Clogging caused by coupled grain migration and compaction effect during groundwater recharge for unconsolidated sandstone reservoir in groundwater-source heat pump

In unconsolidated sandstone reservoirs,presence of numerous movable grains and a complex grain size composition necessitates a clear understanding of the physical clogging process for effective groundwater recharge in groundwater-source heat pump systems.To investigate this,a series of seepage experiments was conducted under in situ stress conditions using unconsolidated sandstone samples with varying grain compositions.The clogging phenomenon arises from the combined effects of grain migration and compaction,wherein the migration of both original and secondary crushed fine-grain particles blocks the seepage channels.Notably,grain composition influences the migration and transport properties of the grains.For samples composed of smaller grains,the apparent permeability demonstrates a transition from stability to decrease.In contrast,samples with larger grains experience a skip at the stability stage and directly enter the decrease stage,with a minor exception of a slight increase observed.Furthermore,a unique failure mode characterized by diameter shrinkage in the upper part of the sample is observed due to the combined effects of grain migration and in situ stress-induced compaction.These testing results contribute to a better understanding of the clogging mechanism caused by the coupled effects of grain migration and compaction during groundwater recharge in unconsolidated sandstone reservoirs used in groundwater-source heat pump systems.

Developing Operational Model for Heat Pumps as Space Heating and Domestic Hot Water Provider

In the United Kingdom, means of meeting domestic heating is being electrified to decarbonise in effort to reduce the greenhouse gases emissions from the burning of natural gas. Therefore, the uptake of heat pumps is on the increase. The operation and working principle of heat pumps must be well understood in the investigations of their impacts on the grid and the grid assets, especially distribution transformers which could be overloaded due to higher peak load demand. This work develops an operational model of heat pumps as combined space heating and domestic hot water provider implemented in MATLAB. The developed operational model of heat pumps is adaptable and repeatable for different input parameters. The developed model is used to generate daily average demand profiles of heat pumps for a typical winter weekday and a typical summer weekday. The generated demand profiles of heat pumps by the developed model compared well with the demand profiles of heat pumps generated from actual field projects which are usually expensive and time-tasking.

Heat pump assists in energy transition:Challenges and approaches

Aligning with ambitious targets and commitments towards carbon neutrality,countries around the world are desperately seeking an energy transition to cope with the stark reality of the climate crisis and the surge in demand for heating and cooling.Increased penetration of renewable power is foreshadowing a shift in global energy dominance,from fossil fuel based heating to renewable power based heating.However,we have to address four underlying challenges in energy transition,including(1)to achieve heat electrification,(2)to utilize decommissioned thermal power plants,(3)to meet the demand for large-scale heat storage,and(4)to puzzle out thefinal“10%”emissions.Given the above challenges,we put forth four heat pump-assisted approaches to break the bottleneck of energy transition and facilitate effective incentive strategies for policymakers.We highlight that the efficiency andflexibility of heat pumps in thermal energy regulation enable them to push forward an immense influence on the future energy transition for the heating/cooling supply that accounts for 50%of the energy consumption for users and the last“10%”carbon emissions.

Alternate operation characteristics of a solar-ground source heat pump system

In order to investigate the alternate operation characteristics of a solar-ground source heat pump system（SGSHPS）,various alternate operation modes are put forward and defined.A two-dimensional mathematical model with freezing/melting phase changes is developed for the heat transfer analysis of the soil.Based on the numerical solution of the model,the variation trends of underground soil temperature of the SGSHPS operated in various alternate operation modes are discussed.The results indicate that,for the day-night and short-time interval alternate operation modes without solar energy,the operation time fraction of a solar heat source should be confined to from 50% to 58% when operated in an alternate period of 24 h.Meanwhile,the disadvantages of a natural resumption of soil temperature can be overcome effectively by solar energy filling,and an optimal operation effect can be achieved by integrating the mode of solar energy filling with other alternate modes.In addition,the accuracy of the presented model is verified by the experimental data of borehole wall temperatures.The conclusions can provide a reference for the optimization operation of the SGSHPS.

