Geothermal Energy for Refrigeration and Air Conditioning, Sustainable Development, and the Environment
Omer A
Published on: 2021-06-15
Abstract
Geothermal heat pumps (GSHPs), or direct expansion (DX) ground source heat pumps, are a highly efficient renewable energy technology, which uses the earth, groundwater or surface water as a heat source when operating in heating mode or as a heat sink when operating in a cooling mode. It is receiving increasing interest because of its potential to decrease primary energy consumption and thus reduce emissions of the greenhouse gases (GHGs). The main concept of this technology is that it uses the lower temperature of the ground (approximately <32°C), which remains relatively stable throughout the year, to provide space heating, cooling and domestic hot water inside the building area. The main goal of this study was to stimulate the uptake of the GSHPs. Some emphasis has recently been put on the utilisation of the ambient energy from ground source and other renewable energy sources in order to stimulate alternative energy sources for heating and cooling of buildings. Exploitation of renewable energy sources and particularly ground heat in buildings can significantly contribute towards reducing dependency on fossil fuels. This section highlights the potential energy saving that could be achieved through use of ground energy source. This study highlights the energy problem and the possible saving that can be achieved through the use of ground sources energy. Also, this study clarifies the background of the study, highlights the potential energy saving that could be achieved through use of ground energy source and describes the objectives, approach and scope of the thesis. It also focuses on the optimisation and improvement of the operation conditions of the heat cycles and performances of the GSHP. It was recommended that GSHPs are extendable to more comprehensive applications combined with the ground heat exchanger in foundation piles and the seasonal thermal energy storage from solar thermal collectors. Therefore, an approach is needed to integrate renewable energies in a way to meet high building performance. However, because renewable energy sources are stochastic and geographically diffuse, their ability to match demand is determined either by the utilisation of a greater capture area than that occupied by the community to be supplied or the reduction of the community’s energy demands to a level commensuratable with the locally available renewable resources.
Keywords
Geothermal heat pumps; Direct expansion; Ground heat exchanger; Heating and coolingIntroduction
Globally buildings are responsible for approximately 40% of the total world annual energy consumption. Most of this energy is for the provision of lighting, heating, cooling and air conditioning. An increase in awareness of the environmental impact of CO2, NOx and CFCs emissions triggered a renewed interest in environmentally friendly cooling and heating technologies. Under the 1997 Montreal Protocol, governments agreed to phase out chemicals used as refrigerants that have the potential to destroy stratospheric ozone. It was therefore considered desirable to reduce energy consumption in order to decrease the rate of depletion of world energy reserves as well as the pollution to the environment. One way of reducing building energy consumption is to design buildings, which are more efficient in their use of energy for heating, lighting, cooling and ventilation. Passive measures, particularly natural or hybrid ventilation rather than air-conditioning, can dramatically reduce primary energy consumption. Therefore, promoting innovative renewable energy applications including the ground source energy may contribute to preservation of the ecosystem by reducing emissions at local and global levels. This will also contribute to the amelioration of environmental conditions by replacing conventional fuels with renewable energies that produce no air pollution or the greenhouse gases (GHGs). An approach is needed to integrate renewable energies in a way to achieve high building performance standards. However, because renewable energy sources are stochastic and geographically diffuse, their ability to match demand is determined by the adoption of one of the following two approaches: the utilisation of a capture area greater than that occupied by the community to be supplied, or the reduction of the community’s energy demands to a level commensurate with the locally available renewable resources. Ground source heat pump (GSHP) systems (also referred to as geothermal heat pump systems, earth-energy systems and geo exchange systems) have received considerable attention in recent decades as an alternative energy source for residential and commercial space heating and cooling applications. The GSHP applications are one of three categories of geothermal energy resources as defined by ASHRAE and include high-temperature (>150°C) for electric power production, intermediate temperature (<150°C) for direct-use applications and GSHP applications (generally (<32°C). The GSHP applications