Pimlico District Heating Undertaking

Last updated
The system's thermal store in Churchill Gardens. Pimlico accumulator tower 1.jpg
The system's thermal store in Churchill Gardens.

The Pimlico District Heating Undertaking (PDHU) is a district heating system in the Pimlico area of London, United Kingdom. The first district heating system built in the United Kingdom, [1] it is owned by Westminster City Council and operated by CityWest Homes. The system is connected to 3,256 homes, 50 business premises and three schools. [1]

District heating system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location for residential and commercial heating requirements

District heating is a system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location through a system of insulated pipes for residential and commercial heating requirements such as space heating and water heating. The heat is often obtained from a cogeneration plant burning fossil fuels or biomass, but heat-only boiler stations, geothermal heating, heat pumps and central solar heating are also used, as well as heat waste from nuclear power electricity generation. District heating plants can provide higher efficiencies and better pollution control than localized boilers. According to some research, district heating with combined heat and power (CHPDH) is the cheapest method of cutting carbon emissions, and has one of the lowest carbon footprints of all fossil generation plants. Fifth generation district heat networks do not use combustion on-site and have zero emissions of CO2 and NO2 on-site; they employ heat transfer which uses electricity which may be generated from renewable energy, or from remote fossil fuelled power stations. A combination of CHP and centralized heat pumps are used in the Stockholm multi energy system. This allows the production of heat through electricity when there is an abundance of intermittent power production and cogeneration of electric power and district heating when the availability of intermittent power production is low.

Pimlico small area of central London in the City of Westminster

Pimlico is a small area within Central London in the City of Westminster. Like Belgravia, next to which it was built as a southern extension, Pimlico is known for its garden squares and Regency architecture.

London Capital of the United Kingdom

London is the capital and largest city of both England and the United Kingdom. Standing on the River Thames in the south-east of England, at the head of its 50-mile (80 km) estuary leading to the North Sea, London has been a major settlement for two millennia. Londinium was founded by the Romans. The City of London, London's ancient core − an area of just 1.12 square miles (2.9 km2) and colloquially known as the Square Mile − retains boundaries that follow closely its medieval limits. The City of Westminster is also an Inner London borough holding city status. Greater London is governed by the Mayor of London and the London Assembly.

History

The system began operations in 1950, and originally used waste heat from Battersea Power Station, [2] which was pumped under the River Thames through a disused Metropolitan Water Board tunnel. [1] A thermal store was built in Churchill Gardens, which could hold 2,300m³ and remains the largest thermal store in the UK. [2] The system was originally build to serve 1,600 council homes. [3] By 1958 Battersea was operating with a thermal efficiency of 25%, making it one of the world's most efficient power stations at the time. [1]

Battersea Power Station decommissioned coal-fired power station in London, England

Battersea Power Station is a decommissioned coal-fired power station, which is now being redeveloped to bring new homes, offices, shops, restaurants, bars, open space and more to Wandsworth, south London. Now owned by a consortium of Malaysian investors, the Grade II* listed building and the surrounding 42 acres are being gentrified through an eight phase development project. The first phase, Circus West Village, is already complete and now open to the public to eat, drink, shop, exercise and live. Situated on the south bank of the river by Chelsea Bridge, over 1000 people now live at Circus West Village, and 12 restaurants, bars and shops are open alongside a fitness studio and a hair salon. Circus West Village is accessible by river bus, as the new Battersea Power Station pier is serviced by MBNA Thames Clippers.

River Thames river in southern England

The River Thames, known alternatively in parts as the Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At 215 miles (346 km), it is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom, after the River Severn.

After Battersea Power Station closed in 1983, a 30MW coal-fired boiler was built to supply the system with heat. The boiler was subsequently converted to gas in 1989. [1] A refurbishment in 2006 saw two 1.55MWe CHP engines and three 8MW gas boilers installed. [2] The system generates around 51GWh of heat and 16GWh of electricity per year.

Cogeneration simultaneous generation of electricity, and/or heating, or cooling, or industrial chemicals

Cogeneration or combined heat and power (CHP) is the use of a heat engine or power station to generate electricity and useful heat at the same time. Trigeneration or combined cooling, heat and power (CCHP) refers to the simultaneous generation of electricity and useful heating and cooling from the combustion of a fuel or a solar heat collector. The terms cogeneration and trigeneration can be also applied to the power systems generating simultaneously electricity, heat, and industrial chemicals – e.g., syngas or pure hydrogen.

Related Research Articles

Power station facility generating electric power

A power station, also referred to as a power plant or powerhouse and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Most power stations contain one or more generators, a rotating machine that converts mechanical power into electrical power. The relative motion between a magnetic field and a conductor creates an electrical current. The energy source harnessed to turn the generator varies widely. Most power stations in the world burn fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas to generate electricity. Others use nuclear power, but there is an increasing use of cleaner renewable sources such as solar, wind, wave and hydroelectric.

Bankside Power Station former power station in the Borough of Southwark, London; Tate Modern building

Bankside Power Station is a decommissioned electricity generating station located on the south bank of the River Thames, in the Bankside area of the Borough of Southwark, London. It generated electricity from 1891 to 1981. It was also used as a training base for apprenticeships from all over the country. It trained both craft and engineering students using specialised machine shops for the training. Since 2000 the building has been used to house the Tate Modern art museum and gallery.

Solar thermal energy technology for harnessing solar energy for thermal energy

Solar thermal energy (STE) is a form of energy and a technology for harnessing solar energy to generate thermal energy or electrical energy for use in industry, and in the residential and commercial sectors.

