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Comparison study of a traditional ducted heat pump and a multi split heat pump.

Number: 2178

Author(s) : BHANDARI M., FUMO N.

Summary

Residential HVAC systems are selected and installed based on the goals of the customer. For spec homes, which are homes built with no particular buyer in mind and with selection of materials and equipment to satisfy city requirements and current market trends, the most common types of systems used are the traditional ducted with minimum efficiency. However, for custom homes, the recent trend has included high efficiency HVAC systems that are often accompanied by air-tight home envelopes with highly thermally resistant foam insulation in the walls of the structure. These high efficiency HVAC systems employ inverter-driven compressors, fans, and blowers and are referred to as ‘Variable Speed’ systems in the marketplace. These HVAC systems are typically of the ducted variety in North America, but variable speed ductless systems have gained popularity in the last several years. In this study, a traditional ducted heat pump (TDHP) system and a ductless multi split heat pump (MSHP) system have been experimentally studied in one of the test homes at the Trane Residential Heating and Cooling Research Lab at the University of Texas at Tyler situated in the US Climate Zone 3. The purpose of the study was to evaluate two systems under similar conditions and to compare them based on their thermal comfort, performance, energy consumption, and up-front costs. The test home is an “open-concept” with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. For the purpose of this study, the house was divided into two thermal zones with the three bedrooms and two bathrooms as zone 1, and the open space comprising the kitchen, dining, and living room as zone 2. The TDHP system was a variable speed heat pump with a zoning system, and MSHP was also a variable speed system which consisted of a ceiling cassette unit installed in zone 2, and a low-profile concealed ducted unit in zone 1. Indoor temperature, indoor relative humidity, energy consumption, and weather data from an onsite weather station were acquired and used to perform the comparison. The data were collected and analyzed for the summer of 2021. The cooling season results showed that the TDHP system provided better indoor temperature set-point hold, and superior humidity control by keeping the average relative humidity at 45% during the cooling season while the average relative humidity during the operation of MSHP system was 58% with values being as high as 64%. The TDHP system also demonstrated 29% lower energy consumption, despite the two systems having similar hang-tag efficiency ratings.

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  • Original title: Comparison study of a traditional ducted heat pump and a multi split heat pump.
  • Record ID : 30030598
  • Languages: English
  • Subject: Technology
  • Source: 2022 Purdue Conferences. 19th International Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Conference at Purdue.
  • Publication date: 2022

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