Heat pump technology: An Alaska case study

• Published in: Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy
• Main Authors: Pike, Christopher, Whitney, Erin
• Other Authors: Alaska Energy Authority
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: AIP Publishing 2017
• Subjects: Arctic; Alaska
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4986584; https://pubs.aip.org/aip/jrse/article-pdf/doi/10.1063/1.4986584/15715004/061706_1_online.pdf

Heat pumps are a proven technology around the world and are being increasingly used in Alaska. Technological advances have improved their performance at low temperatures, making them more suitable for arctic environments. This analysis identified data related to 17 heat pumps installed in Alaska, which included air source, ground source, and sea water source systems. The data show that the average installed cost/kW of the heat pumps studied was $5,579. The minimum cost was just over $700/kW for a small air source minisplit system and over $12 000 for a complex vertical loop ground source heat pump. Air source heat pumps in Alaska have operated successfully down to −15 °C. Technological advances are ongoing that should enable further heat pump operation in colder climates.