The similarities between Dutch and British gas central heating mean these high temperature heat pumps could be suitable for UK housing in suburban and rural areas. They could enable households to swap out their existing gas boilers without needing to go to the additional expense and disruption of changing the rest of their heating system or installing additional insulation at the same time.
Many homes in the UK and the Netherlands are currently heated using a central heating boiler, that uses natural gas to heat the water, which then flows through a network of pipes and radiators. Alternatives such as an electric heat pump use electricity to pump heat in from the outside air.
The drawback with these devices is the cooler water temperature, which usually sits between 45 and 55 degrees Celsius. To allow these heat pumps to work at their most efficient, houses need to have their insulation improved, underfloor heating fitted or the radiators adapted. Gas boilers and the high temperature heat pump sit between 60 to 80 degrees Celsius, meaning that these additional works are not required.
Mark Anderson, Commercial and Development Director at Vattenfall Heat UK, said:
“The high temperature heat pump solution is innovative, simple to install and could be the solution to help decarbonise homes in the UK that are heated using traditional gas boilers.
“There isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to decarbonising heating. Removing emissions from heating relies on us making better use of waste heat from all sources and installing the right technologies in the correct locations of the country, where they will be most effective and affordable.”
Research conducted by Vattenfall in the UK last year found that just under a quarter of UK adults are confident they could afford to install a low-carbon heating system. The price of the high-temperature heat pump will be comparable to current low and medium temperature heat pumps, but without the extra cost of retrospective insulation and/or under floor heating.
