WATER TEMPERATURE ADJUSTMENT IN SPAS BY THE AID OF HEAT PUMPS

Mineral spas are considered an important national resource, used mainly for therapeutical and recreational purposes. However, raw mineral waters are often at temperatures different from the required ones and need to be cooled or heated to be adjusted to the level adequate for a specified purpose. For such an adjustment, energy is either released (when cooling down the mineral water) or consumed (for heating up the mineral water). Heat pumps may be used to multiply the gain of energy when released, or reduce the energy needed for heating the water. The report deals with technical possibilities and economic benefits of the use of heat pumps in such case studies in two spas of Serbia, Mataruska spa near Kraljevo, and Bukovicka spa in Arandjelovac.