Supply Temperature

The supply temperature is a key parameter in heating, cooling, and process heat systems. It refers to the temperature of the heat transfer medium—typically water, thermal oil, or steam—as it leaves the heat generator (e.g. boiler, heat pump, or district heating substation) and is fed into the distribution system. The supply temperature determines the temperature level that can be achieved at the connected heat consumer (e.g. radiator, heat exchanger, or process unit).

Industrial requirements

In industrial applications, particularly in process heat supply, significantly higher supply temperatures on the heat sink side are required. Temperatures from 80 °C up to more than 200 °C may be necessary, for example, for cleaning, drying, pasteurization, or chemical processes. This places special demands on heat generation technologies—especially when using high-temperature heat pumps.

Relevance for high-temperature heat humps

For industrial high-temperature heat pumps, the achievable supply temperature on the heat sink side is a decisive design criterion. The higher the required supply temperature, the greater the thermodynamic temperature lift must be—in other words, the heat pump must overcome a larger temperature difference between the heat source and the heat sink. This directly affects:

• the energy demand and coefficient of performance (COP),
• the choice and loading of the refrigerant,
• the design of compressors, heat exchangers, and piping.

Modern high-temperature heat pumps such as SPH’s ThermBooster™, depending on technology and refrigerant, can provide supply temperatures on the sink side of up to 200 °C. This makes it possible to fully replace fossil-based heat generation in many industrial processes.

Impact on the system

The supply temperature on the heat sink side influences the efficiency and dimensioning of the entire heat supply system. It is directly linked to the return temperature on the heat source side, and together they determine the temperature spread—and thus the COP—of the heat pump.

If the supply temperature is set too high, this can result in unnecessarily high energy consumption and material stress, while a supply temperature that is too low may fail to provide the required heat. A precise, demand-driven design that considers the specific heat demand, load profiles, and system components is therefore essential for energy-efficient and cost-effective operation—particularly when integrating into existing industrial processes.