Drain-water heat recovery system for residential housing

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Residential building use about 20% of their total energy on heating water. The use of a drain water heat recovery (DWHR) unit canrecover a large portion of this energy to pre-heat hot water for use in the home, representing a large opportunity for savings in bothenergy and hot-water costs. Lancaster homes has developed a novel DWHR design that has shown better performance thancurrent technology, and has promise to vastly improve the energy efficiency of new-construction residential homes. The currentlyavailable DWHR technology only performs well during periods of high hot water usage, where this new technology allows not onlybetter heat recovery during times of high usage, but also efficient heat recovery during sporadic and delayed hot water usageperiods. Part 1 of the project entails the development, optimization, and testing of this new DWHR system through experimentalprototype development and fundamental in silico thermodynamics modelling. Part 2 of this project, to move the DWHR technologycloser to commercialization, is the design and implementation of a new electronic leak-detection system based on pressuredifferentials that is in accordance with regulations.