Hybrid heating system for increased energy efficiency and flexible control of low temperature heat

This study presents the evaluation of functionality and potential of a hybrid heating system (H2S) prototype. This technology is designed for retrofitting thermal treatment plants to use hot water (HW) and steam in controlled ratios. In the food industry, steam with a temperature above 140 °C usually indirectly supplies the thermal production processes, but most of them only require temperatures below 100 °C. Total site heat integration is applied on a cheese and whey powder plant to show the potential for low-temperature heat (below 100 °C) that could be supplied more appropriately by hot water cogeneration, heat recovery and heat pumps. These low-temperature heat sources can only be combined with the rigid steam system if the demand structure is changed to a hybrid use of HW and steam. The H2S increases the energy efficiency and flexibility by integrating low-temperature heat and responding to sudden changes in the demand and supply structure, like demand response strategies on intermittent renewable energies and the changing availability of HW and steam. The technical implementation is realised by a hydraulic interconnection of heat exchangers and valves. A smart control algorithm acutely determines the share of HW and steam. Prerequisite for functional verification on a laboratory scale is a hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testbed, in which load profiles and relevant process parameters are passed in real time between hardware components and simulation. The results show that the H2S is a feasible solution for maintaining product quality and safety while also increasing energy efficiency and energy flexibility.