Analysis of the thermal performance reduction of a groundwater source heat pump (GWHP) system

Society’s use of fossil fuels has led to increasingly high levels of CO2 in the atmosphere. These levels have been linked to global average temperature rises, and increases in the severity and frequency of major weather events. To combat these effects, nations around the world have committed to reducing their CO2 emissions, and transition to renewable energy. This thesis focuses on the development of a novel solar heating system, which combines a hybrid solar panel and cascade heat pump. The thesis begins by presenting a high-level literature review of solar and heat pump technologies, followed by the initial design development of the system. Two design iterations are presented, illustrating that the final design was selected because it exhibits improved peak heat output, and reduced sensitivity to panel temperature. Next, a manuscript-based chapter is presented that focuses on utilizing the proposed solar heating system for water distillation. Case studies are presented that compare the performance of the proposed system with a solar still at four different locations. The final conclusion from these studies is that using the proposed system offers area-based performance improvements of 780% compared to a basic solar still. A second manuscript-based study is then presented, which focuses on utilizing the proposed solar heating system for domestic hot water production. Additional case studies are detailed that compare the proposed system to an evacuated tube design, and a single heat pump. The conclusions from these studies are that the proposed system exceeds the performance of the evacuated tube system by up to 64%, and that the proposed system is most beneficial during seasons with higher average dry-bulb temperatures, and increased solar irradiation. A final manuscript-based study is then presented, which focuses on a methodology for improving alternate mode thermal performance estimates for hybrid solar panels. The conclusion from this study is that the proposed methodology can successfully estimate thermal performance within 5% of actual values. Each of these studies contributes to the project goal of developing a novel solar energy heating system, which can be further developed to reduce global CO2 emissions, and reduce the effects of climate change.

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Development of a hybrid solar cascade heat pump heating system

10.32920/ryerson.14665605 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jamie Fine

Keyword(s):

Case Studies ◽

Co2 Emissions ◽

Heat Pump ◽

Thermal Performance ◽

Heating System ◽

Solar Heating ◽

Hot Water ◽

Solar Irradiation ◽

Solar Still ◽

Evacuated Tube

Society’s use of fossil fuels has led to increasingly high levels of CO2 in the atmosphere. These levels have been linked to global average temperature rises, and increases in the severity and frequency of major weather events. To combat these effects, nations around the world have committed to reducing their CO2 emissions, and transition to renewable energy. This thesis focuses on the development of a novel solar heating system, which combines a hybrid solar panel and cascade heat pump. The thesis begins by presenting a high-level literature review of solar and heat pump technologies, followed by the initial design development of the system. Two design iterations are presented, illustrating that the final design was selected because it exhibits improved peak heat output, and reduced sensitivity to panel temperature. Next, a manuscript-based chapter is presented that focuses on utilizing the proposed solar heating system for water distillation. Case studies are presented that compare the performance of the proposed system with a solar still at four different locations. The final conclusion from these studies is that using the proposed system offers area-based performance improvements of 780% compared to a basic solar still. A second manuscript-based study is then presented, which focuses on utilizing the proposed solar heating system for domestic hot water production. Additional case studies are detailed that compare the proposed system to an evacuated tube design, and a single heat pump. The conclusions from these studies are that the proposed system exceeds the performance of the evacuated tube system by up to 64%, and that the proposed system is most beneficial during seasons with higher average dry-bulb temperatures, and increased solar irradiation. A final manuscript-based study is then presented, which focuses on a methodology for improving alternate mode thermal performance estimates for hybrid solar panels. The conclusion from this study is that the proposed methodology can successfully estimate thermal performance within 5% of actual values. Each of these studies contributes to the project goal of developing a novel solar energy heating system, which can be further developed to reduce global CO2 emissions, and reduce the effects of climate change.

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Studies of Heat Pumps Using Direct Expansion Type Solar Collectors

Solar Energy ◽

10.1115/isec2003-44212 ◽

2003 ◽

Author(s):

Sadasuke Ito ◽

Naokatsu Miura ◽

Yasushi Takano

Keyword(s):

Heat Pump ◽

Thermal Performance ◽

Pressure Loss ◽

Heat Pumps ◽

Hot Water ◽

Photovoltaic Module ◽

Direct Expansion ◽

Reduced Pressure ◽

In Series ◽

Hot Water Supply

A photovoltaic and thermal hybrid panel which was made of an aluminum roll -bond panel with a photovoltaic module on the surface was developed recently for use as an evaporator of a heat pump for residential hot water supply and room heating.1) Pressure loss of the refrigerant at the evaporator was large. Therefore, in the present study, shapes of the inlet and the outlet of the panel were modified to reduce pressure loss; also, thermal performance of the heat pump which adopted three evaporator panels connected in series was examined. Total area of the panels was about 1.9 m2 and the rated capacity of the compressor was 250 W. These modifications reduced pressure loss and improved thermal performance. The effect of the location of the feeler bulb on performance of the heat pump was also examined. It was inferred that the feeler bulb fixed on the tube at the outlet of the evaporator should be as close as possible to the evaporator outlet.

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