Analysis of a Hybrid PV/Thermal Solar-Assisted Heat Pump System for Sports Center Water Heating Application

The application of solar energy provides an alternative way to replace the primary source of energy, especially for large-scale installations. Heat pump technology is also an effective means to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels. This paper presents a practical case study of combined hybrid PV/T solar assisted heat pump (SAHP) system for sports center hot water production. The initial design procedure was first presented. The entire system was then modeled with the TRNSYS 16 computation environment and the energy performance was evaluated based on year round simulation results. The results show that the system COP can reach 4.1 under the subtropical climate of Hong Kong, and as compared to the conventional heating system, a high fractional factor of energy saving at 67 can be obtained. The energy performances of the same system under different climatic conditions, that include three other cities in France, were analyzed and compared. Economic implications were also considered in this study.