Abstract
A predictive load shifting controller has been developed and deployed in a low-carbon house near Glasgow, UK. The house features an under floor heating system, fed by an air-source heat pump. Based on forecast air temperatures and solar radiation levels, the controller firstly predicts the following day’s heating requirements to achieve thermal comfort; secondly, it runs the heat pump during off peak periods to deliver the required heat by pre-charging the under floor heating. Prior to its installation in the building, the controller’s operating characteristics were identified using a calibrated building simulation model. The performance of the controller in the house was monitored over four weeks in 2015. The monitored data indicated that the actual thermal performance of the predictive controller was better than that projected using simulation, with better levels of thermal comfort achieved. Indoor air temperatures were between 18°C and 23°C for around 87% of the time between 07:00 and 22:00. However, the performance of the heat pump under load shift control was extremely poor, with the heat being delivered primarily by the unit’s auxiliary immersion coil. The paper concludes with a refined version of the controller, that should improve the day-ahead energy predictions and offer greater flexibility in heat pump operation for future field trials.
Highlights
The domestic sector faces a range of challenges as the UK attempts to drastically cut its carbon emissions by 2050
Analysis of monitored indoor air temperatures when the fullyautomated load shift controller was in operation indicated that they remained between 18 °C and 23 °C for 87% of the time between 07:00 and 22:00, when the heat pump was operated under load shifting control
A full scale demonstrator for thermal load shifting in a low carbon house has been established at BRE’s Innovation Park near Glasgow
Summary
The domestic sector faces a range of challenges as the UK attempts to drastically cut its carbon emissions by 2050. Key issues are reducing the overall demand for heat and decarbonising the residual heat loads, which encompass both space heating and hot water provision. If the supply of electricity in the UK is progressively decarbonised at the macro and micro-scales, through the deployment of renewable generation, the electrification of heat using heat pumps would be an effective means to provide the low-carbon space heating, hot water and possibly cooling required by the domestic sector. Wilson et al [1] indicated that a shift of only 30% of domestic heating to heat pumps could result in an increase of 25% in the total UK electrical demand.
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