3.2 Brine heat pump
Function of the geothermal heat source
A heat pump is a unit which makes use of a
working medium to absorb ambient heat under low
temperatures and transports this heat to a place
where it can be of use for heating purposes. Heat
pumps work according to the same principles as a
refrigerator. The difference is that heat, the by-
product of the refrigerator, is the goal of the heat
pump.
How the heat pump works
The soil stores heat obtained from the sun, wind
and rain. This geothermal energy is absorbed by
the brine at a low temperature in the geothermal
collector, the geothermal probe or similar. A circu-
lation pump then conveys the “heated” brine into
the evaporator of the heat pump. There, this heat
is transferred to the refrigerant in the refrigeration
circuit. The brine cools down again so that it can
absorb heat energy again in the brine circuit. The
refrigerant is drawn in by the electrically driven
compressor, compressed and “pumped” to a
higher temperature level. The electrical drive
power supplied during this process is not lost, but
is largely supplied to the refrigerant. The refrig-
erant then enters the condenser and transfers its
heat energy to the heating water. Depending on
the operating point, the heated heating water heats
up to 60 °C.
Smart Control is used for regulation, and it assures
the independent operation of all safety devices.
The WSP series heating system heat pump
includes a regulated heating cycle pump, regulated
heat source pump, 2 plate heat exchangers for
source and heating, dirt trap, compressor, electric
expansion valve, safety valve, pressure gauge,
filling and draining valve, automatic bleeding valve
and flow switch.
A 3-way changeover valve, overflow protection
valve and other probes are available as accesso-
ries.
Emergency-heat operation
The heat pump can optionally be equipped with a
Smart-Serv electric heating coil. This can be used
for screed drying as well as for emergency-heat
operation. The Smart-Serv can be switched on
automatically via the Smart Control. Furthermore,
an anti-freeze function is implemented in the event
of faults.
Cooling mode
A cooling function can also be implemented with
the cooling mode available as an accessory via a
panel heating system. The changeover valves
installed in the cooling mode allow direct heat
transfer from the heating system to the brine
system without compressor use. The thermal
energy of the heating system is therefore trans-
ferred directly to the “cold” brine and thus cooled.
The cool heating water is then pumped into the
panel heating system and ensures the correct tem-
perature in the living rooms. At the same time, the
heat energy regenerates the soil.
Cooling can take place via silent or dynamic
cooling.
Passive cooling
Passive cooling refers to the absorption of heat via
cooled floors, walls or ceiling surfaces. In doing so,
water-carrying pipes make the structural sections
into thermally effective heat exchangers. In order
to achieve this, the refrigerant temperature has to
lie above the dew point, in order to avoid the for-
mation of condensation. Dew-point monitoring is
required for this purpose.
Dynamic cooling
With dynamic cooling the refrigerating capacity is
actively transferred to the indoor air. This is ach-
ieved by means of water-based fan convectors. In
doing so, it is desirable that the inlet temperatures
are under the dew point, in order to transfer a
higher refrigerating capacity and to dehumidify the
indoor air.
We recommend dynamic cooling with fan convec-
tors, in order to achieve increased cooling capacity
and in order to dehumidify the air on muggy
summer days. You will find corresponding devices
in the KWD, KWK and WLT-S series on our web-
site: “www.remko.de”. The advantage here is that
dew point monitoring is not required.
REMKO series WSP
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