A GIS-based Model for the Assessment of Energy and Environmental Contributions of Distributed Energy Systems

Abstract

Cogeneration systems (CGS) and District Heating Systems (DHC) are often expected to contribute to the energy conservation and CO2 emission reduction in the commercial and residential buildings. However, since the contribution strongly depends on the regional conditions as well as the energy demand patterns, existing assessments have mainly dealt with the certain building or a district. In this paper, to evaluate the potential reduction of CGS and DHC more generally, we develop a GIS based energy system assessment model. We pick up seven regions of Utsunomiya-city which locates near Tokyo and has 450 thousand inhabitants, as a typical mid-size city of Japan. Applying GIS, we evaluate detailed energy demand statistics, which are then transferred to the energy flow model taking into account the properties of the energy equipments. The outputs of the model are then applied to estimate the potential contribution of the distributed energy systems to the whole Utsunomiya city.