Performance Evaluation and Carbon Emission Reduction Analysis of a Coupled Photovoltaic Thermal and Air Source Heat Pump Heating System in Office Buildings

Abstract

PV/T collectors and Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP) are widely studied for building heating, but solar intermittency and ASHP low-temperature frosting limit their large-scale deployment. A novel PV/T-ASHP coupled heating system is proposed to cut building carbon emissions and relieve ASHP performance degradation in cold zones. Circulating water cools PV/T panels to boost power generation, and the warmed water preheats ASHP evaporator inlet air to reduce frosting and defrosting frequency. With a Xi’an office building as the research object, validated TRNSYS 18.0 models are established for comparative analysis with conventional systems and cross-climate evaluation in Xi’an, Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu. Results show the new system lifts PV/T combined efficiency by 17.56%, reduces energy consumption by 19.9%, and achieves an average COP of 3.2. Across climate zones, its COP rises 11.5–24.6% and 50-year carbon emissions fall 16.4–26.2%, supporting low-carbon heating promotion for office buildings.