HEAT PUMPS


Heat pump feasibility The fi rst step on the heat pump journey is establishing where energy is consumed in a factory or facility. This may be data the organisation already has access to, such as historical sub-metering readings for gas and electricity. This is extremely valuable data for understanding utility bills and pinpointing how much of a particular ‘end utility’ each site process is using. This data creates a ‘4d energy map’, showing


where a business uses heating and cooling, in what form (e.g., hot water, steam), when during the day it is used, how much is consumed, and at what temperature.


Armed with these insights from the energy map, a business can move directly to the heat pump design phase, enabling a heating and cooling contractor to develop a heat pump solution based on the facility’s current energy behaviour and performance. If the data to generate a ‘4d energy map’ is not available, the fi rst step is to conduct a site survey to support the development of a low-cost feasibility study tailored to a business’s specifi c needs. The goal is to design a heat pump system that optimises effi ciency based on the facility’s precise energy profi le and heating and cooling processes. Conducting a site-wide survey to evaluate the


current heating profi le and energy consumption can be done manually, but the most accurate assessment is possible through data collection. AI- led, data-driven monitoring technology for industrial refrigeration and heat pump systems, such as Ethos, can collect key data from existing cooling and heating systems. This data is used to generate profi les of usage, temperatures and fl ow rates to create the 4d energy map – crucial in delivering a customised heat pump system that specifi cally addresses distinct business process requirements, providing optimum effi ciency and reliability. Based on the data analysis and resulting feasibility


study, a heat pump solution can be engineered to match exact operational conditions, therefore reducing capital costs and operational costs. A feasibility study demonstrates energy and cost savings of heat pumps for food manufacturing. A recent feasibility study conducted by Star


Refrigeration demonstrates the potential for substantial energy and cost savings through the incorporation of heat pump technology at one of the UK’s largest dairy facilities. The study highlights how industrial heat recovery can support the transition to a more sustainable manufacturing process.


Waste heat


Data was collected and analysed from site surveys and AI-driven remote monitoring technology to document waste heat sources across the site, including fi ve refrigeration systems, four air


12 May 2025 • www.acr-news.com


A zero-carbon ammonia heat pump installed in a food manufacturing facility in the UK


The installation formed part of a larger site refurbishment that included replacing coal-fi red boilers with gas burners and removing a bank of air-cooled chillers.


compressors and the facility’s wastewater effl uent system. By assessing the heat profi le over a typical working week, the study confi rmed that these sources could be harnessed to supply a new heat pump system, meeting hot water and space heating requirements. The proposed solution integrated heating and cooling processes into a circular system to optimise energy use. A heat pump and thermal store would be installed to balance variations in heat availability and demand, ensuring effi cient energy transfer across the facility. Currently, the site incurs an annual energy


expenditure of £4.5 million, comprising £3.5 million in electricity and £1 million in gas costs. The new heat recovery system is projected to: ■Reduce gas consumption by £600,000 per year ■Increase electricity usage by £200,000 per year ■Deliver a net annual saving of £400,000 ■ Reduce carbon emissions by 3,500 tonnes of CO₂e annually


These savings are expected to increase over time as gas prices rise and the cost of renewable electricity declines. The study concludes that by implementing a two-stage heat pump system, the food manufacturing facility can signifi cantly lower energy costs and carbon emissions while enhancing operational effi ciency. This demonstrates the viability of heat pumps as a sustainable solution for the food industry, aligning with broader decarbonisation goals and net-zero commitments.


Case study A zero-carbon ammonia heat pump installed in


a food manufacturing facility in the UK provides useful cooling of process glycol to 0°C while at the same time heating a closed-loop heating system to 60°C. The system comprises four compressors on a central plant, with two of them rejecting heat to the water heating circuit when required. All four machines are also capable of rejecting heat to the atmosphere through a bank of air- cooled condensers. Up to 1.25MW of heat can be recovered, with a combined cycle coeffi cient of performance of 5.46. The high discharge temperature of the ammonia


compressors allows the condensing condition to be held at 59°C, with desuperheating of the discharge gas from 100°C to 59°C, providing the additional heating to raise the hot water to 60°C. The heating loop is split into two requirements: clean in place (CIP) and closed loop (product heating). The plant’s total glycol cooling capacity is 3,300kW. About one-third of this is provided by the heat pump compressors, which are confi gured to run as the lead cooling requirement.


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