In the last few years there has been a substantial rise in energy prices and a growing concern on climate change. Heat pumps are a great source of renewable energy and can help businesses reduce co2 emissions and make money from governmental financial incentives.
Ground, water, and air source heat pumps can be used to provide heating for buildings (i.e. classed as low grade heat). Ground source heat pumps work by collecting heat from the ground through a large network of pipes or a deep bore hole, this is usually at around 5-10°C heat. A compressor systems is then used to raise the temperature in secondary circuit, usually around 30-40°C. Air and water source heat pumps work in a similar manner but extract heat from a body of water or the air. Generally speaking air source heat pumps are more efficient when the air temperature is above 12°C, in the UK this means that across a year the ground source heat pump is usually the more efficient option.
The heat pump compressor is powered by electricity and the efficiency of the system, or Coefficient of Performance (COP), is heavily dependent on the temperature uplift between the ground/air source and service temperature. COP will vary between 2 and 6 depending on up-lift, a COP of 3 is common. Due to the need for a relatively low uplift temperature to get a good COP the technology is best suited to providing heat over a large area, i.e. through the building floor.
This heat pump technology is well established and has been extensively applied in the domestic and commercial building market. To find out more about our heat pump technology please contact us.