New (heat pump) system to reduce heating costs in cold climates

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/research/2010/100706BraunHeatpumps.html

New system to reduce heating costs in cold climates

July 6, 2010

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A new type of heat pump being developed at Purdue University could allow residents in cold climates to cut their heating bills in half.

The research, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, builds on previous work that began about five years ago at Purdue's Ray W. Herrick Laboratories, said James Braun, a professor of mechanical engineering.

Heat pumps provide heating in winter and cooling in summer but are not efficient in extreme cold climates, such as Minneapolis winters.

"With this technology we can maintain the efficiency of the heat pump even when it gets pretty cold outside," said Eckhard Groll, a professor of mechanical engineering who is working on the project with Braun and W. Travis Horton, an assistant professor of civil engineering.

The innovation aims to improve efficiency in general but is especially practical for boosting performance in cold climates. The new heat pumps might be half as expensive to operate as heating technologies now used in cold regions where natural gas is unavailable and residents rely on electric heaters and liquid propane.

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