Energy‐saving evaluation of a thermosyphon heat recovery unit for an air‐conditioning system

The energy-saving effect and economic benefits of a thermosyphon heat recovery unit installed in a shopping mall are investigated. To evaluate the thermal performance of the heat recovery unit in a season, a seasonal temperature effectiveness is advanced, and its calculation formula is deduced referring to the calculation method of seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER) for an air conditioner. The annual operating energy-saving effect of the unit is analyzed by using the seasonal temperature effectiveness while the static economic evaluation method is applied for the economic benefits analysis of the unit. The analysis results indicate the seasonal temperature effectiveness of the unit is 66.08% in the winter and 55.43% in the summer. The energy-saving effect of the unit is quite remarkable, and the payback time is about 2.65 years. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res; Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/htj). DOI 10.1002/htj.21049