are distinguished from the others by the fact that they operate at relatively low temperatures. The earth’s surface acts as a huge solar collector, absorbing radiation from the sun. In the UK, the ground maintains a constant temperature of 11-13oC several meters below the surface all the year around [1]. Among many other alternative energy resources and new potential technologies, the ground source heat pumps (GSHPs) are receiving increasing interest because of their potential to decrease primary energy consumption and thus reduce emissions of greenhouse gases [2]. Direct expansion GSHPs are well suited to space heating and cooling and can produce significant reduction in carbon emissions. In the vast majority of systems, space cooling has not been normally considered, and this leaves ground-source heat pumps with some economic constraints, as they are not fully utilized throughout the year. The tools that are currently available for design of a GSHP system require the use of key site-specific parameters such as temperature gradient and the thermal and geotechnical properties of the local area. A main core with several channels will be able to handle heating and cooling simultaneously, provided that the channels are thermally insulated to some extent and can be operated independently as single units, but at the same time function as integral parts of the entire core. Loading of the core is done by diverting warm and cold air from the heat pump through the core during periods of excess capacity compared to the current needs of the building [3,4]. The cold section of the core can also be loaded directly with air during the night, especially in spring and fall when night times are cooler and daytimes are warmer. The shapes and numbers of the internal channels and the optimum configuration will obviously depend on the operating characteristics of each installation. Efficiency of a GSHP system is generally much greater than that of the conventional air-source heat pump systems. Higher COP (coefficient of performance) is achieved by a GSHP because the source/sink earth temperature is relatively constant com-pared to air temperatures. Additionally, heat is absorbed and rejected through water, which is a more desirable heat transfer medium due to its relatively high heat capacity.
The GSHPs in some homes also provide:
- Radiant floor heating.
- Heating tubes in roads or footbaths to melt snow in the winter.
- Hot water for outside hot tubs and
- Energy to heat hot water.
With the improvement of people’s living standards and the development of economies, heat pumps have become widely used for air conditioning. The driver to this was that environmental problems associated with the use of refrigeration equipment, the ozone layer depletion and global warming are increasingly becoming the main concerns in developed and developing countries alike. With development and enlargement of the cities in cold regions, the conventional heating methods can severely pollute the environment. In order to clean the cities, the governments drew many measures to restrict citizen heating by burning coal and oil and encourage them to use electric or gas-burning heating. New approaches are being studied and solar-assisted reversible absorption heat pump for small power applications using water-ammonia is under development [5]. An air-source heat pump is convenient to use and so it is a better method for electric heating. The ambient temperature in winter is comparatively high in most regions, so heat pumps with high efficiency can satisfy their heating requirement. On the other hand, a conventional heat pump is unable to meet the heating requirement in severely cold regions anyway, because it’s heating capacity decreases rapidly when ambient temperature is below -10°C. According to the weather data in cold regions, the air-source heat pump for heating applications must operate for long times with high efficiency and reliability when ambient temperature is as low as -15°C [6]. Hence, a great deal of research and development has been conducted to enable heat pumps to operate steadily with high efficiency and reliability in low temperature environments [7]. For example, the burner of a room air conditioner, which uses kerosene, was developed to improve the performance in low outside temperature [8]. Similarly, the packaged heat pump with variable frequency scroll compressor was developed to achieve high temperature air supply and high capacity even under the low ambient temperature of –10 to –20°C [9]. Such heat pump systems can be conveniently used for heating in cold regions. However, the importance of targeting the low capacity range is clear if one has in mind that the air conditioning units below 10 kW cooling account for more than 90% of the total number of units installed in the EU [10].
Methods and Laboratory Measurements
This section describes the details of the prototype GSHP test rig, details of the construction and installation of the heat pump, heat exchanger, heat injection fan and water supply system. It also, presents a discussion of the experimental tests being carried out.
