The use of local heating and cooling plants has enjoyed renewed interest in the light of the "energy crisis", and in Norway several plants are under construction and there are plans to build more. The use of energy systems in which water is the carrier provides potential for adaptable energy use, in as much as several energy sources can be exploited. This approach makes it possible to employ either the cheapest or the most appropriate source, depending on availability constraints.

In this field, we are working in particular with heating loads in buildings, the optimisation of operations stations and and substations, loss analyses, the scaling and optimisation of components and systems, combined with administration and regulatory systems and strategies.

 
The work is taking place both on a theoretical level, incorporating simulations, and by means of measurements.

The picture is from the Climate Engineering Laboratory (DKL) located at SINTEF Energy Research.