There are many good reasons for using geothermal power. For example, it is available around the clock, 365 days a year, has great potential in many German regions and can be used for supplying both heat and electricity. With this in mind, the German government intends to increase the contribution of geothermal energy in domestic energy production in Germany in the future. The new 6th Energy Research Programme from the German government details the key research areas for the coming years.  more...

The residents of the Olympic Park housing estate are also supplied with solar thermal heat for space and domestic water heating in winter. This is ensured by a seasonal hot water storage tank in combination with a heat pump. With a capacity of 5.7 million litres, the underground bunker is large enough to almost fill three average-sized public swimming pools. With their heating concept, the researchers at the Bavarian Centre for Applied Energy Research achieved a return temperature of just 30 °C in the local heating network.  more...

There are already more than 100 regions and many rural communities that are promoting sustainable development based on renewable energies. After developing individual concepts and strategies, the lengthy and often very complex implementation begins. A research project organised by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment has been supporting these regions in conceptual and technical terms since 2007. This project is being conducted by the deENet competence network and the University of Kassel, and is being advised by the German Federal Environment Agency. In a second project phase, it is planned to create a national network by 2013.  more...

Too many cooks delay the broth. The fact that it does not have to be spoilt was shown by a workshop on the pilot project "Solar local heating at Am Ackermannbogen in Munich". The City Department for Health and the Environment had sent out invitations to the event held in the regional capital. Around 50 delegates accepted the invitation and listened to the lectures given by the three main players: the Bavarian Centre for Applied Energy Research (ZAE Bayern), the Munich Municipal Utility Company (SWM) and the City of Munich. During the event on Monday, the city was therefore able to take stock of the roughly ten-year preparation, planning, construction and research process.  more...

A solar energy system with around 130 square metres of collector surface area has been providing heat for a youth hostel for twelve years already, and a large solar energy system in Heilbronn has been supporting the local heating network in a housing estate for the last eight years. Both of these systems were installed as part of the Solarthermie-2000 research programme and provided the planning basis for the construction of large solar energy systems. These two projects have been subject to ongoing monitoring and measurement. ZfS-Energietechnik GmbH has now presented the results of this long-term experience in two short reports.  more...

In local heating networks, a large number of consumers obtain heating coverage and hot water supply from a single source. An operator arranges fuel purchasing, fault-free operation and maintenance of the heating centre. The grouping together of users as one large consumer and the professional operational management bring technical and economical advantages which are more important than the extra user comfort gained.  more...

The region between the Swabian and Franconian mountains and the Northern Alps, also known as the South German Molasse Basin, has large geothermal resources. Hot water at depths of 1,500 to 5,000 m has given rise to health resorts with thermal baths over the last few decades. In recent years, some communities have also begun to integrate geothermal energy into their local district heating systems.  more...

The German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology has published a strategy paper entitled "Eckpunkte und Leitlinien zur Weiterentwicklung der Energieforschungspolitik der Bundesregierung (Cornerstones and guidelines for the continued development of the German federal government's energy research policy)". The detailed analyses and suggestions were developed as a result of the cooperation between a number of institutes in the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres as part of a broadly based consultation process.  more...

To date, the topic of solar collector systems has primarily involved small-scale standard systems for single-family and double-family houses. Here, we would like to focus on the numerous large buildings which could also be provided with solar heat. While many blocks of flats, housing estates, hotels, halls of residence, hospitals and commercial buildings have large unused roof surfaces, the facades and balcony balustrades, or the roofs of adjacent buildings such as garages, are also surfaces which could be used for the heat supply.  more...

Steam was the first heat transfer medium to be used for distributing heat in district heating systems. This is not surprising, since steam has always played a dominant role in the power station process, so that it was easy to supply customers near power stations with steam.  more...