Influence of massive heat-pump introduction on the electricity-generation mix and the GHG effect—Belgian case study

Abstract

SUMMARYTo evaluate the environmental impact of massive heat-pump introduction on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, dynamic simulations of the overall electricity-generation system have been performed for Belgium. The simulations are carried out with Promix, a tool that models the overall electricity-generation system. For comparison, three heating devices are considered, namely conventional boilers, heat pumps and electrical resistance heating. The introduction of electric heating at the expense of classic heating increases the demand for electricity and generates a shift of emissions from fossil-fuel heating systems to electrical power plants. The replaced classic fossil-fuel-fired heating represents emissions of about 300 kton: With regard to the heat-pump scenarios, both direct heat-pump heating with a coefficient of performance (COP) of 2.5 and accumulation heat-pump heating with a COP of 5 are investigated. The results of the simulations reveal that the massive introduction of heat-pump heating is favourable to the environment. In Belgium, the largest reductions in GHG emissions occur with heat pumps for direct heating, combined with newly commissioned combined cycle (CC) gas-fired plants or with accumulation heat-pump heating. These scenarios bring about overall GHG emission reductions of approximately 200 kton compared with the reference case with conventional heating for the years 2000 and 2010. The amount of additional electricity-related emissions depends on the considered heating device. In 2010, the scenario with accumulation heat pumps results in an overall decrease of Belgian GHG emissions by 0.15% compared with the reference scenario. The expansion of the electricity-generation system with new CC plants has an important favourable impact on GHGs as well. In most cases, the combination of higher electricity demand and the construction of new gas-fired CC plants will lead to lower overall GHG emissions.

CO2-abatement cost of residential heat pumps with active demand response: demand- and supply-side effects

“…5 Floor heating is only considered in the buildings built after 1990, for which the nominal heating power allows applying a low temperature heat emission systems, such as floor heating [39]. In each case, the heat pump also supplies the domestic hot water demand (DHW), which is stored either in a 200 l or 300 l tank at 50 C, depending on the maximum daily demand.…”

“…For instance, Reynders et al [4] found that due to passive solar gains the space heating demand is mostly lower at times when PV panels are generating electricity; hence, a carbon intensity strongly affected by PV might not be a good measure for the CO 2 emissions related to space heating. Second, the electricity demand associated with a massive heat pump introduction could correlate with peak electricity demand, increasing the need for peak power capacity [5]. Finally, these published methods for accounting CO 2 emissions are unable to predict the emission reduction and peak shaving potential when heat pumps participate in active demand response (ADR) programmes.…”

Comparison of COP estimation methods for large-scale heat pumps used in energy planning

“…Rinne and Syri [10] performed a life cycle assessment study to calculate CO2 emissions from HPs and combined heat and power (CHP) production in Finland. Luickx et al [11] focused on the impact of the power generation and CO2 emissions in Belgium when integrating large amounts of HPs. Mathiesen and Lund [12] used EnergyPlan [7] to compare how suitable several technologies are to integrate fluctuating wind power in the energy system.…”

Assessment of a combination of three heat sources for heat pumps to supply district heating

“…However, the COP for the HPs was assumed to be constant. A constant COP for HPs was also assumed in other studies that looked at different ways of integrating more RES at national or city level, such as in Trondheim, Norway [15], in Geneva, Switzerland [16], in Belgium [17], in Finland [18] or in Denmark [19][20][21].…”