Buildings are responsible for 40% of total energy consumption and 36% of GHG emissions in Europe. Of these, residential space heating and cooling has a particularly large impact, accounting for over 17% of total energy consumption and being the main emitter of GHG in Europe.
At the same time, the EU Commission wants to reduce gas imports from Russia by two-thirds within a year to reach to overall goal of the EU to become independent of fossil fuels from Russia before 2030. This is to be achieved through the expansion of renewable energies such as biogas, new sources of gas supplies and a drastic reduction in energy consumption. Moreover, conventional HVAC systems are a main emitter of air pollutants and a significant contributor to our dependency on Russian oil and gas. Therefore, new intelligent and green HVAC systems using renewable energies are crucial to reduce energy consumption, improve urban life quality and ensure the EU goals to become independent of fossil fuels from Russia.
The Envola storage heat pump is the basis for a worldwide unique, highly efficient heating, cooling, and ventilation (HVAC) system for buildings. Basing on years of research, we developed the innovative storage heat pump which in combination with a water/ice/PCM storage forms the unique system architecture enabling the new system to make use of the natural temperature cycle and store cold and warmth available for cooling and heating when necessary. The core of the solution is software intelligence including deep learning patterns. This hardware and software driven solution significantly reduces energy consumption in buildings by >50% for cooling and >30% for heating, while at the same time reducing investment costs by 20% compared to HAVC systems available on the market. With the modular design, the system integration into existing building technology and the adding of further modules for new functionalities (e.g. e-mobility) is easy, guaranteeing the future viability of the system.
The overall objective of this project, to further develop the Envola heat pump to market maturity and mass-manufacturability as well as to successfully introduce it into the market, was reached at the end of the project.
