Strictly speaking, propane has only advan\u00adtages over synthetic refrigerants\u2014Jonathan Frei, devel\u00adoper at Heim AG, is convinced of this. And he should know. The heating system manu\u00adfac\u00adturer from Aadorf, Switzer\u00adland, is one of Europe\u2019s leading compa\u00adnies when it comes to the use of the non-fluo\u00adri\u00adnated refrig\u00aderant propane\u2014also known as R290\u2014in heat pumps. The effi\u00adciency and perfor\u00admance of these devices depend crucially on the choice of refrig\u00aderant, as it absorbs heat from the ambient air and trans\u00adfers it to the heating system. And this is where propane performs partic\u00adu\u00adlarly well compared to other chem\u00adical substances, as Frei explains: \u201cR290 has excel\u00adlent ther\u00admo\u00addy\u00adnamic prop\u00ader\u00adties, allows oper\u00ada\u00adtion at outside temper\u00ada\u00adtures of minus 20 degrees Celsius, enables flow temper\u00ada\u00adtures of 75 degrees Celsius and has a compar\u00ada\u00adtively very low global warming poten\u00adtial.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This last prop\u00aderty is becoming partic\u00adu\u00adlarly impor\u00adtant. For decades, fluo\u00adri\u00adnated gases were the medium of choice in refrig\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion. However, their high global warming poten\u00adtial (GWP) is cata\u00adstrophic. By way of compar\u00adison, the widely used refrig\u00aderant R410 A has a GWP of 2,088, while propane has a GWP of three. In the Euro\u00adpean Union and Switzer\u00adland, the use of fluo\u00adri\u00adnated gases is there\u00adfore to be grad\u00adu\u00adally restricted. But why haven\u2019t manu\u00adfac\u00adturers switched to propane earlier, given its outstanding prop\u00ader\u00adties? The answer is simple: \u201cR290 belongs to the safety class of flam\u00admable gases,\u201d says Frei.<\/p>\n\n\n
Jonathan Frei is devel\u00adoper and strong advo\u00adcate of propane. Heim AG, a Swiss manu\u00adfac\u00adturer of heating systems, is a Euro\u00adpean leader in the use of this non-fluo\u00adri\u00adnated refrig\u00aderant.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Propane (R290) allows oper\u00ada\u00adtion at outside temper\u00ada\u00adtures of minus 20 degrees Celsius and enables flow temper\u00ada\u00adtures of up to 75 degrees Celsius. In addi\u00adtion, its global warming poten\u00adtial (GWP) is very low.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
For the devel\u00adoper, however, a suit\u00adable safety concept ensures risk is manage\u00adable. Heim AG has already gained exten\u00adsive expe\u00adri\u00adence with the non-fluo\u00adri\u00adnated refrigerant\u2014both in outdoor heat pumps and in an indoor brine-water heat pump. What was still missing from the port\u00adfolio: an indoor air-to-water heat pump for single-family homes and smaller apart\u00adment build\u00adings. \u201cWith the LWKMi pro, as the new heat pump is called, we wanted to develop a highly effi\u00adcient and future-proof device that would fit easily into any base\u00adment,\u201d says Frei, summa\u00adrizing his task.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Measured by their global warming poten\u00adtial (GWP)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Public discus\u00adsion tends to focus on outdoor heat pumps. However, their indoor coun\u00adter\u00adparts offer several advan\u00adtages: no space is required around the perimeter of the house, neigh\u00adbors cannot hear any oper\u00adating noise and they are ideal for reno\u00adva\u00adtions. This is because there is space for a heat pump where the old gas or oil heating system used to heat the water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Public discus\u00adsion tends to focus on outdoor heat pumps. However, their indoor coun\u00adter\u00adparts offer several advan\u00adtages: no space is required around the perimeter of the house, neigh\u00adbors cannot hear any oper\u00adating noise and they are ideal for reno\u00adva\u00adtions. This is because there is space for a heat pump where the old gas or oil heating system used to heat the water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The higher flow temper\u00ada\u00adture offers another advan\u00adtage: no addi\u00adtional elec\u00adtric heating is required to meet the hygiene stan\u00addards for hot water prepa\u00adra\u00adtion. This is because synthetic refrig\u00ader\u00adants can only achieve temper\u00ada\u00adtures of 55 to 60 degrees Celsius. \u201cPropane thus ensures signif\u00adi\u00adcantly more effi\u00adcient oper\u00ada\u00adtion,\u201d says Frei.<\/p>\n\n\n
No space outside your home? No problem: Indoor heat pumps are ideal for reno\u00adva\u00adtions and allow you to use your existing radi\u00ada\u00adtors.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n