Combined heat and power (CHP) is the simultaneous production of electricity and heat from a single source, near to where they are to be used.
By locating CHP equipment in or close to a building, both the electricity and the heat generated can be used in the building with no energy wastage or loss during transportation to another site.
Although large scale CHP has been available for many years for commercial use, micro combined heat and power (also known as micro-CHP or domestic CHP) is a relatively new technology - generating low cost, low carbon electricity for use in the home while providing heating and hot water.
There are various types of combined heat and power systems available, which are suited for a range of applications. The three micro-CHP systems offered by Baxi are based on different technologies:
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Free Piston Stirling Engine
Combined heat and power systems employing a Free Piston Stirling Engine (FPSE) are ideally suited for use in the home as the technology is extremely reliable and designed to operate virtually noise and vibration free.
The Baxi Ecogen dual energy system provides efficient gas central heating and hot water like any other boiler, while the Stirling engine generates up to 1kWh of electricity.
The award-winning Baxi Ecogen is the first widely available wall-hung domestic micro-CHP boiler in the UK. It is also the first micro combined heat and power product to achieve Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) certification, making it eligible for the Government's Feed-in Tariff. -
Internal Combustion Engine
The Baxi SenerTec Dachs uses a reliable internal combustion engine fuelled from a single source such as natural gas or LPG to generate 5.5kW of electricity while providing 12.5kW of useful heat.
Europe's most popular micro combined heat and power (CHP) unit, it is suitable for all types of large residential and commercial buildings - offering easy installation, fast start up, low noise levels and a long life. -
Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell
The proton exchange membrane fuel cell is an innovative combined heat and power technology that offers significant energy and carbon savings.
Although not much bigger than a traditional boiler, the Baxi Innotech GAMMA 1.0 system provides almost three quarters of the electricity required over the year while covering a household's entire annual heat requirement.
Fuelled mainly by natural gas, this compact and extremely efficient CHP unit is ideally suited to single-family homes.
