Heat Pump Experiment

Real Time COP measurement

MEE 443

Luc Chabot

Nicholas Gramlich

Colin Wood

Alexander Norton

5/6/2011
Contents
Table of Figures................................................................................................................................2
Introduction:....................................................................................................................................3
Objective..........................................................................................................................................3
Apparatus & Instruments:...............................................................................................................3
Data Methods and Procedure:.........................................................................................................6
Expected Results:.............................................................................................................................8
Plan of Work From 1/19 to 4/25......................................................................................................8
Results..............................................................................................................................................9

Table of Figures
Figure 1 Mini-split COP experimental setup....................................................................................4
Figure 2 Duct work specifications....................................................................................................6
Figure 3 Electrical Panel of Indoor Unit...........................................................................................9
Figure 4 Close Up of Measurement points....................................................................................10
Figure 5 Comparison of Mass Flow Rate and Voltage...................................................................11
Figure 6 Velocity Profile for the Mini-Split Unit at a High Fan Setting...........................................12
Introduction:
The 9RLS Fujitsu mini-split heat pump is a device intended to supplement or replace
conventional methods of heating. A heat pump moves heat energy from a thermal reservoir to a
desired location by evaporating and condensing a fluid. Heat is absorbed by the fluid when it is
evaporated, and heat is rejected when it is condensed back into a liquid. For the case of the
9RLS unit, the thermal reservoir is the outdoor air, while the area of heat rejection is the inside
of a building.

Electrical power is required to run the compressor that causes the unit to function.
However, the electricity is not used to create the primary source of heat. The electricity is
simply used to move the energy from one place to another. That means for every unit of
electrical energy purchased, you can move several units of heat to a desired location. This is
known as the Coefficient of Performance.

Fujitsu has several different values of COP published for this unit based on varying
temperatures of the thermal reservoir and the desired temperature of the indoor space to be
heated. However, these values seem vague, as they do not take into account the fan settings
that may be changed by the operator. Therefore, it would be extremely useful to the consumer
to be able to easily measure the COP of the system.

The coefficient of performance is given by the equation Eq. 1. Q indoor-unit is the heat
transfer into the desired space; in the case of the 9RLS system, this is done by the indoor unit.
Wentireunit is the work done by the system provided by electricity.

COP = Qindoor-unit/Wentireunit Eq. 1

Objective
The objective of this experiment is to obtain real time coefficient of performance data
for the 9RLS Fujitsu mini split system. To do this there must be a reliable way to calculate the
two variables from Eq. 1. As it is difficult to constantly measure the mass flow rate of air through
the indoor unit of the heat pump a correlation between the input voltage to the indoor and fan
speed must be obtained.

Apparatus & Instruments:

Figure 1 is the apparatus that is going to be used to test the COP of the 9RLS Fujitsu mini-
split heat pump. The work into the entire heat pump unit is simply the electrical power input to
the system. To measure this electrical input an ammeter and multimeter will be used to
measure the current and voltage respectively.

To measure the heat transfer of the indoor unit three measurements are to be made. A
hot wire anemometer will be utilized to measure the velocity of the air flowing through the
duct, as well as the temperature of the air in the latter section of the duct. A type K
thermocouple will be used to measure the temperature of the air intake into the indoor unit of
the heat pump. The following list describes the instrumentation to be used in the experiment:

Figure 1 Mini-split COP experimental setup

Hot wire Anemometer:
Brand: ALNOR
Model #: CF8585
Range: 20-9999 fpm
1-140 F
Accuracy: 3% of face value (fpm) or 3 fpm whichever is greater
0.5F

Thermometer:
Brand: OMEGA
Model #: HH509 Digital Thermometer
Range: -328F to 1999F
Accuracy: (0.1% rdg +2F)

Ammeter:
Brand: UEI
Model #: DL39 Clamp on Current Meter
Range: 20A (AC)
Accuracy: 2% +10 digits

Multimeter:
Brand: Electronic Specialties
Model #: 501
Range: 500V
Accuracy: 0.05% rdg 5 digits
 Figure 2 shows the precise specifications for the ductwork that is going to be made for
this experiment. To obtain an accurate velocity profile across the face of the duct the flow must
be measured ten duct diameters from the inlet fan into the duct as well as the flow regulating
damper of the heat pump unit. The hydraulic diameter of the duct shown in figure 2 is 8.4
inches. Ten duct diameters would make a duct length of seven feet. An extra foot of duct length
was added onto the end of the duct for an easy place to attach the anemometer for data taking.

Figure 2 Duct work specifications

Data Methods and Procedure:

The final goal of the experiment is to measure the COP of the 9RLS system. This will be
done using the aforementioned Eq. 1. As one cannot directly measure the two variables in the
equation, they must be broken down further. Equation Eq. 2 is an adaptation of the first law of
thermodynamics for an ideal gas. In this equation m is the mass flow rate of air through the
indoor unit. Cp is the specific heat of air, a known constant. TOutlet is the temperature of the air
exiting the duct work, measured by the anemometer. TInlet is the temperature of the air entering
the indoor unit of the 9RLS unit, measured by a thermocouple.

