TU Wien

Short description

The Institute of Energy Technology and Thermodynamics, part of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Management at TU Wien, focuses its research on areas including ‘optimisation’ and ‘digital twins’. The aim is to develop an innovative distributed energy system. The intention is to integrate technologies (such as fuel cells, heat pumps, energy storage, PV, wind power, and partial production processes, etc.) into a comprehensive system and interconnect them using modern process control technology. This will lay the foundations for forward-looking research in the field of sector coupling. This will make it possible to investigate various aspects of sector coupling, regardless of the field of application, such as hydrogen-based technologies, renewable energy generation, conversion, storage and distribution.

Furthermore, it provides insights into the coupling of all energy carriers (electricity, heat, renewable gas) and sectors (industry, mobility, buildings). The TU Wien distributed energy system will enable the testing and validation of new optimisation and integration approaches. An energy management system facilitates data exchange between the distributed energy system and the optimisation module, enabling models to be adapted and, consequently, real-time predictions to be derived regarding the system’s behaviour in response to future demand: the concept of the digital twin. To this end, a complete hydrogen laboratory system comprising all the necessary individual components has been installed.

Research Services

The Hydrogen Laboratory at TU Wien is dedicated to the research, development and optimisation of hydrogen-based energy systems. It enables the testing and validation of models for the production, storage, conversion and utilisation of hydrogen. By integrating these systems into the distributed energy system, innovative optimisation strategies can be investigated. Furthermore, the laboratory enables real-time data analysis and model adaptation using a digital twin. In this way, it contributes to the further development of sector coupling and sustainable energy supply.

Methods & Expertise relating to the research infrastructure

Energy system modelling, optimal control, renewable energies, sector coupling, distributed energy systems, storage flexibility, coupling of all energy carriers (electricity, heat, renewable gas) and sectors (industry, mobility, buildings)