SCOP experimental comparison of refrigerants R454B and R410A in a domestic heat pump

Abstract

R410A is a widely used refrigerant in commercial heat pump units. The Global Warming Potential (GWP) of R410A is 1924, so lower GWP alternatives such as R454B are being proposed. R454B is a mildly flammable refrigerant with a GWP of 466. In this paper, we present and analyze the results of the seasonal coefficient of performance (SCOP) of a domestic brine‐to‐water heat pump with the refrigerants R410A and R454B. The main components of the heat pump are a variable speed scroll type compressor, two brazed plate heat exchangers (condenser and evaporator) and an electronic expansion valve. The part load testing conditions and the calculation methods to determine the SCOP are based on the EN 14825:2018 standard. Results show that for the same design heating load, the SCOP of R454B is about 1.5% higher than for R410A.