Combined energy-efficient sustainable district heating and cooling surface water drainage system (Thermo-road)

The transition to renewable energy and future climate challenges with increased precipitation calls for innovative thinking in the future energy supply and rainwater management in Denmark. A planned, smaller urban development area in Hedensted, Denmark is without the possibility of district heating and is also waterlogged. In this project, a single combined energy and water management solution is established, supplying sustainable, collective heating and cooling as well as diverting and storing surface water from extreme precipitation events. The proposed technology utilizes the roadbed as an energy source with supplemental borehole heat exchangers and as a retarding basin for storing excess rainwater. Heat is recovered from the soil with heat pumps and buildings are passively cooled by seasonal storage of excess heat. The subsurface is an excellent cooling source due to its stable and low temperatures allowing for exceptionally energy-efficient cooling without the use of a heat pump. The project therefore also quantifies the improvements in indoor climate from cooling and the positive effects it has on human health and well-being in the hot summer months.