GEOEXCHANGE

(Geothermal Heating and

Cooling Systems)

By:
Rutvan Jariwala
Trisha Patel,
Nirma University.
Geothermal Heating & Since earth temperature remains
relatively constant throughout the
Cooling year, geoexchange systems
operate more efficiently than air-
Geothermal systems use the source heat pumps and generally
earth as a natural contributor to without the use of resistance
both cooling and heating for just heat. And because they are
about any kind of structure and working from those constant
anywhere on the face of the earth temperatures, there are no
earth. blasts of hot air or "cold blow" as
Burying extremely durable high with other systems.
density plastic pipe in vertical
bore holes or horizontal trenches Since there is no outdoor unit
connects the buildings to (as with air-source heat pumps
Geothermal units with the earth or the central air conditioners
for a long-lasting, low used with combustion-based
maintenance, high comfort, low systems), no weather-related
noise level system. maintenance is required.
System components are installed
either indoors or underground, so A gas geothermal heat pump is
they are not exposed to theft, a device that extracts heat from
vandalism or environmental the earth's underground layers.
conditions which can shorten The principle of operation relies
system life. on the fact that heat always
With only periodic filter changes, flows from higher temperature
Geothermal Heat Pumps are matter to lower temperature
mostly very low maintenance matter by conduction or by
systems. In fact, many convection (air currents).
Geothermal units installed 30 to Geothermal pumps take energy
40 years ago are still in operation from the ground or water to
today. provide heating and hot water
for all building types. Using the
The Geothermal System is method of heat exchangers,
sensitive to the needs of the heat can be extracted from one
environment. It uses no source and delivered to another.
combustion which can release Gas geothermal heat pumps
carbon dioxide or other gasses basically pump the heat from
into the work space or the one location to another. 
environment. No ammonia or
ozone damaging CFC refrigerants Rather than using refrigerant,
are used. The refrigerant charge a geothermal heat pump uses
is small and factory sealed. a series of piping, installed
below the earth's surface or
 submersed in a pond or lake, of 50°F to 70°F at a particular
to form a loop through which depth depending on geographic
water or another location.
environmentally safe fluid is
pumped. During the winter A Ground source heat pump is
months, the fluid carries heat used to move heat that already
into the house, where a exists in the earth to provide
compressor and heat your home with central heating.
exchanger concentrate the
earth's energy before Working with an underground
releasing it into the home at a loop system, geothermal
higher temperature. The heat heating and cooling systems
is then distributed throughout utilize this constant temperature
the house through a series of to exchange energy between
ductwork, just like a forced-air your building and the earth as
furnace. During the summer needed for heating and cooling.
months, the fluid carries heat
from the home, releasing it In Winter, water circulating
back into the earth or the inside a sealed underground
water body in which it is loop system absorbs heat from
submerged. The length of the the earth and carries it to the
piping loop depends on geothermal unit. Here it is
several factors: the heating compressed to a higher
and cooling requirements of temperature and sent as warm
the home, climate and soil air to the indoor system for
conditions, landscaping, and circulation throughout the
type of loop used. building.

Principle of Working
The system takes advantage of
the fact that the temperature
below ground remains the same
throughout the entire year,
regardless of climate or season.

The ground is able to keep a

higher rate of temperature
consistency because it absorbs
almost half of the suns heat as
it hits the surface of the earth.
The earth absorbs almost 50%
of all solar energy and remains
a nearly constant temperature
 In Summer, the system
reverses and expels heat from
the building into the cooler
earth via the loop system. This
heat exchange process is not
only natural, but it is highly
efficient way to create a
comfortable climate in the
building.

Comparison of air
temperatures to ground and
soil temperatures.
80

70

60

50

Well water
12 ft. earth
40 5 ft. earth
2 ft. earth
Air temp.

30

20

10

0
J an Feb Mar Apr May J un J ul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Components and their Common Installation
Working Systems (for pipes)

