Novel tool and guidelines for designing ground source heat pumps (GSHPs) in densely populated areas
Ground source heat pumps (GSHPs) are a widespread technology in Sweden and its spread is forecasted to increase even further. However, designers of such systems lack a dedicated design tool when dealing with independent GSHPs, like in densely populated areas. This results in systems operating with lower efficiency than expected.
Funded by:
Energimyndigheten
Bengt Dahlgren Geoenergi
Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan
Neoenergy Sweden AB
Nibe AB
Nowab AB
Stockholms kommun
Svenska Borrentreprenörers Branschorganisation
Svenskt geoenergicentrum AB
Täby kommun
Thermia AB
Time period: 2021-01-01 – 2023-06-30
Project members:
KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Background
GSHPs extract heat from the underground to deliver it to buildings. Much heat extracted in the same area leads to less efficient systems. This is well known, hence extensive research has been carried out to study the thermal influence between neighbouring boreholes belonging to the same installation - the so called borehole field - and to provide appropriate design tools able to take the thermal interaction between different wells into account.
Aim and objectives
The goals of the project are summarized as
1. Create a practical, exhaustive tool* to design GSHPs in densely populated areas based on the most recent advancement in the fields.
2. Use the tool to evaluate several relevant scenarios and provide background for new guidelines.
3. Initiate a long-term monitoring of the underground temperature in a densely populated area.
* the tool will consist of a Julia package openly available on GitLab. It will be thoroughly documented to ensure easy and straight-forward accessibility to all type of users. The code behind the package will also be visible and documented to allow expert users to further develop and customize the package. The tool itself will be open source and free for everyone, however the possibility to incorporate it in commercial software already used in the field, or to give origin to a new software of this kind will be discussed with the projects partners.
Outcomes
The findings of this project will be summarized in a final report and a Ph.D. thesis. Moreover, they will be reported in scientific articles, presented at international conferences, and summarised in technical magazines. The results will also be continuously reported to the project partners through bi-monthly meetings.
In addition, to fully spread the information on the tool, its existence, and its usability, the results of the project will be presented at seminars held by The Swedish Society of Refrigeration (Svenska Kyltekniska Föreningen).
Project contact persons
