The Institute for Solar Energy Research (ISFH) will present details on test benches for solar systems and in particular on the dynamic hardware-in-the-loop test of heat pumps at the Hanover Fair.

Space heating, domestic hot water and process heat account for more than half of the energy use in Germany. In a future electricity-based renewable energy system, a large proportion of these amounts of heat has to be provided electrically. Electrically driveb heat pumps make use of environmental heat from ambient air, water or soil and thus enable high efficiency heat generation from renewable energy. At the same time, being components of a decentralized sector coupling, they enable flexible options for the power management of renewable electricity production. To this end, both the efficiency of the heat pumps and their integration into the energy system must be sufficiently understood and further optimised.

The ISFH is developing a laboratory test bench on which components and systems can be dynamically tested under configurable boundary conditions. The test bench enables the investigation and further development of system-bound heat pump technology under scientific laboratory conditions and taking into account different heat sources and sinks. The design allows heat pumps with heating outputs of up to 30 kW to be investigated – i.e. all relevant heat supply situations of detached houses and apartment buildings, taking into account multivalent heat sources (ambient air, geothermal probes, geothermal collectors, solar collectors or their combination).

Visit us at the joint stand of Lower Saxony (A08) in Hall 2 (Research & Technology).

The Hanover Fair is open daily from Monday, 23 April to Friday, 27 April 2018, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m..