ENERGY SAVING Continued from page 49.


this: “Quite simply, by reducing demand, we reduce the amount of fossil fuels burned to generate energy.” A report from sustainability and climate


change consultancy Verco and business management consultant Cambridge Econometrics emphasises the scale of the opportunity. It claims that investment in energy efficiency could result in a 26% reduction in natural gas imports by 2030, worth £2.7 billion. Reducing demand for energy is not just about cutting emissions. The EST said: “It would also increase the UK’s resilience in terms of energy supply and reduce vulnerability to the ever-more volatile fossil fuels markets.” Smart Energy GB’s campaign aims to


encourage individuals and businesses to install smart meters and develop connected energy systems, but, as the EST points out, we need to be smart about how we use smart meters: “We will only see the full benefits of smart metering and a digital infrastructure if energy efficiency measures and improved behaviours accompany its onset.” So, smart meter installation needs to be accompanied by quality advice to support people to use energy more efficiently and there’s no better starting point than insulation. A ‘fabric first’ approach – fitting insulation measures before installing energy saving technology – makes perfect sense. This is especially true when the technology you are considering is heat pumps. Indeed, once the insulation is sorted, I would argue that heat pumps are the best technology for households to consider for heating. It appears that others agree. Heat pumps are


finally starting to gain a significant foothold in the UK. Consulting firm Delta Energy & Environment, for example, estimates that current sales of heat pumps are just under 30,000, but that this will grow to more than 45,000 by 2025. It points out that the government’s


announcement that fossil fuel heating could be banned in all new homes built after 2025 means there will be significant opportunity for low carbon heating, including heat pumps. However, it is not only heat pumps that


are increasing in popularity. The benefits of ‘hybrid’ systems incorporating heat pumps are also starting to be recognised. The Rhoss EXP/HT is an all-electric low


carbon system solution that we supply, for example, that offers complete building cooling and heating all year round. The cooling


electrical heating, makes the best use of this cleaner electricity.


Since space is always at a premium in


element of the system is vital, since many predictions suggest the energy required to satisfy cooling demands in modern, highly insulated and air-tight buildings will soon outweigh the energy required for heating. It uses hybrid four-pipe air or water source heat pumps to produce simultaneous or independent cooling and heating, crucially using heat recovery wherever possible for ‘free’ heating or cooling, with typical supply temperatures of 7°C for the chilled water (CHW) and typically 45°C for the low- temperature hot water (LTHW) system. In energy efficiency terms, the higher the CHW temperature and the lower the LTHW temperature the better, so designers are encouraged to take measures to ensure the system is suitably selected for these conditions.


The addition of a water source heat pump (WSHP) producing higher temperature hot water for domestic hot water (DHW) up to 78°C makes the entire space heating and sanitary water system all-electric and fossil fuel free at point of use. The high temperature WSHP efficiently boosts the medium grade heat to high grade heat. This results in higher plant utilisation, with heat recovered from the cooling cycle being used to help the high temperature heat pump deliver total efficiency ratios of 7.0 to 8.0. Use of grid or on-site renewable electricity to power the system then makes it net zero carbon in operation.


Another example of hybrid technology is the three-coil integral DX heat pump air handling unit – our 3DxHP Series – with ultra-low carbon, defrost-free operation. The use of AHUs with integral refrigeration is a well-established but fast-growing sector of the air conditioning industry. The greening of the electricity grid is such that the electrification of heat is a firm part of our legislated lower carbon future.


The use of heat pumps, rather than direct


building design and refurbishment, the fully packaged heat pump AHUs provide a compact and integrated design for the heating and cooling needs within our built environment, often without any need for further external heating or cooling sources. Installation costs can be significantly reduced as there is no external heating source (boilers or external heat pumps) or cooling source (chillers) that must connect to the AHU, because the refrigeration system is integral to it. A built-in refrigeration system minimises the refrigerant content, eliminating pipe runs through the building and dramatically reducing the refrigerant content in comparison to VRF systems.


Time to focus on energy efficiency


R


esearch by Smart Energy GB has revealed:  Only 2.61% of 24,429 climate change stories in national news sources focused on energy efficiency.


 While energy efficiency was mentioned 466 times in parliament, just 0.27% of MPs Tweets highlighted the topic.


 Energy efficiency received zero mentions in IMDB’s synopses of television documentaries released in the UK.


 Just 0.12% of the public’s 3.2 million Twitter posts about climate change included any reference to energy efficiency.


The Missing Piece campaign claims there is a distinct lack of understanding in the UK about the role of energy efficiency, and the impact that it could have on achieving climate change goals:  61% of the British public would be more inclined to try and prevent climate change if they better understood what they could do.


 Less than a fifth (19%) of Brits think that having a smart grid (which uses data to make the nation more energy efficient) would have the biggest impact on stopping climate change.


 Just three in 10 (30%) think that being more energy efficient would have the biggest impact on protecting the environment. Being part of a smart grid was second from bottom in a list of actions people believe the public could take in their homes to help the nation be more energy efficient, only just ahead of keeping curtains closed at all times (9%).


www.acr-news.com January 2020 51


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