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these. Having addressed the issues relating to the energy effi- ciency of boilers, and began the process to encourage the intro- duction of renewables on a wider scale, it has had to turn its attention to other components of the heating system to find other sources of savings. Clearly one of the key components of a heating system that currently uses too much energy – although quite small in size and overlooked by many as a key user of elec- tricity – is the pump. The total electricity consumption of all glandless circulating
T
pumps operated in the European Union for heating and air con- ditioning – normal small circulating pumps – is to be halved by 2020. This is the objective of an EU ordinance under the European ErP (Eco-Design) Directive, which will regulate the energy efficiency of this type of pump, from 1 January 2013 onwards, with a further tightening of requirements planned for 1 August 2015. Overall, these changes are thought to be likely to provide an energy saving of 23 terawatt hours for the EU as a whole. This corresponds to the electricity generated by about six medium-sized, coal-fired power stations, or a reduction in EU- wide carbon dioxide (CO2
) emissions of about 11 million
tonnes per year. That’s a hefty reduction by any standard. In order to achieve this goal set by the European Commission,
the EU ordinance prohibits the sale of technically outmoded, inefficient pump models from 2013 onwards. This will mean a ban on sales of about 90 per cent of the glandless circulating pumps that were on the market in 2009. The important new yardstick for determining which pump
models can continue to be used in future is referred to as the energy efficiency index (EEI). From January 2013, the limit EEI value of glandless circulating pumps installed outside the heat generator – external pumps – not those incorporated in combi or system boilers at this stage – will be defined as 0.27. The energy efficiency classes specified at present will then become superfluous, because as a rule, pumps will be better than the min- imum requirements of the current A rated pumps. From August 2015, the EEI limit value will be reduced to 0.23. This will also apply to glandless circulation pumps, designed to operate in
he government has set out very ambitious targets for energy and carbon reduction and it is looking for help from the UK heating and hot water sector to achieve
newly installed heat generators or solar thermal systems (inte- grated pumps). In the last implementation stage, the regulations starting from 2020 will also apply to the replacement of inte- grated pumps in existing heat generators. Models with extremely low electricity consumption are already
available. These not only benefit the environment but also offer significant benefits to the building owner and the consumer because of lower electricity bills, whilst making no concessions in terms of comfort and performance. So it’s no surprise that pump manufacturers with the technology to offer high efficiency pumps are recommending that specifiers and installers exclusively use high-efficiency pumps now. It still comes as a surprise to many that small circulating
pumps can ‘guzzle’ quite so much electricity. The reality is that the old, uncontrolled pumps that are still operating on millions of domestic and small commercial heating systems in this coun- try are responsible for much higher energy bills, far higher CO2 emissions and far higher energy usage than is necessary. But because in many cases they are “out of sight, out of mind”, the simple act of replacing them gets overlooked. The regulation on circulators will shift the market towards
intelligent high efficiency circulators, capable of adjusting their performance to meet the specific needs of the heating system.
By Wilo (UK). 161
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