Public defence in Mechanical Engineering, M.Sc. Yuchen Ju

Utilization of short-term thermal energy storage for demand response and peak power reduction in district-heated buildings 

The European Commission has set ambitious targets to cut at least 55% of greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels by 2030 and to realize carbon neutrality by 2050. There is also the potential for decreasing CO2 emissions in district heating. For example, in 2020, space heating consumed 28% of the total energy consumption in Germany while only 18% was produced by renewable sources. In Finland, district heating is the most common source of space heating. In 2020, it covered 45% of the market share of space heating for residential, commercial, and public buildings. Therefore, decarbonization strategies should be developed for district heating systems and connected buildings. When renewable energies are utilized more in production, there is the demand to enhance the smart readiness of buildings. Demand response is an approach to adjusting consumer power demand according to production patterns so that more renewable sources can be integrated. In addition, by utilizing short-term thermal storage tanks, peak power reduction strategies could be applied to buildings for less fluctuated power generation. It is beneficial for more efficient production generation. The results of this doctoral thesis indicate that demand response decreases district heat energy costs and cuts the CO2 emissions for district heating production. The peak shaving strategy flattens the building power demand. The thermal storage provides the potential of peak power limiting, which reduces power fee paid by building owners.

Doctoral Student: Yuchen Ju

Opponent: Prof. Martin Thalfeldt, Tallinn University of Technology, Estonia

Opponent: Prof. Alireza Afshari, Aalborg University, Denmark

Custos: Prof. Risto Kosonen, Aalto University School of Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering

The public defense will be organized in Lecture Hall 216, Otakaari 4

The thesis is publicly displayed 10 days prior to the defense in the publication archive Aaltodoc of Aalto University. 

Contact information of doctoral student:

Doctoral theses in the School of Engineering: https://aaltodoc.aalto.fi/handle/123456789/49