Why would a conventional heat pump not work if immersed in water?
Suppose you have a house on a lake or river, or ground water at easy depth.
If using such water source as a medium, simply immerse the heat exchanger portion of the heat pump. That way, you could dispense with the air fan and its associated operating costs.
After all, the freon inside the heat exchanger does not know or care what medium (air or water) is on the outside of the heat exchanger.
All it knows is that its temperature is changed as it flows through the heat exchanger.
And, since water is ~800 times denser than air, and since groundwater in the US is generally >50 degrees vs. <30 degree ambient air in the wintertime, that >50 degree groundwater has a whole lot more heat to extract, at much lower effort, than if the heat pump were struggling to heat your house from <30 degree air. Especially in a cold snap. Ditto the relative efficiency for summer cooling.
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