Qindoor-unit = m*Cp*(TOutlet-TInlet) Eq. 2

Unfortunately, the mass flow rate of air cannot be easily measured directly. To obtain the
mass flow rate through the duct work, the average velocity of air moving through the duct must
be found. This can then be used to calculate the volumetric flow of air through the duct. Once
the volumetric flow of the duct is known, it can be multiplied by the density of air to obtain the
mass flow rate. Equations Eq. 3 and Eq. 4 depict these two relations.

Volf = Vav * Aduct Eq. 3

m = *Volf Eq. 4

In these two equations Volf is the volumetric flow rate of air through the duct. Vav is the
average velocity of air through the duct, measured by the anemometer. A duct is the cross
sectional area of the duct, which is a known value from figure 2. is the density of air, a known
value. Using equations 2, 3 and 4 are all that is needed to calculate the heat transfer done by
the indoor unit.

The next piece of data that must be obtained to use Eq. 1 is the power input to the 9RLS
system from electricity. This can be simply calculated via Joules law, Eq. 5. The two variables in
this equation are easily measureable. V is the voltage of the electrical line going into the 9RLS
system; this will be measured with a digital multi-meter. I is the current running through the
same line; this will be measured with an ammeter.

Wentireunit = V*I Eq. 5

This experiment will be set up in Crosby Laboratory between two of the fabrication
rooms. The outdoor unit and the indoor unit will be attached to a frame and placed in a
doorway between the two rooms. In one room, the heat will be turned off and the windows will
be opened to simulate an outdoor temperature; this room will be the thermal reservoir for the
outdoor unit. In the other room, the windows, blinds, and doors will be closed; this is the space
where heat will be rejected. The two units will be separated by a layer of pink insulation foam
which will block off all air flow through the door between the two rooms. The edges of the foam
will be sealed with plastic to ensure the blockage of air flow between the rooms. Thus, all heat
transfer will be done by the heat pump.
Expected Results:
For this experiment it is expected that for any given temperature difference between the
inlet and outlet of the indoor unit, an increase in mass flow will result in a decrease in overall
COP. It is expected that the increase in power required to create a higher mass flow rate through
the indoor unit will consume more power into the system when compared to the increase in
heat transfer into the heated space.

The following is a schedule followed by the testing group to prepare the experiment and
to collect and interpret the data.

Plan of Work From 1/19 to 4/25

Results
Accessing the electrical panel on the 9RLS Fujitsu heat pump led the experiment group
to find that there was a constant voltage power supply leading to the indoor unit fan motor.
From this, it could be inferred that the device that regulated the actual power being drawn by
the fan itself was built into the motor and could not be accessed. However, it was also found
that there was a low voltage control wire also going into the motor. This voltage regulated the
velocity of the fan, which directly correlates with the mass flow rate of air. Figure 3 shows the
electrical panel where the control voltage was measured. Figure 4 gives a much closer look at
the wires where the voltage measurement was taken.

Figure 3 Electrical Panel of Indoor Unit

 Figure 4 Close Up of Measurement points

Through experimentation a relationship between air mass flow rate and control voltage
has been found. Figure 5 depicts this comparison graphically, with air mass flow rate in lbm/hr
and voltage in volts. It is clear that there is a direct linear correlation between voltage and mass
flow rate, with an R2 of .9981. The slope of the curve is negative, meaning mass flow increases
as voltage decreases.

As Figure 5 shows, the equation relating control voltage of the indoor unit fan to mass
flow rate can be found as Equation Eq. 6, where VC is the control voltage and mD is the average
mass flow rate of air in the duct:

mD = -920.5* Vc + 5109.3 Eq. 6

Figure 5 Comparison of Mass Flow Rate and Voltage
 This inverse relationship between control voltage and mass flow exists due to the nature
of the indoor unit fan motor. A constant 208 volt power is supplied to the fan motor, which has
a speed regulator built into the motor. To vary the fan speed a control system build into the heat
pump sends a small voltage signal to this regulator within the motor. As the voltage and current
supplied to the fan at any one setting are constant, it is impossible to tell how much power the
fan is using in relation to its mass flow rate at any one time. However, by measuring the control
voltage, the above curve could be correlated.

To measure these values, the control voltage was taken for each of the programmable
fan settings of High, Medium, Low and Quiet. The mass flow rate was then calculated for each
fan setting using a velocity profile such as in Figure 6, which is comprised of actual
measurements of the flow across the ducts width. Figure 6 specifically shows the velocity
profile for the High fan setting.

Figure 6 Velocity Profile for the Mini-Split Unit at a High Fan Setting

The test run for calculating COP was for a temperature difference of 80 F on the indoor
end and 76 F on the outdoor end, and the calculations for indoor unit mass flow rate and heat
transfer were found via Equation 2. This yielded an expectedly high Coefficient of Performance
of 11.48. This was obtained by having a compressor work of 596.14 Btu/h, an indoor unit heat
transfer of 6845.2 Btu/hr, and an indoor unit air mass flow rate of 1022.28 lbm/hr. This mass
flow rate puts the fan speed at about Low for this application. The high efficiency is expected
because of the relatively low temperature difference between the condenser (outdoor unit) and
evaporator (indoor unit).