HEATING TECHNOLOGY
Panasonic's Aquarea heat pump installed at Salford University’s Energy House 2.0
by affordable housing developers, Keepmoat Homes. The Aquarea J Series units with smart controls were selected for the research project by Keepmoat, due to their high energy efficiency and low noise characteristics. Birmingham City University’s (BCU)
Centre for Future Homes has been commissioned to carry out research to provide data on the energy and carbon efficiency of the homes to ensure the chosen technology adopted can be scaled up for future developments. Looking to meet the government’s
Air to water heat pumps under scrutiny
Air to water heat pumps from Panasonic are currently the subject of intensive research as part of two projects that are investigating the potential energy and carbon efficiency of new homes and looking into the running costs of low carbon technologies.
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anasonic’s Aquarea J Series air-to-water heat pumps are being used as part of a research project at the
University of Salford’s Energy House 2.0 and also at a regenerative housing project in Nottinghamshire which is undergoing a study by the Birmingham City University’s (BCU) Centre for Future Homes. Both studies are looking to address the implications of the soon-to-be introduced Future Homes Standard building regulations which will require new homes to produce 75-80% lower CO₂ than current standard builds. The University of Salford project is being run in conjunction with Bellway Homes, with the Energy House 2.0 built by Bellway inside a climate- controlled chamber at the university. Panasonic has been involved with the study since its inception in 2022. Throughout the testing, the home was exposed to temperatures as high as 40°C and low as -20°C, recreating wind, snow, solar radiation and other weather to deliver results on extreme conditions. The facility has the capability to replicate over 95% of the world’s climatic conditions, ranging from the normal to the extreme. Professor Will Swan, director of
Energy House Laboratories at the University of Salford, says: “The innovation accelerator has been a great opportunity for academia and industry to work together on the UK priorities of net zero and energy
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efficiency. Panasonic has been a committed partner in contributing to the research and innovation, working closely with the Energy House lab team to help understand the performance of the product.” The Aquarea J Series air-to-
water heat pump delivers efficient heating, with an average water outlet temperature of 45°C, maximum output temperatures of 60°C, and operational efficiency down to -20°C. Tests have concluded that the heat pumps can cost as little as £1.84 on a typical winter day to heat a home and are more efficient than current gas boilers. Jamie Bursnell, head of technical and innovations at Bellway Homes, comments: “The heating tests at Energy House 2.0 have accelerated our understanding of how new homes
can be heated through electric sources. The comparison of different combinations of heating technologies working in a controlled environment has highlighted some highly efficient systems. We will now refine and test further, and the research will inform our work with new technologies on the live developments where these are already being trialled.”
Future ready homes Panasonic’s heat pumps have also been installed into 33 two, three and four-bedroom new build homes as part of a ‘Homes England’ research project to provide innovative zero carbon ready homes. Gedling Green, a regenerative housing project in Nottinghamshire has been developed on an old coal mining colliery site
The Gedling Green housing development has included the installation of Aquarea heat pumps in 33 homes of varying sizes
Future Homes Standard, Keepmoat Homes received investment from Homes England to promote the advanced delivery of homes designed to the anticipated Future Homes Standard, as well as additional funding from both Halifax and Leeds Building Society to support the evaluation of ‘in occupation’ feedback from customers. All homes on the site have been fitted with air source heat pumps, solar PV panels, increased insulation levels, electric vehicle charging points and smart hot water cylinders. To measure the efficiency of the
Panasonic systems fitted into each home, a corresponding research study is also underway, headed by the Centre for Future Homes at Birmingham City University, a primary research centre in the transition to low carbon homes and net zero, both in new builds and retrofit applications. The study will monitor how people will use the technology in their homes by assessing the energy usage at the Gedling Green development over the next two years. Measuring the energy usage and comfort of the privately rented and owned houses using energy monitors, the researchers are hoping to gather concrete evidence to support an expected 91% reduction in carbon output of the homes. Commenting on some of the challenges along the way, Mike Leonard, a visiting professor at Birmingham City University, comments: “What’s been discovered from the research we’ve done so far is that 50% of the challenge is actually in how people live in the properties and how they adapt to it. Whatever we do with installing and commissioning the heat pumps, if people then don’t understand the technology or adapt to working with it in a different way to, say a gas boiler, then we don’t get the outcome that we’re trying to achieve.” Following the successful installation of the Panasonic units, Keepmoat Homes have contracted further Panasonic units to be installed in future sites around the UK. ■
EIBI | SEPTEMBER 2025
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