Main Experimental Test Rig
The schematic of the test rig that was used to support the two ground- loop heat exchangers is shown in Figure 1. It consisted of two main loops: heat source loop and evaporation heat pump. Three hore holes were drilled each 30 meters deep to provide sufficient energy. The closed-loop systems were laid and installed in a vertical well. The ground-loop heat exchangers were connected to the heat pump.
Direct Expansion Heat Pump Installation: The undertaken experimental work consists of three parts. The first step dealt with drilling three boreholes each 30 meter deep, digging out the pit and connection of the manifolds and preparation of coils. Holes were grouted with bentonite and sand. The pipes were laid and tested with nitrogen. Then, the pit was back-filled and the heat pump was installed. The second step was concerned with the setting up of the main experimental rig: construction and installation of the heat injection fan, water pump, expansion valve, flow meter, electricity supply, heat exchanger and heat pump. The third step was an installation of refrigerator and measurements. The aim of this project is to present and develop a GSHP system to provide heating and cooling for buildings (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Sketch of installing a heat pump.
The heat source loop consisted of two earth loops: one for vapour and one for liquid. A refrigeration application is only concerned with the low temperature effect produced at the evaporator; while a heat pump is also concerned with the heating effect produced at the condenser (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Ground loops connections to heat pump and heat exchanger.
The earth-energy systems, EESs, have two parts; a circuit of underground piping outside the house, and a heat pump unit inside the house. And unlike the air-source heat pump, where one heat exchanger (and frequently a compressor) is located outside, the entire GSHP unit for the EES is located inside the house. The outdoor piping system can be either an open system or closed loop. An open system takes advantage of the heat retained in an underground body of water. The water is drawn up through a well directly to the heat exchanger, where its heat is extracted. The water is discharged either to an aboveground body of water, such as a stream or pond, or back to the underground water body through a seperate well. Closed-loop systems, on the other hand, collect heat from the ground by means of a continuous loop of piping buried underground. An antifreeze solution (or refrigerant in the case of a DX earth-energy system), which has been chilled by the heat pump's refrigeration system to several degrees colder than the outside soil, and circulates through the piping, absorbing heat from the surrounding soil. The direct expansion (DX) GSHP installed for this study was designed taking into account the local meteorological and geological conditions. The site was at the School of the Built Environment, University of Nottingham, where the demonstration and performance monitoring efforts were undertaken (Figures 3,4).
Figure 3: Drilling (1-2) digging of the pit (3), connection of the manifolds (4), grouting, preparation of the coils (5-6) and the source loop, which consists of two earth loops: one for vapour and one for liquid (7-9).
Figure 4: Preparation of coils (1-2), installation of heat pump (3-6) and connection of water supply system (water pump, flow meter, expansion valve and the boiler) (7-9).
The heat pump has been fitted and monitored for a one-year period. The study involved the development of a design and simulation tool for modelling the performance of the cooling system, which acts as a supplemental heat rejecting system using a closed-loop GSHP system. With the help of the Jackson Refrigeration (Refrigeration and Air Conditioning engineers) the following tasks were carried out:
- Connection of the ground loops to the heat pump
- Connection of the heat pump to the heat exchanger
- Vacuum on the system
- Charging the refrigeration loop with R407C refrigerant
- Water Supply System
The water supply system consisted of a water pump, boiler, water tank, and expansion and valve flow meter. A thermostatically controlled water heater supplied warm water, which was circulated between the warm water supply tank and warm water storage tank using a pump to keep the surface temperature of the trenches at a desired level. The ground source heat pump system, which uses a ground source with a smaller annual temperature variation for heating and cooling systems, has increasingly attracted market attention due to lower expenses to mine for installing underground heat absorption pipes and lower costs of dedicated heat pumps, supported by environmentally oriented policies. The theme undertakes an evaluation of heat absorption properties in the soil and carries out a performance test for a DX heat pump and a simulated operation test for the system. In fact, these policies are necessary for identifying operational performance suitable for heating and cooling, in order to obtain technical data on the heat pump system for its dissemination and maintain the system in an effort of electrification. In these circumstances, the study estimated the heat properties of the soil in the city of Nottingham and measured the thermal conductivity for the soil at some points in this city, aimed at identifying applicable areas for ground source heat pump system.
