3rd SUSHEAT General Assembly: Progress on Novel Heat Supply Technologies for Industry

From 24-25 October 2024, the SUSHEAT project consortium gathered in Stockholm for its 3rd General Assembly meeting, hosted by Sweden’s KTH Royal Institute of Technology. This two-day event marked an important milestone for the project, bringing together partners from across Europe to review key accomplishments, discuss ongoing challenges, and outline strategic goals for the next project phase.

Chaired by the project coordinator, UNED, the meeting reviewed the progress achieved in decarbonizing industrial heat. Over the past 18 months, the SUSHEAT project has made significant advancements in developing sustainable solutions to capture, recover, and reuse industrial waste heat, boosting energy efficiency across a range of sectors.

SUSHEAT
SUSHEAT consortium at the 3rd General Assembly meeting, held at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden (Photo by RTDS Group)
Key SUSHEAT achievements in the first 18 months of the project
  • Thermal Energy Storage (TES): Developed an innovative design for the TES tank, completed lab-scale experimental evaluations, and reached a significant milestone in advancing efficient energy storage solutions within the SUSHEAT project.
  • Final Phase Change Material (PCM) Selection for TES: Selected and characterized optimal PCMs for system experimental testing, ensuring thermal efficiency and reliability in the storage system.
  • Heat Demand and Requirements Analysis: Conducted a comprehensive analysis of heat demand, requirements, and associated challenges across secondary end-users and four additional industries.
  • Laboratory Rig Design and Validation Strategy: Defined the preliminary design and operational framework for the SUSHEAT prototype laboratory rig, ensuring its replicability across case study applications.
  • Digital Twin Development: Completed specification, modeling, and simulation of integrated digital systems, processes, and interdependencies, establishing a robust foundation for advanced digital control and data management.
  • Preliminary SUSHEAT Optimization: Analyzed various energy sources—waste, ambient, and solar—available in target industries and defined optimal operating modes to enhance system efficiency and adaptability.
  • Project Results Dissemination: The project partners, led by RTDS Association as dissemination and communication lead, have successfully disseminated their research findings through OpenScience platforms, expanding the visibility of the SUSHEAT project’s contributions to the field.
The SUSHEAT consortium tours KTH's Heat and Power Technology labs in Stockholm, where critical components are analysed and designed for thermal and mechanical energy conversion (Photo by RTDS Group)
The SUSHEAT consortium tours KTH's Heat and Power Technology labs in Stockholm, where critical components are analysed and designed for thermal and mechanical energy conversion (Photo by RTDS Group)
First SUSHEAT scientific publications released 
  • The first SUSHEAT project publications include:
    1. Biomimicry-Inspired Design Optimization of a Latent Thermal Energy Storage System Using Phase Change Materials
      Published: September 2024
      Access Publication
    2. Integrated High-Temperature Heat Pump and Thermal Energy Storage Laboratory Rig – Engineering Considerations and Preliminary Design
      Published: June 2024
      Access Publication
    3. Decarbonizing European Industry: A Novel Technology for Heat Supply Using Waste and Renewable Energy
      Published: October 2024
      Access Publication

These publications showcase the collective efforts of SUSHEAT project members, and provide valuable insights into innovative energy solutions aimed at industrial decarbonization.

Next steps for the SUSHEAT project

Guided by the Energy at KTH team, the consortium partners also toured KTH’s cutting-edge laboratories, where the SUSHEAT system will soon be installed for experimental testing. Despite a demanding agenda, we were pleased to capture a group photo to commemorate the occasion and to confirm plans for our next meeting, scheduled for May 2025.

For more insights into the SUSHEAT Horizon Europe project and its ongoing research, visit susheat.eu