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Experimental study on photovoltaic-driven active enhanced vapor injection air source heat pump with self-contained heat storage

Author

Listed:
  • Yu, Yihua
  • Liu, Lu
  • Tu, Qiu
  • Hao, Xinyue
  • Boban, Luka
  • Soldo, Vladimir

Abstract

Photovoltaic-driven air source heat pumps have been widely used for buildings heating. However, in the low-temperature environment, the performance of the heat pump significantly declines. The conventional enhanced vapor injection (CEVI) can only slightly improve the performance. In this work, a photovoltaic-driven active enhanced vapor injection (AEVI) air source heat pump is designed with self-contained heat storage that can continuously provide heat for the AEVI. The experimental performance assessment of the heat pump operation with different enhanced vapor injection methods demonstrated the benefits of the AEVI. The maximum heating capacity of the heat pump with CEVI and AEVI increased by 6.9 % and 32.9 % compared to that with the none-injection (NEVI), respectively. At the same return water temperature of 33 °C, the CEVI and AEVI show 11.8 % and 57.5 % increase in heating capacity, 3 % and 24.7 % improvement in coefficient of performance compared to the NEVI. In addition, the average temperature of the indoor room was 16.8 °C, 17.3 °C and 19.2 °C after 8 h of underfloor heating. This shows that the AEVI heat pump has the best performance for underfloor heating and presents viable option for enhancing heat pump heating in low-temperature environment.

Suggested Citation

  • Yu, Yihua & Liu, Lu & Tu, Qiu & Hao, Xinyue & Boban, Luka & Soldo, Vladimir, 2026. "Experimental study on photovoltaic-driven active enhanced vapor injection air source heat pump with self-contained heat storage," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 262(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:262:y:2026:i:c:s0960148126001734
    DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2026.125348
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    References listed on IDEAS

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