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Assessment of Energetic, Economic and Environmental Performance of Ground-Coupled Heat Pumps

Author

Listed:
  • Matteo Rivoire

    (Department of Environment, Land and Infrastructure Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Torino, Italy)

  • Alessandro Casasso

    (Department of Environment, Land and Infrastructure Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Torino, Italy)

  • Bruno Piga

    (Department of Environment, Land and Infrastructure Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Torino, Italy)

  • Rajandrea Sethi

    (Department of Environment, Land and Infrastructure Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Torino, Italy)

Abstract

Ground-coupled heat pumps (GCHPs) have a great potential for reducing the cost and climate change impact of building heating, cooling, and domestic hot water (DHW). The high installation cost is a major barrier to their diffusion but, under certain conditions (climate, building use, alternative fuels, etc.), the investment can be profitable in the long term. We present a comprehensive modeling study on GCHPs, performed with the dynamic energy simulation software TRNSYS, reproducing the operating conditions of three building types (residential, office, and hotel), with two insulation levels of the building envelope (poor/good), with the climate conditions of six European cities. Simulation results highlight the driving variables for heating/cooling peak loads and yearly demand, which are the input to assess economic performance and environmental benefits of GCHPs. We found that, in Italy, GCHPs are able to reduce CO 2 emissions up to 216 g CO 2 /year per euro spent. However, payback times are still quite high, i.e., from 8 to 20 years. This performance can be improved by changing taxation on gas and electricity and using hybrid systems, adding a fossil-fuel boiler to cover peak heating loads, thus reducing the overall installation cost compared to full-load sized GCHP systems.

Suggested Citation

  • Matteo Rivoire & Alessandro Casasso & Bruno Piga & Rajandrea Sethi, 2018. "Assessment of Energetic, Economic and Environmental Performance of Ground-Coupled Heat Pumps," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-23, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:11:y:2018:i:8:p:1941-:d:160087
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    6. Bayer, Peter & Attard, Guillaume & Blum, Philipp & Menberg, Kathrin, 2019. "The geothermal potential of cities," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 17-30.
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    9. Gerard Mor & Jordi Cipriano & Eloi Gabaldon & Benedetto Grillone & Mariano Tur & Daniel Chemisana, 2021. "Data-Driven Virtual Replication of Thermostatically Controlled Domestic Heating Systems," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-25, September.
    10. Antonio Novelli & Valentina D’Alonzo & Simon Pezzutto & Rubén Aarón Estrada Poggio & Alessandro Casasso & Pietro Zambelli, 2021. "A Spatially-Explicit Economic and Financial Assessment of Closed-Loop Ground-Source Geothermal Heat Pumps: A Case Study for the Residential Buildings of Valle d’Aosta Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-22, November.
    11. Rachana Vidhi, 2018. "A Review of Underground Soil and Night Sky as Passive Heat Sink: Design Configurations and Models," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-24, October.
    12. Joanna Piotrowska-Woroniak, 2021. "Determination of the Selected Wells Operational Power with Borehole Heat Exchangers Operating in Real Conditions, Based on Experimental Tests," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-21, April.
    13. Marco Ravina & Costanza Gamberini & Alessandro Casasso & Deborah Panepinto, 2020. "Environmental and Health Impacts of Domestic Hot Water (DHW) Boilers in Urban Areas: A Case Study from Turin, NW Italy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(2), pages 1-18, January.
    14. Safieddine Ounis & Niccolò Aste & Federico M. Butera & Claudio Del Pero & Fabrizio Leonforte & Rajendra S. Adhikari, 2022. "Optimal Balance between Heating, Cooling and Environmental Impacts: A Method for Appropriate Assessment of Building Envelope’s U-Value," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-17, May.
    15. Sabina Kordana & Kamil Pochwat & Daniel Słyś & Mariusz Starzec, 2019. "Opportunities and Threats of Implementing Drain Water Heat Recovery Units in Poland," Resources, MDPI, vol. 8(2), pages 1-17, May.
    16. Nicola Bartolini & Alessandro Casasso & Carlo Bianco & Rajandrea Sethi, 2020. "Environmental and Economic Impact of the Antifreeze Agents in Geothermal Heat Exchangers," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-18, October.
    17. Aminhossein Jahanbin & Claudia Naldi & Enzo Zanchini, 2020. "Relation Between Mean Fluid Temperature and Outlet Temperature for Single U-Tube Boreholes," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-23, February.
    18. Maciej Milanowski & Antonio Cazorla-Marín & Carla Montagud-Montalvá, 2022. "Energy Analysis and Cost-Effective Design Solutions for a Dual-Source Heat Pump System in Representative Climates in Europe," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-30, November.
    19. Claudia Naldi & Enzo Zanchini, 2019. "Full-Time-Scale Fluid-to-Ground Thermal Response of a Borefield with Uniform Fluid Temperature," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-18, September.
    20. Agata Ołtarzewska & Dorota Anna Krawczyk, 2022. "Analysis of the Influence of Selected Factors on Heating Costs and Pollutant Emissions in a Cold Climate Based on the Example of a Service Building Located in Bialystok," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(23), pages 1-13, December.
    21. Aminhossein Jahanbin & Giovanni Semprini & Andrea Natale Impiombato & Cesare Biserni & Eugenia Rossi di Schio, 2020. "Effects of the Circuit Arrangement on the Thermal Performance of Double U-Tube Ground Heat Exchangers," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-19, June.

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