SBIR Phase I:Ground-Loop Heat Exchanger Solution for Low Cost Ground-Source Heat Pumps

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project is that it will significantly lower the initial cost of residential and commercial ground-source heat pump (GSHP) systems, while expanding the existing market through broadening GSHP applicability. This project will demonstrate the feasibility and performance under real-world conditions of a novel in-ground heat exchanger that is both inexpensive and easy to install, even on space-constrained lots, with little landscape disruption. The technology will lead to increased adoption of energy-efficient heating/ventilation/air conditioning (HVAC) technology, increasing the “electrification” of the energy economy and reducing air polluting emissions. These GSHP systems will impact the national market of heating and cooling systems, with potential annual energy savings of over 6.4 quadrillion BTUs, end-user savings of $77. B in annual energy costs, and reduced peak electricity demand by 144 GW. This SBIR Phase I project proposes to further develop a technology addressing the applicability, desirability and cost-competitiveness of GSHP systems. The chief technical objective of the project is to optimize system components and architectures by increasing fundamental understanding of in-ground heat exchanger performance and installation methods through digital and physical prototyping across a range of real-world conditions. A second technical objective is to improve fundamental understanding of the energy storage capability of the technology and how it can be leveraged through operational cycling to further increase the performance-cost ratio. Studies of physical prototyping, installation and thermal properties will be conducted, in addition to computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations. The primary goals are to demonstrate significant benefits in installed performance-to-cost and an installation time of under 8 hours for a typical residential 3-ton system, compared to the current state-of-the-art of 16 hours. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.