Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWMJohanna Heidrich, a doctoral student at our Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWM, has been driven by the desire to do something meaningful since middle school. But how can mathematics be used to contribute to climate protection?
Women Researchers in Focus – Johanna Heidrich: Five Sentences on the Meaning of Research
This Article Is Taken from Our Book »Forscherinnen im Fokus – Wir schaffen Veränderung« (»Female Researchers in Focus – We Create Change«)
After My Work, It Is Particularly Important to Me That ...
I can use it to have a positive impact on society and climate protection and use my interest in logic and mathematics to do so. After several internships in the energy sector and studying mathematics, I applied for a doctorate at the Fraunhofer ITWM. I am very happy to be able to contribute to the energy transition at the interface between research and application even before completing my doctorate.
The Optimization of Heating Networks Is Important to Me Because ...
heat accounts for the largest share of energy consumption in Germany, even more than electricity and transport. This means that there is great potential to save and replace natural gas and oil in the long term. With the heating transition, enormous transformations are imminent in private households and heating networks in urban regions. We can support this phase with mathematical methods and digital twins of the heating networks. Questions that we then support municipal utilities with are, for example How do we operate the heating network optimally throughout the day if there is one or even several feed-in points for heat? What additional renewable generation capacities are necessary if we expand the network into new districts? In addition, heating networks are also suitable as buffer storage, which we need for the fluctuating solar or wind energy in the electricity sector. Overall, there is definitely enormous potential for optimization in the heating grids, especially if the grids are converted to future-proof operation with renewable energy.
Frau N. Hofer im Interview
Mathematics and AI Contribute to the Energy Transition ...
very soon! With the help of mathematical modeling, we are able to simulate the physical processes that take place in energy grids very accurately. Understanding what is going on in the electricity, transport and heating sectors at the same time is becoming increasingly important as the processes become more complex and more interconnected. We can also use AI to recognize patterns in these complex systems, for example, and find connections that we would otherwise not see. Mathematics and AI can then help us to control energy systems and make decisions so that we can be supplied with energy reliably and economically even without nuclear or fossil fuels. In our district heating software, we use neural networks to forecast the heat demand for the next few days, among other things. It is also conceivable that AI replacement models could be used to speed up calculations for live operation.
As a Woman in Mathematics on the Way to a Doctorate ...
I wouldn't say that I have had to deal with more resistance than my male colleagues. Of course, it's often the case that I'm the only woman in the room. That can be challenging from time to time, but it certainly doesn't stop me from achieving my goals. At Fraunhofer in particular, I also experience a very diverse and international community in which we always meet as equals.
Heat from Afar: Reliable Energy Supply with a Digital Twin
Decarbonization is the major goal of the energy sector, i.e. the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. The path to this goal involves important intermediate stages that score points with increased efficiency and security of supply. Johanna is working at the Fraunhofer ITWM on a solution that supports this goal: Using a digital twin of real existing district heating networks, fossil energy is saved and the conversion to other heat sources is planned, while apartments and houses remain reliably warm.
District heating is already an efficient system in itself: water is heated using the waste heat that is already produced by power plants to generate electricity, then piped to the point of consumption where it is used to heat buildings or hot water. Once the water has cooled down, it flows back to the heat source – and the process starts all over again.
Runs – Safely!
In order to make this system even more efficient and robust, the team at Fraunhofer ITWM is working with Johanna to further develop the »AD Net Heat« software. Together with GEF Ingenieur AG and Technische Werke Ludwigshafen, they want to ensure that network operators such as municipal utilities can plan ahead, conserve resources and maintain security of supply for citizens and industry. This can be achieved, for example, by managing the particularly high demand for heat at certain times of day by optimally pre-heating the network without the use of additional gas boilers.
An Intelligent Image
The simulation with »AD Net Heat« uses a digital twin that functions like a digital image of the real district heating network. The physical equations for heat transport in the network's pipes are solved and data from a small number of cleverly placed sensors in the district heating network and the scientists' realistic consumption modeling are used. It includes heating periods and vacations as well as different consumer types and is created using AI on the basis of consumption data. In this way, the software creates the basis for better decisions in order to optimally plan network expansions or detect faults earlier, among other things. In future, it will also make it possible to profitably connect heat and electricity grids, thus helping to speed up the energy transition in the interests of the climate.