Feasibility Assessment Tool for District Heating and Cooling (FAST DHC): A Simple Decision Support Tool for the Techno-Economic Evaluation of DHC Networks

Abstract The Feasibility Assessment Tool for District Heating and Cooling (FAST DHC) project, funded through the IEA DHC Annex XIV, aims to develop and demonstrate a simple, freely available, web-based decision support tool for the techno-economic performance evaluation of 4th generation district heating (4GDH) and thermal source networks (TSNs), whilst also enabling their comparison to individual heating and cooling (H&C) solutions. The TSN concept is in its early stage of development and there is a lack of understanding of its relative merits against traditional DHC concepts, i.e. how do 4G and TSN systems compare and what are their competitive advantages to individual H&C systems. The FAST DHC tool will enable users (e.g. local authorities, designers and energy planners) to perform early-stage feasibility studies and easily compare the potential benefits of the latest DHC typologies, providing greater clarity on how/where each system may be best applied. The aim of the tool is to assist the development of the DHC sector by equipping users with a reliable initial estimate of proper system setup, therefore maximising benefits to DHC developers, operators and end users. This paper introduces the FAST DHC tool, describing its design and functionalities, and provides the results from a case study where the FAST DHC tool has been compared to a commercial tool for the techno-economic modelling of DHC systems.