District Solutions ~ City-Scale Trigen and More...

As part of our MIT Living Labs & Urban Ventures classes this past Fall 2011, we had a fascinating tour of MIT's Cogen facility, a so-called District Heating system paired with a cogeneration electricity generating gas turbine... ...which distributes the resulting heat via both steam and now hot water pipes throughout campus. By using absorption refrigerators, chilled water is also supplied. This combined cooling, heat, and power system -- more accurately trigeneration -- is remarkably thermally and economically efficient. Such cogen and trigen systems are already widespread -- for example, New York and many cities in Sweden, Russia, Finland, and other campuses besides MIT -- and together with water supply, sewage systems, infrastructural tunneling and connections, and pipe-based solid waste handling systems are fantastically interesting and relevant District Solutions for our vital cities.