According to Hong Kong Energy End-use Data 2020, approximately 7% of the total energy consumption is expended for water heating purposes. This accounts for 18,900TJ (Terajoule) of energy use.
If heat pump is widely applied in Hong Kong for water heating, at least one-third of the energy consumption can be saved. It would be equivalent to avoiding over 686,000 Tonnes of carbon dioxide emission.
JF Thermal in Action
Ever since our first heat pump installation in Hong Kong in 1998, JF Thermal has been actively promoting heat pump for pool heating and hot water supply applications. Our estimation show that over the years, the total amount of energy saving we helped our clients achieve is over 3 million kWh. To put this into perspective, the carbon emission thus avoided will be approximately equivalent to:
Planting 50 hectares of woodland, or 80,000~100,000 trees
Taking 600 cars off the road, or reducing petrol usage by 800,000 litre per year
Are your heat pumps TRUELY GREEN?
Each stage of the life cycle of a heat pump system, from raw material extraction, to manufacturing, to transportation, to operation and finally at the disposal of the system at its end-of-life, brings about an impact on the environment.
According to a German study, the operation phase of an air-source heat pump is responsible for 78% of its total environmental impacts, whereas the manufacturing accounts for 21%. When compared, the impacts at the other stages of the life cycle are almost negligible.
The cradle-to-grave assessment of the heat pump system shows that, while heat pumps give zero carbon emissions in operation, the environmental impacts at the manufacturing stage can create a net burden to the environment if the heat pumps are frequently replaced. Not to mention some indirect impacts not taken into account in the German study, such as tendering and negotiation processes that will also repeat every time system replacement is needed.
Therefore, it is important to consider the durability, reliability and maintainability of the heat pump system.
Durability
Durability means the ability of the system to remain functional, without requiring excessive maintenance or repair, when faced with the challenges of normal operation over system design lifetime. A durable heat pump system not only minimises wastage and replacement costs, but can also avoid any system downtime. It is therefore important to take the selection of heat pump and the system design into serious consideration, for the best outcome to achieve carbon neutrality.
Reliability
Reliability is the probability that the system will perform its intended function adequately for a specified period of time, or will operate in a defined environment without failure. A system with low reliability may not be simply unable to operate normally, but failing to save energy or supply hot water. These could also cause user dissatisfaction, affecting the user’s willingness to use the equipment, or even any heat pumps in the future.
Maintainability
Maintainability of the system is to pick up where reliability may fall short. Not to be confused with repairing, maintenance is to maintain the good condition of the system, and to sustain its energy efficient performance. A good heat pump system would integrate operation and maintenance considerations into the design.
The more durable, reliable, and well-maintained a heat pump system, the higher its cost-performance ratio. Or in this case, carbon-performance ratio.
Built to perform and last.