A refrigerant-to-water heat exchanger downstream of the compressor of a conventional air-to-air heat pump serves as a desuperheater, transfer thermal energy to the water, and may provide most of the hot water requirements in a residential application. The performance of the desuperheater depends on the operating conditions affecting the return water temperature, the refrigerant discharge temperature, and their flow rates. Test data demonstrate desuperheater generally increases the EER of the heat pump and decreases the COP while in a heating mode. These changes can be quite notable and are dependent on the heat pump's operating conditions and the conditions of the water entering the desuperheater.

KEYWORDS: refrigerants, intercoolers, compressors, air air heat pumps, heat flow, water heat exchangers, hot water supply,domestic, performance, heat pumps, water temperature, temperature, flow rate, coefficient of performance.