Performance analysis of heat pump based on a new solar air-source heat pump heating system

To further improve the utilization efficiency of solar energy and the performance of solar heat pump heating systems,a new heating mode of a solar air-source heat pump（SASHP）is proposed,and the characteristics and performance of the heat pump part of this new heating system are studied.Based on a SASHP with 10 kW,the mathematical model of this system is built,and the characteristics and performance are concluded from the simulation analysis at different environmental temperatures and output water temperatures.The results show that the performance of heat pumps can be greatly improved based on the new SASHP.When the environmental temperature is 7 ℃,the coefficient of performance（COP）of the air-source heat pump（ASHP）can be increased by 26% at most.This paper sets up a base for further study on the heating system with this new SASHP in the heating season.

Feasibility analysis of urban sewage source heat pump system with freezing latent heat collection

Aiming to resolve the problem that conventional sewage source heat pump systems cannot satisfy heat peak loads of buildings,a new idea that the freezing latent heat is exacted as the auxiliary heat source at the peak heat load is proposed.First,on the basis of sewage characteristics,a freezing latent heat exchanger is developed to safely eliminate ice,continuously extract heat and remove sewage soft-dirt.A reasonable form of the urban sewage source heat pump system with freezing latent heat collection is presented.Then,the feasibility of the system is theoretically analyzed.The calculation results under typical operating conditions show that the heating ability of the new system is higher than that of the conventional one and the ratio of these two highest heating rates is between 4.5 and 8.7,which proves that the new system has great application potential in cold regions.

Development and Experimental Study of Air Source Heat Pump Water Heater

The principle and development prospect of air source heat pump water heat were introduced,as well as the designation of condenser (storage water tank),experimental study on installations was also carried out.The results showed that air source heat pump water heater was superior to conventional system.Under the operation of cooling and heating,heat pump comprehensive utilization equipment could improve heating performance,reduce energy consumption,and recycle condensing heat to provide hot water.

Performance analysis of U-vertical direct-expansion ground-source heat pump

The performance of a direct-expansion ground-source heat pump（DX GSHP）system is theoretically analyzed.Compared with the conventional ground-source heat pump（GSHP）,the DX GSHP has a lower condensing temperature in the cooling mode and a higher evaporating temperature in the heating mode,and the ground heat exchanger（GHE）in the DX GSHP has a low thermal resistance.Therefore,the coefficient of performance（COP）of the DX GSHP is higher than that of the GSHP.In addition,the system performance of the DX GSHP system is higher than that of the conventional GSHP system because there are no secondary solution loops and water circulating pumps in the DX GSHP system.The experimental energy performance of the DX GSHP system is also investigated based on the actual operational data.The tested DX GSHP system is installed in Xiangtan,China.The U-vertical GHE of the DX GSHP is buried in a water well.The length and the outside nominal diameter of the GHE are 42 m and 12.7 mm,respectively.The experimental results show that the maximum（COP）and the average COP of the DX GSHP system in the heating mode are 5.95 and 4.72,respectively.

Thermal comfort assessment and energy consumption analysis of ground-source heat pump system combined with radiant heating/cooling

A new ground source heat pump system combined with radiant heating/cooling is proposed, and the principles and the advantages of the system are analyzed. A demonstration of the system is applied to a rebuilt building： Xijindu exhibition hall, which is located in Zhenjiang city in China. Numerical studies on the thermal comfort and energy consumption of the system are carded out by using TRNSYS software. The results indicate that the system with the radiant floor method or the radiant ceiling method shows good thermal comfort without mechanical ventilation in winter. However, the system with either of the methods should add mechanical ventilation to ensure good comfort in summer. At the same level of thermal comfort, it can also be found that the annual energy consumption of the radiant ceiling system is less than that of the radiant floor system.

Experimental Performance of Moderate and High Temperature Heat Pump Charged with Refrigerant Mixture BY-3

Theoretical and experimental analysis of a new refrigerant mixture BY-3 was conducted based on a single-stage vapor compression refrigeration system. The water-water heat pump system used BY-3 to produce hot water when the low temperature was 20 ℃. The following results were obtained: the highest temperature at the condenser outlet reached about 85 ℃; when the difference between the water temperatures at the condenser outlet and the evaporator inlet was less than 40 ℃, the coefficient of performance (COP) was larger than 4; when the difference reached 55 ℃, the COP still kept 3; the discharge temperature of BY-3 was lower than 100 ℃, and the refrigerant vapor pressure kept lower than 1.8 MPa. When the water temperature at the condenser outlet reached over 85 ℃, nearly a 5 ℃ superheating temperature was maintained.

