Ground Source Heat Pumps

Ground-source (geothermal) Heat Pumps

Current status of ground source heat pumps in Europe

Geothermal Heat Pumps, or Ground Source Heat Pumps (GSHP), are systems combining a heat pump with a ground heat exchanger (closed loop systems), or fed by ground water from a well (open loop systems). They use the earth as a heat source when operating in heating mode, with a fluid (usually water or a water-antifreeze-mixture) as the media transferring the heat from the earth to the evaporator o...

On the Design and Response of Domestic Ground-Source Heat Pumps in the UK

The design and response of ground source heat pumps coupled to vertical closed loop arrays in UK domestic applications are investigated in this article. Two typical UK house types are selected as the vehicle for the study and a detailed dynamic thermal modelling method is used to arrive at time-series heating demands for the two houses. A new empirical heat pump model is derived using experimen...

State-of-the-art Survey of Existing Knowledge for the Design of Ground-source Heat Pumps

The objectives of the program reported here were to gather design and performance information on historical and current ground-coil heat-pump systems, to assess the adequacy of available design methods, and to define near-future R&D needs to promote the use of this technology. The project was generally separated into two parts: (1) a review of the North American technology conducted by Battelle...

Research on Ground Source Heat Pump Design

One of world’s largest uses of energy is the heating and cooling of buildings. Ground Source Heat Pumps (GSHP) provide a more energy efficient way to meet building energy needs than conventional alternatives. At a relatively shallow depth, the ground temperature is nearly constant year round providing a reliable heat source or sink for the operation of a heat pump. The design of such systems is...