Combining PV-driven heat pumps with district heating in multi-apartment buildings
An international research group has investigated how PV-powered heat pumps and district heating could be combined to heat a multi-apartment building in Sweden and have found that, of the three combinations they evaluated, relying on heat pumps as the primary heat source was the “most beneficial solution” in terms of operating costs and environmental impact.
French company offers router capable of redirecting surplus solar to water heating
French energy cooperative Solarcoop has launched a solar router that redirects surplus photovoltaic power from self-consumption systems to electric water heaters or other resistive loads, and can also control additional devices such as heat pumps.
Manitoba launches retrofit program to cut home heating costs
The Canadian province of Manitoba has launched the Affordable Home Energy Program to support ground-source heat pump adoption in electrically heated homes. The initiative, run by Efficiency Manitoba, offers no-upfront-cost options and could cut household electricity bills by up to CAD 1,000 ($730) per year.
Researchers demonstrate technical feasibility of retrofitting PV-driven heat pumps in multi-family buildings
A research group led by Germany’s Fraunhofer ISE has conducted what it describes as the first empirical study on PV-assisted two-stage HP systems in existing multi-family buildings. Its findings show that substantial PV electricity exports result in greater avoided non-renewable primary energy use.
Lennox launches residential heat pump with space-saving design
The US-based company said its new EL18KSLV Side Discharge Heat Pump uses R-454B as the refrigerant and has a size ranging from 2 tons to 5 tons.
Daikin launches new single-zone heat pumps for residential use
The new Oterra 115V heat pumps use difluoromethane (R32) as the refrigerant and have a heating capacity of 9,000 BTU/h to 12,000 BTU/h.
UK rooftop solar installations surge, new battery storage record set
Latest MCS data for small-scale renewables reveal a strong month for solar installations up to 50 kW, double-digit growth for battery energy storage installations and a milestone reached despite a muted month for heat pump installations.
Enertech unveils geothermal heat pump for residential use
The US-based heating specialist said its new variable-speed water–to–water system has a coefficient of performance of 3.2 at full load and 3.8 at part load.
Coupling heat pumps with district heating
Researchers in Sweden have analyzed the impact of a hybrid heating system combining heat pumps and district heating on five real buildings. The analysis showed that residents were able to save up to €2,768 ($3,159) compared to a scenario without source coupling.
CSP-driven multigeneration system combines hydrogen generation with compressed air, pumped hydro storage
Researchers have designed a novel multigeneration energy system that provides five outputs, namely electricity, hydrogen, cooling, heating, and hot water. The system is mainly powered by a solar heliostat system and incorporates compressed air and pumped hydro storage technologies for storing surplus power.
