HP2MIX – High Performance Heat Pumps with Zeotropic Mixtures

Right now, Danish Technological Institute is participating in a project, whose primary goal is to develop and demonstrate a high-performance heat pump technology utilizing natural refrigerant mixtures as working fluids. The project targets an efficiency improvement of up to 30% over conventional heat pumps while maintaining cost-effectiveness through a simple design.

The HP2MIX project's core activities center on the development and testing of two systems: a small-scale prototype and a full-scale demonstration plant.

The prototype will serve as a testbed for component development and system optimization. It will be used to validate compressor performance, optimize heat exchanger designs, and refine control strategies suitable for refrigerants with high temperature glides. Furthermore, the prototype will be used to develop methods for determining the concentration of the refrigerant mixture during operation.

The insights gained from the prototype will be integrated into the design of the 500 kW demonstration plant, which will be installed and tested at an end-user. This full-scale demonstration will provide valuable data on performance, reliability, and real-world integration challenges.

The project's activities are structured around seven work packages. These include conceptualization, where theoretical models will be developed and use cases will be defined; technology validation and prototyping, involving the construction and testing of a small-scale prototype; and focused technology development in the areas of compressors, heat exchangers, and control systems.

The developments from the project are expected to provide a basis for electrifying a substantial portion of the industrial process heat demand.

The proposed technology is particularly valuable for industrial processes with large temperature changes in their heating streams and heat source streams. These boundary conditions are often found in food processing, chemical manufacturing, and water-to-water district heating systems.

About the project group
In this project, which will run for three years (starting February 2025), Danish Technological Institute (project manager) will collaborate with a wide range of partners:

• DTU Construct, Kelvion, Solid Energy, Innargi, and Frascold.

The project receives funding from EUDP.