25 April 2024
Annex 58 High-Temperature Heat Pumps Task 2 Integration Concepts Task Repor
High-temperature heat pumps are a key technology for decarbonising industrial process heating, which is often based on fossil fuels and accounts for a considerable share of the final energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions of industries. Heat pumps are a promising alternative to the current fossil fuels-based solutions as they can provide process heating and cooling based on electricity (potentially emissions-free) at the highest efficiencies. However, due to the wide range of echnological solutions available for HTHPs and the diversity of processes and their requirements, it is challenging to define generally applicable integration guidelines and concepts. herefore, this report aims to provide an overview of the best practices for integrating HTHPs into the most promising application areas, improving understanding of the technology’s potential.
The description of the concepts was structured using two templates: one for the development of integration concepts for processes or systems, and another for the evelopment of heat pump concepts for selected heat pump applications. The use of standardized templates allowed for a structured collection and presentation of information despite the heterogeneity of the authors. In the first part of the study, 12 industrial systems or processes with heating demands and supply temperatures above 100 °C have been selected and described based on their characteristics, such as mass flows, heating and cooling demands, temperatures, and production patterns. Based on this information, 27 integration points for HTHPs were identified. The integration concepts were defined by a system layout, including the heat transfer media, the heat exchanger network, and other devices, such as storage and heat pumps.
It was found that the best practices for system layout and conditions vary depending on the specific case, but unit operations share similar process requirements. Therefore, heat pump concepts can be standardized to meet these requirements and can be assigned to three basic heat pump applications: hot water production, steam production and applications with large temperature glides.
The second part of the study describes these typical heat pump applications. by the direct boundary conditions, such as the temperature profiles, capacities and media of source and sink. For each of these heat pump applications, various heat pump concepts can be developed. In this report, 15 heat pump concepts were defined by their main functioning principle, system layout, refrigerant, compressor types, and expected performance. Based on these findings, recommendations were developed for the selection of sensible heat pump concepts for processes within the same unit
peration. The recommendations are not intended to be comprehensive, but they aim to demonstrate the application potential of high-temperature heat pumps in a wide range of processes.