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One of the important heating criteria of a greenhouse in the Northern hemisphere countries is heat availability, particularly in the winter season. Among other heat storage types, seasonal soil-based energy storage performance is auspicious. However, the performance is affected by the length and depth of borehole pipes used, which are very expensive for growers. Therefore, this study investigates the performance of a shallow seasonal soil-based energy storage heat pump, in a greenhouse. Thick insulations were installed to reduce soil heat loss. The soil thermal imbalance ratio was calculated to know the thermal recovery resulted. Based on the results, the heat pump's seasonal coefficient of performance (COP) heating and cooling varied between 1.48–2.97 and 1.20–3.45, respectively. The COPsys heating and cooling were observed to be 1.51 and 1.55, respectively. However, the system successfully maintained indoor temperature >16°C in other seasons, except for winter. Due to low brine input in winter, the average indoor temperature dropped to 11°C, indicating a thermal soil property problem. Moreover, the proposed system achieved soil thermal imbalance ratio of 32.76%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The UK power grid is inadequate for 100 % EV adoption. • December's 25 % EV and HP demand exceed the 500-kW peak grid capacity. • Solar energy peaks misalign with residential community demands. • The system achieves full penetration in all seasons except winter challenges. Electric vehicles (EVs) and heat pumps (HPs) are key in reducing carbon emissions from transportation and domestic heating, yet their adoption may increase peak load demands on electrical networks. One of the aims of this research is to assess the potential impact of uncontrolled EV charging on community-scale distribution networks, exploring how this could stress the existing electrical infrastructure. It also explores the role of EVs in Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) and smart charging applications, aiming to enhance community distribution systems. The study investigates the maximum stabilisation level achievable under various scenarios, highlighting the importance of smart energy management in integrating renewable energy and addressing uncertainties in the modelling process. Additionally, this study discusses the proposed systems' scalability, consumer behaviours' impact on the suggested energy solutions, and the potential implications of recent technological advancements for simulated communities. The research employs a sophisticated, integrative approach, combining stochastic methods with several robust energy software. Key findings suggest that uncontrolled EV charging can lead to grid capacity issues at high EV penetration levels, particularly during colder months. While smart charging and V2G technologies can moderate peak loads in many scenarios, achieving 100 % sustainable technology integration requires enhanced energy management or increased network capacity, especially in winter. Wind and solar power integration demonstrates strategic complementarity, particularly in winter, enhancing the reliability and stability of the community grid. It is also observed that peak solar generation hours misalign with the community's highest demand times, posing challenges for solar energy utilisation in EV charging in residential-based areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The case study presented in this paper is an innovative ground source heat pump (GSHP) system constituted by a hybrid Photovoltaic Thermal (PVT) solar system for poultry houses. Farmers tend to not to apply GSHPs because of the high prices of excavation and time consumption. The innovative heat pump system assessed in this study comprises of a new type of heat exchangers; a thin-tube solar polyethylene heat exchanger installed between roof tiles and PV panels and a novel vertical ground heat exchanger to utilize the heat stored in the soil. The heating system applied to a poultry house are monitored and evaluated under a variety of environmental and operating conditions to achieve annual/long-term efficiency of the heating system in Kirton, UK. The maximum heating demand of the poultry house is determined 34.4 MWh/PC while the minimum is 11,1 MWh/PC. The monitored results show that the heat pump produced 15.02 MWh of thermal energy per annum. Solar PV and heat pump worked very well together with solar PV covering all the heat pump's annual electrical energy requirement and generated 8.74 MWh of extra electricity exported to the grid. The seasonal coefficient of performance is found 3.73 through a year. The novel PVT-GSHP heating system is a very promising solution for high fossil fuel consumption in the agriculture industry and the energy savings of the whole system can be noticeably increased dependent up on the system controlling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the promise of abundant renewable energy resources in the world, the poultry sector is still dominated by traditional energy sources. In this study, results of a field trial of an innovative and cost-effective HVAC system design applied to a poultry house have been presented. This system comprises of two integrated novel components; a polyethylene heat exchanger (PHE) based a photovoltaic thermal (PVt) array and an efficient