Project: Advanced Ground Source Heat Pump Technology

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Three new/under-utilized ground loop designs being evaluated for their ground loop cost reduction potential. Credit: Oak Ridge National Lab.
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Cumulative GSHP conditioned building floor space in the United States and China. Credit: Oak Ridge National Lab.
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Lead Performer: Oak Ridge National Laboratory - Oak Ridge, TN
Partners:
-- ClimateMaster - Oklahoma City, OK
-- Oklahoma State University - Stillwater, OK
-- Oklahoma Gas & Electric - Oklahoma City, OK
-- International Ground Source Heat Pump Association - Stillwater, OK
-- Chinese Academy of Building Research - Beijing, China
-- Tongji University - Shanghai, China
-- Tianjin University - Tianjin, China
-- Chongqing University - Chongqing, China
DOE Funding: $785,000
Cost Share: $800,000
Project Term: Dec. 2010 - Dec. 2015

Project Objective

The U.S.-China Clean Energy Research Center (CERC) is a pioneering research and development (R&D) consortium bringing together governments, key policymakers, researchers, and industry to develop a long-term platform for sustainable U.S.-China joint R&D. This ongoing CERC project accelerates ground source heat pump (GSHP) deployment by developing and identifying new technologies that reduce cost and/or improve performance. A central goal of this project is the exchange of best practices between the two countries, which can lead to improved operational efficiency and lower costs for GSHP systems. In addition to identifying lower-cost and performance-neutral ground heat exchangers, and comparing GSHP applications in the two countries, the project team is developing smart controls for components of GSHP systems, including circulation pumps and the hot water tank tied with GSHP systems for domestic hot water generation. These controls can increase both the space conditioning and water heating efficiency by 10%.

U.S.-China Partnership Project

Logo for the U.S.-China Clean Energy Research Center.

Click the logo to learn more about how the U.S. and China are working together to reduce building energy consumption.

CRADA Project

This is a cooperative research and development agreement project (CRADA). CRADAs are partnerships in which a private sector partner and a national lab work together to further research and development.

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Contacts

DOE Technology Manager: Tony Bouza, Richard Karney
Performer: Xiaobing Liu, Oak Ridge National Laboratory 

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