Simultaneous Heating and Cooling with CO₂ High Temperature Heat Pumps

The fundamental principle of heat pumps is to absorb heat at low-temperature levels and dispense it as useful heat at a higher temperature.

A heat pump uses heat sources that are normally technically not usable. For instance, a heat pump can increase the temperature of geothermal energy from 10 °C to 40 °C. In addition to geothermal energy, it can utilise surface water and seasonal heat stores as heat sources.

But a heat pump only lives up to its full potential in terms of performance and sustainability when it converts waste heat from industrial production, exhaust air from air-conditioning systems, or waste heat from chillers and then makes it available as heat output at a higher temperature level. Using a heat pump generates significant energy savings because it optimises such processes.

Standard heat pumps are usually inadequate for heating potable water. When water is heated, temperatures of 60 to 70 °C need to be achieved in order to remove the risk of legionella. These high temperatures are usually generated by means of inefficient electrical element heating.

High temperature heat pumps like Engie’s thermeco₂ can provide both Low-Temperature Hot Water (LTHW) and Domestic Hot Water (DHW) without the need for supplementary electrical heating.

CO₂ is harmless to use (classified as A1), cheap to procure, and, with a GWP of 1, has no harmful effects on the earth’s atmosphere.

CO2 (in subcritical mode) has become standard for use in refrigeration – for instance, in the cooling and storage of food. 

At higher temperatures (supercritical mode), it is possible to implement heat pump applications that are highly efficient in their respective temperature ranges. Supercritical applications are a relatively new field of application for CO₂ as a refrigerant.

CO₂ is predestined for all applications that require cooling and heating at the same time, such as an air-conditioned hotel with a swimming pool and sauna, for example.

In the long term, a trend towards natural refrigerants seems likely, due to the F-gas Regulation, which is currently leading to restrictions on volumes of halogenated refrigerants.

Refrigeration and heat pump technology is key to the future of energy-efficient building services design. If we stop generating power from fossil fuels and instead generate it from renewable energy sources whose availability is permanently shifting, we will need storage facilities to provide load balance. Thermal storage can provide this load balance. CO₂ is a highly suitable refrigerant for efficient thermal energy storage. In case of excess power in the grid, hot and/or cold thermal energy storage units can be charged with a CO₂ heat pump and discharged again when power becomes scarce.

The range of CO₂ heat pumps from ENGIE Refrigeration comprises eleven performance classes between 45 and 1,440 kilowatts. Currently machines in the performance class of 500 to 1,000 kilowatts are the most popular. Models are also available in a hygienic stainless steel design, making them ideal for sensitive applications such as the food industry.

Sirus are agents for ENGIE Refrigeration in Ireland, supplying and installing thermeco₂ Heat Pumps – Contact us on 01 460 2600 for more information. Our Applications Engineers are on hand to discuss the suitability of CO₂ High-Temperature Heat Pumps for your application.