| Titulo Proyecto |
| Assessment of the Potential of Installing Space Cooling -Only Ground Source Heat Pumps in a Tropical Country |
Area y Linea |
Ingenierìa y Tecnologìa -- Ingeniería mecánica
|
Actividad del Investigador |
| Investigador Principal |
Tipo de la Investigación |
| Aplicada |
Organismo Financiamiento |
| UCA |
Fecha ejecución |
| 2010 |
Publicado en |
| International Conf. on Energy Sustainability |
Resumen de la Investigación |
| The present article examines the technical, economic and environmental feasibility of installing a cooling-only ground source heat pump in a tropical country. The study is based on an existing university building at Universidad Centroamericana in El Salvador. The building was modeled using an energy simulation program in order to characterize its energy performance and compare the energy efficiency of the proposed ground source heat pump system to a conventional direct expansion system. In addition to standard energy modeling, a finite-element model was also developed in order to determine ground Temperature distribution and heat island effects due to the ground source heat pump system. Modeling results predicted that the proposed system would reduce energy consumption by 23% annually, compared to a conventional system. Additional cost savings, associated with a reduction in maintenance and replacement costs, reduce operational costs by 37% over the life of the project. The proposed design was also optimized using energy modeling and a first cost estimate was obtained. An economic analysis predicted that the simple payback period of the system would be on the order of six years. The paper analyzes the technical, economic and environmental advantages of the concept and the potential barriers for implementation |
Resultados Principales |
| The present article presented results from a simulation-based study that aimed at assessing the potential of installing cooling-only ground source heat pumps in a tropical climate, specifically applied to a University building in San Salvador, El Salvador. Results showed that in this case, two L-shaped array well configuration was preferable over other array configurations due to higher efficiencies. Energy modeling showed an energy cost reduction potential on the order of 23% when compared to a series of standard direct expansion minisplit systems. An economic analysis showed that overall cost savings are on the order of 35% over the lifetime of the system when including a reduction in maintenance and replacement costs associated when compared to conventional DX systems. Overall, simple pay-back period for this system is on the order of six years. Finite-element simulation for the ground source heat exchanger showed that there is potential for heat island effects within a radius of 15 m from the center of the array, on the ground surface. The proposed system shows promising features although barriers, including lack of local technical expertise on the subject, high initial costs, heat island effects and land requirements should be addressed. A stronger focus on energy efficiency policy in the region and regulations with incentives along with more research and development on sustainable technologies are needed in order to address identified barriers for implementation. |
