Exploiting the surface geothermal energy to heat and cool buildings
Exploiting the surface geothermal energy to heat and cool buildings
The thermal exploitation of the ground's surface layers is already common practice in many countries. Generally exploited using geothermal heat pumps to exchange and store heat from the ground. The efficiency of these systems is affected by many factors, among which climatic conditions and the thermal properties of the soil play a major role. The aim of this research work is to study the impact of different surface heat fluxes on the estimation of seasonal variations in ground temperature, and to determine the thermal energy close to the ground surface for use in heating and cooling buildings. A transient model based on the finite volume method "Comsol multiphysics", taking into account atmosphere-soil-heat exchanger interactions, is established for the resolution of the soil energy conservation equations and the soil surface water balance.
KEY WORDS: unsaturated soil, geothermal energy, convection, heat exchanger, atmospheric interaction
Kheira Belhamideche; Nadia Laredj; Mustapha Maliki; Hanifi Missoum
18th African Regional Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ARCSMGE2024)
Environmental geotechnics
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