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3.3.5 The Latest Heat Pump Situation
Within the household, hot water supply, in particular, consumes a lot of energy.
Japan is at the forefront of the world with regard to energy saving equipment in this
field. One of these equipment is an electric water heater called EcoCute, which boils
hot water with the heat of the air. EcoCute is based on a heat pump technology that
enables extracting energy using temperature differences.
Currently, the power generation efficiency of thermal power plants in Japan is
42% on average. When you boil water with EcoCute, you can get about six times
more energy, so multiplying 42% by 6 indicates that about 2.5 times more heat can
be produced.
EcoCute has been on the market for more than 15 years, but during this time heat
pump technology has evolved remarkably, prices have declined, and water heaters
has consequently become increasingly popular. As shown in Fig. 3.13, the Heat
Pump & Thermal Storage Technology Center of Japan has estimated the introduction of household heat pump water heaters in the future. The low variant represents
Prevalence rate [%]
Before moving
After moving
Figure in parentheses indicate rate of
improvement
Allergic rhinitis (27%)
Allergic conjunctivitis (33%)
Hypertensive diseases (33%)
Atopic dermatitis (59%)
Bronchial asthma (70%)
Arthritis (68%)
Pneumonia (62%)
Diabetes (71%)
Cardiac diseases (81%)
Cerebrovascular diseases (84%)
Fig. 3.12 Changes in disease prevalence rate due to improved insulation and airtightness performance and improvement rate. (Source: Ikaga et al. 2011)
3.3 Low Carbon Technologies in the Home and Business Sectors
3.3.5 The Latest Heat Pump Situation
Within the household, hot water supply, in particular, consumes a lot of energy.
Japan is at the forefront of the world with regard to energy saving equipment in this
field. One of these equipment is an electric water heater called EcoCute, which boils
hot water with the heat of the air. EcoCute is based on a heat pump technology that
enables extracting energy using temperature differences.
Currently, the power generation efficiency of thermal power plants in Japan is
42% on average. When you boil water with EcoCute, you can get about six times
more energy, so multiplying 42% by 6 indicates that about 2.5 times more heat can
be produced.
EcoCute has been on the market for more than 15 years, but during this time heat
pump technology has evolved remarkably, prices have declined, and water heaters
has consequently become increasingly popular. As shown in Fig. 3.13, the Heat
Pump & Thermal Storage Technology Center of Japan has estimated the introduction of household heat pump water heaters in the future. The low variant represents
Prevalence rate [%]
Before moving
After moving
Figure in parentheses indicate rate of
improvement
Allergic rhinitis (27%)
Allergic conjunctivitis (33%)
Hypertensive diseases (33%)
Atopic dermatitis (59%)
Bronchial asthma (70%)
Arthritis (68%)
Pneumonia (62%)
Diabetes (71%)
Cardiac diseases (81%)
Cerebrovascular diseases (84%)
Fig. 3.12 Changes in disease prevalence rate due to improved insulation and airtightness performance and improvement rate. (Source: Ikaga et al. 2011)
3.3 Low Carbon Technologies in the Home and Business Sectors