heat pump

The novel heat pump can reportedly heat air to up to 49 C. Its full-load heating capacity is of up to 63,000 Btu/hour.

A group of researchers in Thailand outlined a new methodology to identify the optimal temperature in two-stage cascade heat pumps using non-azeotropic refrigerants. Through their analysis, the scientists found that the coefficient of performance for simultaneous heating and cooling is affected by the pinch point temperature at the cascade heat exchanger, with lower temperature levels being responsible for a higher COP.

An international research team has investigated how thermoelectric subcooling may be integrated into propane heat pumps to reduce power consumption in the vapor compression system. Their work showed this combination can not only reduce electricity consumption but also significantly improve heat pump performance.

Researchers in the United Kingdom have presented a new heat pump system that may avoid reducing heat supply during defrosting operations. The proposed concept can reportedly execute defrosting operations while ensuring continuous heating by condensing the refrigerant in the frosted evaporator.

Scientists have proposed a new system that uses surplus PV energy in the spring and the autumn to charge up underground thermal energy storage for later use in the summer and winter. They have simulated it on a school facility in Seoul, with a few optional configurations for thermal storage. Power savings were up to 39%.

Developed by a Chinese research group, the novel refrigerant is made of a mixture of carbon dioxide (CO2) and a non-flammable hydrofluoroolefin. It has slightly higher costs compared to conventional compounds, but its creators claims these costs could be significantly reduced with large-scale industrial production.

The largest heat pump in the Netherlands is now online at the Utrecht sewage treatment plant. It generates heat up to 75 C for the local network by using purified hot wastewater from a regional water authority.

UK scientists designed a new heat pump concept that they claim could be particularly beneficial to newly developed areas or potential residential complexes. The system uses ice or ice slurry as the heat source and its energy consumption is reportedly lower than that of several types commercially available heat pumps.

The Chinese manufacturer said its new propane heat pump doesn’t need an outdoor unit and is able to operate with temperatures down to -20 C.

Researchers in Austria have developed a new predictive control algorithm that can reportedly improve comfort levels in houses equipped with heat pumps. The algorithm also enables price predictions based on analysis of day-ahead electricity prices.