and innovative ground pipe array coupled to a heat pump driven HVAC system. The analysis included the daily PV electrical output and heat pump performance. The results of the experimental study reveal that 3733 kWh and 2432 kWh heat energy have been supplied in the 7-week growth cycle of chickens condition, respectively. The COP of the HP has been calculated for the winter period and observed between 2.3 and 2.43. The PV system was able to generate 1876 kWh electrical energy with potential to meet HP's energy needs in the most energy needing period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Solar energy assisted heat pump systems (SAHP) have been used in this application. SAHP system with solar collectors and the heat pump are combined into one unit so as to convey the solar energy to the refrigerant. The solar collector is used as the evaporator, where the refrigerant is directly vaporized by solar energy input. Due to the complicated technical issues associated with a combined system that provides air for space heating and domestic hot water, most of the previous studies have concentrated on water heater heat pump mechanism. The current work is aimed at examining the use of a new multi-functional heat pump (DX-SAMHP) , air for space heating mutually with solar for domestic hot water without employing an auxiliary heater. Comprehensive experimental and analytical studies in the first of its kind have been performed on the new system. The novel system with ternary panels and the thermal performance of the collector has been examined in this study. Results indicate that the DX-SAMHP using solar inner and outer panels for space and water heating is a promising substitute for the existing DX-SAHP water heater. Compared to the conventional solar-assisted SAHP heat pump systems, the coefficient performance of the new design doubles that of the conventional DX-SAHP systems. Highlights • Developed design for heating system using solar assisted-heat pump cycle and R-407C as working fluid is proposed. • Positive influence of using indoor collector in absorbing wasted heat. • Comparison of experimental and mathematical modelling for predicting cycle process and measuring COP's. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solar energy and wasted heat in buildings are capable of supplying enough energy to answer the total demand of energy in dwellings. However, fluctuation in fuel prices and gas emissions are the main driving forces behind efforts. In this experimental study, a direct expansion solar-assisted heat pump system (DX-SAHP) using a bare ternary “retrofitted collectors with black paint” is investigated at the laboratory with a solar simulator and tested for domestic hot water (DHW) and space heating under quasi-static conditions. Unglazed solar collector absorber plates are used as an evaporator, and these are composed of two aluminium plates which are placed externally whilst another plate is mounted internally in the loft space of the house, where operating liquid from the heat pump is directly evaporated. The influence of outside temperature, solar irradiation and/or waste heat on the heating performance of DX-SAHP is investigated. The impact of the parameters such as the inlet temperature and the mass flow rate of the heat transfer fluid is also assessed. Preliminary results elucidate that the refrigeration cycle can be a promising substitute for space heating and hot water when compared to the heat pump systems. This design technique results in higher solar collector/evaporator efficiency and lower system losses due to low evaporating temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• EV presents a technical challenge to the grid and an opportunity to introduce sustainable and novel solutions. • A sustainable energy strategy is proposed to exploit the synergy between EV batteries and heat pumps. • Electrification of transport and heat in buildings can reduce typical householder carbon footprint by up to 87%. The demand for electricity has been increasing worldwide and it is predicted that this trend will be particularly reinforced in developing countries by the gradual electrification of the transport sector and heat generation in buildings. The energy supply infrastructure required to meet the additional electricity demand should be carefully managed in light of the climate change carbon emission targets and commitments. A large proportion of the new electricity loads will be met from renewable sources. Therefore, means of power storage become vital to smooth out the intermittent nature of these energy supplies. The introduction of Electric Vehicles (EVs) could provide a viable and dynamic power storage solution through the concept of Vehicle-to-everything (V2X). This involves the storage of renewable energy (RE) in EV batteries during the charging cycle and restitution to the grid (V2G) or homes (V2H) when needed. In this context, this paper presents a methodology involving several strategies to stabilise the grid system and examines the impact of various types of EVs and heat pumps (HPs) for supplying heat in buildings. The results of this research approach show that the synergy of using V2H could reduce the carbon footprint of a typical domestic building in the United Kingdom (UK) by up to 87% and potentially recover up to 21.9 kWh/day of surplus renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]