Calculation of COP of Heat Pumps

COP of a heat pump is defined as the ratio of heat rejected from the cycle to required work done.
COP
HP
= Heat Rejected / Work Done
= Q
H
/W
net.in
= Q
H
/Q
H
Q
L
= 1/1 Q
L
/Q
H

In case of temperatures,
COP
HP
= T
H
/T
H
T
L
= 1/1 T
L
/T
H

This shows that the COP
HP
is always greater than 1.
For Reversed Carnot Cycle:
The best possible performance giving the highest COP would be obtained from a system operating on a
Carnot cycle. Under such conditions the refrigeration cycle would be thermodynamically reversible, and
both the expansion and compression processes would be isentropic. A Carnot cycle is shown on a
temperature-entropy diagram in Figure.

Figure 1. T-S Diagram of Reversed Carnot Cycle

In case of Carnot Cycle, we represent COP
HP
in form of temperatures:
COP
HP
= T
H
/T
H
T
L
= 1/1 T
L
/T
H
The coefficients of performance of actual and reversible refrigerators operating between the same
temperature limits can be compared as follows:

<COP
HP,rev
Irrevesible Heat Pump
COP
HP
=COP
HP,rev
Reversible Heat Pump
>COP
HP,rev
Impossible Heat Pump

Figure 2. Pressure-Enthalpy diagram of Ideal
Vapor-Compression refrigeration cycle
The COP of a reversible heat pump is the maximum theoretical value for the specified temperature limits.
Actual heat pumps may approach these values as their designs are improved, but they can never reach
them. As a final note, the COPs heat pumps decrease as T
L
decreases.
For Ideal Vapor Compression Refrigeration Cycle
Many of the impracticalities associated with the reversed Carnot cycle can be eliminated by vaporizing
the refrigerant completely before it is com- pressed and by replacing the turbine with a throttling device,
such as an expansion valve or capillary tube. The cycle that results is called the ideal vapor-compression
refrigeration cycle, and it is shown schematically and on a T-s diagram in Fig. 3. The vapor-compression
refrigeration cycle is the most widely used cycle for refrigerators, air-conditioning systems, and heat
pumps. It consists of four processes:
1-2 Isentropic compression in a compressor
2-3 Constant-pressure heat rejection in a condenser
3-4 Throttling in an expansion device
4-1 Constant-pressure heat absorption in an evaporator.


Figure 3. T-S Diagram of Ideal Vapor-Compression refrigeration cycle

In this case, COP
HP
is given by
COP
HP
= q
H
/ w
net.in
= h
2
h
3
/ h
2
h
1


Explanation with example
The efficiency of a heat pump, COP
HP
, depends on several factors. Especially the temperature difference
between waste heat source and potential user is an important factor. The temperature difference between
condensation and evaporation temperature mainly determines the efficiency: the smaller the difference,
the higher the COP
HP
. The figure shows the influence of this temperature difference on the COP
HP
value.
These values are based on figures from a Grasso 65HP compressor with the refrigerant Ammonia. The
figure shows an increase in COP
HP
with an increasing evaporation temperature. Furthermore it shows a
decrease in COP
HP
with a decreasing condensation temperature. In general the COP
HP
decreases with an
increase in temperature difference between condensation and evaporation. The figure below gives an
indication of the dependence of the COP
HP
of an Ammonia heat pump as a function of this temperature
difference.

Figure 4. Relation of COP with temperature difference
C
O
P
H
P