IEA-ECBCS Annex 48 : Heat Pumping and Reversible Air Conditioning
Encyclopedia
In June 2006, the IEA
Energy Conservation in Buildings and Community Systems Programme (ECBCS) executive committee decided to launch the three-year working phase of the Annex 48 on Heat pumping and reversible air conditioning.
to a boiler may save more than 50 % of primary energy, if electricity is produced by a modern gas-steam power plant (and even more if a part of that electricity is produced from a renewable source). “Heat Pumping” is probably today one of the quickest and safest solutions to save energy and to reduce CO2 emission. Most of air-conditioned commercial buildings offer attractive retrofit opportunities, because:
The retrofit of an existing building and, even more, the design of a new one should take all possibilities of heat pumping into consideration, in such a way to make air conditioning as “reversible” as possible. Different techniques are already available, but a recent survey of monitoring results established in Germany
made still appear a lot of faults, lacks of optimisation and surprisingly low COP (coefficient of performance) after, at least, one year of operation. It appears that the many mistakes would not have been discovered without monitoring. It also appears that these mistakes and disappointing results are mainly due to a lack of good understanding of the dynamic behaviour of the systems at design stage, a lack of simulation work, a lack of instrumentation, for satisfactory commissioning, optimal control and fault detection.
.
These goals will be achieved by performing five different subtasks, whose content is very
briefly summarized hereunder:
International Energy Agency
The International Energy Agency is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organization established in the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in 1974 in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis...
Energy Conservation in Buildings and Community Systems Programme (ECBCS) executive committee decided to launch the three-year working phase of the Annex 48 on Heat pumping and reversible air conditioning.
Background
Substituting a heat pumpHeat pump
A heat pump is a machine or device that effectively "moves" thermal energy from one location called the "source," which is at a lower temperature, to another location called the "sink" or "heat sink", which is at a higher temperature. An air conditioner is a particular type of heat pump, but the...
to a boiler may save more than 50 % of primary energy, if electricity is produced by a modern gas-steam power plant (and even more if a part of that electricity is produced from a renewable source). “Heat Pumping” is probably today one of the quickest and safest solutions to save energy and to reduce CO2 emission. Most of air-conditioned commercial buildings offer attractive retrofit opportunities, because:
- When a chillerChillerA chiller is a machine that removes heat from a liquid via a vapor-compression or absorption refrigeration cycle. This liquid can then be circulated through a heat exchanger to cool air or equipment as required.-Use in air conditioning:...
is used, the condenserCondenser (heat transfer)In systems involving heat transfer, a condenser is a device or unit used to condense a substance from its gaseous to its liquid state, typically by cooling it. In so doing, the latent heat is given up by the substance, and will transfer to the condenser coolant...
heat can cover (at least a part of) the heating demand; - When a chillerChillerA chiller is a machine that removes heat from a liquid via a vapor-compression or absorption refrigeration cycle. This liquid can then be circulated through a heat exchanger to cool air or equipment as required.-Use in air conditioning:...
is not (fully) used for cooling, it can be (at least partially) re-converted into heat pump.
The retrofit of an existing building and, even more, the design of a new one should take all possibilities of heat pumping into consideration, in such a way to make air conditioning as “reversible” as possible. Different techniques are already available, but a recent survey of monitoring results established in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
made still appear a lot of faults, lacks of optimisation and surprisingly low COP (coefficient of performance) after, at least, one year of operation. It appears that the many mistakes would not have been discovered without monitoring. It also appears that these mistakes and disappointing results are mainly due to a lack of good understanding of the dynamic behaviour of the systems at design stage, a lack of simulation work, a lack of instrumentation, for satisfactory commissioning, optimal control and fault detection.
Project Description
The aim of this project is to promote the most efficient combinations of heating and cooling techniques in air conditioningAir conditioning
An air conditioner is a home appliance, system, or mechanism designed to dehumidify and extract heat from an area. The cooling is done using a simple refrigeration cycle...
.
Specific goals
- To allow a quick identification of heat pumping potentials in existing buildings
- To help designers in preserving the future possibilities and in considering “heat pumping” solutions
- To document the technological possibilities of heat pumping
- To improve the operation (including commissioning) of building equipped with heat pumping systems
- To make available a set of reference case studies.
These goals will be achieved by performing five different subtasks, whose content is very
briefly summarized hereunder:
Subtask 1: Analysis of building heating and cooling demands and of equipment performances
- Classification among different building types
- Characterization of existing HVACHVACHVAC refers to technology of indoor or automotive environmental comfort. HVAC system design is a major subdiscipline of mechanical engineering, based on the principles of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer...
systems - Use of simulation models to identify the best heat pumping potentials
Subtask 2: Design
- Elaboration of pre-design rules
- Definition of evaluation criteria
- Project of sequential design methodology (including retrofit)
Subtask 3: Global performance evaluation and commissioning methods
- Development of evaluation methods devoted to heat pump solutions
- Tests with synthetic data and with measured data
- Development of computer-based tool for heat pumpHeat pumpA heat pump is a machine or device that effectively "moves" thermal energy from one location called the "source," which is at a lower temperature, to another location called the "sink" or "heat sink", which is at a higher temperature. An air conditioner is a particular type of heat pump, but the...
system operation
Subtask 4: Case studies and demonstrations
- Documentation of reference case studies
- Use of case studies to test the methods and tools developed in the annex
- Conversion of most successful case studies into demonstration projects.
Subtask 5: Dissemination
- Website
- Paper work (leaflet, handbooks)
- Workshops, seminars and conferences.
Participating countries and organizations
-
Belgium: University of LiègeUniversity of LiègeThe University of Liège , in Liège, Wallonia, Belgium, is a major public university in the French Community of Belgium. Its official language is French.-History:...
(Thermodynamics Laboratory) and University of Leuven -
Early Modern France: Armines (École nationale supérieure des mines de ParisÉcole nationale supérieure des mines de ParisThe École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris was created in 1783 by King Louis XVI in order to train intelligent directors of mines. It is one of the most prominent French engineering schoolsThe École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris (also known as Mines ParisTech, École des Mines de...
), Greth, INES and ClimateMaster -
Germany: Fachhochschule of Nürnberg, TEB Gmbh KE and University of Stuttgart -
Italy: Polytechnic University of TurinPolytechnic University of TurinThe Polytechnic University of Turin is an engineering university based in Turin, northern Italy. Established in 1859, Politecnico di Torino is Italy’s oldest Technical University. In 2011 it was ranked as the best engineering university in Italy in the Academic Ranking of World Universities.It is... -
Canada: Concordia University (Montréal)
See also
- Heat PumpHeat pumpA heat pump is a machine or device that effectively "moves" thermal energy from one location called the "source," which is at a lower temperature, to another location called the "sink" or "heat sink", which is at a higher temperature. An air conditioner is a particular type of heat pump, but the...
- Thermodynamic cycleThermodynamic cycleA thermodynamic cycle consists of a series of thermodynamic processes transferring heat and work, while varying pressure, temperature, and other state variables, eventually returning a system to its initial state...
- Heat pump and refrigeration cycleHeat pump and refrigeration cycleThermodynamic heat pump cycles or refrigeration cycles are the conceptual and mathematical models for heat pumps and refrigerators. A heat pump is a machine or device that moves heat from one location at a lower temperature to another location at a higher temperature using mechanical work or a...
- International Energy AgencyInternational Energy AgencyThe International Energy Agency is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organization established in the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in 1974 in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis...