Nuclear energy for district cooling systems - Novel approach and its eco-environmental assessment method

The high penetration of electric-driven cooling systems in supplying the growing space cooling needs leads to significant electricity consumption and carbon emissions in many countries. In this study, a heatdriven district cooling system implementing a nuclear heat source, namely Teplator, is proposed and evaluated compared with electric-driven district cooling. The evaluation method is from an energy planning or policy-making perspective regarding electricity consumption, carbon emissions, and economics. Heat sources, heat transmission, and absorption-based cooling plants represent the heat-driven approach. In contrast, electrical power plants, electricity transmission, and compression-based cooling plants represent the electric-driven. The developed economic method is based on specific costs and average technical parameters. The main costs of construction, fuel, O&M, carbon emission, and energy transmission are included. The proposed Scenario and four electric-driven Scenarios that use coal, gas, and nuclear-based electricity are evaluated. The base results supported by sensitivity analyses confirm the potential economic viability of the proposed system in the case of a reasonable heat transmission cost. For example, each MWc.h of cooling demand could be supplied with less cost of 34%, electricity reduction of 0.32 MWe.h, and carbon emission saving of 0.26t, compared with coal electric-based Scenario