EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF A MULTIFUNCTIONAL SOLAR ASSISTED HEAT PUMP IN WATER HEATING MODE AND SPACE COOLING INTEGRATED WATER HEATING MODE

A prototype of a Multifunctional Solar Assisted Heat Pump (MSAHP) system is designed in the study. The system integrates a heat pump water heater, a conventional air-conditioning unit and a solar water heater, and takes advantage of their multiple functions in terms of solar and heat pump water heating, space cooling only, space cooling integrated water heating, and air-source/water-source heat pump space heating. The principle and different operating modes of the system are presented. The experimental study of the prototype of the MSAHP in the water heating mode was conducted. The results show that the coefficient of performance (COP) of the system in the water heating mode ranges from 2.8 to 6.7. Experiment was also conducted to test the relevant performance functions of the system in the space cooling integrated water heating mode. The results indicate that the combined energy efficiency ratio (EERc) of the system fluctuated between 3.39 and 6.20 in the space cooling integrated water heating mode.