitoring of the network or optimization control.