Modern ASHPs in the coldest conditions: Savings, peak demand, and design impacts
Overview
Heat pump adoption in the upper Midwest has lagged warmer regions due to early products’ limitations in extremely cold outdoor temperatures. Fortunately, modern heat pumps have made significant strides in cold climate operation. CEE has been at the forefront of modeling, testing, and informing best practices around the design, installation, and maintenance of heat pumps to maximize their efficacy in Minnesota’s extreme climate conditions.
This field study will update and improve the field-validated performance maps of modern residential air source heat pumps (ASHPs) at temperatures below 0°F. The data generated from this study will then be leveraged to calculate the impacts of increasing cold weather performance on annual savings, peak loads, and best design practices to unlock significantly more energy savings for Minnesota’s Energy Conservation and Optimization (ECO) Programs. This study will compare ASHPs that meet the DOE Cold Climate Residential ASHP Challenge specification to the cold climate specification established by NEEP in 2021.
Highlights
Objective
- Field-test newly released residential ASHPs that meet the DOE Cold Climate Challenge specification.
- Update and improve the field-validated performance maps of modern ASHPs.
- Calculate the impacts of improved cold weather ASHP performance on annual savings, peak loads, and best design practices to support Minnesota’s ECO Programs.
Scope
- The field study will test recently released ASHP products that meet the most stringent cold climate standards in the coldest climate zone in Minnesota.
- The performance maps will take a market-wide perspective to build trust in ASHP performance in the coldest conditions.
Non-energy benefits
- Verify ASHP operation in extreme cold for utility planners, HVAC installers/designers, and homeowners.
- Explore electric space heating rates and peak load management strategies to reduce user costs.
Funding
This project was supported in whole by a grant from the Minnesota Department of Commerce, Division of Energy Resources through the Conservation Applied Research and Development (CARD) program.