Design and Installation
Installation of the heat pump system and especially the ground heat exchanger needs to be carefully programmed so that it does not interfere with or delay any other construction activities. The time for installation depends on soil conditions, length of pipe, equipment required and weather conditions. The DX systems are most suitable for smaller domestic applications. The most important first step in the design of a GSHP installation is accurate calculation of the building’s heat loss, its related energy consumption profile and the domestic hot water requirements. This will allow accurate sizing of the heat pump system. This is particularly important because the capital cost of a GSHP system is generally higher than for alternative conventional systems and economies of scale are more limited. Oversizing will significantly increase the installed cost for little operational saving and will mean that the period of operation under part load is increased. Frequent cycling reduces equipment life and operating efficiency. Conversely if the system is undersized design conditions may not be met and the use of top-up heating, usually direct acting electric heating, will reduce the overall system efficiency. In order to determine the length of heat exchanger the piping material is needed. The piping material used affects the life; maintenance costs, pumping energy, capital cost and heat pump performance.
Heat Pump Performance
The need for alternative low-cost energy resources has given rise to the development of the DX-GSHPs for space cooling and heating. The performance of the heat pump depends on the performance of the ground loop and vice versa. It is therefore essential to design them together. Closed-loop GSHP systems will not normally require permissions/authorisations from the environment agencies. However, the agency can provide comment on proposed schemes with a view to reducing the risk of groundwater pollution or derogation that might result. The main concerns are:
- Risk of the underground pipes/boreholes creating undesirable hydraulic connections between different water bearing strata.
- Undesirable temperature changes in the aquifer that may result from the operation of a GSHP.
- Pollution of groundwater that might occur from leakage of additive chemicals used in the system.
Efficiencies for the GSHPs can be high because the ground maintains a relatively stable temperature allowing the heat pump to operate close to its optimal design point. Efficiencies are inherently higher than for air source heat pumps be-cause the air temperature varies both throughout the day and seasonally such that air temperatures, and therefore efficiencies, are lowest at times of peak heating demand. A heat pump is a device for removing heat from one place- the ‘source’ - and transferring it at a higher temperature to another place. The heat pumps consist of a compressor, a pressure release valve, a circuit containing fluid (refrigerant), and a pump to drive the fluid around the circuit. When the fluid passes through the compressor it increases in temperature. This heat is then given off by the circuit while the pressure is maintained. When the fluid passes through the relief valve the rapid drop in pressure will result in the cooling of the fluid. The fluid then absorbs heat from the surroundings before being re-compressed. In the case of do-mestic heating the pressurized circuit provides the heating within the dwelling. The depressurized component is external and, in the case of ground source heat pumps, is buried in the ground. Heat pump efficiencies improve as the temperature differential between ‘source’ and demand temperature decreases, and when the system can be ‘optimized’ for a particular situation. The relatively stable ground temperatures moderate the differential at times of peak heat demand and provide a good basis for optimization (Figure 5). The refrigerant circulated directly through the ground heat exchanger in a direct expansion (DX) system but most commonly GSHPs are indirect systems, where a water/antifreeze solution circulates through the ground loop and energy is transferred to or from the heat pump refrigerant circuit via a heat exchanger. This application will only consider closed loop systems. The provision of cooling, how- ever, will result in increased energy consumption. The GSHPs are particularly suit-able for new build as the technology is most efficient when used to supply low temperature distribution systems such as underfloor heating. They can also be used for retrofit especially in conjunction with measures to reduce heat demand. They can be particularly cost effective in areas where gas mains are not available or for developments where there is an advantage in simplifying the infrastructure provided.
Figure 5: Variation of temperatures per day for the DX system.
