A ‘super sewer’-style approach to heating homes? Some of the grand scale approaches to sustainable energy in London
You’ve heard of London’s ‘super sewer’, how about other infrastructure projects that pipe sustainably sourced hot water around the capital? This is just one project being explored to transform energy – and which could be a model across other cities
As London continues its efforts to reduce carbon emissions and improve air quality, innovative projects are emerging to generate and transport sustainable heat to homes and businesses across the city.
Every city has its opportunities and its challenges, and in London a significant focus is harnessing waste heat from sources like the Underground, the River Thames, and even those sewer networks – all feeding large-scale heat networks which pipe that water from central heat sources to the buildings that need it.
But the challenges are magnified in the capital – population and building density, traffic flows and the like – which make installing the right infrastructure that bit more problematic.
Let's explore some of the forward-looking concepts that are being considered and examine how these projects aim to harness waste heat from various sources and utilise it efficiently to create large-scale heat networks.
One of the specific challenges in central London is the lack of heavy industry or major infrastructure sites which can be tapped for waste heat and used locally. That means finding a way to capture waste heat where it is found and then transporting it into the City to meet demand.
A ‘super sewer’ for heat?
One such project currently being explored, and being supported by E.ON, is how to put a ‘heat transmission main’ all the way from where energy is generated, right into the centre of the city of London.
Under the plans, this pipeline would be about 11 miles (16km) in length, travelling from northern Kent on the banks of the Thames into the City of London to connect to existing heat networks or other large heat consumers. It could also provide heat for others along the way.
Bank-side power
Taking heat from rivers is fairly new technology, but is already being proven in cities like Berlin where E.ON subsidiary BTB manages an innovative river water heat pump at its heating plant in the Schöneweide district. This plant extracts energy from the Spree River to provides a forward-thinking solution for heating the 80,000 apartments, commercial properties, public institutions and industrial and research buildings in this part of the city.
Barging in
Another such approach to decarbonising heating – and another one E.ON is exploring with partners in London – is moving waste heat along the River Thames in thermal ‘batteries’.
That involves capturing waste heat from industrial sites further east along the river – from manufacturing industry, data centres or energy-from-waste plants etc – and shipping that heat back up-river in specially-designed shipping containers making them easy to transport by barge. The heat can then be used to heat buildings in the centre of the city, or feed into existing heat networks.
One such network might be our Citigen heat network which runs for 11km through the Square Mile serving such buildings as the Guildhall, the Barbican and the Museum of London.
As district heating expands across London, and other large heat users seek to move away from gas, projects like these have the potential to provide lower carbon heat rapidly and at scale. Such ideas also reinforce the UK's clean technology leadership and drives investment in sustainable energy solutions.
These innovative projects represent a glimpse into the future of sustainable heat generation and distribution in London. By exploring new ways to utilise waste heat and deploy advanced technologies, the city is taking significant steps towards a greener and more sustainable future.