Combined cycle power plant type of power station

In electric power generation a combined cycle power plant is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem from the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators. The principle is that after completing its cycle, the temperature of the working fluid in the system is still high enough that a second subsequent heat engine extracts energy from the heat that the first engine produced. By combining these multiple streams of work upon a single mechanical shaft turning an electric generator, the overall net efficiency of the system may be increased by 50–60%. That is, from an overall efficiency of say 34%, to possibly an overall efficiency of 62%, 84% Theoretical efficiency

Fossil fuel power station Facility that burns fossil fuels to produce electricity

A fossil fuel power station is a thermal power station which burns a fossil fuel such as coal, natural gas, or petroleum to produce electricity. Central station fossil fuel power plants are designed on a large scale for continuous operation. In many countries, such plants provide most of the electrical energy used. Fossil fuel power stations have machinery to convert the heat energy of combustion into mechanical energy, which then operates an electrical generator. The prime mover may be a steam turbine, a gas turbine or, in small plants, a reciprocating internal combustion engine. All plants use the energy extracted from expanding gas, either steam or combustion gases. Although different energy conversion methods exist, all thermal power station conversion methods have efficiency limited by the Carnot efficiency and therefore produce waste heat.

Thermal power station power plant in which heat energy is converted to electric power

A thermal power station is a power station in which heat energy is converted to electric power. In most of the places in the world the turbine is steam-driven. Water is heated, turns into steam and spins a steam turbine which drives an electrical generator. After it passes through the turbine, the steam is condensed in a condenser and recycled to where it was heated; this is known as a Rankine cycle. The greatest variation in the design of thermal power stations is due to the different heat sources; fossil fuel dominates here, although nuclear heat energy and solar heat energy are also used. Some prefer to use the term energy center because such facilities convert forms of heat energy into electrical energy. Certain thermal power stations are also designed to produce heat energy for industrial purposes, or district heating, or desalination of water, in addition to generating electrical power.

Bielsko-Biała Power Plant coal power plant

The Bielsko-Biała Power Plant is a complex of coal-fired combined heat and power plants at Czechowice-Dziedzice near Bielsko-Biała, Poland. It has two principal flue gas stacks, 100 metres (330 ft) and 225 metres (738 ft) high, the latter of which is one of the tallest free standing structures in Poland. The complex is operated by Południowy Koncern Energetyczny, a subsidiary of the Tauron Group.

Dürnrohr Power Station power station in Austria

The Dürnrohr power station is a thermal power station in Lower Austria.

Wilton power stations

The Wilton power station refers to a series of coal, oil, gas and biomass fired CHP power stations which provide electricity and heat for the Wilton International Complex, with excess electricity being sold to the National Grid. It is located on the Wilton site in Redcar and Cleveland, south of the town of Middlesbrough in North East England. The station has provided for the site since opening in 1952, when it was operated by ICI. The station is currently owned and operated by SembCorp Industries.

Churchill Gardens housing estate in Pimlico, London

Churchill Gardens is a large housing estate in the Pimlico area of Westminster, London. The estate was developed between 1946 and 1962 to a design by the architects Powell and Moya, replacing Victorian terraced houses extensively damaged during the Blitz.

Energy in Croatia

Energy in Croatia describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Croatia.

Ashalim Power Station

The Ashalim power station is a solar power station in the Negev desert near the kibbutz of Ashalim, in Israel. It has the tallest solar power tower in the world at a height of 260 meters including the boiler, concentrating 50,600 computer-controlled heliostats.

Rijeka Thermal Power Station

The Rijeka Thermal Power Station is an oil-fired power station east of Rijeka at Kostrena, Croatia. It was built between 1974 and 1978 and it has one generation unit with capacity of 320 MW. The height of the boiler house including its rooftop flue gas stack is 250 metres (820 ft).

Viborg Power Station CHP station in Denmark

Viborg Power Station is a natural gas-fired power station operated by Energi Viborg in Viborg, Denmark.

Solar power in Denmark

Solar power in Denmark contributes to a goal to use 100% renewable energy by 2050. The goal of 200 MW of photovoltaics by 2020 was reached eight years early, in 2012, and 36 MW was being installed each month. Denmark had 790 MW in late 2015. A total of 3,400 MW is expected to be installed by 2030. Many solar-thermal district heating plants exist and are planned in Denmark.

Southampton District Energy Scheme

The Southampton District Energy Scheme is a district heating and cooling system in Southampton, United Kingdom. The system is owned and operated by ENGIE.

Denmark is a world leading country in wind energy production and wind turbine production. In 2014 Denmark produced 57.4% of its net electricity generation from renewable energy sources. The Danish wind company Vestas Wind Systems A/S has expanded from its domestic base and by 2015 had a revenue of €8.423 billion, with more than 18,000 employees globally and manufacturing plants in Denmark, Germany, India, Italy, Romania, the United Kingdom, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Australia, China, and the United States. Wind power alone produced 42.7% of Denmark's electricity production in 2014 and is expected to increase its production by nearly 80% in the years to 2024.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 PDHU CityWest Homes
  2. 1 2 3 Michael Martin & Patricia Thornley (2013) The potential for thermal storage to reduce the overall carbon emissions from district heating systems Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research
  3. ↑ District heating: a hot idea whose time has come The Guardian, 18 November 2014

Coordinates: 51°29′09″N0°08′25″W / 51.485896°N 0.14028758°W / 51.485896; -0.14028758

Geographic coordinate system Coordinate system

A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position and two or three of the numbers represent a horizontal position; alternatively, a geographic position may be expressed in a combined three-dimensional Cartesian vector. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation. To specify a location on a plane requires a map projection.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.