Coefficient of Performance (COP): Heat pump technology can be used for heating only, or for cooling only, or be ‘reversible’ and used for heating and cooling depending on the demand. Reversible heat pumps generally have lower COPs than heating only heat pumps. They will, therefore, result in higher running costs and emissions. Several tools are avail-able to measure heat pump performance. The heat delivered by the heat pump is theoretically the sum of the heat extracted from the heat source and the energy needed to deliver the cycle. Figure 5 shows the variations of temperature with the system operation hours. Several tools are available to measure heat pump performance. The heat delivered by the heat pump is theoretically the sum of the heat extracted from the heat source and the energy needed to derive the cycle. For electrically driven heat pumps the steady state performance at a given set of temperatures is referred to as the coefficient pf performance (COP). It is defined as the ration of the heat delivered by the heat pump and the electricity supplied to the compressor:
COP = [heat output (kWth)] / [electricity input (kWel)] (1)
For an ideal heat pump the COP is determined solely by the condensation temperature and the temperature lift:
COP = [condensing temperature (oC)] / [temperature lift (oC)] (2)
(Figure 6) shows the heat pump COP as a function of the evaporation temperature. (Figure 7) shows the heat pump COP as a function of the condensation temperature. As can be seen, the theoretically efficiency is strongly dependent on the temperature lift (compressed). It is important not only to have as high a source temperature as possible but also to keep the sink temperature (i.e., heating distribution temperature) as low as possible. The achievable heat pump efficiency is lower than the ideal efficiency because of losses during the transportation of heat from the source to the evaporator and from the condenser to the room and the compressor. Technological developments are steadily improving the performance of the heat pumps.
The need for alternative low-cost energy has given rise to the development of the GSHP systems for space cooling and heating in residential and commercial buildings. The GSHP systems work with the environment to provide clean, efficient and energy-saving heating and cooling the year round. The GSHP systems use less energy than alternative heating and cooling systems, helping to conserve the natural resources. The GSHP systems do not need large cooling towers and their running costs are lower than conventional heating and air-conditioning systems. As a result, GSHP systems have increasingly been used for building heating and cooling with an annual rate of increase of 10% in recent years. While in some zones such as hot summer and cold winter areas, there is a major difference be-tween heating load in winter and cooling load in summer. Thus the soil temperature increases gradually after yearly operation of the GSHP system because of the inefficient recovery of soil temperature as the result of imbalance loads (Figure 8).
Figure 8: Seasonal temperature variations.
Finally, the increase of soil temperature will decrease the COP of the system.
The first law of thermodynamics is often called the law of conservation of energy. Based on the first law or the law of conservation of energy for any system, open or closed, there is an energy balance as:
[Net amount of energy added to system] =[Net increase of stored energy in system] (3)
or
[Energy in] – [Energy out] = [Increased of stored energy in system] (4)
In a cycle, the work reduction of produced by a power cycle (or the increase in work required by a refrigeration cycle) equals the absolute ambient temperature multiplied by the sum of irreversibilities in all processes in the cycle. Thus, the difference in reversible and actual work for any refrigeration cycle, theoretical or re-al, operating under the same conditions becomes:
Wactual = Wreversible + To ∑I (5) Wactual = Wreversible + To ∑I (5) Where:
I is the irreversibility rate, kW/K.
To is the absolute ambient temperature, K
Refrigeration cycles transfer thermal energy from a region of low temperature to one of higher temperature. Usually the higher temperature heat sink is the ambient air or cooling water, at temperature to, the temperature of the surroundings. Arefrigeration cycle performance of is usually described by a coefficient of performance (COP), defined as the benefit of the cycle (amount of heat removed) divided by the required energy input to operate the cycle:
COP = [Useful refrigeration effect]/[Net energy supplied from external sources] (6)
For a mechanical vapour compression system, the net energy supplied is usual-ly in the form of work, mechanical or electrical and may include work to the compressor and fans or pumps. Thus, COP = [Qevap] / [Wnet] (7)
In an absorption refrigeration cycle, the supplied net energy is usually in the form of heat into the generator and work into the
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