1. Ground Loop Closed Loop Systems

The tubing can be installed A closed loop system, the most
horizontally as a loop field or common, circulates the fluid
vertically as a series of long U- through the loop fields’ pipes and
shapes in wells. The purpose of does not pull in water from a
the tubing is to transfer heat to water source. In a closed loop
and from the ground. The size of system there is no direct
the loop field depends on the soil interaction between the fluid and
type and moisture content, the the earth; only heat
average ground temperature and transfer across the pipe.
the heat loss and or gain
characteristics of the building The length of vertical or
being conditioned. horizontal loop required is a
function of the ground
formation thermal conductivity,
2. Liquid Pump Pack ground temperature, and heating
and cooling power needed, and
The second component in some
also depends on the balance
cases is a liquid pump pack,
between the amount of heat
which sends the water through
rejected to and absorbed from
the tubing and the water-source
the ground during the course of
heat pump. Some manufacturers
the year.
have this pumping capacity
within the heat pump appliance. A rough approximation of the
initial soil temperature is the
average daily temperature for
3. Geothermal Heat Pump the region.
or Water source Heat
Although copper and other
Pump
metals can be used,
Lastly, the water-source heat polyethylene seems to be the
pump is the unit that becomes most common tubing material
the heating and cooling plant for used currently by installers. 3/4
the building. It can cover space inch (19mm) or 1.25 inch inside
heating, space cooling, domestic diameter are common sizes of
or pool water preheat. tubing.
Heat pumps have the ability to The four common types of
capture heat at one temperature systems are:
reservoir and transfer it to
another temperature reservoir.
 1. Vertical Closed Loop Field
This type of loop is used where
there is little yard space, when
surface rocks make digging
impractical, or when you want to
disrupt the landscape as little as
possible. Vertical holes 150 to
450 feet deep - much like wells -
are bored in the ground, and a
single loop of pipe with a U-bend
at the bottom is inserted before
the hole is backfilled. Each
vertical pipe is then connected to
a horizontal underground pipe
that carries fluid in a closed
system to and from the indoor
exchange unit. Vertical loops are
generally more expensive to
install, but require less piping
than horizontal loops because
the Earth's temperature is more
stable farther below the surface.
2. Horizontal Closed Loop
Field and also Slinky
Closed Loop Field
Slinky Closed Loop System
Horizontal ground closed loop
systems are typically the
most cost effective, assuming
the lot size is sufficient. In a
horizontal ground closed loop
system, a series of parallel
plastic pipe is buried three to
six feet below the earth's
surface, with a typical length
of 400 to 600 feet per ton of
heating and cooling. Piping
can also be coiled in a slinky
shape to increase the amount
of piping that can be located
in a given space. Fluid is then
used to carry heat to and
from the indoor exchange
unit.

Horizontal Closed Looped

System

3. Pond Closed Loop System

This type of loop design may
be the most economical when
a home is near a body of
water such as a shallow pond
or lake. Fluid circulates
underwater through
polyethylene piping in a
closed system, just as it does
through ground loops. The
pipes may be coiled in a
slinky shape to fit more of it
into a given amount of space.
Since it is a closed system, it
 results in no adverse impacts
on the aquatic system.

Pond Closed Loop Systems

Open Loop Systems Advantages

The open loop geothermal
heating system has been used  Easy to install units
with great success for several inside the building
decades now. Open loop
systems work by drowning an
Horizontal GHP unit
aquifer through one well,
installation above a dropped
which is then discharged to the
ceiling
same aquifer but through a
second well that is distanced
from the first one. Such Geo-
Thermal Heating systems are
very popular in areas where
they are allowed because they
the temperature of ground
water is almost constant
throughout the year.
Vertical GHP unit installation in a These 1,000,000 installations
mechanical utility close have also resulted in the
following energy consumption
reductions:

 Annual savings of nearly

8,000 GWh
 Annual savings of nearly
40 trillion Btus of fossil
fuels
 Reduced electricity
demand by more than
2.6 GW
The impact of the current use
of geothermal heat pumps is
equivalent to:

 Taking close to
• Individual zoning 1,295,000 cars off the
• No outdoor mechanical road
equipment  Planting more than 385
• Reduced outdoor million trees
mechanical noise  Reducing U.S. reliance
• Lower service and on imported fuels by
maintenance costs 21.5 million barrels
• Very efficient cooling and (3,420,000 m³) of crude
heating even in desertic oil per year.
conditions
• Longer Service Life
• Lower expansion costs

The current use of geothermal

heat pump technology has
resulted in the following
emissions reductions:

 Elimination of more than

5.8 million metric tons of
CO2 annually
 Elimination of more than
1.6 million metric tons of
carbon equivalent
annually
Applications
Comparison between
Conventional HVAC
While not a fit for all systems and Geoexchange
situations, geothermal pump
System
systems are applicable in both
existing and new buildings. In
general, their benefits are Conventional Geothermal
greatest in buildings with Required
similarly sized annual heating 96,000(80T) 96,000(80T)
BTUH
and cooling loads, and those
EER 10.3 14.7
desiring independent climate
Power
control of many rooms. The 93204 Watt 65306 Watt
Consumption
systems can provide efficient
Water
heating and cooling of
Circulation 3750 Watt
different zones simultaneously.
Pump
Office buildings and schools Energy
are particularly good Consumption 93204 Watt 69056 Watt
applications for geothermal kwh
heat pumps. These facilities % Saving 26%
have relatively high  Initial Cost
24 to 30 lakh 38 to 40 lakh
occupancy, fluctuating usage (Rs.)
schedules, and widely varying
heating and cooling
requirements within individual
zones (offices and classrooms)
that are difficult to meet
efficiently with conventional
systems. Further, efforts to
improve the efficiency of
conventional systems employ
control strategies that can add
considerable cost and
complexity to the systems,
increase maintenance
requirements, and often
compromise occupant comfort.