Fulton, a global manufacturer of steam, hydronic and thermal fluid heat transfer products and provider of innovative energy management solutions, introduced the Invictus gas absorption heat pump at the 2010 International Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration (AHR) Expo in Orlando, Fla., Jan. 25-27. Hydronic heating systems that incorporate the new heat pump can achieve operating efficiencies as high as 149 percent.

The Invictus is a natural gas- or propane-fired heat pump that is incorporated and piped into a traditional hydronic heating system alongside either condensing or non-condensing boilers.

Unlike other heat pumps on the market in North America that are primarily air handling products, the Invictus is a hydronic product. The unit uses an environmentally friendly solution, comprised of 2/3 water and 1/3 ammonia – a natural refrigerant, within a small closed system.

Invictus models include air source units, which extract energy from the outdoor air, ground source units, which pull energy from the earth via geothermal wells, and water source units, which remove energy from a local body of water. Additionally, Invictus units have both heating and cooling capabilities.

“For the past 20 years, boiler manufacturers – and the commercial heating market in general – have been focused on designing condensing boilers that have the ability to achieve thermal operating efficiencies of 99 percent. But, with the introduction of the Invictus, Fulton’s engineers are now able to custom-design systems that achieve up to 149 percent efficiencies,” Erin Sperry, commercial heating product manager with Fulton Heating Solutions, elaborated.

“By integrating a renewable energy source, we’re able to significantly reduce the amount of grid energy used. And, adding a customized intelligent control system – like Fulton’s ModSync, for example – further optimizes system performance to meet building requirements, and, ultimately, impacts customers’ energy spending.”