Coupled solar thermal - air source heat pump (ASHP) system integrating thermal energy storage for electrification of space heating in cold climates

在全球范围内，建筑物使用超过40%的总能源消耗，并提供超过39%的二氧化碳排放量。在加拿大，空间加热和水加热占家庭使用的总能源的80%以上，其中大部分来自化石燃料能源系统。随着对气候变化和即将发生的灾难性天气事件的日益关注，迫切需要转向可再生和更清洁的能源。热泵被认为是化石燃料空间加热技术的潜在替代品。它们是高效的，根据技术（空气源或地面源），效率在200 - 600%之间 最简单的热泵技术是空气源热泵系统。它是便宜和易于安装。然而，由于其依赖于室外环境空气作为能源的来源和汇，其性能在最冷或最热的时期下降。这是阻碍它们在极寒气候中广泛使用的因素之一。为了提高空气源热泵系统的性能，提出了将太阳能集热系统和蓄热系统耦合到空气源热泵系统中。通过在特定的当地气候条件下进行详细的数值模拟和辅助实验研究，将开发和安装一个针对加拿大寒冷气候进行优化的系统，用于长期性能监测。 在卡尔加里大学，Eta Energy Solutions，SAIT和ENMAX之间的NSERC联盟合作伙伴关系中，我们提出了一种将太阳能热能注入热泵制冷循环以提高其性能的新方法。我们将开发和验证建立系统性能的详细热力学模型。使用开发的模型，实验室规模的实验装置将开发和测试。之后，将在住宅中安装一个实际的系统，并对其性能进行监测。这项研究有可能增加热泵技术在我们极端寒冷气候中的广泛使用，帮助减少与空间加热相关的二氧化碳排放，以实现净零排放。

Globally buildings use over 40% of the total energy consumption and give over 39% of the total CO2 emissions. In Canada, space heating and water heating account for over 80% of the total energy used in homes most of which comes from fossil-fueled energy systems. With the increasing concerns of climate change and the impending catastrophic weather events, there is an urgent need to shift to renewable and cleaner sources of energy. Heat pumps are being considered a potential replacement for fossil fuel-based space heating technologies. They are highly efficient giving efficiencies between 200 - 600% depending on the technology (air source or ground source) The simplest heat pump technology is the air source heat pump system. It is cheap and easy to install. However, because of its reliance on outdoor ambient air as a source and sink for energy, its performance degrades during the coldest or hottest periods. This is one of the factors hindering their widespread use in extremely cold climates. To improve the performance of air source heat pump systems, we propose coupling a solar thermal system and thermal energy storage with an air source heat pump system. Through detailed numerical modeling under specific local climatic conditions and supporting experimental studies, a system optimized for Canada's cold climates will be developed and installed for long-term performance monitoring. In this NSERC Alliance partnership between the University of Calgary, Eta Energy Solutions, SAIT, and ENMAX, we propose a novel way of injecting solar thermal energy into a refrigeration cycle of a heat pump to improve its performance. We will develop and validate detailed thermodynamic models that establish system performance. Using the developed models, a lab-scale experimental setup will be developed and tested. After that, an actual system will be installed in a residence and its performance monitored. This research has the potential to increase the widespread use of the heat pump technology in our extremely cold climate, helping reduce space heating-related CO2 emissions in our quest to achieve net zero.