WS 1 – Heat pumps for nZEB, retrofit and energy flexibility

Heat pumps for nZEB, retrofit and energy flexibility (Program overview)

This workshop gave an overview of 3 running Annexes, that are in different stages, from just beginning to already well underway. More so, the Annexes from which the work was presented came from different IEA technology collaboration programs: heat pumping technologies (HPT) and energy in buildings and communities (EBC).

In the first part (HPT Annex 49) we learned that although there is no uniform definition of nearly zero energy buildings, there are plenty of interesting examples and research being done, exploring the different definitions in different countries and finding solutions for each situation.

We saw that when it comes to nZEB, there is an important role for HPs but also other technologies like PV, solar thermal and storage.

In the second part (HPT Annex 50) it was presented that multifamily houses are a significant part of the total building stock. So there definitely is a potential for heat pump technology . The work of Annex 50 will focus on that. As for the source to use, in this case we often have to deal with urban areas where many renewable sources are hard to use. When restricted possibilities for other sources, the source will be often air driven.

In the last part (EBC Annex 67) we saw that flexible availability of renewable sources makes need for energy flexibility in buildings. One of the items under research is about control mechanisms. Also different systems for thermal energy storage (TES) were presented.

In all cases we saw examples (and need for) good international collaboration, both within and in between Annexes.

As a conclusion I would say that in both nZEB and multifamily buildings, heat pumps will have a high market potential. For the energy production of nZEB, also a close link to energy flexible buildings exist. Another important aspect is domestic hot water (DHW). So, collaboration will be continued or timulate in future.

The presentations had three main blocks:

IEA HPT Annex 49: Design and integration of heat pumps for nZEB

  • Overview of IEA HPT Annex 49 – Carsten Wemhöner – Institute of Energy Technology, HSR Rapperswil
  • Long-term monitoring and smart heat pumps for nZEB – Franziska Bockelmann and Christina Betzold
  • Vögelebichl Innsbruck – Monitoring and simulation of two multi-family houses with heat pump, PV and collectors – Fabian Ochs – Universität Innsbruck

IEA HPT Annex 50: Heat pumps in multi-family houses

  • Overview of IEA HPT Annex 50 – Marek Miara – Fraunhofer ISE
  • Retrofitting fossil fuel heating systems with A/W-heat pumps in multi-family houses – Fabrice Rognon – Energy Western Switzerland

IEA EBC Annex 67: Energy flexible buildings

  • Overview of IEA EBC Annex 67 – John Clauß – Norwegian University of Science and Technology
  • Energy flexible smart grid / energy-ready buildings – Thibault Péan – Catalonia Insitute for Energy Research
  • Energy flexibility of thermal energy storage – Christian Finck – Eindhoven University of Technology

All presentations can be downloaded as ZIP file.

During the Heat Pump Conference a number of sessions had presentations on NZEB and retrofit of existing buildings. Notably are the two key note presentations:

Other Conferences

The participants in HPT-Annex 40 have had a final workshop at the 12th REHVA World Congress CLIMA 2016, Aalborg.  An overview of presentations can be found on the Annex 40 website

  • Results of IEA HPT Annex 40 on Heat Pumps in Nearly Zero Energy Buildings – Carsten Wemhöner – Institute of Energy Technology, HSR Rapperswil
  • Heat Pump for nZEB in Canada – System Assessment and Technology Developments – Roberto Sunyé – CanmetENERGY-Varennes
  • Energy and Efficiency Analysis of Heat Pump Systems in Nonresidential Buildings – Doreen Kalz – Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems. The paper on this is published on Researchgate.
  • Heat pumps in energy and cost efficient nearly zero energy buildings in Finland – Tuomo Niemelä – Aalto University. The presentation was based upon the report ‘Heat pumps in energy and cost efficient nearly zero energy buildings in Finland’ by Suvi Häkämies (VTT).
  • The definition of nearly zero-energy buildings in the Swedish building code and its implications on heat pumps – Ola Gustaffson – RISE
  • Case studies, technology development and field monitoring of heat pumps in Swiss nZEB – Carsten Wemhöner – Institute of Energy Technology, HSR Rapperswil

Not only at the workshop but also during this Conference a number of interesting papers were presented:

  • CLIMA 2016 – 679 – Galina Stankevica – Achieving Deep Energy Retrofit in Latvian Public Building – Simulation Study
  • CLIMA 2016 – 441 – Pagliano – Analysis of ventilation strategies for the nearly zero energy retrofit of a day care center
  • CLIMA 2016 – 657 – Francois Randaxhe – Towards nzeb goal for newly built office buildings in Europe using high temperature cooling

All other conference papers from this REHVA Conference CLIMA 2016 can also be downloaded.

Interesting information NZEB and retrofit in Europe can be found on the website of BUILDUP.