Abstract:The use of shallow geothermal energy through energy piles for the air-conditioning of buildings is increasing worldwide. This type of renewable energy technology is still not utilized in Brazil, where the hot dominating weather regions and the air cooling demand predominate. In this case of unbalanced heat transfer to the ground, the efficiency of the system may decrease with time due to the excessive heat injection into the soil. In order to investigate the possibility of an efficient application of this tech… Show more
“…Considering the same sinusoidal form as in Brasilia, the real annual temperature variation in Porto Alegre can be converted into a more complicated curve: 16 (2.05 • 10 • + 1.39) + 0.04 (0.5 + 80) + 19.54…”
Section: Climatic Conditions In Brazilmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…The thermal operation of thermo-active structures strongly depends on the regional heating and cooling energy demands [15,16]. When they are nonsymmetrical over seasons, the sustainability will be directly affected, especially in tropical climates or cold regions.…”
Thermo-active piles are an upcoming technology for the utilization of subsurface geothermal energy in urban areas. This environmentally friendly technology has already been widespread for the heating and cooling of buildings in temperate regions, whereas in tropical regions it is still limited due to their unbalanced energy demands. This paper presents 3D thermo-hydraulic coupled numerical simulations to assess the long-term performance of thermo-active pile systems in tropical environments for different energy demands. The simulations are based on real data (in situ tests and field investigations) considering three typical thermal solicitations, thereby maintaining their practical relevance. Moreover, the energy exchange within soil control volumes is quantified based on an approach that allows calculating conductive and advective divergence. Parametric analyses regarding thermal solicitation, pile diameter, and groundwater flow are also performed. The results indicate that groundwater flow plays the most important role in improving the thermal balance of thermo-active piles.
“…Considering the same sinusoidal form as in Brasilia, the real annual temperature variation in Porto Alegre can be converted into a more complicated curve: 16 (2.05 • 10 • + 1.39) + 0.04 (0.5 + 80) + 19.54…”
Section: Climatic Conditions In Brazilmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…The thermal operation of thermo-active structures strongly depends on the regional heating and cooling energy demands [15,16]. When they are nonsymmetrical over seasons, the sustainability will be directly affected, especially in tropical climates or cold regions.…”
Thermo-active piles are an upcoming technology for the utilization of subsurface geothermal energy in urban areas. This environmentally friendly technology has already been widespread for the heating and cooling of buildings in temperate regions, whereas in tropical regions it is still limited due to their unbalanced energy demands. This paper presents 3D thermo-hydraulic coupled numerical simulations to assess the long-term performance of thermo-active pile systems in tropical environments for different energy demands. The simulations are based on real data (in situ tests and field investigations) considering three typical thermal solicitations, thereby maintaining their practical relevance. Moreover, the energy exchange within soil control volumes is quantified based on an approach that allows calculating conductive and advective divergence. Parametric analyses regarding thermal solicitation, pile diameter, and groundwater flow are also performed. The results indicate that groundwater flow plays the most important role in improving the thermal balance of thermo-active piles.
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