Based on the experience from companies in 6 different european countries, this handbook elaborates technical and non-technical subjects related to upgrading the performance of district heating systems. An introduction into implementation of solar district heating can be found within the large collection of content.
District Heating (DH) systems present a high potential for the transition of the heat sector, both technically and organizationally. They allow the integration of renewable energies, they serve to improve the overall energy efficiency and they facilitate sector coupling (coupling between heating, electricity and mobility). However, many DH systems need to be continuously upgraded so that they are efficient and have zero (or close to zero) emissions and thus, contribute to mitigate climate change. Hence, more than one year was needed to put all the knowledge of the Upgrade DH consortium partners on paper and to elaborate a handbook with the title “Upgrading the performance of district heating networks – Technical and non-technical approaches; A Handbook”. Experiences from different European countries were used to describe the technical and non-technical approaches in DH upgrading processes. The aim is to inform stakeholders such as decision makers, politicians, utilities, operators, end consumers, or potential developers of DH systems, about upgrading opportunities. Thereby, the ambition of the handbook is not to provide a detailed technical guideline for technicians, but rather to give an overview on upgrading options.
The handbook is available for free as pdf document at www.upgrade-dh.eu