Yesterday, Austria’s HotCity initiative announced a blockchain proof-of-concept (PoC) to crowdsource waste heat for use in other processes. Starting with Vienna and Graz, the Austrian government-funded project aims to make neighbourhoods energy efficient and develop ‘plus-energy districts’.
The idea of a plus-energy district is that they would generate energy as they consume electricity. Waste heat is an untapped source of renewable energy that could be used for drying foods, pasteurization of milk, desalination, or turning it back into electricity. Here, waste heat is used as an alternative source to reduce the consumption of traditional sources of energy and promote sustainability.
The PoC is focused on the collection of data to identify waste heat sources and then redirect it to the grid. Larger industries already have systems in place to utilize waste heat, but there are several smaller sources that need to be recorded. HotCity is leveraging gamification and blockchain to crowdsource heat data from households and other smaller sources on a voluntary basis.
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