USE OF AN OPEN ABSORPTION HEAT-PUMP FOR ENERGY-CONSERVATION IN A PUBLIC SWIMMING-POOL

A conventional climatization system at a public swimming-pool normally uses outdoor air to remove the moisture from the facility. This pract ice results in large heat losses. An open absorption heat-pump can deh umidify the outlet air from the building: this makes it possible to re circulate a larger amount of air and so reduce the heating requirement for the facility significantly. Measurements on two types of systems have been performed during approximately 4000 h in a bath house in nor thern Sweden. In 1990, the use of an open absorption heat-pump decreas ed the heat supply by 445 MWh (from 742 MWh), while the electricity su pply was increased by 233 MWh. The uncertainty in the annual energy sa ving with the open system can be estimated to be in the range 10-15%. If the present electric energy supply to the generator is replaced by another energy source, for example natural gas, the electricity demand of the absorption system will decrease considerably. The results show that public baths are an interesting application area for the open ab sorption technique.