Experimental performance study of a series solar heat pump

Conference · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1979

OSTI ID:6240830

Kush, Edward A.

To provide energy conservation for space heating, a vapor compression heat pump can be used to elevate temperatures which are above ambient but insufficient in themselves for comfortable conditioning. The Solar Assisted Heat Pump (SAHP) falls into this category, using low temperature, hence potentially inexpensive, collectors which provide input temperatures in the 40 to 100/sup 0/F range. Since little experience or data of heat pump operation at the high evaporating temperatures is available, an experimental study is being carried out in the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) Solar Laboratory using a specially constructed solar heat pump simulator to study performance and component characteristics while attempting to obtain Coefficients of Performance (COP) which track the increasing trend with evaporating temperature dictated by the Carnot and Ideal Vapor Cycles. This paper reports the results of the initial phase, wherein a residential size liquid-to-liquid heat pump assembled from off-the-shelf components was tested. Results showed that a substantially increasing COP, which follows theory, was attainable at evaporating temperatures as high as 98/sup 0/F by using variable compressor speed, large heat exchangers, and proper selection of expansion device. A discussion of how this performance could be utilized in a complete SAHP system is included. The results apply also to heat pump non-solar sources such as reclaim or geothermal heat.

• Research Organization: Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (USA)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Solar Energy
• DOE Contract Number: EY-76-C-02-0016
• OSTI ID: 6240830
• Report Number(s): BNL--26220; CONF-790541--26
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
140901* -- Solar Thermal Utilization-- Space Heating & Cooling
AIR CONDITIONERS
APPLIANCES
COEFFICIENT OF PERFORMANCE
ELECTRIC APPLIANCES
HEAT EXCHANGERS
HEAT PUMPS
HEATING SYSTEMS
PERFORMANCE TESTING
SOLAR AIR CONDITIONERS
SOLAR COOLING SYSTEMS
SOLAR HEATING SYSTEMS
SOLAR-ASSISTED HEAT PUMPS
TESTING
VAPOR COMPRESSION REFRIGERATION CYCLE
WATER SOURCE HEAT PUMPS