Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Warmer air
to rooms
Fan
Air filter
Coil
Compressor
Cooler air
from rooms
Heat energy
Heat energy
FIGURE 6.6
Geothermal heat pump system. (Adapted from Gibilisco, S.,
Alternative
Energy Demystified,
, McGraw-Hill, New York, 2007, p. 54.)
In addition to space conditioning, geothermal heat pumps can be used to provide
domestic hot water while the system is operating. Many residential systems are now
equipped with
desuperheaters
, which transfer excess heat from the compressor of
the geothermal heat pump compressor to the hot water tank. A desuperheater pro-
vides no hot water during the spring and fall when the geothermal heat pump system
is not operating; however, because the geothermal heat pump is so much more effi-
cient than other means of water heating, manufacturers are beginning to offer “full
demand” systems that use a separate heat exchanger to meet all of a household's hot
water needs. These units cost-effectively provide hot water as quickly as any compet-
ing system (EERE, 2014b).
