Absorption cycle heat pump model for control design

Heat pumps have recently received increasing interest due to green energy initiatives and increasing energy prices. In this paper, a nonlinear dynamic model of a single-effect LiBr-water absorption cycle heat pump is derived for simulation and control design purposes. The model is based on an actual heat pump located at a larger district heating plant. The model is implemented in Modelica and is based on energy and mass balances, together with thermodynamic property functions for LiBr and water and staggered grid representations for heat exchangers. Model parameters have been fitted to operational data and different scenarios are simulated to investigate the operational stability of the heat pump. Finally, this paper provides suggestions and examples of derivation of lower order linear models for control design.