Energy Analysis and Optimization of a Water-Loop Heat Pump System

Abstract

A water-loop heat pump system consists of a set of water-source heat pumps that are connected with a closed-loop water network, which allows heat to be injected into or extracted out of the loop water. Such a configuration is able to meet simultaneous heating and cooling demands with a heat recovery capability. This paper analyzes the impact of loop water temperature on energy performance of individual heat pumps and the whole system, demonstrates that there exists a unique loop water temperature that minimizes overall power consumption of the configuration under discussion, and proposes a strategy to find the optimal temperature, which can be implemented in a real-time application. Simulations have been conducted to verify that a significant energy savings can be achieved over conventional practice.