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Analysis Of A Ground-Coupled Heat Pump During A Heating Season, Francis Conlin

Masters Theses

A ground-coupled heat pump, installed in an 170 square meter residential building in Knox County Tennessee, has been examined both experimentally and analytically. The ground coupling was realized with a 210 meter coil buried 1.2 meters beneath the soil, through which circulated a secondary heat transfer fluid. The house, the ground and the power consuming devices were instrumented, and hourly readings of temperatures, heat flows, power consumption, and weather data were recorded.

The experiment was carried out during the 1982-1983 heating season beginning in November and lasting 26 weeks. The overall heating seasonal performance factor was 2.57. No backup heat …