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Concept
Air source heat pump
Summary
An air source heat pump (ASHP) is a type of heat pump that can absorb heat from outside a structure and release it inside using the same vapor-compression refrigeration process and much the same equipment as air conditioners but used in the opposite direction. Unlike an air conditioning unit, most ASHPs are reversible and are able to either warm or cool buildings and in some cases also provide domestic hot water.
In a typical setting, an ASHP can gain 4 kWh thermal energy from 1 kWh electric energy. They are optimized for flow temperatures between 30 and 40°C (86–104°F) suitable for well insulated buildings. With losses in efficiency, an ASHP can even offer a full central heating solution with a flow temperature up to .
Air-to-water heat pumps use radiators or underfloor heating to heat or cool a whole house and are often also used to provide domestic hot water.
Air-to-air heat pumps are simpler and slightly more efficient devices that provide hot or cold air directly to internal spaces, but do not usually provide hot water.
Air at any temperature above absolute zero contains some energy. An air source heat pump transfers some of this energy as heat from one place to another, for example between the outside and inside of a building. This can provide space heating and hot water. A single system can be designed to transfer heat in either direction, to heat or cool the interior of the building in winter and summer respectively. For simplicity, the description below focuses on use for interior heating.
The technology is similar to a refrigerator or freezer or air conditioning unit: the different effect is due to the physical location of the different system components. Just as the pipes on the back of a refrigerator become warm as the interior cools, so an ASHP warms the inside of a building whilst cooling the outside air.
The main components of an air source heat pump are:
An outdoor evaporator heat exchanger coil, which extracts heat from ambient air
One or more indoor condenser heat exchanger coils, which transfer the heat into the indoor air, or an indoor heating system such as water-filled radiators or underfloor circuits and a domestic hot water tank.
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Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C (US), AC (US), or air con (UK), is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as "comfort cooling") and in some cases also strictly controlling the humidity of internal air. Air conditioning can be achieved using a mechanical air conditioner or alternatively a variety of other methods, including passive cooling or ventilative cooling.
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