This paper describes recently developed and recommended performance tests and analysis procedures to characterize the heating and cooling performance of gas-engine heat pumps so that their overall seasonal performance, energy usage, and operating costs can be estimated for various climates and building loads. Altogether, 17 performance test points are described which will be sufficient to measure the steady-state and cyclic heating and cooling performance of a variable-capacity engine-driven heat pump operating over a wide range of outdoor air temperatures. These 17 tests include II steady-state performance tests, two partload cyclic tests, one defrost cyclic test, one auxiliary heater steady-state test, and two domestic water heating steady-state tests.

These test procedures are similar to, and based on, existing ASHRAE and ARI Standards, particularly ANSI/ASHRAE1 16-1983 and ARI 210/240-1984.

The data analysis procedures and equations given in the paper will allow the performance test data for a given engine heat pump to be used to perform a BIN analysis for a selected climate and building load. Typical heating and cooling load curves are included for both a northern-climate and a southern-climate residence. The final calculated results will indicate the expected seasonal coefficient of performance (SCOP) for both heating and cooling, as well as the seasonal and annual operating costs for the gas-engine-driven heat pump. Also, a "cost COP" equation is presented that allows an approximate comparison to be made between the COP of a gas heat pump and an all-electric heat pump, while recognizing the cost ratio of gas to electricity.

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