ENGD 2005 Heat Pump Lab

Background

Heat flows in the direction of decreasing temperature; From high temperature- regions to
low-temperature regions.
Refrigerators and heat pumps are special devices that transfer heat from low-temperature
regions to high temperature regions.
Refrigerators and heat pumps are essentially the same devices, but they differ from their
objective. The objective of a refrigerator is to maintain the refrigerated space at a low
temperature by removing heat from it. The objective of a heat pump, however, is to maintain
a heated space at a high temperature.
The performance of refrigerators and heat pumps is expressed in terms of the coefficient of
performance (COP) defined as
COP= Desired Output
Required Input

In this experiment, we will use the heat pump apparatus to transfer heat from the ambient
air in the lab (low-temperature region) to hot water (high-temperature region)

Equipment

Figure 1: Heat Pump Apparatus Figure 2: Heat Pump system diagram

Objective

• To determine the ideal and actual coefficient of performance (COP) for a heat pump
• To understand the design and operation of an air-to-water heat pump
• To represent a thermodynamic cycle on a log p-h diagram

© Nizam Inc. 2017

P number: P15219444
 ENGD 2005 Heat Pump Lab

Procedure

1. Switch on the compressor, fans and circulation pump.

2. Leave the test stand to run until all values on the display have stabilised.
3. At the control valve, set the flow in the water circuit such that the volumetric flow rate
is around 50l/h.
4. The following measurements should be taken:

S/no Parameter Value

1 Evaporator pressure, P1 3.05 bar
2 Condenser pressure, P2 8.37 bar
3 Compressor Power, E 1 170 watts
4 Compressor inlet temperature, T1 10.6 °C
5 Compressor outlet temperature, T2 70.7 °C
6 Condensation temperature, T3 31.0 °C
7 Evaporation temperature, T4 3.0 °C
8 Hot water return flow temperature , T5 26.2 °C
9 Hot water feed flow temperature , T6 33.3 °C
𝐿
10 Volumetric flow rate of hot water, V 48.1 ℎ

Ideal COP

Desired Output Heat rejected from condenser ℎ −ℎ

COPHP, ideal = Input
= Work done on compressor
= ℎ2−ℎ3
2 1

417−248 169
COPHP, ideal = 417−397 = 20
= 8.45

Actual COP
Desired Output Heat absorbed by water ̇
𝑄𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟
COPHP, actual= = = ̇
Input Electrical power input 𝐸𝑖𝑛

𝑉̇ 𝛒𝐶𝑝 (𝑇5 −𝑇6)

COPHP, actual= 170𝑊

𝑄𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 =𝑉̇ 𝛒𝐶𝑝 (𝑇5 − 𝑇6)

𝐿
𝑉̇ =48.1 ℎ
𝐿
48.1 𝐿
ℎ
=0.01336𝑠
3600
𝐿
0.01336𝑠 x 0.001=1.336x10-5
𝑚 3
𝑉̇ =1.336 x 10-5 𝑠
ρ=1000kg/m3
Cp=4181J

© Nizam Inc. 2017

P number: P15219444
 ENGD 2005 Heat Pump Lab

In order to keep the Q value positive, T6 and T5 switch positions as T6 > T5.

𝑄𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 =(1.336 x 10-5) x 1000 x 4181 x (33.3-26.2)

𝐽
𝑄𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 =396.593𝑠

𝑄𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 =𝑉̇ 𝛒𝐶𝑝 (𝑇5 − 𝑇6)

̇
𝑄𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟
COPHP, actual= ̇
𝐸𝑖𝑛
̇ 𝐽
396.593
𝑠
COPHP, actual= =2.33
170𝑊

Discussion
From figure 3 we can gather enough information to work out the ideal COP. The graph gave
us the enthalpy value for the heat rejected from the condenser and the work done from the
compressor. From the calculations above we can see that the ideal COP for the heat pump is
8.45.

To work out the actual COP I used the values given by the heat pump to work out the heat
absorbed by water and the electrical power input. From the calculations you can see that the
Actual COP from the heat pump is 2.33

The Actual COP does not match the Ideal COP. There is a difference of 6.12 between the Actual
and Ideal COP. The typical COP values for a heat pump is in the range of 2 to 4, this could
suggest that the ideal COP is incorrect.

However, there are many reasons as to why the actual COP did not reach the ideal COP. This
experiment had large room for error, both calculation errors and human errors have occurred
due to equipment use as well as human error when drawing the points of the graph and
calculations

The Heat Pump that we used, could have been part of errors. As each part has a tolerance
rating from the manufacturer, therefore the use of many could add to a huge error amount.
When plotting the points of the graph there could have been errors in which the way the
results were read. The errors could have happened as there was a significant gap between
the axis units. This could have affected my calculations as the ideal calculations were based
solely on the graph.

© Nizam Inc. 2017

P number: P15219444
 ENGD 2005 Heat Pump Lab

A heat pump and a refrigerator has many differences in terms of the transfer of heat. A
refrigerator absorbs the heat from the freezer/evaporator and throws it to the atmosphere
which is at high temperature. Unlike the refrigerator, the heat pump absorbs the heat from
the atmosphere which is at a low temperature and throws it to the room which is at a high
temperature, which is to be heated. In the refrigerator it is the condenser that performs the
function of delivering the heat to the atmosphere. In the heat pump it is the condenser that
performs the main function of heating the room, while the evaporator performs the function
of absorbing the heat from the atmosphere. From this I can conclude that the desired effect
of the refrigerator is the heat removed from the low temperature, whereas in the heat pump
the desired effect is the heat provided to high temperature.

There are different types of evaporator designs which perform an almost similar function as
the one I used in the experiment. The heat pump with direct evaporator absorbs the heat
directly from the environment. The principle is used in the air-to-water heat pump. The cost
of this process is cheap and is used largely for Air conditioning units. The major drawback for
this design is that the heat pump has low performance during winter

Another evaporator design is a heat pump with a brine circuit. This uses a second circuit, the
brine circuit, to transport the heat from the heat source to the evaporator. This makes it
possible to bridge larger distances between the heat pump and the heat source. Due to the
second circuit with a circulating pump the costs are higher, a large area is also required.
Although the costs for this design is more than other evaporator designs, it is more efficient
and is independent of seasons.

References
1.) Langley, Billy C. Heat Pump Technology. Reston, Va.: Reston Pub. Co., 1983. Print.

2.) What is the difference between a refrigerator and a heat pump and a heat engine? (no
date) Available at: https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-a-refrigerator-
and-a-heat-pump-and-a-heat-engine (Accessed: 28 October 2016)

3.) (No Date) Available at: https://vle.dmu.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-3468534-dt-content-rid-

5629402_1/courses/ENGD2005_2017_Y/Poster.pdf (Accessed: 28 October 2016).

4.) Cops, Eers, And Seers - How Efficient Is Your Air Conditioning System: Power
Knot:". Powerknot.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

© Nizam Inc. 2017

P number: P15219444
 ENGD 2005 Heat Pump L

1
4
4

ℎ3 = ℎ4 = 248 ℎ2 = 417
ℎ1 = 397
Figure 3: Effect of pressure on enthalpy

Name: Nizamuddin Patel P number: P15219444