The Performance of a Regenerative Heating and Cooling System: System Analysis Carried out in a Multipurpose Building

This book reports on a study of the renewable energy- based heating and cooling systems of a multipurpose building. The first objective of the investigation was to demonstrate the potential of solar-assisted cooling, the second focused on the total energy balance of the building. For base-load heating and cooling, the building is equipped with a ground source heat pump, supplied by a ground storage. For solar cooling, the building is equipped with solar collectors and two desiccant evaporative cooling (DEC) plants. During the first year of operation, significant problems occurred in the operation of the DEC-plant and the heat pump. The heating energy consumption of the building was acceptable, but the calculated primary energy consumption was too high. In comparison to an conventional system the calculated CO2 saving was negative. Since user satisfaction was high, the suboptimal operation of the plant was not apparent to the building users. The most important conclusion from this research project is that without careful monitoring, the energy-saving opportunities provided by the installation of innovative systems may not, in practice, be realised.