IntroductionSimple principle, great resultA <strong>heat</strong> pump works in a similar way to a fridge – simply the other way round.VITOCAL 300In a fridge, <strong>heat</strong> is transferred from theinside to the outside. With a <strong>heat</strong> pump,this happens exactly the other way round.Heat from the <strong>air</strong> or the ground is transferredinto the living space via the <strong>heat</strong>ing system.Vapour from a refrigerant is compressed toincrease the temperature, to make it highenough for central <strong>heat</strong>ing <strong>and</strong> DHW <strong>heat</strong>ing.In this process, the Vitocal 350-G reachesup to 72 °C; the Vitocal 350-A up to 65 °C.These <strong>heat</strong> pumps can therefore also beused for modernisation as they can provide asufficiently high flow temperature for central<strong>heat</strong>ing <strong>with</strong> radiators.Highly efficient scroll compressorThe compression process is vital for theefficiency of a <strong>heat</strong> pump. For this, <strong>Viessmann</strong>uses a Compliant scroll compressor. Itis characterised by quiet operation, lowvibrations, low maintenance <strong>and</strong> an extremelylong service life.To generate <strong>heat</strong>, for example, <strong>heat</strong> isextracted from the ambient <strong>air</strong> <strong>and</strong> used toevaporate a refrigerant that boils at lowHeat pumptemperature. The gas created is compressedby the scroll compressor, which causes it to<strong>heat</strong> up. The gas <strong>heat</strong>ed in this way transfersits <strong>heat</strong> via the condenser to the <strong>heat</strong>ingwater or DHW <strong>heat</strong>ing system, <strong>and</strong> therebycondenses again. Finally, the refrigerant,which is still under pressure, is exp<strong>and</strong>edin an expansion valve, <strong>and</strong> the circuitbegins again.A <strong>heat</strong> pump can make use of thefollowing energy sources:• Air – practically unlimited availability;lowest investment costs• Ground – via <strong>geothermal</strong> collector or<strong>geothermal</strong> probe; very efficient• Water – extremely efficient; observewater quality• Waste <strong>heat</strong> – subject to availability, volume<strong>and</strong> temperature level of the waste <strong>heat</strong>The best <strong>heat</strong> source for each individual casedepends on local conditions <strong>and</strong> the actual<strong>heat</strong> dem<strong>and</strong>.Seasonal performance factorThe coefficient of performance (COP) isthe ratio of the <strong>heat</strong> transfer to the powerconsumption. The seasonal performancefactor is the average of all COPs occurringin a year.Compression processThe coefficient of performance is used tocompare <strong>heat</strong> pumps <strong>with</strong> regard to efficiency,yet only applies from a particular operatingpoint under defined temperature conditions.55 °CGroundtemperature all year round between 5 <strong>and</strong> 18 °C (at 2 m depth)Getting hotter towards the centre – from an initialtemperature of between 5 <strong>and</strong> 18 °C, a flow temperatureof up to 72 °C is achieved.For planning (for example, to be able tospecify the consumption costs arising fromusing a <strong>heat</strong> pump), it is necessary to considerthe <strong>heat</strong> pump operation over the wholeyear. For this, the <strong>heat</strong> volume transferredover the year is given in relation to the overallelectrical power drawn by the <strong>heat</strong> pumpsystem over the same period. This includesthe amounts of power used by pumps, controlunits, etc. The result is given as the seasonalperformance factor.
8/9Ground source(collector)Ground source(probe)1 2 3 1 2 3Ground source(ice store)5Air source411 2 3Ground source (groundwater)1 2 312345Vitocal <strong>heat</strong> pumpDHW cylinder<strong>Heating</strong> water buffer cylinderIce storeSolar/<strong>air</strong> absorber