What is a heat pump? Operating principle, options, Advantages and disadvantages
The heating installation is one of the most important elements in the construction of a house.. The efficiency of the entire system and the cost of its operation depend on, what heating device will we choose. Environmental aspects are also important. Heat pump, which you can buy here, this is a very good and increasingly popular option.
HEAT PUMP – PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION
The function of this device is not only to heat water, needed in the household, but also in ensuring the correct operation of the heating or air conditioning system in the house and ventilation of the premises. Good Dimplex heat pump, professionally selected for the needs of a residential building, is a very efficient device, which will easily meet the needs of the whole family throughout the year.
Very efficient heating device, which is a pump, works on the principle of a closed loop, in which such elements work, as bottom and top heat sources and working fluid pipes.
What is a heat pump?
Heat pump – this device, working on the principle of reverse Carnot cycle. Although different types of heat pumps are available (air, water and earth), the main elements of their design remain unchanged.
Belong to them:
- evaporator, which is the bottom energy source. It is here that the working medium evaporates at low temperature, resulting in an increase in pressure.
- compressor – this is an element, in which, due to the increase in pressure, the gas is compressed, and its temperature rises,
- condenser – it is an upper heat source and a heat exchanger, which gives off heat to a liquid or air, flowing through the installation.
- expander – in practice it is a valve, into which the working fluid flows out of the condenser, and then returned to circulation in the pump heating cycle.
For the pump to work, it must be supplied with electricity from the network. Unfortunately, without it the device will not work., therefore, in the event of a network failure, it is worth installing alternative energy sources, eg, as a generator.
TYPES OF HEAT PUMPS
There are three types of heat pumps.
1. Air source heat pumps
With this type of pump, heat energy is obtained from the air. There are two types of these devices.:
- air source heat pumps, from which heat enters the ventilation or air conditioning system,
- air-to-water heat pumps, where the heat is transferred to the hot water heating system in our house.
Devices available for sale, installed outside the building, that are durable and functional. They even work well for heating water in garden pools and yards.. On the other side, small indoor pumps are located next to the wall, and the pipes come out.
To ensure that this type of pump performs its task throughout the year, in a temperate climate, where the temperature drops below zero in winter, so-called bivalent devices are used. In practice, this means, that an additional electric heater or gas heating boiler is also required for the system to operate fully efficiently in all weather conditions.
2. Water source heat pumps
The installation of such a pump is based on obtaining energy from groundwater.. Hence, appropriate permissions are required to create such an installation. It is also necessary to use the services of a professional drilling company..
This type of pump can be the main source of heat in a building.. Two wells are required to install the entire system. One deep sea, from which energy will be extracted, and the other is designed to separate waste water.
The groundwater temperature is usually in the temperature range 7-12 degrees. Hence, it does not require additional corrosion testing. However, it is necessary to analyze the content of iron and manganese, since their excess can lead to the formation of iron ocher.
3. Ground source heat pumps
This type of pump is the most popular in Poland. These are devices, that use energy, stored in the ground. They are based on the use of ground temperature from 0 to 8 degrees. The big advantage of ground installations is that, that they are invisible from the outside, regardless of ground pump type, with whom we are dealing.
There are two types of installations to choose from:
- soil probes, installed in deep wells, also called vertical system,
- ground collectors, which in practice are a network of pipes, laid on the practical surface of the entire site, which is called the horizontal system.
HEAT PUMP – ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
Heat pump – it is an eco-friendly and efficient device, given that, that it is well sized and selected.
Advantages of heat pumps
Simple working principle;
- Low operating costs – especially for ground and air pumps;
- Ease of maintenance – it is important to monitor the condition of the filters and compressor;
- This device is much more environmentally friendly, than fuel heating, and a properly selected installation does not consume too much electricity. The most environmentally friendly solution is a bivalent air source heat pump. Air use – the best choice for the environment;
- Installation of an air source heat pump does not require any additional permits and tests;
- The advantage of a water source heat pump is its high efficiency and, hence, profitability on land plots with water tanks and ponds.
Disadvantages of heat pumps
Installing a ground source heat pump requires a significant start-up investment and special requirements. Although the pipes are dug to a shallow depth, should be remembered, what for, for the device to work effectively, pipes should cover the maximum possible area. If we want, for the pump to be the only source of heat for the building, in practice, this is the minimum 40 square meters.
When using a water pump with a submersible probe, it is sometimes necessary to make very deep wells to ensure the efficiency of the system. – to 100 meters. This is due to the large amount of work and significant initial investment costs..
In cold areas, where the air temperature is low for most of the year, the use of bivalent air source heat pumps is costly and unprofitable. Unfortunately, device generates much higher costs.
In case of water pump, operating on the principle of two wells (without the participation of a reservoir or other reservoir), installation of the whole installation, Unfortunately, very expensive. Moreover, it is also a time consuming process and requires a lot of work. However, if we can afford such a solution, then it is worth investing, because in the future the operating costs of the system will be low.
When choosing a heat pump, pay attention to two important points. The first is the COP efficiency ratio , which is calculated based on EN 255-3. It determines the ratio of heat, received to energy, which was used to obtain it. The higher the value, the cheaper the heat pump will work.
The second important parameter is SCOP , which indicates the same relationship, but throughout the heating season. The value of this coefficient is calculated based on PL-EN standards 12309-2 and PL-EN 14825. Here also, the higher the value, the lower the operating costs.
CONCLUSION
Well-chosen heat pump – it is an ecological device, thanks to which we obtain energy for heating usable water, space heating (air conditioning) and ventilation for the needs of the whole house throughout the year. Although the installation of a heat pump sometimes requires a significant initial investment, it pays off in the long run, as operating costs are lower, than gas, electricity or fuel.

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