Heat balance of solar-soil source heat pump compound system

Based on the state-of-the-art studies of solar-soil source heat pump compound system, operation patterns of solar-soil compound system were analyzed, particularly the advantages of parallel operation pattern. It is found that parallel operation pattern is better for solar-soil compound system. Furthermore, the heat balance issue of solar-soil compound system was emphatically analyzed from four aspects, which were annual analysis of heating and cooling load, the heat exchange of ground heat exchanger, capacity determination of solar-assisted heat sottrce and heat balance calculation of solar-soil compound system. Moreover, annual rate of heat balance in a solar-soil source heat pump compound system was calculated with a case study. It is shown that the annual heat unbalance ratio is 19%, which is less than 20%. As a result, the practical solar-soil compound system can basically maintain the heat balance of soil.

Experimental study on characteristics of transcritical heat pump water heater using refrigerant HFC125

To evaluate the performance of heat pumps using refrigerant HFC125,an experimental rig of a DC-inverter heat pump water heater is designed and set up,and the research on the transcritical heat pump water heater is carried out experimentally.It is found that there is a top value of the coefficient of performance（COP）when the system runs at 95 Hz of frequency.The relationships between the COP and compressor frequency,condensation pressure,evaporation pressure,condensation water temperature rise,and discharge temperature are discussed and analyzed at 95 Hz.And the COP of the HFC125 transcritical cycle is also compared with that of a R410 subcritical heat pump under the same conditions.The results indicate that there exists an optimum frequency for a better COP,and the system COP shows an increasing tendency with the decrease in condensation pressure and compressor ratio while the evaporation pressure remains invariant,and the COP decreases rapidly when cooling water temperature rises over 47.5 ℃.Compared with the R410A sub-critical cycle,the COP of HFC125 transcritical cycle significantly increases by 12% on average.

Energy saving analysis of a hybrid ground-coupled heat pump project

A hybrid ground-coupled heat pump（HGCHP）project in Nanjing,China is chosen to analyze the building energy-consumption properties in terms of different control strategies,building envelope and the terminal air-conditioning system.The HGCHP uses a supplemental heat rejecter to dissipate extra thermal energy to guarantee underground soil heat balance.The software EnergyPlus is employed to simulate the project and design the heat flow of the cooling tower and the borehole heat exchanger（BHE）.Then two feasible control strategies for the cooling tower and the borehole heat exchanger are proposed.The energy-saving potential of the building envelope is analyzed in terms of the surface color of the wall/roof.With the same terminal system,it is found that in the cooling season the heat flow of the insulated building with black wall/roof is 1.2 times more than that with white wall/roof.With the same insulated building and gray wall/roof,it is concluded that the heat pump units for a primary air fan-coil system show an annual energy consumption increase of 44.7 GJ compared with a radiant floor system.

The Efficiency Analysis of the Exhaust Air Heat Pump System

This paper is based on long term parameter measurements of the exhaust air heat pumps (EAHP) system in a new built apartment building. The building was equipped with an exhaust air ventilation system and exhaust air heat pump for ventilation heat recover. The results of the measurements show that the COP of the EAHP is mainly related to the temperature graph of the heating system and the supply temperature of domestic hot water (DWH). During the measurement period some other impact factors, such as the quality of maintenance, the nighttime temperature graph of the heating system, the reduction of the exhaust air flows in case of low temperatures, mistakes in designing and low building quality, have also played a role. An analysis of energy consumption shows that in winter conditions the COP is about 3.0 and in the transition period about 3.3. The energy recovery value of the EAHP is 0.5.

The Application of the Ground Source and Air-to-Water Heat Pumps in Cold Climate Areas

This article gives an overview of using the ground source heat pump (GSHP) and air-to-water heat pump (A&WHP) in cold climate areas for heating and for domestic hot water production of buildings. Computer simulation and analysis were carried out for a typical detached house, with 200 m2 of living area, the heat demand of 9 kW and the average heat demand for DHW production of 1 kW. In heating period the average Coefficient of Performance (COP) of the A&WHP is considerably lower than COP of the GSHP.

