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Thermal Energy Recovery from the WRK
MADE Living Lab
The Project
What is the WRK?
The Watertransport Maatschappij Rijn-Kennemerland (WRK) was founded in 1952 by two Dutch drinking water companies: Gemeente waterleidingen Amsterdam (changed into Waternet) & PWN.
The WRK transports water from the river Lek and the IJsselmeer towards the Dutch dunes. Here, PWN & Waternet use the transported water for drinking water production.
Currently, the WRK is exploring the options for thermal energy recovery from the water transported by its infrastructure. In order to assist municipalities with their heat-transitions.
Thermal Energy Recovery
How does it work?
Water in WRK infrastructure is classified as a form of drinking water. However, there is a small contradiction with consumable drinking water. Semi-treated water does not have strict temperature regulations and therefore has higher potential since the temperature can have a larger variation. The temperature of water transported by the WRK ranges between 7 and 25°C and is therefore classified as a very low temperature heat source. Thermal energy recovery from the WRK can be realized by creating bypasses along the WRK trajectory:
Bypass
Water pipe
After creating a bypass, heat and cold exchangers are used to extract energy from water flowing by. A plate based heat exchanger works with two separate flows that transfer the heat through thin plates. If the retrieved heat is not sufficient to heat a building, the temperature can be upgraded by using heat pumps.
What did we do?
We researched the possibilities and potential for thermal energy recovery from the WRK infrastructure
We discovered that many municipalities were not aware of the interesting potential that the WRK has to offer
We organized a working conference for interested municipalities to discover and discuss the WKR as a potential energy source
We developed an advisory report for the WKR board. Based on municipality feedback and including a potential analysis.
Serving as a first step to explore how the WRK could support the heat and cold demand of the municipalities along its trajectory
What did we create?
As a result of our living lab, we have created an advisory report for the WRK board. Including a potential analysis on promising areas to start.
1.
An advise report for the WRK board. Elaborating on the main findings in a clear and concise manner
2.
A potential analysis. Pointing out the theoretical and technical potential for heat and cold extraction (TJ)
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