To date, the rollout of aquathermal heating & cooling in Flanders has been rather difficult and unstructured, mainly due to limited and incomplete regulations, technical knowledge/studies and pilot projects. Existing software packages are able to model river flows accurately, but their intensive calculations mean that typically only small parts of a river can be modelled. Therefore, a smart model is needed which uses river data in a generic way to quickly and flexibly map entire rivers, including the ability to optimize aquathermal installations to various desired parameters. With this model, EXTRAQT introduces an automated design methodology to obtain the best synergy between aquathermal heating & cooling for the end user and insuring the river’s ecosystem.

EXTRAQT brings together a diverse consortium. KU Leuven acts as a knowledge institution in the development of the model and provides expertise in the execution of thermal simulations. Furthermore, we collaborate with the Flanders Environment Agency and de Vlaamse Waterweg as civil society organizations/governments for the definition of ecological constraints on rivers and the drafting of aquathermal policy plans. Finally, the model is validated by our business partner Resiterra through their pilot projects in Leuven.