Modeling and Optimization of Solar Collector Design for the Improvement of Solar-Air Source Heat Pump Building Heating System

To enhance system stability,solar collectors have been integrated with air-source heat pumps.This integration facilitates the concurrent utilization of solar and air as energy sources for the system,leading to an improvement in the system’s heat generation coefficient,overall efficiency,and stability.In this study,we focus on a residential building located in Lhasa as the target for heating purposes.Initially,we simulate and analyze a solar-air source heat pump combined heating system.Subsequently,while ensuring the system meets user requirements,we examine the influence of solar collector installation angles and collector area on the performance of the solar-air source heat pump dual heating system.Through this analysis,we determine the optimal installation angle and collector area to optimize system performance.

Experimental Evaluation of the Heat Output/Input and Coefficient of Performance Characteristics of a Chemical Heat Pump in the Periodic Operation of CaCl₂Hydration

We herein evaluate the use of a chemical heat pump (CHP) for upgrading waste heat. CaCl2 was used in the system of CHP. We evaluated the heat storage and heat releasing of CHP, and confirmed the practicality from the experimental results. The reactor module employed was an aluminum plate-tube heat exchanger with corrugated fins, and the CaCl2 powder was in the form of a packed bed. Heat storage operation and heat dissipation operation are performed at the same time and supplied to the heat demand destination. At this time, an environmental heat source can be used during the heat radiation operation, and the heat output can release more heat than the heat input during heat storage. The heat discharging and charging characteristics of the reactor module were evaluated experimentally. The coefficient of performance (COP) was calculated for the heat upgrading cycle, and the heat output in the system was determined. A COP of 1.42 and output of 650 W/L, based on the heat exchanger volume, were obtained using a 600 s change time for the heat pump.

Efficiency of Combined Solar Thermal Heat Pump Systems

In this project, different combinations of solar energy and heat pump systems for preparation of DHW （domestic hot water） and space heating of buildings are analyzed through dynamic system simulations in TRNSYS （Transient System Simulation Program）. In such systems, solar thermal energy can be used, on one hand, directly to charge the buffer storage and, on the other hand, as heat source for the evaporator oftbe HP （heat pump）. In this work systems, in which solar heat is only used directly （parallel operation of solar and HP）, systems using the collectors also as a heat source for the HP are analyzed and compared to conventional air HP systems. With a combined parallel solar thermal HP system, the system performance compared to a conventional HP system can be significantly increased. Unglazed selectively coated collectors as source for the HP have the advantage that the collector can be used as an air heat exchanger. If solar radiation is available and the collector is used as source for the HP, higher temperatures at the evaporator of the HP can be achieved than with a conventional air HP system.

Operating performance of novel reverse-cycle defrosting method based on thermal energy storage for air source heat pump

To solve the fundamental problem of insufficient heat available during defrosting while ensuring the efficient and safe system operation for air-source heat pumps (ASHPs). A novel reverse-cycle defrosting (NRCD) method based on thermal energy storage to eliminate frost off the outdoor coil surface was developed. Comparative experiments using both the stand reverse cycle defrosting (SRCD) method and the NRCD method were carried out on an experimental ASHP unit with a nominal 2.5 kW heating capacity. The results indicate that during defrosting operation, using the NRCD method improves discharge and suction pressures by 0.24 MPa and 0.19 MPa, respectively, shortens defrosting duration by 60%, and reduces the defrosting energy consumption by 48.1% in the experimental environment, compared with those by the use of SRCD method. Therefore, using the NRCD method can shorten the defrosting duration, improve the indoor thermal comfort, and reduce the defrosting energy consumption in defrosting.

Experiment research on grain drying process in the heat pump assisted fluidized beds

A heat pump assisted fluidized bed grain drying experimental system wasdeveloped. Based on this system, a serial of experiments was performed under four kinds of air cycleconditions. According to the experimental analysis, an appropriate drying medium-air cycle for theheat pump assisted fluidized bed drying equipment was decided, which is different from the commonlyused heat pump assisted drying system. The experimental results concerning the drying operationperformance of the new system show that the averaged coefficient of performance (COP) can reach morethan 2.5. The economical evaluation was performed and the power consumption for removing a kilogramwater from grains was about 0.485 kW-h/kg (H_2O), which shows its reasonable commercial efficiencyand great application potentiality in future market.