The purpose of this paper is to present a tool for simulating heat sharing opportunities between multiple buildings.
The approach is based on a building simulation model, HAMBase, in combination with an analytical programming code using MatLab.
The tool provides a quick insight in possibilities for district heat sharing. It is able to operate without using too many parameters. From the results, it can be derived that storage tanks provide a great advantage in performance over the direct heat demand and supply method.
The main limitations are as follows: the used models are based on assumptions plus values derived from literature and a verification that is based on energy balance rules; and the MatLab code is verified by checking for possible errors, but is not completely validated.
The main value of the work is that the presented methodology behind the tool is generally applicable and implementable in other models.
