Thermoelectric and solar heat pump use toward self sufficient buildings: The case of a container house

Abstract This paper studies an innovative heat pump that couples both solar and thermoelectric contributions and evaluates its implementation in an energy-efficient container house for civil inhabitation. The strong point of the proposed design is that it can be personalized according to the specific needs of the building. The building and the air conditioning system has been evaluated according to the first and second law of thermodynamics. In particular, different options have been considered by a holistic method that aims to produce arbitrary system configurations such as Industry 4.0 Digital Twin and constructal law based design. The building system has been studied by considering the climatic data in the location of Bologna (Italy). The solar contribution has been analysed monthly. The solar gains by transparent elements have been estimated. The resulting configuration produces the design of an innovative building. It benefits from three qualifying elements. Sandwich walls include high-efficiency Vacuum Insulated Panels (VIP) for minimizing heat dispersions. The evaluation of seasonal shading has allowed optimizing smart windows. An innovative cogeneration heat pump couples solar energy and heating–cooling by mean of thermoelectric effect with heat recovery from photovoltaic systems. The acclimatization is realized by Peltier cells and heat recovery (during winter) from photovoltaic modules. A complete analysis and dimensioning of the building and heat pump is provided, demonstrating the advantages of the proposed system.

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