Feasibility of hybrid ground source heat pump systems utilizing capillary radiation roof terminal in the yangtze river basin of China

Abstract

This paper proposes applications of a hybrid ground source heat pump system combining cooling tower as auxiliary cooling source and capillary radiation roof as indoor terminal in an office in the Yangtze River Basin of China. By simulations in TRNSYS environment, the system feasibility was investigated and compared to conventional HVAC system (water chiller + gas boiler). The results reveal that with the help of the radiant terminal, the hybrid system provides finer indoor comfort, costs less, and is more energy-saving. However, it is less environmentally friendly. An analytic hierarchy process method is developed to perform a comprehensive system evaluation based on all three factors. The hybrid system performance evaluation result is 0.966 located in the adaptation region; the conventional HVAC system is 0.746 located in the general adaptation area. Overall, the hybrid GSHP system is more adaptable and it has a promising potential for future applications in this area.