Heating Flashcards
How much of energy used in UK is by space and water heating?
30%
This is for both domestic and commercial use (offices, shops, restaurants, hotels etc).
How much UK energy need is for heating?
Greater than 45%
How much of domestic heating needs is achieced by gas heating systems?
80%
Unfortunately installed domestic boilers are dominated by the more
inefficient non condensing type (efficiency 60%) rather than the condensing
types ( efficiency 95%).
The medium to long term needs to decarbonise heat production has meant?
That new technologies are apperaing and being applied to existing approches to increase effiency and reduce heating needs.
Example: Improving insulation
How well works solar heating in the UK?
A variety of improvements of solar collectors have resulted in increasing effectiveness with trials being carried out in the UK to show the extent of energy recovery. In the UK back up heating is required but in the summer months solar heating can provide the majority of heating requirements. However in winter it can be as low as 9%.. Overall solar heating can provide 40% of heating
requirement
Explain the heat pump
Common in Europe but not so in the UK.
It transfers heat from low temperature energy source such as the air and the ground to the higher tempertaure energy for heatin gpurposes. Its effeicney is defined by a cieffuenct of performance (COP), the ration of the energy ransferred to the energy used.
The typical COP are of the order 3-4 , ie 4 time
s the heat has been transferred compared to the work to achieve it.
What is some diffrence from the air and ground heat pumps?
Air:
- Relativley inexpensive
- Wide variation in air tempature -> worse heat transfer
Ground:
- Expensive
- Stabile conditions
- Better heat transfer
Explain wind to heat
Using wind power and directly convert is to electricity to then use that to heat water for storage and use
Due to the ability to store the energy ( in hot water) and then directly use it ,
this system is better to suited to the variability of wind.
Explain Bio Mass Heating Systems
Bio mass heating using wood, grass, crops etc grown for burning can be argued to produce a neutral carbon generation. Plants
absorb CO2 as they grow which will be released on burning resulting in no net CO2 generation.
In the UK domestic multi fuel burners are common, as are more effective larger scale systems using pelletized bio-mass. These methods can be effective but require more effort in maintaining and using fuel supplies. It has been calculated that there is insufficient land mass in the UK for this to be a general solution, since land for food production will still be required.
Explain Industry heating
Industry uses hgher tempatures than domestic espacially for food production and metal production.
At present these generally use high energy density fuels such as gas heating methodes.
Presently few low carbon technologies exist to replace these heating
methods so focus on efficiency, moving to electric heating methods or
CCS are considered.
Change the heating systems in the UK by?
Current approaches to
produce low carbon heating is to decrease use by making heating systems more efficient and developing better insulated houses, easy for new homes but more difficult for existing housing stock.
Since the homes in the UK are owner occupied or privately rented changing heating systems can only done using incentivisation schemes or fuel pricing.
Currently the most promising is to move to electric based heat pump systems. However, this will require significant additional capacity in electricity network since heating is generally currently gas based
