The Horizon 2020 project SunHorizon was launched to optimize solar-assisted heat pump systems in residential and commercial buildings. One of the objectives is to facilitate data optimization with a cloud-based monitoring platform. The project will run until 2022 and be applied in eight demo sites in Europe. Four different technology concepts will be tested:
- Parallel integration of heat pump and solar (solar used for space heating and hot water, with heat pump covering periods of no sunshine)
- Combination of solar-assisted and parallel integration (PVT thermal output meets as much heat demand as possible and surplus electricity powers appliances)
- Solar-driven heat pump for cooling (solar used for space heating and hot water in winter and thermal compressor operated in summer)
- Parallel integration of solar and heat pump (PVT thermal output meets some demand for space heating and hot water and PVT provides electricity for reversible heat pump)
Example of a demo site: Link
The Sant Cugat building in Spain is a municipal facility for cultural events and public activities. The new installations are expected to have a positive impact on GHG emission savings and primary-energy savings. The demonstration started in 2019.
Collectors: hybrid solar thermal panels (TVP Solar SA)
Other energy sources: hybrid adsorption-compression chiller (Fahrenheit Gmbh)
Storage: stratified thermal storage tank (Ratiotherm Heizung + Solartechnik Gmbh & Co. KG)