Integrated Intelligent Energy ›› 2026, Vol. 48 ›› Issue (6): 57-67.doi: 10.3969/j.issn.2097-0706.2026.06.005

• Thermal Energy Storage Material and Technology • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Optimization of solar-assisted air source heat pump dual-source system for wolfberry drying in Northwest China

WANG Yingchao1,2(), LIU Yasuo1(), GAO Jia1(), JIANG Jiading1(), YIN Shaowu1,3(), FAN Xiaochao1()   

  1. 1 School of Energy EngineeringXinjiang Institute of EngineeringUrumqi 830023, China
    2 School of Mechanical and Automotive EngineeringSouth China University of TechnologyGuangzhou 510641, China
    3 School of Energy and Environmental EngineeringUniversity of Science and Technology BeijingBeijing 100083, China
  • Received:2025-09-10 Revised:2025-11-10 Published:2026-04-17
  • Supported by:
    National Natural Science Foundation of China(72361033);Natural Science Foundation Project of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region(2023D01A79);Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region "2+5" Key Talent Program Project(03090003448);Key Research and Development Program of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region(2022B01018-1)

Abstract:

To address the high energy consumption,heavy carbon emissions, and the instability and weather dependency of traditional solar drying technologies in Northwest China, an efficient and stable multi-energy complementary drying system has been developed. The system aimed to provide a clean drying technology suitable for regions in Northwest China with abundant solar resources. Taking wolfberry drying in Jinghe County,Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region,as the application scenario,a solar-assisted air source heat pump dual-source drying system was proposed and constructed. A dynamic simulation model was established on the TRNSYS platform. Combined with local meteorological data,the operational characteristics of the system under typical operating conditions were analyzed. A dual-mode operational strategy based on working-condition switching was proposed:solar energy provided heating independently on sunny days,while the heat pump supplied auxiliary heating on cloudy days or under insufficient solar irradiation conditions. Taking the system's annual cost as the optimization objective,key parameters including collector area,heat pump heating capacity,and collector tilt angle were optimized using the Genopt optimization algorithm. The system exhibited excellent performance under optimal parameter combinations. The results showed that after optimization,the system's annual cost decreased by 9%,the operational energy efficiency ratio improved to 3.4,and the initial investment was reduced by 11%. Additionally, the drying period for wolfberry was shortened from 18-22 h with traditional methods to 12 h, significantly enhancing drying efficiency. In terms of environmental benefits, the system achieved an 81.3% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to the conventional drying method supported by coal. The dynamic synergy mechanism and optimized system parameters should follow the principle of "prioritizing solar thermal energy and taking heat pumps as supplementary heat sources". This strategy effectively addressed the intermittency of solar energy, reduced the operating costs, and lowered carbon emissions. The findings provide a reliable theoretical basis and a practically valuable technical scheme for the green upgrading of agricultural product drying equipment in the high irradiation regions of Northwest China.

Key words: solar-assisted air source heat pump, dual-heat-source drying system, dynamic simulation, parameter optimization, energy consumption, carbon emission reduction

CLC Number: