Paul Wermer, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0#EnergyEfficiency is a key #ClimateAction, and these heat pumps can be much more efficient on the very cold (or very hot) days. In the urban areas, #ThermalNetworks enable the same heat pump technology, and can reuse waste heat.
Yet another example of ways to use low-grade heat to boost heat pump efficiency. Why isn't this approach more widely explored? Yes, it will take time to implement, but guess what? Existing heat pumps will end of life, and demand for energy will only increase - so acting now means these projects can intercept late adopters, as well as those whose systems need replacing in 10 - 15 years. Doing nothing traps us in excessively high peak energy demand.
#ClimateAction #ThermalNetworks #Energy_efficiency is important
We need more of this - but there seem to be all sorts of legal - not technical - restrictions that limit this clever use of #WasteHeat from summer aircinditioning. It's important because #HeatPump efficiency depends on the temperature of the source of extracted heat. ANd peak demand for heat energy occurs just when air source heat pump efficiencies are lowest. ANd the size of the electrical grid depends on peak demand - the higher the peak demand, the greater the capital investment.
So why aren't we looking at how to enable community/district systems that do the same thing?
To Slash Carbon Emissions, Colleges Are Digging Really Deep https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/23/climate/geoexchange-climate-colleges-heat.html?unlocked_article_code=1.P00.5iDc.uiGbkT_oFFYU&smid=nytcore-android-share
@kjsgeo At least summer is also peak solar PV generation. It's a bigger problem in winter, when the peak demand may not be as high, but the generating capacity is even lower.
That's one of the reasons we really need to be looking at thermal networks so as to capture waste heat/waste cool as a source/sink for the heatpumps (though that also means air source heatpumps need to transition to liquid source tied into the thermal networks. FOr some reason, I don;t hear enough discussion of this - but the energy efficiency gains are significant (and peak heating and cooling loads coincide with minimum Air Source Heat Pump efficiencies.)
#HeatPumps #ThermalNetworks #EnergyEfficiency #ClimateAction
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AND the energy efficiency of an ASHP is much less efficient at the temperatures we experience at the winter peak demand - maybe 25% or more less efficient. AND energy demand for heating is large.
If we look at ground source heat pumps (GSHP) or even better, heat pump systems designed to capture waste heat, the efficiency is much higher, even better than an ASHP heating when the air temp is in the 50s. That dramatically reduces the peak demand. So how do we get SFPUC and SF as a whole to take a look at this state of the art approach to see if it make sense in SF?
#ClimateAction #Climate #ThermalNetworks
https://www.iea.org/reports/district-heating
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/governor-hochul-signs-bill-promoting-7262046/
